John Elkington

Patrin and Sam @ work

After breakfast with colleagues from Singapore’s Economic Development Board, who are a strategic partner of ours at Volans, I walked back to the office to finish off some writing, do a couple of meetings and then begin tidying up ahead of Monday. One of the things I did was to pin up all the painting and drawings that an American teacher, Vicki Wade, had sent me – done by her class in Alexandria, Virginia, on the basis on our long-ago book for children, Going Green. Fabulous images, thoughts and sentiments.  She and successive generations of her students have done this each year for absolute ages.

Patrin (Watanatada) came over to help pinning up the pictures – and, by accident, I got a glimpse of something Sam and others had been working on for me with The Value Web. Six Value Web artists had conspired together to produce an extraordinary rendering of my life and character, though I have to say that when Ale and Sam took the wraps off the analysis seemed to be unduly forgiving of my foibles. But enormously moving, even so.

Sam captions James Parr, Sam and I Sam reflects Patrin and Ale With one of the paintings done by Vicki Wade’s children in Alexandria, VA The great unveiling Drinking it in

Flew in from Sao Paulo this afternoon, via TAM, after a few days at the annual Instituto Ethos conference on corporate social responsibility. I did a panel session yesterday, chaired by Simon Zadek of AccountAbility and also featuring Fernando Martins of Grupo Santander and Ricardo Henriques, advisor to the President of BNDES, the Brazilian Development Bank. Our session was enitled: ‘Global Crisis: Can a new financial system drive the economy towards a sustainable society?’ My central question was whether the government-moderated economic crisis will be enough to spur transformative changes in our basic economic model – too early to say, but sadly maybe not. Then a very interesting meeting with several people from Braskem. The previous evening, took part in a wonderful dinner with the members of the International Board of Ethos.

When I switched from economics to sociology at university in 1968, Peter Townsend was one of my professors – and had quite an impact on my sensibilities.  Sad to see his obituary today in The Times when I got back from Aberdeen.

Shocked to see the graphic illustration of the precipitous collapse of spawning cod stocks in the North Sea in the Financial Times Magazine for June 6-7, which had been hanging around in a stack of unread magazines due to my recent travel.  One of the triggers for the piece was the new film, The End of the Line: Imagine a Worth Without Fish.  Linked to Charles Clover’s book of the same name.

Flew up to Aberdeen this morning, to join some colleagues from IMSA – including one who was part of the Greenpeace boarding party on the Brent Spar – to talk to people in the oil and gas platform decommissioning business.  The project, the ‘Living North Sea Initiative’, is still under wraps, but has great potential at a time when the North Sea seems to be in continuing decline, despite a spate of government-sponsored efforts to turn the tide.

Hotel Bellechasse 1 Hotel Bellechasse, in the lift

A fairly energetic day in Paris, where I arrived last night, staying again at the Hotel Bellechasse. Then around the corner to an advisory board meeting with EcoVadis, before heading across after lunch to UNESCO for a meeting with Liz Longworth and colleagues. Delighted to see such things as a Calder mobile outside and a large photograph of a whaleshark in the lobby. Jonah Goldstein also took me to see the Picasso mural, which he noted hadn’t been signed by the artist – I said I wasn’t surprised, the painting didn’t strike me as that wonderful. But then I spotted the central figure as we rounded a pillar – and exclaimed that, given my interest in flight and Homo volans, this was perfect, a falling angel. Icarus, Jonah explained.

Remarkable clouds on the way back to London by Eurostar, which I’m spending more time studying now that Elaine has joined us both up for the Cloud Appreciation Society.

Amputee, as I walk garden before EcoVadis meeting Facade Curtain in meeting room Whale shark at UNESCO Calder mobile Kalashnikov as praying mantis