Since this week the UNFCCC is featuring "Set the World Right Again" as its "Climate Song of the Week," here is the story behind the song. This is the second excerpt from my book-in-progress, "50 Songs, 50 Stories." - Alan Some songs start as a vague idea, some as a line of specific words. Some … Continue reading Story of a Song: “Set the World Right Again”
Author: Alan AtKisson
UN selects AtKisson song as “Climate Song of the Week”
Press Release, 12 August 2015 The UNFCCC is featuring Alan AtKisson and his song "Set the World Right Again" on its Newsroom website this week. Click here to go to the UNFCCC website. The article includes the background to the song, the lyrics, and a link to the YouTube version for free listening. "Set the … Continue reading UN selects AtKisson song as “Climate Song of the Week”
Story of a Song: “Goin’ to the Top”
First in a series of entries that will eventually be gathered into a book with the working title, "50 Songs, 50 Stories". This entry tells the story of "Goin' to the Top" — originally written for Aaron Neville, at the request of a New Orleans' business leader. But the road to that song went via … Continue reading Story of a Song: “Goin’ to the Top”
Message to Outdoor: Climb “Mount Sustainability”
Last week I had the honor of speaking to about a hundred CEOs and other top managers in the industry called "Outdoor" — that is, makers of clothing and equipment to go camping, climbing, hiking, mountaineering, or whatever strikes your fancy. Now, you might think that companies in that branch already "get" sustainability, and indeed, … Continue reading Message to Outdoor: Climb “Mount Sustainability”
Governing the SDGs: Make Your Voice Heard
Remember the SDGs? The new global goals for sustainable development, being negotiated at the UN, right now, for the whole world to adopt this September? Maybe you are not following the negotiations on the SDGs as closely as I am (I have to follow it closely, it is part of my current consulting assignment with … Continue reading Governing the SDGs: Make Your Voice Heard
The World’s Theory of Change
In training courses, workshops, and in books — including a forthcoming new book with my friend and business partner Axel Klimek — I teach people working on sustainability how to clarify and improve their “theory of change”: their mental model of how they are driving change toward sustainability, in their specific context. At the level … Continue reading The World’s Theory of Change
Why a “one-man musical” on sustainability, you ask?
First and most truthful answer: because it's fun. Now, here's the longer and more nuanced answer. Years ago, in the early 1990s, I discovered that music was a great way to deal with the emotions that come up around overwhelmingly huge global problems. Key people in my life — most notably Donella Meadows, lead author … Continue reading Why a “one-man musical” on sustainability, you ask?
A Brief History of Self-Sharing
On a recent ski-vacation, we bumped into one of my wife’s old school-friends. My wife was a little surprised, but not her friend. “Oh, I knew you were here,” she said. “I saw Alan’s posting on Instagram.” Unwittingly, by sharing a photo on social media — just a nature scene, shot from a moving train … Continue reading A Brief History of Self-Sharing
Compass Education takes flight – Please donate!
For years, my friends in SE Asia have been patiently building a Wonderful New Thing. It's called "Compass Education," and it's a program that is changing schools all around the region ... and helping them become models for sustainability. We're talking solar panels on roofs, kids learning systems thinking in the classroom, community action programs, … Continue reading Compass Education takes flight – Please donate!
New Sustainability “Model Calendar” for 2015!
If you are expecting photo-models, think again. This wonderful 2015 wall calendar — produced by the folks at Stockholm Resilience Center and Beijer Institute for Ecological Economics — is about conceptual models, the kinds of diagrams and think-pieces that help us understand the world. And it is a gem. Here you will find twelve essential … Continue reading New Sustainability “Model Calendar” for 2015!
Alan AtKisson 