Sustainability: Our Competitive Advantage

It's a bitter sweet victory to feel like I'm within a hair's breath of achieving something I've been working towards for three decades: We're on the doorstep of reaching the critical mass necessary for a cathartic change in a society; and it's happening right here in Grenada, right now.

Sustainability may become our economic driver.

Leaders of Grenada's largest industry, the biggest economic contributors to the island are poised on the precipice of a decision about whether or not to embrace 'sustainability' as the cornerstone that defines who we are, what we offer to the world, and how we want to head into the future. Ironically, what Grenada decides to do at this change point in it's history could have a global impact - because what happens here can and does happen everywhere. The only real difference is that we're 100,000 people on a rock in the middle of nowhere so every little thing we do is visible and counts. And what sets us apart is that we've got the critical mass ready to embrace it.

Is a post-industrial sustainable society possible?

One thing I'm convinced of is that if it is, it's got to be led by the private sector. Without wanting to offend my public service colleagues around the world; the difference between the private sector and the public sector is an important once. The public sector tends to focus on process and the private sector tends to focus on results.

We need results and we need them fast.

Because we are small we can rise fast. But because we are small, we can fall fast too.

We're going to rise. And 20 years from now, we'll be the envy of the world over.

Met with the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)

Yesterday, I met with Mr. Alejandro Tapia, the Regional Programme Officer for Latin America and the Caribbean for the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). He was an amazing fellow, with good energy and a lot of enthusiasm. Originally from Bolivia, Mr. Tapia is a global citzen, having lived and worked in many parts of the world and worked for many institutions including the World Bank. I joked with him that his job now was a karmic pay-off for high carbon footprint for his life so far! We had a lot of jokes and a lot of laughs and that makes me very excited about what's ahead.

Along with Mr. Alejandro, was Grenada's local consultant, a man named Mr. Telesford. I don't know much about this man yet, but I think we will be well aquainted in a few weeks time!

The International Renewable Energy Agency is conducting a renewable energy assessment of Grenada and Peru (pilots). These assessments will identify what forms of renewables would best suit Grenada and well as generating a roadmap for renewable energy conversion. They were organizing individual meetings with stakeholder groups in advance of a larger workshop. I was nominated by the Non-State Actors Panel to participate.

The workshop is scheduled for July 23rd and may be anywhere from 1 to 3 days long. I suggested that if we had such a meeting it would be good to book a venue that could provide catering on real dishes instead of disposable meal containers. It would seem a shame to be generating a bunch of garbage at a meeting designed to evaluate our readiness to reduce our carbon footprint! :o)