On February 2-4, 2014 the Alabaster Jar Foundation and Ethical Markets hosted a conference entitled, “Beyond Sustainability – Expanding the Footprint of the Regenerative Economy.”
Beyond Sustainability focused on how we can expedite the development of communities and economies where:
- Capitalism is embraced because it produces equal returns for all stakeholders;
- The social fabric of our societal ecosystems are revived;
- Humanitarian and environmental inequalities are eradicated; and
- Our imperative environmental ecosystems are regenerated and thrive.
Gretchen Johnson (Pearl) Biedron spoke eloquently about The Willow School and how and why it was founded. Her model is being duplicated and is also being applied to other ventures.
Lawrence Bloom is Chairman of Be Energy, London, United Kingdom, and the former Chair of the Global Agenda Council on Urban Management, World Economic Forum, Davos and UN Green Economy Initiative on Green Cities Buildings and Transport Council. His testimonial about the event was as follows: “Beyond Sustainability was an event that exceeded even my high expectations. It was brilliantly orchestrated … I know of no other event, including Davos, where there is such unique attention. The participants were all of high importance in their respective fields … the quality of the event was high……but the connectedness was so profound it has changed my life.”
Ghislaine Maxwell of TerraMar Project delivered a passionate presentation on saving our oceans and once completed left to fly directly to New York to speak on that topic to the United Nations. I urge all Media Partners to consider running an article or including a link to her website for people to sign on to the movement. It costs nothing, but without a groundswell of support around the world, the United Nations may again exclude the oceans from protection, which would be a travesty and dangerous for the entire planet.
Chris Morgan, MS, conservationist and ecologist, captivated the room with a preview of BEARTREK, the full-length documentary coming out soon. His work as a conservationist dovetails with the ethical investment movement as the money spent to support endeavors like his must be invested properly – so where it is used is equally as important as where it comes from. Chris shared a wonderful testimonial: “When you put an unimaginable amount of positive energy in a room, good things happen. If you add to that, the idea that the biggest ideas in the world can feel doable when the right people are involved, the result is a game changer. That’s what Stuart Williams has created with Beyond Sustainability. I came away inspired, connected, and ready to jump back into my own world of wildlife conservation, reinvigorated, and ready to leap forward with amazing new friends and partners.” Chris Morgan will be working with Pearl to integrate The Willow School’s model of education into the work he does with children and schools around the world.
Emerging Markets ESG was a media partner of the event.