Global Responsibility

Archives

  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • March 2024
  • December 2023
  • July 2023
  • December 2022
  • October 2022
  • June 2022
  • April 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • July 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • December 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • May 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • July 2018
  • May 2018
  • March 2018
  • November 2017
  • August 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • October 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • January 2016
  • October 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • November 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • June 2014
  • April 2014
  • September 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • March 2013
  • January 2013
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • August 2011

Categories

  • Blog
  • Tipping Point
Subscribe
Global Responsibility
Global Responsibility
  • Visit GRLI Website
  • Blog

Why are global mega cities so ugly?

  • 13 June 2012
  • 3 minute read
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0

I woke up to a grey and rainy skyline of the outskirts of Sao Paulo. During my breathing exercises I reflected on the many millions of my fellow global citizens who will leave their homes in the country side to join cities like this: apartment blocks lined up until the distant horizon in a general hazy, grey heavy and overcast sky. The heavy rainstorm suited that mood well.

Are we crazy?

Who on earth would in her right mind design such a picture of inhuman living?

Why do we design and build cities for our citizens with subhuman conditions and that are totally disconnected from nature? If I was an alien visiting planet Earth, I would seriously wonder what the inhabitants had in mind when they figured out how to live together. Somehow our societal governance structures don’t operate in the best interest of all. Why do we accept this? And what if we could and would actually start doing something about it?

I started my part of the 50+20 pre-RIO conference with this picture of the Sao Paulo skyline which I took this morning. I talked about where we as a global community are today versus where we need to get to to ensure that the 9 billion of us will be living well and within the limits of the planet (as per vision 2050 of the WBCSD). Nobody took offence. As a matter of fact, I didn’t have to spend more than a short moment on why we need a better world, new societies and as a result a new role for business. Swiss ambassador Meier who opened for us set the stage by highlighting all the things that are going wrong today and everybody was nodding. Given that this was the first time we talked about our project in front of a non-captive audience of mostly business executives, this was significant. There was no question about the fact that business must contribute to society and the common good. But: there was much blame on “others” and much frustration about things not going fast enough.

Thomas Dyllick from the University St Gallen and I had lunch with Angelica Rotondaro who runs the St. Gallen hub here. She is doing a great job finding internships for St. Gallen students who want to experience the NGO or SME worlds in South America. She has an amazing network of social entrepreneurs in the fair-trade sector and she shares her challenges with us. Before long, we are discussing the burning issues of the agricultural world. I can’t help it, but I get angry every time I reflect on the abuse that is taking place around GMO seeds, given the importance of fair-trade as a small but important new growth development supporting small regional farmers in their nearly impossible struggle against the multinational superpowers.

The other main issue that came up today is the big difference between the challenges of developed vs. developing countries. As Julia von Maltzan Pacheco of University FGV pointed out correctly, people here in Brazil are craving for the lifestyle we have achieved in the North or West (I am coining Northwest as a global new term for the developed world). People in the south and the east want that refrigerator, that car and that TV they have been longing for. We cannot tell them that “growth” is not sustainable (even if it isn’t). As Martin Bernard from Amrop pointed out: “there is no such thing as sustainable growth, the planet does have finite limits”. Well, we cannot even publicly say that to the folks in the Northwest! I liked Christian Cetera’s perspective (Director Training & Development of GE for South America) who humbly stated that his organization is nowhere despite having achieved an unheard of shift in their business, reducing their financial services business from 55% to less than 15% of their net profits. GE defines their ideal manager today very different from the days of Jack Welsh, he concludes that GE “has a long way to go.”

I walk away from our presentation happy with the unilaterally positive reaction of our vision. I also realize that we need to ensure that our audience understands that we have completed but the first step in a long journey: we propose a far-out, new vision that now needs concrete next steps in order to generate action and a relevant pace to realize it. We have passed the “fire drill” or “dry run” and are now ready for RIO+20!

Total
0
Shares
Tweet 0
Share 0
Share 0
Previous Article
  • Blog

Rio+20 must not be another Copenhagen

  • 12 June 2012
View Post
Next Article
  • Blog

The human future

  • 13 June 2012
View Post
You May Also Like
View Post
  • Blog

Leadership in Uncertain Times : Exploring the Interplay Between Crisis, Power and Systemic Transformation

  • Darija Miletic
  • 2 October 2024
View Post
  • Blog
  • Tipping Point

Advancing Globally Responsible Management Education: A travelling collaborative inquiry

  • Darija Miletic
  • 21 August 2024
View Post
  • Blog

Exploring the Essence of Global Responsibility: Join GRLI Crucial Conversations

  • John North
  • 2 August 2024
View Post
  • Blog

12 ways to start decolonizing business schools

  • The GRLI
  • 12 March 2024
View Post
  • Blog

Reflecting on our Crucial Conversations

  • The GRLI
  • 10 March 2024
View Post
  • Blog

Transpersonal Leadership Deep Dive

  • The GRLI
  • 15 December 2023
View Post
  • Blog

Our 2023 wrapped up

  • The GRLI
  • 15 December 2023
View Post
  • Blog

 Peter Møllgaard appointed chair of the GRLI

  • The GRLI
  • 15 July 2023
Featured Posts
  • Leadership in Uncertain Times : Exploring the Interplay Between Crisis, Power and Systemic Transformation
    • 2 October 2024
  • Transforming Marketing Courses – Lessons Learned
    • 17 September 2024
  • Advancing Globally Responsible Management Education: A travelling collaborative inquiry
    • 21 August 2024
  • Exploring the Essence of Global Responsibility: Join GRLI Crucial Conversations
    • 2 August 2024
  • 12 ways to start decolonizing business schools
    • 12 March 2024

Subscribe

Subscribe now to our newsletter

The Global Responsibility blog hosted by the GRLI provides a record of the ongoing collaborative inquiry into the development of global responsibility in how we learn, live and lead.

The Globally Responsible Leadership Initiative is the leading incubator for innovation and new practice in business schools and for collaboration with business in the space of ethics, responsibility, and sustainability.

https://grli.org

  • About GRLI
  • Events
  • What’s important now
Global Responsibility
https://responsibility.global

Input your search keywords and press Enter.