Felix Dodds comments on sustainable development, coffee & life

  Guest blog from Katerva  The Rise of Sustainability Investors   The very definition of sustainability hints towards the long-term, as it involves ensuring that what we do today will not jeopardise being able to continue doing it many years hence.  It seems plausible to assume that investors who are interested in sustainability will have not only a longer-term outlook for themselves but also for the companies that they invest in. With around $30 trillion invested sustainably, which is typically defined as investments in businesses that espouse environmental, social, and governance (ESG) in how they operate, it’s clearly a growing, and hugely influential, field. It seems that more and more business leaders agree with the statement of Salesforce founder and co-CEO Marc Benioff that, “Yes, profits are important, but so is society. And if our quest for greater profits leaves our world worse off than before, all we...

Guest blog by Katerva:   The mission of Katerva is to find, evaluate and accelerate disruptive sustainable innovations from around the world. We’re looking for ideas that leap efficiency, lifestyle, and create action that is a generation ahead of current thinking.  In our six-part series we talk about shifts in mindset and behaviour that are required if we are serious about moving towards sustainability. Our latest one was about ‘Giving more importance to the feminine side’, before that the topics were ‘Thinking into the future while acting now’, ‘Letting go off the illusion of control control’, and ‘Understanding connectedness and thinking in systems’.  What is the shift required? The essence of this mindset shift is captures in the quote of John F Kennedy from his presidential inauguration in 1961 when he said, “Ask not what your country ca...

ABOUT THE CHALLENGE Calling all developers, ICT experts, engineers and innovators, to join Africa50 in finding sustainable solutions to respond to Africa’s most critical and pressing infrastructure development challenges. Africa50’s Innovation Challenge provides you with an unparalleled opportunity to get your solution in front of our investment team and project funding partners, as well as gain exposure in Africa’s leading tech events. The challenge Area: The Last Mile The Challenge Proposition: “Significantly increase access to affordable and reliable high-speed internet in under-served areas in Africa” Pilot Country: Rwanda Africa50 is looking for the most innovative infrastructure and tech solutions which enable people to connect to the internet in their daily lives, through fixed and mobile devices. Why Last Mile Connectivity? Recent World Bank studies show that an additional 10% Internet penetration can lift GDP by 1-4% in developing countries and that Afri...

Feeding 9 Billion People will  challenge us to embrace agricultural practices  that can produce enough food without creating too much harm for the planet. The challenges associated with producing a high enough quantity of quality food is outlined in the second Sustainable Development Goal put forth by the United Nations:  Zero Hunger . Image Source:  http://www.fao.org/sustainable-development-goals/goals/goal-2/en/ If the large consultancies start picking up on a topic you know it is being taken seriously by the business world - recent reports include “ Tackling the 1.6-billion-ton food loss and waste crisis ” by the Boston Consulting Group and “ From liability to opportunity: How to build food security and nourish growth ” by McKinsey. So it is no surprise that one of Katerva’s 10 awards categories focuses exclusively on Food. Our aim is to accelerate advances in food security, production, and more sustainable resource use in the agricultural ...

Rio+20: The Long View Interview of Felix Dodds in FORBES by  Terry Waghorn  from Katerva Author and global sustainable development leader  Felix Dodds has spent more than two decades observing and participating in international development meetings, including the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, the Conference on Human Settlements in 1996, the Johannesburg Summit in 2000 and the Millennium Development Goal meetings in 2005. His most recent book, authored with Michael Strauss and Maurice Strong,  Only One Earth: The Long via Rio+20  to Sustainable Development,  will have a companion out later this year: Written with Elizabeth Thompson and Jorge Laguna-Celis, From Rio+20 to a New Development Agenda: Building a Bridge to a Sustainable Future  will provide an inside look at the 2012 conference and  an optimistic perspective on where it might lead. Dodds recently  shared his thoughts with  Ensia  and  Terry Waghorn ...