Sustainability Audio: Recent Episodes
Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs
As climate change makes headlines and inspires debate around the world, sustainability is an increasingly important theme in international relations. This collection looks at this concept in the West and the developing world and highlights some innovative green thinking from thought leaders.
"I still believe that we're heading toward a renewable resource-based economy. I think that it's inevitable," declares Steven Cohen. How will we get there? A combination of market forces as renewables become cheaper, better technology, and the sharing economy.
"We are in transition today from an age of surpluses to an age of scarcity," says Lester Brown. The reasons are manifold: population growth; climate change; water scarcity; a substantial part of the U.S. grain harvest being used for fuel; increased demands because of rising affluence; and a glass ceiling for crop yields.
McKibben, one of the world's leading environmentalist, believes our best hope lies not in appealing to our wallets, but in appealing to our ethics, our most basic sense of right and wrong. When it comes to taking on the fossil fuel industry, McKibben says pure self interest will not cut it, but moral outrage might.
As we run out of resources, the human race is at a pivotal point. We have two options: We can continue along the same path, leading to much of the planet becoming uninhabitable. Or we can create an alternative future where we use resources in a much more sustainable and frugal way.
Carnegie Council's Evan O'Neil ponders the future of mega-cities, and leading Chinese environmentalist Ma Jun discusses China's air and water crisis and the work of his watchdog group, the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, which names and shames the worst polluters.
You recycle? You turn down plastic and paper? Good. But none of that will save the tuna or stop global warming. If you want to make the planet notice, follow the economics, says Gernot Wagner.
Architect and sustainability expert Leigh Stringer is convinced that LEED green buildings are only a piece of the puzzle when designing a sustainable office. She argues that a crucial component is human behavior.
Even though U.S. public policies are often lagging behind, pressures from shareholders and investors, greater transparency, and heightened risk awareness are all contributing to a new focus on sustainability for many companies, says Mindy Lubber.
Michael Ellis, from the sustainability consulting firm GreenOrder, discusses how companies can work with employees to make sure they're onboard with green initiatives--and why that's such an important part of green workplaces.
Author Alexis Madrigal examines the history of green technologies in America and shows how they have been entangled with culture, ethics, and government policies.
"We live in an age in which it is effortless to telecommunicate across the globe, in which we could all just dial in from some sylvan suburb," says Harvard economist Edward Glaeser. "But along so many dimensions, cities are more vital, more innovative, and more important than ever."
Author and eco-entrepreneur Roo Rogers' ventures include an alternative town-car service that uses hybrid cars. His recent book, "What's Mine is Yours," discusses collaborative consumption--bartering, trading, and sharing, but on a massive scale. Examples include Ebay and Craigslist.
What will it take to build sustainable societies? The panel includes Sartaz Ahmed of Booz and Company on building sustainable cities; Larry Burns (formerly of GM) on clean vehicles; and architect Joan Krevlin on green buildings.
Representatives from the Navy, the Marines, and the Army Corps of Engineers illustrate how the U.S. military is on the forefront of efforts to develop and implement renewable, clean energy sources.
How do sustainable innovations make it to market? Three very different inventors talk about their creative process, how their inventions have had a social impact, and what a more sustainable society might look like.
Joan Krevlin's work as an architect demonstrates what integrity can bring to a career. Deploying form and function with integrity is key to design. Krevlin manages to do so in her projects while maintaining environmental sustainability and social accessibility.
What, asks Oxford economist Paul Collier, are realistic and sustainable solutions to correcting the mismanagement of the natural world? Can an international standard be established to resolve the complex issues of unchecked profiteering on the one hand and environmental romanticism on the other?
"I hope that CGI is able to serve as the catalyst for action, the group that is essentially creating a market between companies and governments and NGOs to create the difference that moves the ball on each of these great global challenges."
H.E. Dr. Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, President of Iceland, discusses how Iceland has successfully reduced its use of oil and coal, and how the fate of nations large and small is being affected by climate change.