Sustainability Conversations ... Smash the System

The lazy person's guide to saving the world

End extreme poverty. Fight inequality and injustice. Fix climate change. Whoa. The Global Goals are important, world-changing objectives that will require cooperation among governments, international organizations and world leaders. It seems impossible that the average person can make an impact. Should you just give up? No!!

Who are you? Sofa Superstar, Household Hero or Neighbourhood Nice Guy?

Here are a few of the many things you can do to make an impact. Click here

Sustainability Heroes ... those people who have committed their lives and hearts to making the world a better place. Boyan Slat is one of them.

Boyan Slat

Boyan Slat (1994) is a Dutch inventor and entrepreneur who creates technologies to solve societal problems.

He is the founder and CEO of The Ocean Cleanup, which develops advanced technologies to rid world’s oceans of plastic.

Instead of going after the plastic, Boyan devised a system though which, driven by the ocean currents, the plastic would concentrate itself, reducing the theoretical cleanup time from millennia to mere years. In February 2013 he dropped out of his Aerospace Engineering study to start The Ocean Cleanup. The first prototype system is projected to be deployed in June 2016.

Boyan Slat has been recognized as one of the 20 Most Promising Young Entrepreneurs Worldwide (Intel EYE50), and is the youngest-ever recipient of the UN’s highest environmental accolade; Champion of the Earth.
Read about his incredible ideas here

In 2015, an estimated 10 000 repossessed homes were sold on auction in South Africa. Most of these homes were sold at just a fraction of the market value, leaving struggling home owners seriously out of pocket. When the going gets tough ...

Read more about your rights here when a lender (such as a bank) repossess your home with the intention of selling it to cover any outstanding costs.

Join us on Thursday when we chat to Advocate Douglas Shaw as a follow-up on his Carte Blanche interview about home repo and your rights. Not to be missed!

 

Keitu Gwangwa & Pierre du Toit host the iStart2 Show on Thursdays at 17h30. Radio Today broadcasts on 1485 MW (AM) in greater Johannesburg and countrywide on ‪#‎DStv‬ audio channel 869. 

Radio Today also streams globally on www.1485.org.za.

Something to think about

I will not attack your doctrines nor your creeds if they accord liberty to me. If they hold thought to be dangerous - if they aver that doubt is a crime, then I attack them one and all, because they enslave the minds of men. Robert Green Ingersoll
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/crime_3.html

I will not attack your doctrines nor your creeds if they accord liberty to me. If they hold thought to be dangerous - if they aver that doubt is a crime, then I attack them one and all, because they enslave the minds of men. Robert Green Ingersoll
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/crime_3.html

I will not attack your doctrines nor your creeds if they accord liberty to me. If they hold thought to be dangerous - if they aver that doubt is a crime, then I attack them one and all, because they enslave the minds of men. Robert Green Ingersoll
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/r/robertgree170354.html?src=t_crime

I will not attack your doctrines nor your creeds if they accord liberty to me. If they hold thought to be dangerous - if they aver that doubt is a crime, then I attack them one and all, because they enslave the minds of men
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/r/robertgree170354.html?src=t_crime

I will not attack your doctrines nor your creeds if they accord liberty to me. If they hold thought to be dangerous - if they aver that doubt is a crime, then I attack them one and all, because they enslave the minds of men.
- Robert Green Ingersoll

I will not attack your doctrines nor your creeds if they accord liberty to me. If they hold thought to be dangerous - if they aver that doubt is a crime, then I attack them one and all, because they enslave the minds of men. Robert Green Ingersoll
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/r/robertgree170354.html?src=t_crime

Fighting Crime Together ... Brig Piet Pieterse & Capt Kwena Serokolo

"People that commit these offences are not always such bad people and I have learnt a lot from them," says Brigadier Piet Pieterse from SA's elite Hawks police unit. On the iStart2 Show this week we chatted to Piet (Head of the Cyber Crime Unit) and his colleague, Captain Kwena Serokolo.

"I believe the future is filled with abundant possibilities

 and it is for us to seize the opportunities"

- Captain Kwena Serokolo on the iStart2 Show

The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation also known as the Hawks, has been established as an independent directorate within the South African Police Service and is responsible for the combating, investigation and prevention of national priority crimes such as serious organized crime, serious commercial crime and serious corruption.
 
