Natural Intelligence Worldwide

There's No Planet B or Ocean Z:

It’s Time to Truly See Protecting Sea for What it Means to You and Me

Prince Albert II of Monaco

Clearly important to acting on climate is educating ourselves, sharing our knowledge, and reducing our carbon footprint in our daily lives. This means being awake and award of: What we buy? How we move? Where we use energy? How we zero-out and eliminate all waste? Cleary important for us to now know as humans is that we have tipped the natural order of life quite far, so far, so as to jeopardize our own survival… and our children’s future. In my interview with Prince Albert  of Monoco we talk about:

• educating ourselves and acting on climate;
• why biodiversity loss is so important to us;
• climate solutions local, regional, and national leaders can take in cities;
• the importance of legacy; and vision for 2050.

If our human civilization needs to decarbonize our lifestyles to become carbon neutral by 2050… that means all of us.

Rumblings on the New Bio Economy- A Cultural Revolution Happening

We inherently know that we are connected to one another and the natural world. We also know that we suffer—emotionally, biophysically, socially, and economically when we disconnect from nature.

Yet, we have advanced our human civilization in competition with nature, extracting earth resources as if they were infinite, polluting our ecosystems as if they were too big to fail, and exploiting wildlife as if extinction was only a dinosaur myth from the past.

Now, as we are too many people, taking too much from nature without giving back. We are driving the biosphere to the edge of collapse. We have altered 3/4th of the planet; risking not only the wellbeing of other plants and animals, but risking our own Homo sapiens (Wise human) species.

Now, we need a new cultural narrative. We need to advance our human civilization in collaboration with nature. We need to grow our global economy, societies, and businesses with a clear commitment to conserve nature and to recover ecosystem integrity.

A new deal for nature and people now seems to require not just protection, but regeneration of degraded, damaged and developed systems. The good news is that the business opportunities to adopt this new deal narrative are infinite in the new bio- based economy…

And, as $ 44 trillion USD (or half the GDP of the planet) are dependent on healthy, thriving ecosystems; then business can’t afford to wait. Investors in the future of business and businesses themselves must adapt and include nature in their calculations or risk their own demise.

Time to Evolve.

What can you do? Listen into my interview with Marco Lambertini, Director General of WWF International and find out how.

Focus on Forests

The Amazon Forest, literally the lungs of the planet- responsible for respiring 20% of the world’s oxygen, was on fire most of the summer. Nearly 76,000 fires burned in the Amazonas this year, an increase of 84% from previous years.

Thus, the light of world news has been for the past months on Brazil. And, as fires burn in other countries, like Bolivia, Greenland, Siberia, Greece, Spain, Turkey, France, Russia, and Indonesia, we are in heated discussions about the future management of our world’s forests.

Fires literally in my backyard these past weeks, bring home the climate reality that our communities may inevitably be more susceptible to fires in in the coming years.

Those of us in California living on the urban-wildland interface can now empathize with our Amazonas, Indonesian, European friends in the forest. Homes, businesses, woodlands, coastlines, citrus and avocado groves, vineyards were threatened again these past weeks in the California fires. Most people still remember also the record-breaking, life-threatening, devastating fires in past years.

Yes, Fire is a natural part of these ecosystems; but fires are now burning hotter, longer, and more frequently under our new global warming normal. Coupled with increases in slash-burn agriculture practices; less regulation under present day political regimes; it seems we can expect increases in fire danger, ecosystem loss, and air pollution.

But this future is not determined… and we can be the masters of our own destiny.

According to Frances Seymour, Distinguished Senior Fellow, WRI (World Resources Institute), we can choose to save the patient in the emergency room from bleeding to death. We can protect our intact forests worldwide. We can halt deforestation and reduce slash-burn agriculture. We can invest in restoration. We can convert a percent of our agricultural lands back to forests…. we just need the will to do it!

According to Marcello Behar, Corporate Affairs Officer, Natura; we can value a tree more standing than dead. Natura is the largest cosmetic company in Brazil and they pride themselves on walking the integrated bottom line-people, planet, profit. Embedded in their corporate culture are the values that the value of nature is both economic and ecologic. Natura believes that they and others can run their companies profitably for people and responsibly for nature. Let’s listen in as Marcello shares with us the example of the Acuba tree….

According to Sonia Guajagara, an indigenous activist and politician in Brazil, who offers her wisdom in Portuguese in this interview… The naturally intelligent future path is clear. It’s a mindshift change that is needed.

“We simply need to restore the hearts, decarbonize the colonial minds, and re-forest the souls of all the people in the world”. We need to really respect nature, the integrity of ecosystems, and the ecology of communities. Why?  Because this is Mother Nature, and she is the source of life… our life.

