Sam Lakha, Manager, Volans Outreach.
Innovation from both ends: linking the government with social entrepreneurs
Last Friday, Volans organised a workshop on social entrepreneurship at the Hub King’s Cross London, bringing together representatives from both the UK government and social entrepreneurs based in London. The government participants came from the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). The social entrepreneurs were founding members of Project Dirt and My Bank, the former a creative online community of environmental projects, the latter a forerunner in financial education for the youth.
Charmian Love, COO of Volans, led the dialogue by firstly offering an overview of the social entrepreneurship in the UK. Then, the contributors from the entrepreneurial side shared inspiring stories of their organisations’ missions, key activities and connections with the local authorities. The officials presented BIS strategy toward capacity building and innovating thinking within the government. The discussion was highly interactive, covering a range of key issues around forming meaningful partnerships, promoting media engagement, enabling knowledge sharing and capturing best practice.
What struck me the most was the enthusiasm from the both ends to connect, to understand and to continue the dialogue with each other. A theme throughout the discussion was around building effective channels to connect social entrepreneurs with the government, and vice versa. It was undoubtedly uplifting to see government’s interest in getting engaged and wanting to maintain the conversation moving forward.
The session featured only at the beginning of a potential series of rich and complex discussions between social innovators and the government. To make paradigm shifting come to pass, collaboration as such will, without a doubt, need to continue.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/innovation-from-both-ends-linking-the-government-with-social-entrepreneurs/.
- Jieying ZhengAfrican Demographics vs. Green Economy
The links between population, the way we produce and consume energy, and the fragility of the natural resource base is at the heart of the problem. But there are also solutions. Innovation can play a key role in cutting through this gordian knot, and is the main goal of the work that the Pathways to Scale Program is doing with the Tallberg Foundation. Just like mobile phone companies could leapfrog development from the crumbling state-owned telecoms, new business models emerging in renewable energies such as wind and solar power, biofuel cookers and rainwater tanks offer similar potential.
In Tanzania, 300 hectares of forests a day are lost to the production coal for cooking, which sustains rural livelihoods. Joint Environmental Techniques (JET), an organization associated to Rework, is promoting a way of producing charcoal briquettes with agricultural waste, which burn longer and are cheaper than coal in the market, providing sustainable livelihoods to poor rural families. Rework aims to convene the clusters of actors that can help JET, among other businesses, scale up the impact of its model on youth employment, faster. Their potential is to change the equation between the demand for energy and the depletion of natural resources, while generating the much needed ‘green’ youth employment.
The transition to a ‘green economy’ will remain a distant promise if young people, which are already the majority of the population in many developing countries, don’t find a way of getting involved. Our partners, such as the International Labour Organization (ILO) and TechnoServe, are joining the initiative to push this agenda in their respective spaces, whether by creating enabling business environments for these initiatives and accelerating skills building on the ground or by advancing the necessary global public policies, investment opportunities and coordination. Much more remains to be done, not least by putting the challenge of creating youth green employment high on the development agenda.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/african-demographics/.
- Alejandro LitovskyFixing, Helping and Serving
An insightful poem shared by Leng Lim at a recent Volans Talent engagement between PricewaterhouseCoopers and Hagar.
Fixing, Helping and Serving
A Fixer has the illusion of being casual.
A server knows he or she is being used
in the service of something greater, essentially unknown.
We fix something specific.
We serve always the something:
wholeness and the mystery of lie.
Fixing and helping are the work of the ego.
Serving is the work of the soul.
When you help, you see life as weak.
When you fix you see life as broken.
When you serve you see life as whole.
Fixing and helping may cure,
Service heals.
When I help, I feel satisfaction.
When I serve, I feel gratitude.
Fixing is a form of judgment.
Serving is a form of connection.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/fixing-helping-and-serving/.
- Kevin TeoInvestors worth $13 trillion raise their voice on climate
The world’s largest global investors issued on Wednesday a joint call for strong action from U.S. and international policy makers in the fight against global warming. Its not the average communique in that it is signed by 181 investors collectively managing more than $13 trillion in assets, the investor statement is the largest of its kind on climate change in world history.