"Following the money is one of the principles we use but the focus is on the investigative methodologies to follow the modus operandi of the criminal's behaviour by using specific forensic capabilities. It is better to look at a proactive approach rather than a reactive approach," says Piet.

Kwena's message to the public is clear: "Report crime. At the end of the day there is the joy when eventually your criminal gets convicted in court and you put one person away". Piet re-iterates that there is a responsibility on all of us to report crime and that we need to focus on educating the public.

To get some behind the scenes information about the role of the Hawks and how you and your community can get involved in combating crime and corruption, listen to the show:



Thought of the Day: "For the love of money ..."

Keitu Gwangwa & Pierre du Toit host the iStart2 Show on Thursdays at 17h30. Radio Today broadcasts on 1485 MW (AM) in greater Johannesburg and countrywide on ‪#‎DStv‬ audio channel 869. Radio Today also streams globally on www.1485.org.za..

"I have always hated criminals and crime. Life is hard enough without someone walking into your life on purpose and making it worse." 
-  Pauley Perrette

Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/crime.html

I've always hated criminals and crime. Life is hard enough without someone walking into your life on purpose and making it worse. Pauley Perrette
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/crime.html

lways hated criminals and crime. Life is hard enough without someone walking into your life on purpose and making it worse. Pauley Perrette
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/crime.html

Sustainability Conversations ... Crime & Silent auctions

This year (2016) the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development — adopted by world leaders in September 2015 at an historic UN Summit — officially came into force.  Over the next fifteen years, with these new Goals that universally apply to all, countries will mobilize efforts to end all forms of poverty, fight inequalities and tackle climate change, while ensuring that no one is left behind.

For the goals to be reached, everyone has to do their part : Governments, the private sector, civil society and people like us.

"Where corruption is rampant countries face poor inward investment, and blemished reputations. Corruption is, therefore, a short term victory for the few that deeply harms the many,” the UNODC chief warned, underlining the importance of the new development Agenda’s Goal 16, which seeks to substantially reduce corruption and bribery, as well as promote access to justice and effective, accountable and transparent institutions.

Environmental crime is also now becoming a serious problem worldwide in different forms, with some of them being among the most profitable criminal activities in the world. The most common crimes against the environment are connected with the unlawful exploitation of wild fauna and flora, pollution, waste disposal and its trade.

Would you like to know what the five most serious environmental crimes are?
Find out here

An interesting story that grabbed my attention broke in the Business Day last month. Having had first hand experience of how the auctioneering system "operates", it was good to see a string of auctioneers, Bank officials, liquidators and prominent individuals implicated in a crime bust. Would love to see a closer scrutiny on the actions of some auctioneers and their dubious bedfellows. 

Read more here.
In 2015, an estimated 10 000 repossessed homes were sold on auction in South Africa. Most of these homes were sold at just a fraction of the market value, leaving struggling home owners seriously out of pocket.

If you have a home loan please read the Carte Blanche iarticle here

 Join us on Thursday when we chat to our Sustainability Heroes of the week, Brigadier Piet Pieterse and Captain Kwena Serokolo from the Hawks. They are both involved in the cyber and commercial crime unit. We chat about their role and how the community can get involved in fighting corruption and crime.

Keitu Gwangwa & Pierre du Toit host the iStart2 Show on Thursdays at 17h30. Radio Today broadcasts on 1485 MW (AM) in greater Johannesburg and countrywide on ‪#‎DStv‬ audio channel 869. 

Radio Today also streams globally on www.1485.org.za. 

It is time to make the change - thank you 

for playing your part in creating a more sustainable world!

Remembering June 16, 1976 ... Sibongile Mkhabela

"The South African story is not about how wonderful the big leaders were, but how amazing the ordinary people were. We are our own liberators. We liberated ourselves," says Sibonglie Mkhabela, CEO of the Nelson Mandela Childrens Hospital Trust, on the iStart2 Show.

"The real story was about young people making extraordinary decisions because they faced extraordinary circumstances. I knew when Hector Pieterson was killed there was no turning back. It was about our survival as people. What kept us strong were the amazing community leaders."

