On March 24, 1995, I performed at a small club in New York. On March 24, 2020, at 8 pm Swedish time (or anytime thereafter), you can travel through time to that club, that show. Grab a virtual table and a drink, sit back and enjoy. The Covid-19 pandemic is a major global crisis, the … Continue reading Take a break from Corona and travel back in time
Sustainable Development
Remembering Joan Davis, 1937-2016
Today would have been the birthday of my dear friend Joan Davis, who passed away four years ago, on 11 Jan 2016, just a few weeks shy of her 80th birthday. A website was created to capture remembrances of her, and since my written piece appeared first, and many followed, it is now at the … Continue reading Remembering Joan Davis, 1937-2016
Words&Music 4: Reflections on an Old Manifesto
Dear Friends, Exactly 20 years ago (29 December 1999) I put pen to paper at a friend’s house in East London and began to write a personal manifesto for the new millennium. The resulting document, ”Sustainability is Dead — Long Live Sustainability”, had a short, modestly viral life. It was emailed around the Internet, released … Continue reading Words&Music 4: Reflections on an Old Manifesto
Words&Music 3: Believing Cassandra at 20, Mobilizing global investors for the SDGs
Dear Friends, A year and a half has gone by since I started working at Sida, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. The work is challenging, rewarding, all-engrossing. It has been an extraordinary honor to represent Sweden in international venues and lead my department of over 100 very skilled and experienced professionals. But that is … Continue reading Words&Music 3: Believing Cassandra at 20, Mobilizing global investors for the SDGs
Google decides I’m a “Musical artist”. I’m okay with that
One can be forgiven the narcissistic act of googling oneself when one is on vacation. Curiosity arises. There is ample free time. It has been a long while since I checked my Google search results, and checking such things is a necessary act of personal hygiene in the digital age. If people ask the Internet … Continue reading Google decides I’m a “Musical artist”. I’m okay with that
Words&Music 2: What a difference a half-year makes
Dear Reader, This is the second installment of my personal newsletter, Words&Music. To receive this in your inbox, sign up here: http://eepurl.com/duzZz9 Dear Reader, Global poverty. Climate change. Political uncertainty. Swedish development aid. Financial markets. The United Nations and the World Bank. The challenge of learning to lead a complex department, in a complex public … Continue reading Words&Music 2: What a difference a half-year makes
The ‘big push’ transforming the world’s energy systems
As I’m sure you have noticed, renewable energy is taking the world by storm, driven by rapidly falling prices. Ever wonder how that happened? In 2009, I authored a concept paper for the United Nations Secretariat, for circulation at the Copenhagen Climate Summit. COP15 became infamous because it was deemed a spectacular failure. Heads of … Continue reading The ‘big push’ transforming the world’s energy systems
The Sustainability Change Agent’s Job Description
This year, 2018, marks a decade since I first published The Sustainability Transformation* — the 2nd book in my planned 3-volume "Optimist Trilogy." I'm now working on volume 3. But the "job description" from vol. 2 that appears on the first page of the first chapter is still highly relevant. Enjoy ... and spread. JOB … Continue reading The Sustainability Change Agent’s Job Description
How universities are using our tools to accelerate sustainability
Above: Masters students at University of Iceland completing an AtKisson "Pyramid" workshop. This article was originally published in my "North Star" column series on Greenbiz.com Just how central are universities to advancing the practice of sustainability? Most professionals would say, "Very." Universities create knowledge relevant to sustainability, they train sustainability practitioners and they often act … Continue reading How universities are using our tools to accelerate sustainability
Happy World Oceans Day … Seriously
From my personal Facebook page today: Dear Friends, As you know, lately I've been investing a lot of my time on raising ocean awareness (together with many thousands of other people). My firm sponsored the "Out to Sea" exhibit on ocean plastics (also known as the Plastic Garbage Project). We launched SDG14.net. I keynoted European … Continue reading Happy World Oceans Day … Seriously
Alan AtKisson 