“Investors have a crucial role to play in building a low-carbon, energy efficient global economy,” said Mindy S. Lubber, president of Ceres and director of the Investor Network on Climate Risk, which co-convened the forum and which Volans profiled earlier this year as a Phoenix Economy pioneer. “But without strong policies that encourage clean technologies and discourage high-polluting technologies, their hands are tied.”
Investors released the statement at an all-day International Investor Forum on Climate Change hosted by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli and keynoted by British economist Lord Nicholas Stern. Amid growing focus on upcoming international climate treaty talks and Congressional debate of climate and energy legislation, this major policy statement calls for a strong and binding international treaty that can catalyze massive global investments in low-carbon technologies. Signatories to the statement include state treasurers, controllers, pension fund leaders, asset managers and foundations worldwide.
“We must chart a new course toward long-term, sustainable business practices,” said DiNapoli, head of the $116.5 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund. “We cannot drag our feet on the issue of global climate change. I am deeply concerned about the investor risks climate change presents, and the human cost of inaction is unthinkable. As investors in the global economy, we can lead the way toward a future of lasting prosperity.” The New York State Common Retirement Fund exists to provide benefits to more than one million state and local government employees, retirees, and beneficiaries. DiNapoli last year committed to investing $500 million over a three year period in green businesses. To date, the Fund has invested $200 million under DiNapoli’s Green Strategic Investment Program.
The call comes in advance of the climate negotiations in Copenhagen this December. The outcome of those climate talks depends heavily on the course of debates in the U.S. Congress on climate and energy legislation. The House passed a comprehensive bill in June and Senate consideration of a similar climate bill is expected to begin within weeks.
Investors’ interest in ecosystem services
Their ambitions include putting in place “robust measures to reduce deforestation and promote afforestation” around the world, which is arguably one of the toughest areas to advance on. This is one of the themes which the Pathways to Scale Program is interested in pioneering, given that progress in this area will require to work with leading models and entrepreneurs, such as the Katoomba Group, the Amazon Fund, and the Global Canopy Programme’s work on ecosystem valuation, among many others developing specific solutions, to identify the barriers and blockages they face to scale, and signal the opportunity areas where large investor groups and policy-makers (who are creating specialized international funds and support programmes) can help create influential critical mass for system change.
Connecting investor groups with pioneers to co-create the necessary pathways to scale is a critical step in the transition to a low-carbon economy. Among the investor groups which should be part of such effort are the forum’s sponsors:
- Ceres is a leading coalition of investors and environmental groups working with companies to address sustainability challenges such as climate change. Ceres also directs the Investor Network on Climate Risk, an alliance of 80 institutional investors with collective assets totaling more than $7 trillion.
- The Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC) is a forum for collaboration on climate change for European investors. The group’s objective is to catalyze greater investment in a low carbon economy by bringing investors together to use their collective influence with companies, policymakers and investors. The group currently has 56 members, representing assets of around €4trillion.
- The Investor Group on Climate Change Australia/New Zealand (IGCC, Australia/New Zealand) represents institutional investors operating in Australia and New Zealand, with assets around A$500 billion, and others in the investment community interested in the impact of climate change on investments. The IGCC aims to ensure that the risks and opportunities associated with climate change are incorporated into investment decisions for the ultimate benefit of individual investors.
- The United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) is a global partnership between UNEP and the financial sector. Over 170 institutions, including banks, insurers, fund managers and investors, work with UNEP to understand the impacts of environmental and social considerations on financial performance.
Photo Credit: Sipa Press/Rex
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/investors-worth-13-trillion-raise-their-voice-on-climate/.
- Alejandro LitovskyLow-carbon industries reach $534bn turnover
Lord Stern predicted that the low-carbon goods and services sector would be worth $500bn by 2050 - a figure that HSBC reports has already been exceeded. Revenues in the sector soared 75% in 2008, despite the recession. They are now ahead of those for the aerospace and defence sector, which stand at $530bn. HSBC now predicts that the low-carbon sector’s revenues will exceed $2,000bn by 2020. Low-carbon energy generation produced the bulk of the revenues, at $300bn, followed by energy efficiency and energy management products.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/low-carbon-industries-reach-534bn-turnover/.
