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As a lead-up to Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, Jan. 18-25, Masdar sponsored a blogging contest called “Engage: Cities and Sustainable Development.” The following post was a runner-up.

By Jonathan Powell

Until 1714, navigating by sea was tricky unless you were in sight of land. Getting to France from England for the latest war was simple enough – you were bound to get there if you left the south coast and just kept rowing. But once explorers started trying to cross oceans, the difficulty in calculating longitude and position became an annoying problem. People kept drowning because they had no real idea where they were. Under the marvellously named Sir Cloudesley Shovell, the British Navy suffered the appalling Scilly naval disaster of 1707. One sailor from Genova even landed in America and thought he had reached India.

​To solve this problem, the British government made a simple decision. Nowadays it would be called crowd-sourcing, but back then it was called "offering an enormous prize to the first person who can provide a solution." £20,000 was up for grabs, which is worth winning in 2014, but 300 years ago in 1714 it would have been more than enough to make a large investment – if the winner was mad enough – in the South Sea company.

As a result the world was given the chronometer, and England was able to rule the waves for years to come – okay, it wasn’t good news for everyone. Nevertheless, the theory still stands up. If you need something invented or a problem solved, offer a prize. If you want to solve a big problem, offer a big prize.

Our current world issues concern sustainable living and the husbandry of precious resources rather than navigation, but they can be solved in exactly the same way as used by the Commissioners for the Discovery of the Longitude at Sea. Viz, a walloping great prize.

The problems to be overcome are well-documented. You might think your local city bus, tube train or metro is busy at the moment, but by 2050 more than two-thirds of the world’s population will live in cities. Research suggests they won’t all be in London competing with you to get on the Central line to St Paul’s, but not only do planners have to cope with this hefty increase in urbanization, they also have to do so with an eye to efficiency and sustainability.

It isn’t just the transport systems that will be creaking around the world. Urban energy usage needs to be addressed, as does the reliance of cities on water. Current waste disposal systems are reaching capacity and need to be rethought. Smart technology has a part to play, but more important is a complete overhaul of urban facilities and a reexamination of how they are provided. Prizes need to be offered for ideas to tackle energy usage, water efficiency, new building materials and innovation in all areas of city life. Everything can be integrated to reduce energy usage – from apps that tell drivers where parking spaces are to public transportation systems that reduce the need for parking spaces to internet connections to reduce public transportation usage.

New smart cities will be brimming with technological innovations, which will only come about if the great wealth of ingenuity that lies untapped in the people of the world is utilized. To advance sustainable development in cities there should be international awards offered for developments in:

• Air-driven low impact sanitation to reduce the amount of water used in waste disposal.


• Large scale, city-wide communal systems for heating and hot water.


• Re-showers that recycle the water used in showers, cleaning it when it hits the floor and sending it down onto the showerer again.


• Smart building materials that provide better environmental temperature control.

Entrants must not be restricted to large companies. The call must be sent out to men and women around the world working in sheds and bedrooms. Creativity is everywhere. The method is clear. The problems are clear. Ingenuity will provide the solutions.

History is full of examples of how prizes bring innovation. In 1908 the Daily Mail helped kick start the infant aviation industry by offering £1000 to the first person to fly across the channel. The result? In 1909 Monsieur Louis Blériot flew across the channel. Today the Google Lunar X prize is offering millions of dollars to the first private team that lands a spacecraft on the moon. If the needs of sustainable living are given the same prizes we will soon see great developments in the field. Or rather the city.

Image credit: Flickr/danxoneil

Based in the United Kingdom, Jonathan Powell blogs regularly on his site, The Flaneur.

The Credit Suisse multinational financial services group has told its junior bankers in the US, Canada and Latin America not to work on Saturdays, unless they are involved in a “live trade”. They may, however, work on Sundays after 10am.

The Saturday policy is among changes intended to improve job quality for Credit Suisse junior bankers amid worries about the long hours culture in the US financial sector.

Other steps include a new mentoring scheme and a fast-track promotion route for promising performers.

