Meeting the UN’s SDGs. The two sides of My Coin
UN created a set of Sustainable Development Goals it strives to achieve by 2030. For success, rough calculations suggest that the global economy must spend around 11 trillion every year. Furthermore, extensive participation is vital. Governments, private organisations (profit and non-profit) and citizens need to work together. Will it be a challenge to meet them? Yes, especially due to the paradoxical nature of some these targets. Are they unattainable? According to Peter Diamandis, they are not. We are in an economy of abundance. There is potential to solve these challenges, we just lacking the access. Technology will be the enabler. To succeed, it’s time to start breaking down these goals into smaller outcomes, tackling the with reachable goals. And we should have begun yesterday.
Unleash Lab 2017 is one cog. This weekend 1000 talents are converging in Denmark to tackle the issues. I was lucky enough to be invited to participate. For ten days, groups will set out to develop ideas to address critical problems within each goal. As an Australian living in Denmark for seven years, I have been inspired by the effort of Danes already. I believe I have a part to play in my career as well.
Here are the two sides of my coin.
Side One: Organisational Purpose
Overtime, I have developed an interest in branding, employee engagement and innovation. Organisational purpose is one area they all intersect. Earlier this year I came across Deloitte’s report on connecting organisational purpose to SDGs. For me, these arguments reminded me of the Exponential Organisation’s Massive Transformative Purpose. Above your mission, vision and strategy, this reason for existence aims at improving one dimension in society. From a branding perspective, it unifies and engages involved stakeholders. It also reduces barriers and encourages collaboration. Furthermore, innovation gains focus without restricting it to a product or market. As a result, companies have the possibility to outlast product or industry life cycles. Moreover, recent research found evidence that long-term orientated companies outperform the stock market.
At the moment, not enough companies have a purpose. For a chance of meeting the SDGs, this needs to change. I want a role in this. Whether it is as an entrepreneur or intrapreneur, I want my career to make an impact for the better. That starts with understanding the SDGs and how the company I work for and I can contribute.
The Other side: Home and Hobbies — the other hacktivist.
I believe in hacktivism. Not the term coined relating to using computer intrusions to push political agenda, but another kind. It’s about taking things and repurposing them for other uses. It is about asking, do I need to buy this? Or, do I need to throw this out. Daily I am inspired by stories of how people take the old and give them new life. These can be anything from growing mushrooms in old buckets using coffee grind to extensive set ups to reuse grey water or develop permaculture. I have read articles arguing conscious consumerism is not enough. To some extent, I agree. It is only part of what we can contribute.
I have seen many online communities that help share the knowledge. Pinterest, Facebook groups or more localised websites, such as the Green Difference in Denmark, help promote innovative solutions. It can assist saving money. It will reduce waste. Hobbists learn new skills and knowledge. Finally, it is these kinds of hacks that have the potential to be replicated in poorer nations. Providing a means to translate everyday hacks into education and improving the quality of life is definitely a big bonus.
For myself, I have a new project I am researching. I am looking into a small aeroponics set up for my balcony. I want to repurpose plastic containers and learn some new skills while growing some vegetables in a closed water system. Moreover, I see this as an opportunity to take an introductory course in IoT and automation. This project is only one tiny contribution. But everything we do helps reduce the dependency on centralised systems to manage waste, water and energy and do more to meet these targets.
That’s not all that needs to be done.
While I have a role to play, it’s only one piece of the puzzle. Governance is one vital component I left out. At a national level, governments role is important in providing a framework that directly connects and supports development towards achieving these goals. In the developed world, countries like Denmark seem too good examples for inspiration. I am not saying they are perfect, but countries like the USA and Australia still fall behind in a lot of areas. I am excited to spend ten days working with a group of passionate people attempting to make an impact and continuing the discussion around meeting these challenges.
