Reflection about the emerging Asian led global regeneration. Not just economic, but sustainable, developmental, and ultimately a source of human wellbeing. What Klaus Schwab called in Davos earlier this month an age of shared values. Where the drive of the market, the deployment of its capital and the use of its labour can be re-shaped by the demands of the planet, the limits of its ecosystems and the legitimate needs of all of its people. Or put another way shareholder value meets stakeholder value.
Reflection of how the very concept of sustainability (in which our friend and colleague Maurice Strong has been the leading pathfinder) has itself adapted over the past half century, embracing planet, people, poverty and pollution. Slowly engaging public and private policies, under mounting pressure of development and carbon necessities. And, more importantly, where it must go, over the next four decades, to stabilize climate, resources and population.
Reflection from the growth epicentre of that new broader vision – Korea was the first country to develop a formal green new deal strategy. China placed this thinking at the heart of its massive $440 billion stimulus plan to support wind and solar energy as well as to invest in travel infrastructure – fast trains, superhighways and upgraded airports. India and the other BRICS have harnessed it to similar rapid development and poverty alleviation strategies. And of course the new Sarkozy/Stiglitz focus on the pursuit of happiness as a basic socio-economic criterion – which eventually will move into OECD and G20 Green Growth strategies - was started in the tiny Asian Kingdom of Bhutan. I might add that gender equality was advanced here in Jeju by the matriarchal sea women.
Reflection, on one of the great understated socio-cultural phenomena that has shaped our past and that can be a major driver in a new more thoughtful growth driven future. That force is “Sustainable Mobility” and specifically the incredible power of the immense Travel and Tourism value chain or what I call “Travelism” as a positive green growth change agent. The ‘demand side’ activity of non-commuting travel for business and leisure, international and the far larger domestic element: as well as the ‘supply side’ industry cluster of transport, tourism, hospitality, distribution and related delivery services. And its dynamic spill over into culture, sport, entertainment and mega-events.
Everything that delivers on the propensity for travel that has been hardwired into the human genome since we crawled out of the primeval swamp.
Reflexion finally on how education in all its facets can play a pivotal and catalytic role – fitting so well into the Strong Vision and grounded here in Jeju.
First a quick overview of the green growth context
Transition to the Green Economy is the increasingly accepted way for the world community to coherently respond to today’s intense challenges of economic meltdown, climate response and the poverty divide. As well as tomorrow’s inevitable threats of escalating population, with declining resources and food. It is a four decade progression, with dynamic transition milestones, within evolving global and regional institutional structures. There is a stark determinant in this framework - the imperative of stabilizing global warming below a targeted 2 degree Celsius increase by 2050. Maurice Strong has called it “the potential Armageddon that humanity must face down.”
It means a shift from triple bottom line thinking of economic, social and environmental balance to quadruple bottom line vision where climate is a crosscutting and distinct game changing reality that has to be a starting point for all strategy.
To paraphrase Tom Friedman’s “Hot Flat and Crowded” it will require - reduced dependence on black energy - oil or coal and replacing it with clean energy – solar, wind, tidal and clean nuclear: linking information technology and energy technology to support zillions of daily green actions, spread innovation and manage change: supporting developing & emerging countries with technology and finance, as well as building a strong base of eco-system conservation for planetary and species well-being.
The complexity, scale and scope of this transformation required between now and 2050 in every production, consumption and investment activity on earth is almost incomprehensible - given different socio-politico-economic realities and the multi-trillion dollar cost. UNEP’s Achim Steiner has likened it to completing a green global mosaic over 4 decades, with the starting point and pace of change differing from country to country and community to community.
And this leads to my second major point. All elements of society and all sectors of the economy will need to adapt over time. Travelism can not only make the change itself, but can be a lead catalyst for change in other sectors.
Why? Because of deep supply & demand side linkages into agriculture, manufacturing, and service sectors: immense consumer communication and significant ICT interface. It has a critical role to play in advancing the development agenda and reducing poverty. Particularly for poor states as a development driver and for small island states where it is a massive part of the socio-economic fabric.