- John ElkingtonINSEAD Social Entrepreneurship Program – Singapore
Following a successful inaugural launch of the INSEAD Social Entrepreneurship Program (ISEP) in the Singapore campus last year, INSEAD will be holding the ISEP program again this year between 30 November – 4 December 2009. More details on the program can be found here: http://executive.education.insead.edu/social-entrepreneurship/.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/insead-social-entrepreneurship-program-singapore/.
- Kevin TeoInternational Democracy Day, yesterday
One of our Trailblazer organisations, The Environment Foundation, has just become The Foundation for Democracy & Sustainable Development - and, as Chairman of the Foundation, I co-wrote (with Foundation Director Halina Ward) an article on the theme for openDemocracy, which published it yesterday to celebrate the second annual International Democracy Day. Missed posting this link because I was in Plymouth, having been delayed for some while as we travelled westward when our train hit someone who had decided to commit suicide. The central question in our article, not meaning to be offensive, is whether the world’s democracies will respond in good time to this century’s great challenges, climate change in particular, or whether they will unintentionally commit collective suicide as problems outpace solutions - and darker political options are embraced.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/international-democracy-day-yesterday/.
- John ElkingtonVOLT-ING INTO THE FUTURE
A guest blog by Dr. Gary Kendall, Director of Climate Change Programs, SustainAbility
The future is bright, but in my case it isn’t orange, it’s electric. As I ease into lane 2 of the three kilometre banked circular test track at the Millbrook Proving Ground, my passenger - Don Cochrane, Sales & Marketing Director at Tesla Motors‘ UK arm - exhorts me to “floor it!”. So I put my foot down in a bright red Mark II Tesla Roadster, and I giggle at the instantaneous acceleration provided by a few thousand laptop batteries hooked up to an electric motor. ”No, I said: ‘floor it’!”, Don chides me. “Back off and do it again.” I slow to a crawl, and then slam the pedal to the metal as so heartily encouraged; now I’m clinging on for dear life as I’m thrown back into the driver’s seat and this life-sized Scalextric car whizzes silently to 100 km/h in less than four seconds. The disadvantage of such lightning acceleration is that three kilometres of tarmac pass me by all too quickly, and before I know it we’re gliding back to the car park. Phew!
We are often frightened into believing that the post-petroleum age necessarily means returning to a primitive world of back-breaking manual labour where mobility services are provided by the horse and cart. Electric traction, we are told, is suitable for forklift trucks and golf carts, not for mass appeal and certainly not for enjoyment (if golf is indeed ‘a good walk ruined’, where does that leave golf carts?). However, the simple reality is this: if primitive is what you’re looking for, there are few better ideas than digging pre-historic sticky black liquids from a mile below the Earth’s surface and setting their derivatives on fire in a relic of 19th Century engineering called the internal combustion engine.
While the Tesla Roadster itself may not be the answer to the coming oil crunch and the spectre of climate change, it certainly dispels the myth that electric vehicles are essentially boring. It is not only thrilling to drive, it’s SIX TIMES more energy efficient than its closest oil-powered equivalent, the Lotus Elise. This means that even when powered entirely from dirty coal-fired electricity, the Tesla cuts CO2 emissions per kilometre in half. And of course, it can run entirely on sustainable renewable energy, generated from wind turbines and solar panels. It can cover almost four hundred kilometres on a single charge and can be recharged for pocket change. Does any of this sound remotely primitive?
The future is bright indeed, and it’s coming around the corner faster than you might think.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/volt-ing-into-the-future/.
- Sam LakhaSingapore International Foundation seeks Dynamic Young Social Entrepreneurs
The Singapore International Foundation (SIF) will select up to 6 groups of young social entrepreneurs to participate in a week-long in-residence session from 7 to 11 December 2009. The programme is designed to help participants learn the fundamentals of starting a social enterprise.
Participants have to be within the age range of 18-25, and the teams need to have mixed ASEAN representation of 1-2 Singaporeans and 2-3 nationals of any of the other 10 ASEAN countries, studying or staying in Singapore.
More information can be found on the SIF website.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/singapore-international-foundation-seeks-dynamic-young-social-entrepreneurs/.