In the UK Sir Hector Sants, who was chief executive of the Financial Services Authority throughout the financial crisis, resigned as head of compliance at Barclays Bank because of exhaustion and stress. He joined Barclays in January last year but took sick leave in October.
 

Every Wednesday at 4 p.m. Pacific (and every once in a while at other times) TriplePundit founder Nick Aster will take 30 minutes or so to chat with an interesting leader in the sustainable business movement.  These chats are broadcast on our Google+ channel and embedded via YouTube right here on 3p.

Today, Nick will chat with Jeff Shiau, the Impact Hub cities program director who is currently kicking off the opening of Philadelphia's Impact Hub as well as Nate Nichols, a HUB Philly member.

Part innovation playground, part business accelerator, and part community workspace, the Impact Hubs offer a unique ecosystem of resources, inspiration and collaboration opportunities to grow impact. The global network of Impact Hubs believe a better world is created through the accomplishments of compassionate, creative and committed individuals focused on a common purpose.

Massachusetts has a ver populated coastline which also happens to be at risk for both flooding and sea level rise. In fact, the state has been hit by five major storms since 2010, including Hurricane Sandy. Some in Massachusetts are calling the damage done to coastal New Jersey and parts of New York City by Hurricane Sandy a "preview of what Massachusetts will face sometime in the future," reports the newspaper The Lowell Sun.

Massachusetts is also a state that is preparing for the damage climate change can cause. On Jan. 14, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick announced a $50 million investment for a statewide climate change plan.

The climate change plan will both assess and address the state’s vulnerabilities when it comes to public health, transportation, energy and the built environment. Part of the plan is a $40 million municipal resilience grant program which the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER) will administer. It will allow cities and towns to improve energy services at critical sites using clean energy technology.

The grants will be funded through alternative compliance payments (ACP), paid by electric retail suppliers if they lack renewable or alternative energy certificates to meet their compliance obligations under the state's Renewable and Alternative Portfolio Standard programs. The remaining $10 million will be invested in coastal infrastructure and dam repair, including $1 million in municipal grants from the Office of Coastal Zone Management. In addition to the $50 million investment, the governor will "seek $2 million in the Fiscal Year 2015 budget to accomplish the remaining interagency efforts," according to a statement.

Here are some of the details for how the $50 million will be invested to prepare Massachusetts for the damage done by climate change:

• The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) will create an inventory of the vulnerabilities and preparedness plans of electricity generation facilities, and the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) will work with utilities to find ways to deploy micro-grids and resiliency projects for transmission and distribution.


• The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) will conduct a statewide vulnerability assessment for all facilities and adopt climate adaptation plans by 2015.


• The MassDot secretary will create an internal working group which will advise on the next steps and work with stakeholders.


• The Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) owns and operates some historic parkways and roadways that are vulnerable to flooding and sea level rise. Under the plan, the DCR will conduct an assessment to figure out just how vulnerable its parkways and roadways are to flooding and sea level rise.


• Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) planners will be required to advise on hazards and resiliency in order to decrease long-term risk. MEMA will also be required to share hazard data to be used in building assessments.

Clearly, Gov. Patrick takes climate change seriously. In 2008, the governor signed the Global Warming Solutions Act into law, which targets a 25 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels by 2020 and at least an 80 percent reduction by 2050. Last year, he announced the state’s Accelerated Energy Program, which has the goal of reducing energy use by 20 to 25 percent over 700 state sites.

Image credit: Jeff Cutler

By Joanne Sonenshine

My children will face one of two scenarios when they reach my age in 2050.

Either they will have to relocate north to escape burning temperatures in our home state of Virginia, pay high value for water given its near lack of existence and consume chemically produced food due to lack of land for agriculture, or (and hopefully more realistically) they are part of a generation that has finally figured out how to sustain our planet, feed the 9 billion people who inhibit the earth and ensure economic advancement for even the most underserved.

I have spent my career building a case for the second scenario, trying to find the solutions now that will contribute to a positive, productive and safe future for our children and our planet. What is apparent in this quest is the need for urgent action to address the challenges we so often read about: increases in the number of people vulnerable to natural disasters, agricultural yields declining by 50 percent and water nearly unattainable for all of Africa. Where will the change come from? Who will be the lasting leaders?

