Dear Future Generations, I’m sure this is obvious to you — you can see things better than we can, in hindsight. But I want to report to you that we are living through a time of dramatic change. Historic change. The kind of moment where everything seems to be balanced on a knife edge, and … Continue reading An Open Letter to Future Generations
Sustainable Development
The “Nobel Prize” in Sustainable Development goes to …
I'm sitting on a train, on my way home from moderating the Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development, one of the world's top prizes in the field (I call it Sweden's Sustainability Nobel Prize), awarded this year to Jeremy Leggett, Peter Hennicke, and Beate Weber-Schuerholz, three pioneers who were ahead of their time in starting the … Continue reading The “Nobel Prize” in Sustainable Development goes to …
Coming Soon: An SDG Song
If you have visited this blog recently, you may have noticed a password-protected page marked with a "Preview" sign, and titled with the phrase "We Love the SDGs". That's the title of my new single. Yes, a song about the SDGs. And to make it even more interesting: it is highly dance-able. When will this … Continue reading Coming Soon: An SDG Song
Launching 17Goals: Aiming to Scale Up
Let me tell you about our new website and social media channel: 17Goals. I am feeling very optimistic these days. The world, as I write this, is about to enter a new era. The largest gathering of global leaders in history is assembling at UN headquarters in New York to launch this era. Until today, … Continue reading Launching 17Goals: Aiming to Scale Up
Story of a Song: “Set the World Right Again”
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”
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”
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?
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 