- Kevin TeoSchwab Foundation honors Asia Social Entrepreneurs
The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship will acknowledge the work of 5 Social Entrepreneurs at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian. These Social Entrepreneurs include:
- Disnadda Diskul – Doi Tung, Thailand
- Timothy Ma – Senior Citizen Home Safety Association, China
- Sebastien Marot – Friends International, Cambodia
- Sarah Mavrinac - aidha, Singapore
- Ambrosius Ruwindrijarto, Silverius Unggul – Telepak, Indonesia
More details can be found at: http://email.weforum.org/HM?a=A9X7CqEnH1qs8XyBta3SFu3jbw.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/schwab-foundation-honors-asia-social-entrepreneurs/.
- Kevin TeoVan Jones forced out
With the resignation of ‘Green Czar’ Van Jones, the Obama Administration is losing one of the nation’s leading environmentalists—but progressives also note that the loss is potentially much greater, given that he has been one of the few liberal voices with President Obama’s ear. Jones resigned because of right-wing protests about his signature on a 2004 petition questioning the government’s actions around the 9/11 attacks, a petition that claimed that US officials deliberately allowed the attacks. JOnes says he doesn’t believe that now—and didn’t then.
The first African American to write a best-selling environmental book, Jones was appointed by the Obama Administration as special adviser for green jobs at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Previously, he was with Green for All. Earlier in 2009, Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Notably, however, the San Francisco Chronicle reports that few progressives had stepped up to support Jones.
“Some feel that the White House caved too quickly to pressure from conservative activists and commentators—particularly Fox New Channel’s Glenn Beck—who have hammered on Jones’ mid-1990s Marxist affiliations and liberal activism,” The Chronicle notes. “In the mid-1990s, after he co-founded the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, an Oakland group focusing on police brutality, Jones became known for headline-grabbing statements like ‘Willie Brown’s Police Commission is killing black people.’” The 2004 petition called for a congressional investigation into the actions of the Bush administration surrounding the 9/11 attacks.
As Beck has now promised—or threatened, depending on your viewpoint—to focus on other “radicals” in the Obama White House, we must hope that this reignation does not herald an end to the Obama Administration’s attempts to pioneer what we called ‘government-as-unusual’ strategies in our recent report, The Phoenix Economy, experiments that won President Obama more votes than any other individual or organisation in our poll of leading entrepreneurs worldwide. Read more here.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/van-jones-forced-out/.
- John ElkingtonCorporate Roundtable on Social Entrepreneurship at Duke University
The Center for Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship (CASE) at Duke’s Fuqua School of Business will be holding the Corporate Roundtable on Social Entrepreneurship (CRT) on October 13 & 14, 2009.
The CRT is a network of select senior business executives committed to social entrepreneurship. CRT members meet twice annually to dialogue about best practices and challenges in achieving social impact
within a corporate structure. This event will include facilitated dialogue amongst the CRT members, presentations from Duke Faculty on cutting-edge research and interaction with Fuqua students.
For more details on the Oct 13 Corporate Roundtable event, click here.
And for membership details on the Corporate Roundtable, click here.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/corporate-roundtable-on-social-entrepreneurship-at-duke-university/.
- Kevin TeoHealth Care Innovaton - Robotic Surgery
Over dinner last night with a good friend who works at Guy’s Hospital (London), we had a lively conversation about new technologies being used in hospitals. I was amazed to hear that robotic surgery is not just another one of those ideas that is stuck in an endless ‘approval’ process or being ‘tested’ by regulators, but is actually used in practice today. Frequently!
Guys’ Hospital has two DaVinci Robots which are used in a range of surgeries. Apparently surgeons are using it for a range of procedures and find it effective in doing very fine and precise surgeries, as the robots can accentuate the movements of the surgeon. A wave of the hand by the surgeon translates into very small and discreet movements by the robot.
It is exciting to see technology innovations being applied in practice to help improve health care delivery.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/health-care-innovaton-robotic-surgery/.
- Charmian LoveEU Barroso’s ‘radical pathways’ to cut emissions
‘Radical’ is not the average qualifier for the European Commission’s President, Jose Manuel Barroso. Over the last two years, his efforts to align European countries behind ambitious climate targets have run into the inevitable stalemate and compromise.
But as Barroso unveils his new ‘manifesto’, intended to win the support of the Parliament for the renewal of his mandate, he argues that ”we need to start working now on a radical pathway to reach a far more sustainable Europe by 2020″, Reuters informs. Among the unveiled priorities are de-carbonizing Europe’s electricity supply and transport sector, including maritime transport and aviation, as well as the development of clean and electric cars.