Eat Right- Save the Planet

Olav Kjorven

Chief Strategy Officer, Eat Foundation

After twenty-five years of national and international policy work in development, environment, health, climate change, children’s rights, Olav Kjorven, my guest this week, now stands at the nexus of all these UN focal areas; working on the future of food, health, and agriculture.

Olav is the chief strategy officer at the Eat Foundation in Oslo, Norway. EAT’s mission is to transform our global food system from field to fork through science-centered, novel policies, programs, and partnerships.

Olav and I spoke together at the UN Summit in NY about the future of food production, nutrition, soil health, and food waste to food wealth. I laid out our seemingly mission impossible sustainable development challenge of increasing food production 70% while reserving 50% of land for wildlife habitat to accommodate our rapidly growing population.

Olav calmly and confidently replied that if we really take a look at present agricultural use… there is a lot of “fat” in the system. We allocate 40% (at least) of productive land to stable crops to feed cattle. We waste now nearly 40% of food produced- field to fork. It doesn’t have to be that way.

We can use simple technologies, like good ol’compost to reduce waste, nutrify soil, and sink carbon. We can apply a convergence of other technologies to create great efficiencies in agriculture production. We can educate better about how to reduce food waste and converge toward healthier diets in the family home.

Actually, it’s quite exhilarating to talk to Olav and I look forward to more time to talk with him again about food in the future. There seems an abundance of simple ways each one of us can transform our health and the health of the planet — simply by making better, conscious food choices.

Let’s listen in to Olav on how to eat well, liv healthy, sustain our planet.

Passion for the Planet and Optimism for the Oceans

Danni Washington

Science Communicator and TV Host

Danni Washington is the first African-American woman of color to host an American science TV series. Deeply passionate about understanding the natural world and inspiring others to connect to nature, Danni continues to be a positive role model and voice of the future for a healthy planet on land and in the ocean.

I caught up with Danni as she was hosting conversations with young global leaders  during the UN Youth Climate Summit in NYC. The youth were sharing their concerns, hopes, dreams for a carbon neutral future.

In our conversation, we both agreed that this generation of young activists are  “woke” and intelligent and bring great value to the conversation on climate solutions here and now…Why?

The youth today realize that they are the generation to live with the future we manifest with our actions today to decarbonize our world and regenerate natural ecosystems.

Particularly drawn to the ocean, Danni shares with us her personal moment of clarity and commitment; when she knew that she would dedicate herself to ocean conservation through media and digital influence.

I just loved the spirit and energy of this interview; let’s listen in. Enjoy.

Valuing the Voices of Youth and Nature in the Climate Conversation at the UN

Mr. Alfonso de Alba

Special Envoy for the Climate Action Summit

The Climate Action Summit during the UN General Assembly in NYC this autumn 2019 was special in that it was fueled by conversations on:

inter-generational climate solutions,

nature-based climate solutions, and

cultural climate solutions from indigenous communities worldwide.

This was the key observation of my guest for this week’s Natural Intelligence Worldwide podcast, Mr. Alfonso de Alba.

Mr de Alba serves as the special envoy for the Climate Action Summit. And, he was the driving force behind the pre- UN Summit discussions, which aimed to voice the concerns, comments, and commitments of the youth, indigenous, and environmental groups with greater volume throughout the summit.

To this end, Mr. Alfonso de Alba felt the Climate Action Summit was quite successful. 

Key outcomes of the meeting included:

• greater attention to inclusivity in driving innovation, technology and finances toward in-country climate actions;
• greater financial commitment to both climate mitigation and climate adaptation; which includes resilience-building for the most vulnerable, developing countries and communities.
• greater attention by the international community to the gravity and urgency of acting on climate; as well; in collaboration; as everyone’s commitment-large or small now matters;
• and finally…. a greater commitment by Secretary General Guiterrez to convert commitments to reality; as well, to assist countries in reaching even higher aspirational climate goals.

Let’s hear what Mr. de Alba has to say about the big wins from the UN Summit this year in New York and our commitment as a global community forward to rapidly decarbonize our world and to keep our global temperature increase to below 1.5C.

On Being Timelessly Mindful in Designing Our Carbon Neutral, Zero Waste, Pollution Free, Healthy, Happy Future World

Bill McDonough

CEO of McDonough Innovation, Co-author on Cradle-Cradle

How do we move from a take-make-waste-single use consumer based society to one that designs clean, healthy products, whose elemental parts can be recovered and recycled back into a biological nutrient or a raw material to re-purposed for infinite use? How do we create a new refined lexicon for carbon-differentiating among fugitive, durable, and living carbon to drive correct and specific behavior toward true carbon neutrality in the world? How do we invoke a system’s thinking approach: to halting future production of toxic materials, to shutting down linear systems that continue to pollute our natural world on land and in the oceans, to engaging in effective regenerative activities that are going to help ecosystems heal?How do we inspire a mind shift from unconscious consumption to deeply considerate mindful use and infinite reuse of goods to fulfill a service? How do we lean into higher order questions about our lives, our world, and our impact on the world; now aware that we can— as a species, design the future for greater life in perpetuity or degrade our environments on a planetary scale for a darker days ahead? In my interview with Bill McDonough, he gives cogent answers to these questions and clear direction of travel for every one of us in our global society toward a carbon neutral, clean, healthy, circular world. It's time to ask higher order questions and to be mindful of our actions and lifestyle choices.

