The Future of Sustainability: living in nonlinear times

Overview

How did the future change in 2017? What dynamic trends are presenting opportunities and risks for sustainable development? We believe that to survive and thrive in the future, we need to understand the trends shaping tomorrow, today. It is by understanding these dynamic areas of change, and the nonlinear ways in which they interact, that we can create strategies to effectively navigate uncertainty and to push for a sustainable future.

Extreme climate events are now commonplace – witness three hurricanes over category 4 strength in just one season. Catastrophes like the forest fires in Borneo barely make the news – they have become the ‘new normal’. And plastic pollution has been revealed to be far more pervasive than previously suspected, contaminating the water we drink, the food we eat, and even the air we breathe, everywhere on Earth.

Fortunately non-linear change can lead to positive outcomes, too. We have selected seven areas we believe are particularly dynamic now, and which present rich opportunities to develop radically more sustainable behaviour and practice, through 2018 and towards the 2020s.

Join Sally Uren, CEO of leading international sustainability non-profit, Forum for the Future, as she reveals our take on the future of sustainability and explains how you can understand the implications for your business. Nassy Avramidis of Sustainable Brands will share how these trends of the future impact what consumers are now demanding of brands, and what brands can do to deliver.

What You Will Learn

• Discover dynamic trends that will impact the future and present opportunities for sustainable development. See how the future changed in 2017 and what we have scanned and identified as the top sustainability trends.
• Use your new understanding of these trends to create strategies that effectively navigate today’s complex times.
• Learn how to thrive in an uncertain world by taking a systems approach to generating positive change.
• Understand the inside perspective of trends from the global brand community and what is driving the future economy.

About The Speakers

Sally Uren - CEO, Forum for the Future
Sally is CEO at Forum for the Future with overall responsibility for delivering Forum's mission to accelerate a big shift towards a sustainable future by catalysing change in global systems. This involves working with leading global organisations, including businesses such as Unilever and Kingfisher, and Foundations, such as the C&A Foundation, both in one to one partnerships, and as part of multi-stakeholder collaborations addressing complex challenges in systems as diverse as food, energy, apparel and shipping.
 

Nassy Avramidis, Manager, Content Development, Sustainable Brands
Nassy is Content Development Manager at Sustainable Brands. Prior to joining the team, she worked as CSR Manager for Sustain Natural, and before that was a Communications Specialist (Writer) for the Institute for Sustainable Communities. Nassy has a J.D. and Master's degree in Environmental Law & Policy from Vermont Law School.
 

Social Media

• Twitter: @Forum4theFuture, @SallyUren, @SustainBrands, @NassyAvramidis
• Facebook/LinkedIn: Forum for the Future, Sustainable Brands,
  Instagram: @forumforthefuture, @sustainablebrands