The rise of the partnership model

Over the last 25 years, we have seen a select group of leaders make bold commitments to address the urgent social, environmental and economic crises of our time. As early as 1990 -- when environmental action was saved for protesters, and social action was left for governments to grapple with -- one company decided to make a change that ultimately led us down the path of corporate sustainability and societal change.

After facing harsh criticism from the general public over the mounting waste caused by the fast food industry, much of it non-recyclable, McDonald's turned to the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) to analyze its packaging problems and develop effective solutions. In 1991, McDonald’s announced a massive overhaul to its packaging and waste program and eliminated more than 300 million pounds of packaging over the course of the next decade.

As a result of the packaging changes, McDonald’s also saved an estimated $6 million per year. This effort on the part of one company to identify a problem bigger than its own (i.e. trash and waste), find a partner in a nonprofit organization that was willing to engage and not turn away, and set an example for others to follow (which they did - including Coca Cola, which became the first company to use food-grade recycled PET plastic—known as rPET—in its packaging) was a first.

These collective actions led us into the current era of corporate social responsibility (CSR) -- where companies recognize their own self-interest in the social, economic and environmental benefits of ensuring a safe and healthier future for our planet. We have seen movement away from businesses whose only goals are to achieve financial profits and towards a scenario where businesses see incremental value in the leadership notoriety born of the responsibility for solving some of our most complex global problems.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) has taken the partnership model one step further. Having grown from a single coffee shop in Vermont to a multi-billion dollar beverage conglomerate over just three decades, they have identified ways to scale impact working with a series of partners. They have built a culture of giving back, dedicating a portion of pre-tax earnings each year to support social and environmental initiatives related to either areas of operation or programs in coffee origin communities. What they have recognized, however, is that in order to make true impact with these dollars, they need more help.

For example, together with several other roasters, GMCR is leading an effort to combat malnourishment and access to food in Latin America, which in turn keeps farmers healthy, happy and growing coffee for years to come. What GMCR has done is declare leadership by admitting that for true impact, environmental, social and economic commitments cannot be achievable by their company alone. They must include the involvement of others. Change must come over and over again in different shades and across different sectors.

Coming together for collective impact

This notion of businesses, governments, NGOs and others coming together to join forces for major impact is a term making a lot of traction in the CSR space. "Collective Impact." It’s how leaders (or "change agents") come together to create change and amplify at the scale and pace necessary to meet the needs of people beyond 2050.

In 2009, 29 members of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) released Vision 2050, a report addressing the growing problems we face as our population swells to almost unbearable limits and as our planet is tested by extreme environmental and economic challenges. Within the last few months, the Vision 2050 group recognized that the report alone is not sufficient. Change will only come from action.

Thus, the Action 2020 program has begun, led by business leaders keen to deliver on the goals set in the Vision 2050 report. According to the WBCSD, the effort "symbolize[s] the WBCSD’s move from developing thought leadership to driving action." This effort is collective impact at its finest. Companies breaking down silos, sharing information and ideas, and initiating joint efforts for larger global benefit economically, environmentally and socially.

Ultimately, collective impact helps companies see positive returns on their bottom lines as well. For example, Nestlé, the largest nutrition company in the world, has recognized that by sharing information and calling upon its competitors to join forces collegially to address critical issues like deforestation and sustainable sourcing, the impact on all business bottom lines will be positive. In particular, Nestlé "engage[s] and work[s] with external stakeholders on sustainability topics to ensure that [they] have the best knowledge and understanding to help…operational teams across the world." Companies like Nestlé are keen to move the needle.

Looking forward to 2050

It is thrilling to see this shift in business mentality. But more leaders are needed. While we have gained much in the CSR space in the last 25 years, the future of our planet is in question. With only 36 years until 2050, we have little time to waste.

I have heard a lot of talk about the need for "pre-competitive" action and joint ventures for improving inefficiencies across industry sectors, but I am not actually seeing much action. If we want to halt climate change, ensure future access to water, develop technologies to maintain food security and mitigate disease, we need to get moving.

Let's start walking the walk.