Barroso already has the support of the member states, but needs the support of the parliament in order to win a vote of approval. The parliament, argues Pete Harrison, has consistently taken a greener approach than the EU’s 27 heads of state during negotiations over the last two years over EU energy reform and measures to curb pollution from cars and industry.
While the Green party’s support is important for securing Barroso’s vote of approval, environmental campaigners have received Barroso’s exhortations with caution. Joris den Blanken of Greenpeace thinks that ”many questions remain on how he is going to concretely put Europe’s economy on a sustainable pathway.” as there is no plan to reduce Europe’s depletion of natural resources like forests and fish.
The real test, however, is not about Barroso’s re-election, but whether the EU institutions can secure the level of results that we need in terms of sustainable development. Barroso is arguably paying some cosmetic service to his manifesto, ‘pitching’ a language of radical pathways to win the support of the greens, a prime example of the logic of electoral politics, which is the centerpiece of democratic systems. The short-term interests that govern the electoral 4-6 year cycles is perhaps the most important way in which democracy hinders sustainable development.
Even if Barroso is re-elected, the critical issue will be how, precisely, will he manage to deliver. A greener parliament is, sadly, no assurance of the long-term outcomes that are needed. The role of actors such as Greenpeace is essential to sustain the long-term interests on the table, but by no means are they enough. If real progress is to be made, democratic systems need to be able to support the long-term goals of sustainability; a difficult task when the systems are built around short-term negotiations. Transparency plays a key role, but new, proposals are needed for how democratic institutions can increase the voice of those concerned with a sustainable future.
Voice to the pioneers
As Volans works to help the future take flight, a key question for us is how to turn the volume up on the policy voice of pioneers. It is no news that a privileged access to politicians and policy-makers provides established carbon-intensive industries a powerful policy influence. This lobbying has a significant negative effect on democracy and on sustainable development; as not all voices are heard equally behind closed doors. Accelerating Europe’s transition to a low-carbon economy will therefore not only require bold strategies by governments, but also levels of political vision that go well beyond the politics-as-usual, and the ‘lobbying-as-usual’.
Most pioneers have have few agenda-setting resources and their policy ‘needs’ are well below-the-radar of the average law-maker. One example of how business pioneers are getting creative when it comes to amplifying their voice is the UK lobbying campaign ‘We Support Solar’, which resembles the advocacy strategies used by social movements, yet are driven by innovative companies such as Solarcentury. More of these alliances are needed to exploit the creative tensions between democracy, politics and sustainable development.
Barroso’s proposals include improving the energy interconnection between Europe and its neighbors, not least to guarantee Europe’s energy security. Here, technologies such as Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) could offer large-scale wins –even if they remain embryonic today, and creating and communicating the vision and knowledge of their ‘pathways to scale’ is essential.
As the EU parliament considers the support for Barroso’s next term, concrete ideas are needed on how his ‘radical pathways’ can be achieved. For example, in charting the way for increasing the inter-connection with its neighbors, the EU needs to engage more directly with African energy pioneers, such as New Energy Algeria, which are gearing up to supply renewable energy to the EU on a large-scale, and understand and learn from what it will take to make that a reality. The companies and investors betting on renewable energy markets have an important role to play in helping the EU become more nimble and effective as it carves a low-carbon future for itself.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/eus-barroso-urges-for-radical-pathways-to-cut-emissions/.
- Alejandro LitovskyBrazilian leaders discuss pathways to climate security
The Pathways to Scale framework developed by Volans was recently used by the Brazilian association for leadership development (ABDL) to train climate leaders in Brazil. The training focused on the challenges of overcoming the barriers to move faster towards systemic change.
The workshops were part of the Program on Leadership for Climate Security, which is training leaders of all sectors in Brazil on how to increase the impact of their initiatives on climate mitigation and adaptation.
“The Pathways to Scale model is helping us to frame and understand the barriers and strategies to overcome them.” said Thais Corral, leader of the Adapta Sertao initiative, who led the training workshop. “For me this is the core challenge for leaders is this field: how to understand the barriers we face at each step, and hot to create new pathways that can sustain the movement forward.”
