I reckon poor Monalisa will be tested for more soup endurance as we are getting dangerously closer to the boundaries we should stop ourselves from breaching!
Last week you were informed how some one had thrown soup at the famous painting questioning the industrial model of food production in our society. It was a brave act. Its Activism. Something that specially young people will choose more and more in absence of Action-ism from those in position of power and money. If you have seen the news headline today – World breaches 1.5C warming threshold for full year. It feels like we need to prepare for world class paintings of legendary status in world class museums to receive all sorts of items thrown at them to make noise (and who knows what really works?). Younger generation fed up (with choices of current and older generation) will continue to pull stunts because we are not doing enough and not doing fast enough. You may yell back ‘Hey ! but arts is our heritage and belongs to future generations. They are being disrespectful towards their own heritage’. Exactly their point. The nature and its resources are for everyone- specially the future generations whose ration of sustainable life we are guilty of over using. So, how long will the world class facilities stay world class if the very house we live in continues to burn? Climate change has come knocking on our doors with full force and this force is not something we can get insurance against and yet continue to live our ways of life and business.
Change is long due. Period.
We should have fixed the climate change problem ages ago when alarm bells were ringing. To be precise in early 80s! yeah, we have sat on ‘hot house’ scenario that long??!! and if we don’t get serious and start matching our plans with actions I wonder where we are headed.
Public attitude is important for our ability to bring in change and achieve Net Zero by 2050, we need this social space of demonstration, protest and sometimes chaotic stunts to add colour to rather ignored everyday topics that are lacking mass attention and right amount of traction.
I spoke to a young fiery teenager holding a placard on Fridays for future demonstration and she said ‘Its like we are being told to jump off a flying plane knowing that when time comes for safe landing our parachute in all probability will not work’. Its heartbreaking.
When the world should be gearing up for working together and allotting budgets for making Paris agreement work we see headlines everyday on how many developed and developing countries are increasing their defense budget and not doing enough for their carbon budget action plan.
US defense sector has had 55 percent hike in weapon sales and deliveries to foreign countries in the last year ($80.9B) and there are indications that it will only go up this year.We need global leadership of peace but we do not hear our leaders talk about peace in the next five year. Rather - we hear our presidents, PMs, defense secretaries – state ‘there will be war involving most nations in next five years’. When the world leaders are more geared up for war it creates skepticism against climate science in the general population – regular people trying to make ends meet think that their elected leaders most definitely know what's more pressing need of the hour. Rhetoric needs change. between groups favouring ‘battle now’ vs ‘how to make a calm and peaceful tomorrow’ - we need to be careful whom we choose and vote for. Year 2024 is an important election year for this planet as our leaders will have to forge alliances to not only find ways to reduce impact of climate risk on our everyday life but also work towards peace.
Calm your ego down the planet is hot enough we don't need geo-political hot house as well! And it is this very situation of a war hungry fragmented world, characterised by mistrust and division, that there is a growing acceptance and need that businesses need to be part of the solution, not the problem. Businesses large or small, globally, will have to come together to solve climate crisis and put capital in right ventures so that it can reduce GHG emissions and create sustainable models of consumption and growth.
I want to Quote Kate Raworth’ doughnut economics. In simple terms - Humanity’s 21st century challenge is to meet the needs of all within the means of the planet. In other words, to ensure that no one falls short on life’s essentials (from food and housing to healthcare and political voice), while ensuring that collectively we do not overshoot our pressure on Earth’s life-supporting systems, on which we fundamentally depend – such as a stable climate, fertile soils, and a protective ozone layer.
I really hope, the headline of 1.5C breach in warming, today will help us make sustainable changes faster and not undo the many positive initiatives we have been building on seriously since 2005. I am deeply looking forward to -
1. Reduction in high carbon activities and adoption of Low carbon technologies
2. Early scrappage of high carbon capital assets e.g. automobiles using fossil fuels and boilers for heating buildings (in a box)
3. Because there is possibly limited options on reducing GHG emissions in Aviation and Agriculture – expecting low growth in aviation and a push towards healthy low carbon emissions based diet for the human population and animals
Delay in our action will set us back in our progress and put us all on the risk of receiving harm from climate change.
In a story where we are all on same pathway of Cradle to Grave – it feels only logical and sensible for all of us to connect for this one mission to halt climate change while we can and give our next generations a healthy planet that they can continue to call their home.
In life - we are all work in progress. It’s a journey. Don’t write yourself off.
Instead of saying that Yes! One Day we will start our journey for transition, Let this day be ‘Day One’ for you and your organisation to start your journey of change.
Even if your transition to Net Zero journey starts from an excel sheet – don’t be shy and choose ease and sincerity over sophistication. but please just start.....
This is my humble appeal.
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