So how does an organization involve itself in collective impact? To get started, an organization must prioritize its goals and understand the space in which its goals are achievable. Next, it is critical to determine whether the goals can be achieved alone or are dependent on others. I would argue that almost always, true aspirational social impact goals must involve others. Next is one of the more difficult steps. Organizations need to understand the other players and their roles. Who are potential collaborators? What groups are already out there? Where is the best place to start the effort? At this stage, finding an appropriate connector to coordinate teams, develop strategies around collective impact and measure impact is critical.

In my more than 15 years working with companies and other organizations around corporate social responsibility, environmental impact and sustainability, what I notice time and again is the fortitude born by group action. We need to know who is out there, what they are doing and how we can contribute to each other’s’ missions. We need to make strong linkages and find the right chains to attach ourselves to. It’s about collective impact. It’s about ensuring the future not just for the good of the planet and its inhabitants, but for the bottom line.

Image: School children returning to their families' coffee farms in Northern Sumatra, Indonesia

Joanne Sonenshine is Founder + CEO at Connective Impact, aiding organizations in strategic goal development, partnership creation, consensus building and focused thinking in order to solve some of the most complex problems of our time.

Despite apparent record profits, SeaWorld is in the thick of an emotional controversy about the ethics of keeping dolphins and whales in captivity for the purpose of putting on shows. It all stems from last fall's documentary, Blackfish, which depicts the life of Tilikum, a captive orca who has killed three people over the years. The film alleges his behavior is the result of psychological trauma brought on by being in captivity and goes on to discuss many other ethical downsides to whale and dolphin shows.

Let me get my bias right out on the table - I think dolphin and orca shows are ridiculous, though I'm willing to give SeaWorld the benefit of the doubt that they have at least a modicum of conservational value somewhere buried between the roller coasters and popcorn stands. SeaWorld does make some effort to create an educational experience for visitors, but it is definitely not a zoo. Its primary mission is entertaining and making money.

However, this post is about Southwest Airlines, one of SeaWorld's promotional partners and the latest target of attention by folks rallying to put a stop to cetacean captivity performances. The hope is that pressure on Southwest will reach SeaWorld.

For years, Southwest Airlines has been a marketing parter for Sea World, decorating planes in "Shamu" colors. With a huge presence in Orlando and San Diego, the partnership likely drives a lot of business for the airline.   Southwest also has a very good reputation for CSR - in particular employee engagement and listening to customers as well as integrated GRI reporting.  Much of this is manifested on Southwest's very good blog.

Southwest's response (so far) has been first rate - a non defensive blog post, openly acknowledging the concerns of the thousands of people who have been in touch with the airline.  Most importantly, Southwest is taking comments on the post, and does not seem to be censoring critical comments.  The result is a dialogue that has remained civil and constructive.

As of today's writing the post makes no commitment to alter Southwest's marketing relationship with SeaWorld, but with more and more attention piling on the issue - not to mention Blackfish's likely position as an Academy Award nominee - this is certainly not the last communication we're likely to hear from them.

The question is what happens next? It may seem a bit unfair for Southwest to be held responsible for something that is not directly under their control. But with rising concern about their partner's behavior, the pressure is on to take a stance one way or another.

Personally, I'd love to see Southwest drop SeaWorld, make a nice donation to Conservation International and keep their orcas flying.  Just rename them something other than Shamu.  But at the end of the day, the company will walk a fine line judging the volume of protests with the possibility of lost business with a dose of their own ethics. However it plays out, it will be a very interesting decision to watch.

Rigged poll in Orlando Sentinel

Image c/o Southwest

As a lead-up to Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, Jan. 18-25, Masdar sponsored a blogging contest called “Engage: Cities and Sustainable Development.” The following post was a runner-up.

By Mauro Small

Sustainable cities, or “smart” cities, focus economic and technological resources on conserving water, improving energy efficiency, reducing waste and enhancing their citizens’ quality of life. Innovations for renewable energy, the development of efficient waste management systems and community planning for smart growth ensure the viability of cities for  years to come.