Participants are leading a wide range of initiatives, from clean energy platforms in the Amazon to information inventories that will enable the application REDD –the carbon tradable permits generated by protecting forests– a central piece of the COP15 climate negotiations in Copenhagen later in the year.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/brazilian-leaders-discuss-pathways-to-climate-security/.
- Alejandro LitovskyUpdate on DJSI, a Volans Trailblazer
SAM, the investment boutique focused on Sustainability Investing, together with Dow Jones Indexes and STOXX Ltd., two leading global index providers, has announced the results of the 2009 annual review for the Dow Jones Sustainability and Dow Jones STOXX Sustainability indexes. I have been on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes advisory board since the DJSI was launched, so they qualify as one of our Trailblazers.
Following SAM’s latest global analysis of corporate sustainability leadership, 33 companies will join the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World), while 33 firms will be deleted – leaving the number of components unchanged at 317. The largest additions to the DJSI World include Johnson & Johnson, Coca-Cola, and Samsung Electronics, while the biggest deletions from this index are National Grid, Mitsubishi Estate, and SABMiller.
The review also results in 14 additions to and 20 deletions from the pan-European Dow Jones STOXX Sustainability Index, 26 additions to and 8 deletions from the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index, as well as 21 additions to and 13 deletions from the Dow Jones Sustainability Asia Pacific Index. All changes will be made effective with the opening of equity markets on 21 September 2009.
The DJSI follow a best-in-class approach and include sustainability leaders from each industry on a global and regional level respectively. The annual review of the DJSI family is based on a thorough analysis of corporate economic, environmental and social performance, assessing issues such as corporate governance, risk management, branding, climate change mitigation, supply chain standards and labor practices. It accounts for general as well as industry specific sustainability criteria for each of 58 sectors defined according to the Industry Classification Benchmark (ICB).
In addition, SAM also identified the top company for each of the 19 Supersectors that the 58 sectors roll up to. The new 2009/2010 Supersector leaders are adidas (Personal & Household Goods), Aracruz Celulose (Basic Resources), ANZ Banking Group (Banks), BMW (Automobiles), CEMIG (Utilities), DSM (Chemicals), GPT Group (Real Estate), Investimentos Itau (Financial Services), Kingfisher (Retail), Nokia (Technology), Panasonic Electric Works (Construction & Materials), Pearson (Media), Roche (Health Care), Sodexo (Travel & Leisure), Swiss Re (Insurance), Telefonica (Telecommunications), TNT (Industrial Goods & Services), Total (Oil & Gas), and Unilever (Food & Beverage).
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/update-on-djsi-a-volans-trailblazer/.
- John ElkingtonTriple Bottom Line, Take 15
It’s more or less exactly 15 years since I came up with the term triple bottom line, which has demonstrated the ability to run and run. It has been much discussed in all the conferences I have spoken at this year, most recently at the Oslo Sustainability Summit earlier this week, and is now spotlighted by The Economist.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/triple-bottom-line-take-15/.
- John ElkingtonVertical Farms – A new feature to the future urban landscape?
We are facing a few big ‘crunches’ right now…the credit crunch which we all know, as well as an emerging energy crunch and climate crunch. Many also argue that another big one on the not-to-distant horizon is a food crunch.
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With the longest season of drought in 83 years in India, where 700 million people depend on the earth and rains for their livelihood, there are signals this crunch is approaching fast and furiously. As we race towards a world with 9 billion people, how are we going to feed this rise in population?
< In the midst of the loud and active debates about the virtues and vices of GM (genetically modified food), I’ve recently been thinking - are there other ideas out there?
While watching a BBC show this Sunday on I was struck at first by the aesthetic, followed quickly by an appreciation of the functionality – of a brilliant architectural wonder – The Vertical Farm. Dickson Despommier from Columbia University’s School of Public Health proposes that there are ways of combining advances in architecture with sophisticated farming technology. The result? A 30-story building occupying a Manhattan block that, in theory, could produce enough food for 50,000 people.
In a recent interview, Despommier argued that to continue farming as we do now, we would need to set aside new land the size of Brazil. So if we can grow horizontally, we better find a way to grow vertically.
The address for this blog entry is: http://www.volans.com/2009/09/vertical-farms-%e2%80%93-a-new-feature-to-the-future-urban-landscape/.
- Charmian Love