The Economic SubSystem

The Mauri Model - a Tangata Whenua perspective on sustainability

The paper A Tangata Whenua Perspective on Sustainability using the Mauri Model: Towards decision making balance with regard to our social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being by  Te Kipa Kepa Brian Morgan (Senior Lecturer of Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of Auckland) which he presented at the International Conference on Sustainability Engineering and Science in 2004 was a really easy and enlightening read.

Every time I come across the Maori story of creation or their concepts of Mauri (the core essence and life force of all things) and Whanaugatanga (belonging to the land) I feel like it makes sense to me.  As I read this paper I thought it wouldn't be too hard to reframe some of the content to help get more people on board with the concepts.  In the introduction he speaks of the nonsensical decisions sometimes made still with regards to the Resource Management Act 1991.  It made me think back to when I was growing up in Whangamata, for many years witnessing snippets of the do-we-get-a-marina debate.  I often heard the negative comments from certain parts of the community of how Maori stand in the way of progress.  I remember doing a social-studies project on the topic sometime in my very early teens; I already had a great appreciation for nature but felt inadequately aware of the social and economic potential of the project, so I had difficulty forming a conclusion.  Today, the marina is up and running and I have been too out of the loop to hear whether the pros and cons eventuated - but I hear the surf bar is still going strong (one of the biggest fears the townspeople had).

The purpose of the paper is to introduce the concept of the Mauri model, which is based on four circles that represent the interdependence of economics (Mauri of whanau) on society (Mauri of community) on culture (Mauri of hapu) on the integrity of the ecosystem (Mauri of the environment).  So this thinking is totally the same as the strong sustainability models encountered in earlier blog posts.  The idea put forth is to use this model, along with ratings, to be able to make good decisions in regards to resource-use.  The conclusions are blunt to point out that economic well-being has recently been our most important criteria and that our appreciation of the importance of the social, cultural and environmental well-being needs to grow even further.

Think about it, it is now 10 years since this paper was presented! With minor tweaks it would be just as relevant to whip it out at any next conference!

The Social Role of Business

This morning I skimmed through The Social Role of Business, Snapshot 2010: Stories of business engagement in the social space, and Business Guide: Engaging in Corporate Social Responsibility, all published by the NZ Business Council for Sustainable Development.

The theme was on 'businesses can't succeed in societies that fail' and really rallied for business to be included at the table of government and non-governmental organisations when they discuss solutions for social issues.  I agree with them, they have the resources and expertise (through a different lens) to really get involved in those discussions... after all, they are usually also the most efficient entities for getting things done!  The higher the urgency of changes needed gets the more I tend to want to stress this point.  Having gone through the first wave of the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (the very tame version of what is really needed) they are also open to real engagement; I think we have mostly all moved past thinking just throwing money at the problem solves things, no?!  Really thinking things through, getting at root causes, and having all three sectors of society engaging is our best hope for adopting systems that will head the issues in the right direction.

One of the larger think tanks out there working to combining the three sectors to achieve sustainable development is Forum for the Future.

The Social SubSystem

Using Art to Inspire

Balance by Design is a short 7 minute movie made by Auckland's Martin Hill (communications designer) and Phillipa Jones (writer) to show how and why they make environmental sculptures, which are intended to inspire an industrial design revolution via the use of nature as a model for sustainable design.  Here's their Sustainability by Design website. It's good to have a quick look at to see the concept visually but most of what they talk about (the problems and the need) is already mentioned many times over elsewhere.  I always like the idea of getting creative artists involved, its such a different perspective... we got to make some sculptures at our first block course in Wanaka - it was great fun to see what arises!

Cradle to Cradle

I came across William O'Donoghue's TED talk (below) a few years ago, and felt really inspired by the cradle-2-cradle concept; it was probably my first exposure to 'there is no waste in nature' and seeing the value in cyclic systems to address our issues.  Closed loop cycles to contain the things that currently accumulate as toxins in our natural systems and technical cycles so we don't lose control when we are working in such complex ways.  I don't overly enjoy listening to him speak (his manner) but he can appreciate some really eloquent expressions.  For example, he calls 'design' as 'the intent in what we build', or when he describes competition as stemming from the Latin word competare which apparently means strive together; imagine businesses 'training together and then competing'...very relevant, as this is what we will need to do to get ahead fast enough in becoming sustainable.  Here is the talk:

He also published a book with Michael Braungart calling for the transformation of human industry through ecologically intelligent design. They describe the current systems as a consequence of the industrial rush, but that "today, with our growing knowledge of the living earth, design can reflect a new spirit".  I found a few websites out there that say William O'Donoghue doesn't walk the talk enough, but I also found this irrefutable  claim on his website:  "In addition to describing the hopeful, nature-inspired design principles that are making
industry both prosperous and sustainable, the book itself is a physical symbol of the changes to come. It is printed on a synthetic 'paper,' made from plastic resins and inorganic fillers, designed to look and feel like top quality paper while also being waterproof and rugged. And the book can be easily recycled in localities with systems to collect polypropylene, like that in yogurt containers. This 'treeless' book points the way toward the day when synthetic books, like many other products, can be used, recycled, and used again without losing any material quality—in cradle to cradle cycles".  Gotta say, I like the out of the box thinking.

Biomimicry

I think the concept of biomimicry (essentially, basing product and service design on the architecture of what works well in nature) is genius.  It is probably what we did at the very first and then in the rush of the industrial era didn't until recently think to utilize again until we called it a fancy name.  Last year, an article came out outlining the 14 best inventions using biomimicry.  My favourites are the artificial leaf (great simple vision), the robot spider that'll find you in a disaster (cleverness), and the robot bird (awe-factor at how close a machine can look to a live animal).

Janine Benyus, from the Biomimicry Institute in the US, gave two TED talks in 2009 (see below).  At the Institute they promote the study and imitation of nature's designs, and bring together scientists, engineers, architects and innovators who can use the information to create more sustainable technologies.  They call it Ask Nature.  I wonder what is happening in this space here in New Zealand?

Biomimicry in Action:

12 Sustainable Design Ideas from Nature:

Natures Design

We often talk about ecosystem services.  A quick definition of this can be found on the web, but to really grasp the enormity of the topic and how it relates to how we are operating the planet I recommend reading Natural Capitalism by Paul Hawken (1999).  I read this last year and found it to be a really good summary.

Seeing Systems

The NZ LOHAS market

In 2005, the Moxie Design Group Ltd (Wellington) commissioned research into New Zealand's LOHAS (Lifestyle of Health and Sustainability) market - consumers interested in 'green' products, often also referred to as Conscientious Consumers or Cultural Creatives - and published Understanding the Market for Sustainable Living: the growth in the New Zealand Solutions Seekers demographic.  As you can see this group of consumers has been given a new name yet again, one I quite like: Solutions Seekers.

First time round, in 2005, the size of this demographic was measured to be 26%.  When the research was repeated in 2007, it had grown to 32% (6% increase), mainly due to a rise in those who are tertiary educated or earning more than $70,000 per annum.  These are the groups I'd expect to grow, if they aren't all mostly there yet.

However, whilst it is fantastic that this research is starting to be carried out I was disappointed with the limited scope.  It is great to see it was represented by the appropriate age group ratios but out of over 4 million people only 1000 people were surveyed by phone.  This might be good enough in market research - I don't know, it's something I'd love to learn more about - but I'd want more specific details if I were to base my business on it.  Since this was prepared before a LOHAS forum, it must have been enough to be able to start bringing the New Zealanders into conversation.

FYI, the key conclusions (I'm not at all surprised about) were:

Society is feeling the pressure from increased growing awareness of environmental and social issues and people are taking greater action to help themselves and others where they feel they can. This is causing an increase in the overall Solution Seekers group as they endeavour to find ways to support their evolving values and changing lifestyle choices.  

It’s no surprise that climate change is currently the biggest driver in society with 83% of New Zealanders aware of the problems that the world faces, such as global warming. They also want to take action to reduce these problems.  

But as society struggles to deal with these complex issues they are loosing faith in Government and business to provide the appropriate solutions. With an unclear will from Government and a business mandate geared on profit, they feel our current systems and technologies are to blame for these issues. 

With few solutions they can actually purchase or adopt, they are instead looking to past social institutions and lifestyles as an alternative. They are harking back to the ‘good old days’ where individuals were more self reliant.  

We’re basically seeing the growth in traditional values as society become more disenfranchised and disillusioned by the repercussions of modern life.

As I come across free-access sustainability reports of NZ companies, I'll list them here:
In Fashion, there is Untouched World; here is their Sustainability Statement.
In transport, there is Urgent Couriers, here is their 2008 report.