Critical Water Conservation Planning

Cities striving for sustainability must address water supply issues based on population demand. According to the United Nations, a 3-4 degree Celsius rise in global temperatures by 2080 could place an additional 1.8 billion people in water-scarce environments. Municipalities must be able to maintain freshwater resources through conservation, treatment and recycling.

The city of Philadelphia has made inroads toward water sustainability through its “Green City, Clean Waters” plan. One of its goals is to protect the municipal water supply from stormwater runoff pollution. The plan calls for green, low-impact development to limit paved areas, which block runoff absorption. Additionally, Philadelphia has formally partnered with the EPA to develop new water handling strategies based on hydrologic and hydraulic models.

Long-Term Energy Efficiency

Smart cities focus on increasing both municipal and residential energy efficiency. Not only does this save money, but it also reduces air pollution and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, makes progress toward energy stability and independence, and creates new jobs.

Vienna, Austria, is well on its way on becoming a model city for sustainable development. Its goal is an 80 percent reduction in CO2 emissions by the year 2050. District heating systems that supply multiple end-users with heat and electricity are already in place. Additionally, Vienna’s energy efficiency standards for new construction are among the most stringent worldwide. The city is already a champion for ultra-low- energy housing.

Renewable Energy for Future Security

By developing renewable energy facilities, cities without domestic sources of oil, natural gas and coal can increase their future energy security and decrease their GHG emissions. Munich, Germany, has established a renewable energy program called “100 percent Green Power,” setting a goal of meeting all of the city’s energy requirements by 2025 with locally generated, green energy. The city plans to tap into hydro, solar, biomass, geothermal and wind energy to supply its electric needs.

Sustainable Solid Waste Management

To achieve a state of sustainability, cities must develop effective waste management practices. According to the EPA, the volume of waste in the U.S. alone increased 184 percent between 1960 and 2010.

San Francisco’s Zero Waste Program has set a goal of zero solid waste generation by 2020. By implementing strict waste reduction measures and actively creating a recycling and composting-friendly culture within the city, San Francisco has increased its rate of recycling to 80 percent.

Community Planning for Smart Growth

Planning for smart municipal growth is crucial for achieving long term sustainability. Affordable, energy efficient housing, and  green spaces are components of sustainable cities in the future. In Paris, this vision is already taking shape at Parc Clichy-Batignolles, a 133-acre development in the 17th arrondissement. The city has reclaimed land formerly used as railroad freight yards to build a sustainable community. The central park features low maintenance plants, wind turbines, solar collectors and a rainwater harvesting system.

Building sustainability into a city’s infrastructure creates long-term livability, jobs and increases the quality of life. Planning for a low carbon future, while preserving resources such as water and green space, is critical in terms of meeting the challenges of climate change and population growth.

The examples listed above are real-life projects for how cities can actively solve the problem of accommodating a large population while using fewer resources.

Image credit: Flickr/photographerglen

Mauro Small is an Energy Engineer based in Berlin, Germany.

By Richard Eidlin

Some policymakers are concerned about the dangers of adding to the national debt and don’t want to raise the debt ceiling, which the nation will hit on Feb. 7. They say it’s just not sustainable.

Surely, there’s such a thing as too much debt, and there are some things for which we shouldn’t borrow. But debt is not always bad. It all depends on what it is used for and how it is managed. If the reasons and the goals are sound, debt can be good -- really good.

This is something business owners understand particularly well. For a business, the typical goal is increased profits down the road. But what are the right goals for federal debt?

Our national debt was originally created to pay the costs of the American Revolution. More recently, federal debt financed our rail system, as well as World War II, and rescued the economy from the financial crisis of 2009. These have all paid off handsomely.

Today, we have an opportunity to move our economy to one that is more sustainable -- one that protects the planet and ensures that everyone is able to share in both producing and benefiting from a growing economy. This will not be quick or easy, but it could be enhanced significantly by government investment. From this perspective, it’s not that our national debt is unsustainable, but rather that it's a main goal for taking on additional debt needed to build a sustainable economy.

As with a business, founding a country or making strategic investments for a country’s future means incurring significant costs -- but the payoff can be extraordinary.

