John Elkington

Maybe it was just the sessions I was in, but Australia seemed in the ascendant at the World Business Summit on Climate Change, with Tim Flannery as Chairman and Cate Blanchett dropping into the session he and I did on forestry today – and then giving the final plenary speech.  A moving end, especially when she spoke of fellow Australians cooked in their cars when the flame front swept through towns in the recent fires.  Last night, a wonderful dinner with Novo Nordisk and Al Gore, where both he and Lise Kingo of Novo Nordisk gave special mention to the work we have done over the years.  Wonderful to see Mads Øvlisen, who first brought us into Novo at the every end of 1988 or early in 1989.

No Speed Limit Anymore

Girding my loins to fly to Copenhagen this afternoon, I have been tidying up, among other things uploading recent photographs from my camera to my laptop.  When Doug Miller of GlobeScan asked me last night at dinner in Whit’s how I was feeling, the answer was/is that after a period of wanting to hold back as the downturn took serious hold, partly because I thought that any approach to possible partners and clients would lead to stonewalling, I’m now beginning to feel much more open to the world and to opportunity.  

Speaking to a Brazilian visitor yesterday, who had been reading the Volans Flyer, I underscored my faith in serendipity (a word that features prominently on the front of the Flyer), if the conditions are prepared, and she agreed.

A year in to Volans, I’m beginning to feel a mood coming on that aligns with the card Sam gave me as we began to set up the new organisation, NO SPEED LIMIT ANYMORE.  And the strapline: ‘Go as fast as you want, like in Germany’. Though I hate German driving styles, nose-to-tail at close to warp speed, the sentiment is exactly right. The time has come to get ourselves organised and put our feet to the floor.

Across to Brick Lane with Charmian late in the day to take part in a panel discussion for Accenture Development Partnerships (ADP).  Speaking alongside Jon Sopel of BBC News 24, Gib Bulloch of ADP, Sir Mark Moody-Stuart of Anglo-American and Charles Badenoch of World Vision. Lively and the time whistled by, an experience I don’t normally share with the rest of humanity. First time I had been to The Brickhouse, an interesting venue, a bit like playing the Jazz Cafe. The subject of the debate, a new paper by Gib and Jane Nelson, called Development Collaboration: None of Our Business?

Sam and Char prepare to head across to The Hub

Spoke at the SHINE conference near King’s Cross this evening, before heading over to The Hub for a party – with Alejandro, Charmian, Rosie (Reeve), Sam and Yingli (Guo). Cliff Prior of UnLtd asked all the Volans folk to self-identify themselves in front of the final plenary session, which was rather a proud moment.  Things may have been challenging, but we have built a great team.

The event was one of the first I have spoken at that was tracked by Twitter.

It was pouring as I walked back to the office later, hoping to cycle home, but gave up and took the Tube.

The Hub, from the top floor The Hub, detail of roof Photographer snapped

Shot by Maggie Peter in full flow Jodie and Geoff in midst of a later session

This morning I went across to SustainAbility to do a session with the full SustainAbility team, with people having flown in from Switzerland, India and the US.  Right at the beginning, Maggie (Brenneke) stole my camera and shot some pictures from the front, one of which is shown here. When it came to our session, John Schaetzl, SustainAbility’s Chairman, interviewed me on how to engage CEOs and other C-suite folk.  A very lively discussion, followed by lunch and then cycled back to Bloomsbury Place for a series of meetings.