In virtually all of the world’s poorest countries Travelism is an actual or potential services trade and employment leader, bringing investment and wealth creation as infrastructure is built and visitors spending is injected directly into local communities. Creating jobs and countering urban drift. And it’s an activity that can spread cultural knowledge, mutual understanding, tolerance and happiness. It’s no wonder that when hostile nations make peace the first clause of any accord is about lifting travel restrictions and encouraging tourism exchanges. Travelism is the lifeblood of commerce and of human interaction.
Of course increased Travelism has to be sustainable to be a mainstream element of green growth strategies. But the opportunities far outweigh the challenges.
We account for 10% directly and indirectly of global GDP, Jobs, Trade and Capital. So much more in developing and emerging economies. And 5% of global carbon emissions. Like other sectors we can increase our contribution to society while lowering our impacts
Countries, companies and communities who are first movers will cut costs, develop new markets, engage their employees, satisfy their customers, deliver on their social responsibility aspirations and decouple their growth and carbon dependence.
Consider the potential in our sector – new aircraft frames and engines are forecast to reduce carbon emissions by 30% over the next three decades. Hybrid and electric cars are becoming widely available. As are bio-fuel alternatives – where it is essential that aviation be allocated a priority, given its dependence on fossil fuel. Just look at the number of hotels who don’t use solar power, despite the rising cost of fossil fuel, or who ignore the low hanging fruit of energy efficiency retrofitting.
And there is of course the massive employment dimension: so important when unemployment is hovering around the 10% mark. Skills and re- training programs will be needed for existing workers to move them into emerging green growth jobs, which by definition will mean what ILO calls “decent work”. New workers can become tomorrow’s socio-environmental entrepreneurs. School leavers and graduates will become the green economy foot soldiers, generals and leaders in the next decades. Educational systems will shift to inject green growth as a priority criterion. And the emerging economies will leapfrog by capitalizing on their resurgence, their very lack of entrenched systems and their ability to retool early stage training and education programs using the massive power of ICT.
There is also a huge opportunity to create innovative new structures in the rapidly evolving development, climate and trade response space. Consider, for example, in a time of widespread unemployment in OECD countries the potential to match computer literate graduate job seekers with developing states’ needs to bridge the digital divide and boost their Travelism structural underpinnings. A gap year of overseas voluntourism can give a practical fulfilling field experience to potentially disappointed graduates. It would also be attractive for corporate social responsibility programs as well as public sector job creation schemes.
Or why not strengthen Travelism’s basic educational framework.
While delivering skilled managers and employees the learning systems and structures are rather weak and fragmented. Transport, hospitality and travel services have evolved in their own educational silos with differentiated quality and little connectivity.
Until now distinct emphasis in this sector has been on vocational training and it’s a newish discipline in secondary and tertiary educational systems. Geography and economics have been important surrogates for the former, with engineering, marketing, finance and general management for the latter. Classic university disciplines are limited – despite the multiplication of hospitality colleges and faculties around the world in recent years.
Travelism’s environment interface has also strengthened in recent years, as has the linkage with ITC. But the fact is that it’s all still sporadic and ad hoc. And it’s local, national or sub sectoral rather than with any real coherent and robust global framework
Even the respected industry and international organizations have only played on the edges of a meaningful education and training strategy across the Travelism spectrum. With no coherence in fundamental school, vocational, entrepreneurship, graduate and postgraduate components nor between public and private sectors, nor a leadership mindset attuned to the potential global positioning of the sector
Green Growth offers a chance to rectify that because it will mean a strategic re-orientation in all education systems – with the possibility to fully integrate Travelism, with an even better academic underpinning to its own transformation.
Maurice Strong’s concept of a World Environment University here in Jeju can be an important catalyst. While this is early days in the implementation, as Maurice has laid out yesterday, Green Growth Travelism will be an important foundation component.
And let me conclude today by highlighting some possibilities from such a development:
- It can become an education focal point for academic, industry and government thought leaders committed to the mainstreaming of Travelism in Green Growth
- It can help to underpin the sector’s educational revamp – putting quadruple bottom line sustainability and smart travel into curricula
- It can spawn a network of networks in the education field committed to realize this paradigm shift thinking through best practice learning techniques - with a strong emphasis on new media and mobile delivery.
- Last but not least, It can provide a useful reference base for the new mindset amongst the key international organizations involved inside Travelism, Environmentalism and Academia, from public, private and civil society sources
