by leaptbl on January 29, 2010
This blog entry is coming from the lookout at South Mountain park in Phoenix. Hope or despair?? What is one to think when it comes to sustainability? I have just completed 2 days with 16 fact and idea filled presentations about what companies and government are doing to live with the realities of a carbon-constrained world. At the same time, from this vantage point, I can see a city in the desert sprawling as far as the eye can see. It is a city that uses finite resources like they are endless. Water is a given issue in the desert, add in the heat and humans desire to live at 72 degrees and one has a place that is a poster child for unsustainable life.
On the positive side, the large corporations I heard from as taking significant action to work toward and more sustainable future and also to remedy some of the mistakes of the past. A number of chemical companies were there. They have rich histories of over 100 years. They acknowledge that they way things were done long ago were never sustainable. They are taking care to clean up those past transgressions while also trying to reduce future risks as well.
A presentation by a preeminent CO2 consultancy from Europe put a different face on the reductions needed to create an opportunity to reduce the trends of green house gases. Some think we have sacrificed during the most recession. We aint seen nothin yet…Yes, there are opportunities for innovation. Bill Gates recent blog “Innovation not Insulation” is on the right track. Incremental changes will not solve the problem. It is too big. The planet we live on has become fairly flat with the rapid speed of communications. I do believe that innovations will come, but it may not be from the US. Can we put aside our pride and accept these other technologies if they come from Korea or South Africa? I hope so.
In the end, I have to have hope. Otherwise I would not be doing what I am doing. There are a lot of companies that need to shift from a laizze faire approach to sustainability. The risks of letting it ride are great. It is a swift and severe world. The winners and losers are quickly chosen and ascend or go down.
by leaptbl on January 24, 2010
The news that China was the largest market for new automobiles in 2009 was another sign that the future will belong to companies that have planned for coming resources risks. The longer that China buys cars at this pace the more volatility we will see in energy markets. The Economic Times predicted that by 2014 the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) will account for 30% of the worlds auto sales. Already Volkswagen gets 35% of its sales from these 4 countries.
Cheap gas is done for folks. The developing world aspires to drive like we do. Thankfully their road systems are not as developed, but they have companies like Tata making the Nano which will make driving available to a whole new segment of the Indian population.
The future belong to innovation transportation companies that can move people from one place to another efficiently and with little impact on the planet.
by leaptbl on January 12, 2010
Saw the movie Invictus over the holidays. Morgan Freeman gave a great performance as Nelson Mandela. He is an example of the type of leader that the sustainability movement needs. He spent his life in the single minded pursuit of breaking down the apartheid barriers in South Africa.
Nelson Mandela led groups his entire life, from herds of cattle in his youth, to the young revolutionaries of the ANC, and finally an entire country. He did it with thoughtfulness, persistence and a smile on his face. He won the devotion of many in his country and international recognition. Leadership is not easy and Mandela had his personal challenges too. He had failed marriages and strained relations with his children. These personal challenges did not stop him from working to see the vision of an integrated South African become a reality. The sustainability movement has rabid supporters and opponents. It needs leaders that are passionate about taking action to save the planet and with it civilization. Nelson Mandela’s struggles can serve as a model and guide for how transformational leadership can create changes in sustainability where people never imagined it possible.
My vision is to empower companies to transform themselves to sustainable enterprises practicing the triple bottom line.
by leaptbl on December 30, 2009
I guess I shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up, but the Copenhagen climate talks ended with little progress. It drives home the point that governments are nearly helpless to move bold change forward. Getting 190 plus countries to agree on anything is hard. To get them to agree on climate change issues is not going to happen in a way that creates meaningful change.
So who are the players that can impact climate change? Multi-national corporations are the best equipped to make impacts across a wide range on countries and industries. The European Union has set stricter emissions and reporting rules which some multi-national companies are now adopting as their default position in all markets. Finally, companies are beginning to realize that they better they take care of people and the planet profits will come as a result.
by leaptbl on December 7, 2009
The international climate change talks began in Copenhagen today. At the same time the EPA announced that green house gas emissions are pollutants and need to be regulated. Is the EPA’s announcement on the day Copenhagen opened coincidence? I doubt it. It appears the Obama administration is trying to send strong signals to the world that the US is serious about working at improving it performance and standing in the world in relation to climate change.
I was reading the GreenBuzz weekly e-letter from Greenbiz this morning. I was struck by the growing list of multinational corporations that are putting forth genuine efforts to improve the ways their products impact the environment. Coke, Kolh’s and AT&T were mentioned this morning. These are companies that are very interested in the bottom line. If they did not see climate induced risks on the horizon why would they be undertaking the efforts they have? There may be individuals that do not believe in climate change but those people are going to be left in the dust as the world passes them by.
Phil