In September 2011, I found myself unexpectedly wandering the streets of Istanbul. I say “unexpectedly” because there was revolution in Syria, a growing social uprising that would eventually ignite an all-consuming civil war. Security concerns had made going back to the city of Aleppo, which is where I had expected to be, impossible. Click to … Continue reading A song of melancholy and last-chance hope: Why I wrote “The Last Dice”
Social and Economic Systems
I asked ChatGPT to analyse the new US National Security Strategy
After reading the new National Security Strategy of the United States of America, recently released by the White House, I thought, "I used to advise US military bases on their sustainability programs. This new strategy seems to be a major change in direction, and it has enormous implications for sustainability and sustainable development work, globally. … Continue reading I asked ChatGPT to analyse the new US National Security Strategy
Baltic Futures = Europe’s Future
Consider the Baltic Sea: Brackish. Beautiful. Highly polluted. Linking (or dividing) the following countries: Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark – and Russia. It might irritate certain EU member states, not mentioned above, both current and former, to learn that for journalist Oliver Moody, Berlin bureau chief for The Times of London, the … Continue reading Baltic Futures = Europe’s Future
Freedom of Information: You Have Chydenius To Thank for That
This short post was originally published on the now-defunct website Worldchanging.com, in 2007. The story of Chydenius serves as a good reminder of the importance of maintaining a free press and the right of public access to government information — principles that seem increasingly under attack around the world. The text has been slightly updated. … Continue reading Freedom of Information: You Have Chydenius To Thank for That
“Conservation” meets “Green Growth”: The Push-Me-Pull-You problem
Remember Dr. Dolittle? He was a vet who could talk to animals. One of the rarest was the "pushmi-pullyu," a llama with two heads (one head was where the tail ought to be). The pushmi-pullyu was a gentle creature that did not like to be stared at. And yet the other animals in Africa convinced … Continue reading “Conservation” meets “Green Growth”: The Push-Me-Pull-You problem
The Economics Nobel: Should there be one?
The so-called "Nobel Prize" in economics (note that it is actually *not* a Nobel in the same way as the science, literature, and peace prizes) has awakened more than the usual amount of criticism this year. This Guardian article captures some of the usual complaints, quite well. The writer suggests a broadening out of the … Continue reading The Economics Nobel: Should there be one?
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!
“A Fresh Start for Sustainable Development”
Note: A different, chattier version of this post was sent to WaveFront newsletter readers. The eight-point summary is the same. To read WaveFront, sign up at http://www.AtKisson.com. The new issue of the leading journal Development, under the new editorship of Tariq Banuri, is finally out! Much food for thought there. I have an essay in … Continue reading “A Fresh Start for Sustainable Development”
Summer: A Time for Measuring, Analyzing, Discussing — and even Experiencing! — Happiness
The following was originally composed as a set of notes for use by Junko Edahiro, who writes a monthly newsletter on happiness and wellbeing issues in Japan. See the website of her Institute, ISHES, for more info. My own summer vacation, spent mostly in Sweden and the United States, has been a happy one ... … Continue reading Summer: A Time for Measuring, Analyzing, Discussing — and even Experiencing! — Happiness
Indicators, MDGs, SDGs, and GDP
On Thursday 16 May, I attended an excellent public seminar on the power of indicators and numbers in the context of sustainable development. Hosted by UNDP and the Dag Hammarsköld Foundation, in Stockholm, it featured two powerful women speakers: Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, former director of the UN's Human Development Index and now a professor at the … Continue reading Indicators, MDGs, SDGs, and GDP
Alan AtKisson 