Reprinted from Greenbiz.com, 16 Feb 2016 People like me — professional optimists in the field of sustainability — are fond of pointing out the positive. And lately there have been many positives to point out, such as the global adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on climate change. However, sometimes even … Continue reading Wake Up: We Have a Long, Long Way to Go
Sustainable Development
Change to improve long-term, systemic conditions for humans and nature
Seven Pieces of Joan – and a Song about Water
My dear friend Joan Davis passed away on Monday, 11 January, 2016. She was a unique and inspirational person, a top scientist who also believed strongly in the spiritual dimension of human life, the "non-quantifiable variables" as she liked to say. Her extraordinary life is being remembered, in English and German, on a special website … Continue reading Seven Pieces of Joan – and a Song about Water
New Single: “We Love the SDGs”
I am happy to announce the release of my new single, “We Love the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)”, on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, and all major streaming services. Video coming soon. Produced in Stockholm with Andreas Bauman, with Torbjörn ”Tobbe” Fall on guitar, Ulric Johansson on bass, and Magnus Fritz on percussion — many thanks, guys! … Continue reading New Single: “We Love the SDGs”
An Open Letter to Future Generations
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
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
