We Have Met the Enemy and He is…a plastic bag?!

Okay, plastic bags are not the enemy. They are containers. Things into which we put things. They are legion and almost completely unnecessary.

Edward Norton has this to say:

http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/environment/going-green-environment/conservation-in-action/norton-bag-env.html

One of many YouTube videos on the subject:

http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=n7Nn-mUfSBU

It’s like this: use cloth bags, backpacks, nylon bags…whatever. Don’t accept plastic bags, don’t put yourself in the position where you need them. Help others do the same. 

Plastic bag makers: your business is in creating things that carry things. Find a more sustainable model or get left behind. 

What could possibly be easier? 

Rant over.

 

Tags: green consumerism, plastic bags, sustainability

Social Networking Synergy

Two very useful sites for connecting to people doing the groundwork in sustainability as NGO’s and NPO’s:

WiserEarth: http://www.wiserearth.org/

Currently they list the following:

• 109,119 Organizations
• 15,972 People
• 751 Groups
• 4,063 Resources
• 275 Events
• 457 Jobs

 

Idealist: http://www.idealist.org/

Among much more they have on offer:

Tags: NGO's, NPO's, social responsibility, sustainability

Update on Things that Matter

As I was doing some research on Natural Capitalism I was drawn in multiple directions by what I discovered. For those of you who don’t know of Amory Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins and the Rocky Mountain Institute you would be wise to check them out. They are leading practical thinkers and do-ers in energy efficiency, renewable and clean energy and eco-systemic design.

Paul Hawken is another name and constellation of activity and effect. The founder of Smith & Hawken, a catalog retail company specializing in garden and horticultural products, he has, since then, become the executive director of the Natural Capital Institute and WISER (World Index for Social and Environmental Responsibility). WISER is of  particular interest in it’s leveraging of Web 2.0 technologies to connect NGO’s, businesses and government.

There’s a lot to be done, people. There’s a lot of people doing stuff. The BIG QUESTION is: How can we intensify, magnify and speed up the effect of our actions?

 

 

Tags: amory lovins, hunter lovins, natural capitalism, paul hawken, sustainability, WISER

Evolving Sustainable Leadership

In my previous post on the evolution of sustainable leadership I wrote:

The evolution of sustainable leadership is commitment to a process of self development that begins with “me” but necessarily expands to include and transcend “me.” The deeper we dive, the broader we roam, the richer our understanding of our place and purpose.

So how does this process work? The short answer is it must necessarily work in different ways for different people. Though the aim may be the same, we start from different places, different life spaces and conditions. Yet there some constants. One of those is capacity.

To deepen our capacity means to target our capability to perceive and act from what we are learning. At Interkannections we view this as the journey of capacity evolution where G, I and T-shaped leaders become H, A and U-shaped leaders. Here, again, there are many paths up the mountain. However, it would be foolish to ignore some well-worn trails:

In “integral” speak this means being able to leverage what is called a 4Q perspective: deepening and balancing insight gained from perspectives on the self, the self and others, the world and our actions in it, and the systems and processes we create and in which we are embedded. 

Peter Senge has popularized systems thinking as a way to access the meaning to be made from inter-relationship. 

Otto Scharmer uses “Theory U” and presencing to take individuals and groups on learning journeys that allow them to access and leverage intuitive inter-connection and insight.

At Interkannections we employ all of the above-when necessary-to help our clients make the shift from their current patterns of thinking and behavior to a more sustainable, life giving, value generating way of living and engaging with the world. 

The key in evolving your approach to leadership and your life, in general, to a more sustainable one, in the end, is, of course: YOU. You have to want to take on the challenge, have the will, discipline and commitment to evolve. You must have the courage, wisdom and humility to learn and seek out experiences and teachers to help you evolve.

And, most importantly, YOU can start, NOW.

 

Tags: capacity evolution, Otto Scharmer, Peter Senge, presencing, sustainability, sustainable leadership, systems thinking, Theory U

Extrinsic Tides

For now the price of oil is falling. The air seems clear (except in Beijing). Here in Japan, food is plentiful (we even got our butter back!) and, from my understanding the developed nations are flush with commodities, foodstuffs and the spoils of wealth as well. 

The world economy seems to be slowing, yet, again, this doesn’t touch us too directly. Those of us who have gone green or are thinking about going green out of fear, conformity or a sense of duty/obligation may begin to waver. I mean, hey, life’s still good if you’re on the developed side of things, right?

What motivates? What sustains? 

Spend some time with these big, broad, open questions. Meditate. Observe what emerges. 

At some point, the price of oil will rise again. The air, though clear, already holds too much of us. Food is only plentiful now because our oil-based food production system is still chug chug chugging along. Wealth continues to accumulate in the same places it has been for quite a long time. As gaps grow so does the resolve to close them. 

So, as you ponder green, as you wonder green, ask yourself:

What motivates? What sustains?

Observe what emerges. And,

do what needs to be done.

Tags: food production, peak oil, sustainability