"iStart2 think about intergenerational conversations and taking us forward in connecting the dots" - Sibongile Mkhabela on the iStart2 Show

"I believe Africa is ready to play a bigger role in the world. The time for Africa to be a basketplace is over. I believe that holding our leaders responsible is the first step," says Sibongile. 

As a teenager, Sibongile was one of the leaders of the 1976 Soweto uprising. She was an executive member of the Soweto Student Representative Council and the South African Students Movement's General Secretary. Sibongile consequently spent four years in prison at Constitution Hill, partly serving time for ‘sedition’.

Sibongile's story about her life is a story of hope and survival against the odds. We also chat about her book Open Earth and Black Roses, her views on creating a more sustainable world and the legacy of Nelson Mandela. Click play to listen to the show (repeat):




Thought of the Day:

Upcoming show:

Nirox Sculpture Park - 18 June 2016

Featuring original compositions from a collection of the finest guitar players in South Africa, including: Derek Gripper, Steve Newman, Pops Mohamed, Sibusile Xaba, Richard Bruyns and Michael Plaxton-Harrison. Their warm sounds will wander through our grassy amphitheatre beneath a sunny Winter sky.

The concert will be held on Saturday 18 June amidst the NIROX Winter 2016 Sculpture Exhibition: A Place In Time with over 40 outdoor sculptures on display by local and international artists.

There will be a fully stocked bar offering a delicious selection of drinks – including Glühwein – to refresh and hydrate as music lovers explore the landscape of Nature and Art.

See you there!

Sustainability Conversations ... Black Roses

Can a city really be sustainable?

What are the biggest challenges in making cities greener?
What would you say is the biggest threat to the climate within cities?
What can the people in the cities do to try to minimize their impact?
So how should cities be implementing these changes?
Follow the conversation here

Hope is stronger than fear


Crucially, that change is now beginning to take hold, with clean energy on the march and the low-carbon economy becoming a reality on the ground, rather than just a PowerPoint aspiration.

There is hope in the many voices who are now calling for action from their leaders.
There is hope in the rapidly falling cost of renewable energy that is starting to transform our dirty energy system.
There is hope in the pledge by G7 countries to phase out coal power.
There is hope in the communities and innovators around the world who are getting on with the job rather than waiting for the politicians.Read the story of hope here

Why climate change needs 60 000 artists to tell its story?

Climate change exceeds modern humans’ cognitive and sensory abilities.To overcome this impasse, climate communication needs to engage people at a philosophical, sensory and feeling level. People need to be able to feel and touch the new climate reality; to explore unfamiliar emotional terrain and be helped to conceive their existence differently.
How is this to be done? The world must turn to its artists: storytellers, film-makers; musicians; painters and multi-media wizards, to name a few.
Read article here

REVERSE GRAFFITI: 

Street Artists Tag Walls by Scrubbing Them Clean

When is cleaning the sidewalks a crime? When you're doing great art. Obviously! Using an innovative practise called Reverse Graffiti, these artists seek out soot covered surfaces and inscribe them with images, tags and even advertising slogans using scrub bushes, scrapers and pressure hoses.

See more here

Tune in on Thursday when we chat to Sibongile about June 16, 1976, her life, her book "Open Earth and Black Roses," her views on creating a more sustainable world and  the legacy of Nelson Mandela. Sibongile is concerned about the fact that  "Green Environment" issues are often elitist. She asks questions about who really benefits from going green and feels strongly that the time for Africa to be a basket case is over.

Keitu Gwangwa & Pierre du Toit host the iStart2 Show on Thursdays at 17h30. Radio Today broadcasts on 1485 MW (AM) in greater Johannesburg and countrywide on ‪#‎DStv‬ audio channel 869. 

Radio Today also streams globally on www.1485.org.za. 

It is time to make the change - thank you 

for playing your part in creating a more sustainable world!

A license to be ... Ruda Landman

"We all grow up in boxes with people who are like you. You choose people as friends who laugh at the same jokes you do," says Ruda Landman on the iStart2 Show this week. "Journalism kicks you out of that. In South Africa we have an advantage (in that) we have to get along with people who are very different to us. We must count our blessings." 

Ruda Landman starts2 on the iStart2 Show

Widely regarded as one of South Africa’s most respected TV journalists, Ruda Landman chats to Keitu and Pierre about changes in her career, her life, her new show VeranderDinge and her perspective on the sustainability challenges we currently face in South Africa. 