Costa Rica's Seventh Generation Ethic: Invest in Nature, Invest in the Future

Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, Environment and Energy Minister, Costa Rica

Costa Rica is one of the most efficient and healthy countries in the world— tripling their economic growth, while recovering 1.1. million hectares of degraded land, protecting their watersheds, operating on 100% renewable energy, doubling the projected forested area, and advancing a robust eco-tourism industry.

It is no wonder that Costa Rica ranks high on the happiness, air quality, life quality indices.

What’s their secret?  According to Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, Environmental and Energy minister for Costa Rica- intergenerational investment in protecting nature, which stems from a deep cultural understanding of the value of nature to the economic and ecological wellbeing of the country and people- is the key.

How do we incentivize other countries and leaders to learn from Costa Rica’s success? Indeed, that is the central question. Currently, the world invests 0.008% of our global GDP in the protection of nature; yet nature has the potential to decarbonize our world and reduce climate stress by 30% while also providing up to $123 trillion USD of value in nature’s services.

Clearly, the opportunity for investing in nature is a win-win-win solution for personal, political, planetary health. But, it’s important to realize that our current economic decisions are destroying the life support system of the planet… Thus, it is time to invest in nature.

From Fringe to Frontline: The Value of Nature is Coming Sharper into Focus for the Finance Community

Naoko Ishii, CEO/Chair, Global Environment Facility (GEF)

Imagine, $123 trillion USD of value is tied to the resources and services nature provides to our global society and global economy. Yet, for over a century we have taken the gifts of nature for granted.

In my conversation with Naoko Ishii, CEO and Chair of the Global Environment Facility (GEF)- it is clear that the voice and value of nature is finally capturing the attention of the banking, investment, finance community.  And, part of the reason for this is that it our planetary impact on the quality of living organisms and ecosystems is becoming more obvious, real, and scary.

And, part of the reason for this is that the scientific community has leapt out of their comfort zone to better communicate science more clearly and enter conversations with the business community.

In her interview with me, Naoko challenged the finance community to do the same; to educate themselves on the crisis and opportunity for investing in nature- in transforming the energy sector, in transforming the food sector, and for creating circular economies across all sectors of business.

The good news is that as we breech ecosystem tipping points-  we realize more and more that not only are the global commons as risk; but so is the global economy.  And de-risking these threats to the ecology and economy of the planet must become everyone’s global mission.

In this regard, partnership is key. And, GEF is one of the largest environmental funds-dedicated to advancing transformative, socially good projects to both protect the environment and to develop sustainably in emerging economies through leveraging their capital to attract other partners and create transformative, positive change in our environment.

Thank you, Naoko and GEF for your leadership… and thank you for our interview.

Connecting the Other 50% to the Worldwide Web of Future Opportunities in Work, Health, Education

Houlin Zhao, Secretary General, International Telecommunications Union

Over half of the world society is connected to the internet…but imagine what a fully connected world would look like. Already e-commerce among the 55.1% of the world connected, accounts for 90% of global commerce. As a result, a whole wave of online entrepreneurs have set out into the virtual world to solve society’s problems, and have found their niche markets, even if on the other side of the world.  Digital courses and online education opportunities have proliferated over the past 10 years; such that anyone with a 4G/5G network access could earn a degree in higher education without ever stepping foot on a university campus. Further, digital health information and alerts to potential health threats serves to keep our communities healthier and more resilient to the spread of infectious diseases, like Ebola.

In my interview with Houlin Zhao, the Secretary General of the Intl Telecommunications Union; we explore what current and future benefits exist for our global society to adapt to and to adopt new 4IR technologies available in the global online network…We also discuss the importance in ensuring that everyone in the future- the other 50% of the world population, is connected to the worldwide web….

Why? Local SMEs and entrepreneurs are the most incentivized and best innovative force to solve local problems. So, the more people, esp. in poorer countries we empower with access to the internet to become educated, take care of their personal health, and even grow a business; the more prosperous and peaceful our world will become. This is the work and core mission of the ICT community. And, the ITU is there to support all partners and stakeholders in this mission.

Let’s hear what Mr. Zhao has to say further about the importance of the ITU and its work in the world today.