Outstanding Ideas Come From Real People
In this week’s episode of Sustainability Unpicked, Scott talks to Florian Reber, a Swiss-German political scientist, sustainability advisor and climate change specialist who left the office and discovered true innovation in climate change on two wheels.
During his sabbatical with nothing but his bike, a pair of skis and two panniers, he began traversing the Alps, starting from Trieste, Italy and concluding the epic in Cannes, France. Throughout the journey, he documented the sociopolitical impact of climate change and what it really means for communities who, may or may not, have the means to adapt to what is to come. While most environmental change policies come from top-down, Florian listens to those facing catastrophe at the forefront.
A Star Filled Sky Near Jackson Hole
The iconic landscape of the Alps carries a deep sense of identity for the nations inhabiting it. From the very beginning, Florian met face to face with the tragedy that climate change brought in 2018. That year, the Alps were enveloped by a massive heatwave. Launching the ride, the mission was framed by the scorching weather and 10 days in, a very dry Italy was struck by lightning that started one of their biggest forest fires in recent history. Two days later a massive storm hit that uprooted 14 million trees. The locals described it as an event never been seen before. This had a huge impact on the those living in the area; not only were those trees ancient wonders of the forest, but people relied on them to safeguard their homes from avalanches.
This is only a snippet of the kinds of stories Florian documented on his blog, Talesofchange.earth. But instead of drawing upon his own ideas on how these communities could tackle climate change, he spoke to locals about their ways of adapting to it and was inspired by ideas from foresters, park officials, authors, farmers, mountain guides, athletes and climate scientists. He was heartened by what the future could hold.
Guujaaw: Haida Artist and Cultural Leader
Florian continued his journey to the Rocky Mountains, another iconic landscape that carried a deep sense of identity for its country. From Vancouver to Albuquerque and San Francisco to New York to make it in time for Sustainability Week. It was a dangerous trip with the country being known for its strong natural climate meant that Florian could have been in danger of fires and flooding. But a serendipitous journey meant that he was safely able to pursue his mission and share stories of small towns becoming powerhouses for renewable energy. First nation leaders pushing for climate action. Artists using their communication abilities to share stories positively.
Two continents and 8200km later, Florian came back with the belief that society has the potential and ability to adapt and change course. He came back feeling optimistic that change can happen fast and from unexpected places. “I had to revise many of my own ideas,” said Florian, “Let’s look beyond Silicon Valley, let’s look at the nature-based climate solutions”. What cycling had taught him on this adventure was to see the land as one piece and that far stretches are actually closer than what we think. Borders disappear and people are similar in distant places. “Everything moves closer together when travelling in that way”. He also reflected on the role of education and believes that a sense of fulfilment can come from finding your own personal way of becoming closer to nature. To give people that time and that space they need to connect with it in a deeply empathetic way. Whether through art, or sports, or whatever it may be, to create that truer connection with the land where many of us have only ever grown up in man-made environments.
The stories and lessons that Florian came back with are that we are living the doomsday we’ve seen in films, and we may just not be aware of it because we’re not getting out there. But there are people still thriving and these people rely on each other. Florian saw that real innovation comes from extraordinary places. From this, we know that decisions and solutions are not born from an island, or committee or the declarations of a government. It comes from talking and communicating with real people, sharing ideas, forging solutions, understanding the impact because if we take the time to reconnect with nature and the people who live in it, we’ll discover just how linked we all really are.
Checkout Florian’s blog for more stories and his video for an overview of Tales of Changes!