Ruda is excited about having recently acquired a solar geyzer: "It works like a charm ... and we always have hot water. We have also just installed a rainwater tank. Johannesburg has water restrictions and we take that very seriously." Ruda irks about the heaps of litter in our small towns and the fact that only 66% of our people have access to refuse removal. "I believe that my life matters and that therefore I should live it responsibly towards other people and the environment."

To listen to the show and some of her favourite music by Wouter Kellerman, just click play:



Thought of the Day:

Upcoming Events:

Emperors Palace - 15 & 16 June 2016

In a historic moment for South African jazz, bandleader Jonas Gwangwa will share the stage with Hugh Masekela and Abdullah Ibrahim during a reunion concert at Emperors Palace, Kempton Park, on Thursday. “It will be a pleasure and a great moment for me,” says the veteran jazzman and leading trombonist, Jonas Gwangwa.

Nirox Sculpture Park - 18 June 2016

Featuring original compositions from a collection of the finest guitar players in South Africa, including: Derek Gripper, Steve Newman, Pops Mohamed, Sibusile Xaba, Richard Bruyns and Michael Plaxton-Harrison. Their warm sounds will wander through our grassy amphitheatre beneath a sunny Winter sky.

The concert will be held on Saturday 18 June amidst the NIROX Winter 2016 Sculpture Exhibition: A Place In Time with over 40 outdoor sculptures on display by local and international artists.

There will be a fully stocked bar offering a delicious selection of drinks – including Glühwein – to refresh and hydrate as music lovers explore the landscape of Nature and Art.

Enjoy your week!

Sustainability Conversations ... Snake Eagle Thinking

What does sustainability really mean for your business?

It is your way to say why and how your business is acting responsibly.
Your viewpoint should:

• Reduce barriers: Reduce consumer confusion around sustainability by describing positive values and impacts of buying your products
• Create benefits: Create an emotional connection by helping consumers feel they are contributing to a better world and are part of a solution when they buy from your company.
  Read more on what consumers want here
  

Tshwane greenest city on the continent

 

Mayor of Tshwane Kgosientso Ramokgopa heard this week that his city had won the Africa leg of the Earth Hour competition for its consistent green policies.

 

Mayor Kgosientso Ramokgopa  was delighted to learn his city had won the Africa leg of the Earth Hour competition. Image by: SIZWE NDINGANE.
Read more here 
 

 

 

 

 Snake Eagle Thinking -

Sustainability-through-Art

Please take a few minutes and watch an extract of the Launch of the Snake-Eagle Thinking path in Matjiesfontein. Eugenie Grobler performed at this event and the video uses an extract of a live performance of the song “One Day” as background.

 Eugenie will be performing in AMSTERDAM Datum: DO. 30 Juni 2016,
Theater de Roode Bioscoop, Haarlemmerplein 7, 1013HP AMST
Telefoon: 020 6257500, Kaarten bestellen: www.roodebioscoop.nl 

Please support this extraordinary artist from South Africa. 

“I believe that each person has a story to tell and my life is informed and shaped by the stories I experience and witness around me. Alongside my love of story, both my personal and professional worlds are shaped by a life-long fascination with the study and teaching of the creative process and the possibilities it unlocks for transformative encounters with ourselves and each other. My career as singer-songwriter and facilitator of creative and social empowerment processes has been a reflection of the above”. - Eugenie Grobler

 

Our Sustainability Hero of the Week is Ruda Landman, widely regarded as South Africa’s most respected TV journalist. Tune in to the iStart2 Show on Thursday at 17h30 to listen to our interview with this incredible woman.

Keitu Gwangwa & Pierre du Toit host the iStart2 Show on Thursdays at 17h30. Radio Today broadcasts on 1485 MW (AM) in greater Johannesburg and countrywide on ‪#‎DStv‬ audio channel 869. 

Radio Today also streams globally on www.1485.org.za.

Something to think about:

Paul Hohnen wrote in his blogpost the other week that "where a decade ago there was still optimism that things could be turned around on issues like climate change, deforestation and over-fishing, people [sustainability professionals] are now openly saying that it is too late. Humankind will have to experience a profound crisis before it understands that the "doom and gloom" and "limits to growth" fraternity were right after all".

Have a wonderful week!