"Debt can be powerful fuel for starting or growing a company," says Denise Bowyer, vice president at American Income Life (AIL), based in Waco, Texas. AIL was founded with $25,000 in borrowed funds and is now a billion-dollar company employing thousands of people. "Those opportunities would not be available if it weren’t for debt," Bowyer explains.

We have seen the same in our nation's past. The Interstate Highway system, which cost $425 billion to build (in 2006 dollars), created $6 in economic productivity for each dollar spent, according to one estimate. The 2009 stimulus bill added as many as 3.3 million jobs and helped boost the economy at a time when a jolt was desperately needed. Perhaps the best example was the New Deal, which created millions of jobs during the worst slowdown in our history.

All of these programs cost money. At least some of that money was borrowed. But how much real value did they produce for the economy? And how much better off would we be, both now and years in the future, if we borrowed money and invested it in renewable energy, high speed rail, worker training or regulations that support innovation in industries to make sure we have good jobs and safe products for generations to come?

Bowyer explains that investments in programs like early childhood education and job training will move us closer to a sustainable economy. "The currently shrinking middle class can best be halted through policies that support higher learning and higher earning. Future workers earning more money and having the ability to compete is one of the best investments we can make," she says.

The national debt has been a constant throughout our existence. The highest our debt has ever been, as a percentage of GDP, was 112 percent at the end of World War II. Today, it stands at about 73 percent of total GDP. Overall, the United States has only been debt-free for one year in its history, and that ended quickly due to a recession.

Of course, not all debt undertaken by the federal government will have a positive impact on building a sustainable economy. Policymakers should always be looking for smart ways to reduce debt. For example, one bill on Capitol Hill that would close several offshore tax loopholes could bring in $220 billion in revenue over 10 years. Ending subsidies to oil companies could bring in billions more. Cutting defense programs that are ludicrously over-budget could also help, as would cutting subsidies to commodity food producers. These can all help slow the rise of our national debt and free funding for smarter, more strategic purposes that we can all get behind.

"Debt is not itself inherently evil," says Josh Knauer, president and CEO of Rhiza Labs, a software company in Pittsburgh, Pa. "Debt can be a very valuable business tool to use to acquire the capital needed for growth. Borrowing within reasonable limits makes a lot of sense for businesses and the government."

Building a sustainable economy will require the government to take on debt. We just need to make sure those financial obligations are for truly worthy and sustainable initiatives.

Image credit: Flickr/woodleywonderworks

Policy Points is produced by the American Sustainable Business Council. The editor is Richard Eidlin, Director – Public Policy and Business Engagement.

Compostable carrier bags, which can be used to carry shopping home and then be re-used as food waste caddy liners, are being rolled out to customers at around 400 Co-operative food stores in the UK.

The bags, which cost 6p, are now available in 81 local authority areas with food recycling schemes which require householders to use compostable bags for food waste.

The Co-operative Food’s Environment Manager, Iain Ferguson, said: “Every compostable carrier bag used is one less conventional plastic shopping bag in circulation. We believe they will have a significant impact upon the number of plastic bags which end up in landfill sites every year.”

The new compostable carrier bags, which carry the seedling logo and are certified to the EN13432 standard, are made from a combination of natural materials. They are strong enough to carry home the weekly shopping, including heavy, bulky items such as milk and potatoes. However, unlike conventional traditional plastic equivalents, they have also been approved for use as waste food bin liners.
 

TriplePundit readers worldwide joined up for an hour-long Twitter chat with the Duke Environmental Leadership Program. The chat was co-hosted by Professor Deb Gallagher, Associate Professor of the Practice of Resource and Environmental Policy.

Environmental leadership is a skill required by every organization in today’s modern world. No longer is environmentalism relegated to the NGO world - industry, government, and civil society all must be environmental leaders in order to solve the world’s greatest challenges. Now more than ever, in order to address sustainability and the need to make businesses and organizations thrive into the future, we need a new model that puts environmental problems - and solutions - at the forefront. Join us to discuss what it means to be an environmental leader and how to get there with the Duke Environmental Leadership Program.

If you missed the chat, catch the Storify summary here: 

http://storify.com/triplepundit/duke-environmental-leadership-program-on-environm