I think this is true in some countries, however it’s not global! At least not yet.
Engaging more communities in business activities that will bring back to them as much as it brings to the business is important. So for instance, providing a market for rural communities who rely on subsistence farming for survival. But also, noting those who are living by the river or sea who lose fertility in their land over time due to unexpected flash flooding during a tropical cyclone period or salt water intrusion due to sea level rise, and having plans in place on how to possibly address that as part of the long term business operations.
2 Likes
Q2. 1. Fragility, violence and conflict in most impacted communities are present. Fragility is influenced by a wide set of factors, many of which are deeply entrenched, such as high social and income inequality, blurred lines between criminal, inter-communal and politically motivated violence. Conflicts are increasingly causing devastation in densely populated urban centres, creating a host of new problems through the cumulative impact from the destruction of vital services like water and electricity. The responsibility of working with impacted communities is important for businesses as building resilience is not just a humanitarian imperative – instability and violence are bad for business. The private sector can harness its vast potential to mitigate fragility by investing, stimulating economic growth and job creation, paying taxes, building capacity and empowering local populations. Additionally, partnerships between governments, the private sector, multilateral institutions and civil society are essential to ensure that the biggest challenges for both community and business are addressed. Clear steps that business can take to improve the situation include:
2 Likes
Yes and tracking those rising sea levels and salt water intrusions back to the root causes and tackling these should be part of the business model.
Love the sound of the participatory market systems approach, will look into it.
1 Like
- working hand-in-hand with the public sector and civil society, as well as local business to support capacity building,
- integrating B2B support, partnership and responsible investment into core business practices, and
- working with governments to ensure the transparent and equitable management of revenues from the export of natural resources.
3 Likes
Ok everyone last question, time is flying! ***** What role can technology, including social technology, play to ensure that impacted communities can contribute and innovate towards the just transition
1 Like
Yes, sure. You can take one example of corruption and when you compare that with the Global North, it makes institutions weaker. Many institutions in developing countries lack expert capacity as well. Hope it is clear now. There is a famous called Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson. They also pointed some nations because of poor institutions.
1 Like
Working hand in hand is so important!
There are so many ways we can build partnerships and collaborate with communities that are impacted by climate change.
Yes this regenerative, climate sensitive regenerative agriculture is something happening with many smaller organisations such as Micaia in Mozambique and Forest Coffee in Ethiopia with Farm Africa.
1 Like
Simply put is the cost - as often times working with these impacted communities would lead to a more sustainable approach which may come at a higher cost level. Therefore one of the best ways to improve this may be through legislation which mandates these business to engage when in order to obtain approval.
1 Like
I agree. This needs to be a collaborative approach. Each of these respective key players need to start somewhere rather than waiting for one or the other to take lead and then follow suit. Uncertainty is never good for any business, but also for the future of the communities who are affected.
1 Like
A3 Some interesting social tech things that i have seen recently include:
A local authority in the USA that has developed a climate justice map….https://avl.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/lookup/index.html?appid=10e2c4ae45614b92ad4efaa61342b249 Its part of Asheville’s Climate Justice Initiative that ‘explores and defines Climate Equity and Climate Justice with the City’s frontline community members; those most directly affected by climate change impacts identified in the City’s Climate Resilience Assessment. In collaboration with these voices the Office is shaping a locally relevant understanding how of Climate Equity and Climate Justice play a role in building resilience for Asheville’s communities’.
I also love Patagonia’s Action Works Platform that puts its customers in touch with local environmental organisations and provides grants to different groups. Redirecting…
I think this Greenpeace ‘Strategy Map’ is a great example of trying to help people communicate about climate justice more effectively - even showing which sorts of tweets or messages work better than others… Strategy Map - Climate Justice | Greenpeace
There is also the ISeeChange project to capture people’s everyday experiences of climate change https://www.iseechange.org/
3 Likes
a) Promoting inclusiveness - technology, including social increases reach and inclusion. Information can to reach more and many without limitation of person-to-person. Social media, digital audio would ensure that many are empowered with information without exclusion or biases.
b) Technology ensures data sharing, this supports initiatives of scouting which ensures parties involved are not caught off guard, communities can transmit live data and feedback to providers of insurance, carbon financiers, and drought and floods management agencies. Through technology, data and information is able to flow back and forth in real time. This enables or catalyzes innovation since needs are communicated within partners.
c) With proper penetration of technology, target communities can access market information and thus fetch better prices for their produce.
1 Like
The use of technology to enable transition can go both ways. There is a risk of it being abused and in turn would bring more pollution and harm to the planet. But where a sustainable environmentally friendly approach is used, it has the potential to drive a climate safe transition.
Social media is a rapidly growing platform in the Solomon Islands, especially amongst youth. Young people under the age of 35 makeup around 70% of the country’s population and therefore, having more of them utilising social technology provides an avenue of good reach. By reach, it is not just to get many young people, but importantly to a large number of people who are better educated and are able to engage as well as influence various levels of decision making in their communities.
1 Like
There are definitely steps we can take along the way to improve the ability of impacted communities to contribute – be that with new technology remote engagement through mobiles or IT based engagement. However, need to be aware that in this arena women and girls are disadvantaged with dramatically low levels of access to such tools compared to men and boys. In many cases the traditional social dialogue, interviews, and more creative, role plays, safe spaces etc might be more productive and inclusive.
2 Likes
thanks japheth - do you have a sense of how effective some of the mobile info on climate smart practices is in East Africa? Is it really reaching smallholders?
-
according to Deloitte Global’s 2021 Climate Check report. The top five ways that climate change is already impacting (or threatening to impact) companies across the globe:
-
Operational impact of climate-related disasters, such as facilities damage and workforce disruption.
-
Scarcity/cost of resources like food, water and energy due to both environmental and human causes.
-
Regulatory/political uncertainty including shifting regulatory and political environments.
-
Increased insurance costs or lack of insurance availability due to increase in climate-related events.
-
Reputational damage due to lack of environmental sustainability efforts.
Executives cited education and the promotion of science-backed climate research as the environmental actions that are critical to spurring action and pointed to collaboration as an important way to advance progress and inform public policy solutions. The private sector plays a leading role in cross-sector collaboration in two significant ways. First, companies can provide the technologies to make solutions more accessible and affordable to all, second, through their communications expertise, specifically in running campaigns and outreach projects, businesses can lead in boosting public awareness and engagement. When companies lead, and when their entire workforces are engaged, the public’s mindset, behaviour and lifestyles can also change.
1 Like
Technology can be quite useful in mobilising efforts to create a positive movement, but also in terms of knowledge sharing, whereby best practices can be exchanged across countries and regions. This is usually a good foundation for the birth of innovative ideas!
Regenerating land around private farms is also important, especially thinking about things like water quality and biodiversity. I really like this example of a Brazilian mill planting 550,000 native trees over the past 20 years to regenerate the local area: - Projeto de reflorestamento da Usina São Luiz - Bonsucro There are lovely results with more animals and birds being seen.
2 Likes