Sustainability in Troubled Times
We live in times of uncertainty and global (dis)order. „Understanding global mega-trends is crucial. We live in times of multiple, evolving and mutually-reinforcing shifts“, says UN Secretary-General António Guterres. He adds: „These dynamics, of geopolitical, demographic, climatic, technological, social and economic nature, enhance threats and opportunities on an unprecedented scale.“ Therefore sustainability in troubled times is the key topic of this Sustainability Yearbook 2017, edited by macondo publishing. In the opening essay, Elmer Lenzen takes a critical look at the relationship between democracy and globalization. For decades this combination was a formula for success. Now both are experiencing troubled times. UN Global Compact founding director Georg Kell and Princeton professor Larry Diamond, who are well- known figures in this field, explain some of the reasons why in a profound interview. One reason is that today’s world is becoming more fragmented. So how can sustainability work in these times? It can work if we focus on the needs of the present without compromising the abilities of the future, says Global Compact Action Platform fellow Richard Roberts, and by utilizing the advantages of tomorrow. But doing the right thing in critical times is also a question of attitude. The entrepreneur Richard Branson and the actor Colin Firth both show in their own ways that sustainability means authenticity.
We live in times of uncertainty and global (dis)order. „Understanding global mega-trends is crucial. We live in times of multiple, evolving and mutually-reinforcing shifts“, says UN Secretary-General António Guterres. He adds: „These dynamics, of geopolitical, demographic, climatic, technological, social and economic nature, enhance threats and opportunities on an unprecedented scale.“ Therefore sustainability in troubled times is the key topic of this Sustainability Yearbook 2017, edited by macondo publishing.
In the opening essay, Elmer Lenzen takes a critical look at the relationship between democracy and globalization. For decades this combination was a formula for success. Now both are experiencing troubled times. UN Global Compact founding director Georg Kell and Princeton professor Larry Diamond, who are well- known figures in this field, explain some of the reasons why in a profound interview. One reason is that today’s world is becoming more fragmented. So how can sustainability work in these times?
It can work if we focus on the needs of the present without compromising the abilities of the future, says Global Compact Action Platform fellow Richard Roberts, and by utilizing the advantages of tomorrow. But doing the right thing in critical times is also a question of attitude. The entrepreneur Richard Branson and the actor Colin Firth both show in their own ways that sustainability means authenticity.
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CLIMATE CHANGE<br />
THE ACCIDENTAL<br />
ACTRESS<br />
She is an Oscar-w<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g superstar who has the<br />
world at her feet, but Marion Cotillard was only<br />
one role away from becom<strong>in</strong>g a full-time activist.<br />
Kooky, k<strong>in</strong>d, and somehow a little supernatural, Marion Cotillard<br />
exudes that classic confidence one associates with the<br />
French. Directors adore her chameleon-like mystery while<br />
audiences love the charisma and beauty that floats around<br />
her. However, the biggest secret to Cotillard’s success is her<br />
devotion to her craft – embody<strong>in</strong>g characters to the po<strong>in</strong>t<br />
where she cannot shake them.<br />
W<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g an Oscar, for <strong>in</strong>stance, for her heartbreak<strong>in</strong>g and<br />
unforgettable performance as French s<strong>in</strong>ger and actress Edith<br />
Piaf <strong>in</strong> La Vie en Rose, it was a role she found herself deeply<br />
<strong>in</strong>vested <strong>in</strong>. Play<strong>in</strong>g Piaf, Cotillard says she became almost possessed<br />
until she realized that the spirit of the tragic chanteuse<br />
clung to her – Piaf herself was abandoned as a child and her<br />
biggest fear was be<strong>in</strong>g left alone.<br />
Indeed, although outwardly Cotillard seems to have everyth<strong>in</strong>g<br />
“together,” the actress disarm<strong>in</strong>gly makes no secret<br />
of her emotional struggles. “It’s very complicated, but I was<br />
extremely vulnerable grow<strong>in</strong>g up. I expected other people to<br />
behave k<strong>in</strong>dly and rationally and I discovered that the world<br />
isn’t like that,” she reveals.<br />
Although the Gallic sweetheart has confronted her vulnerabilities<br />
– and gone on to become one of the highest-paid<br />
non-American actors <strong>in</strong> Hollywood – Cotillard f<strong>in</strong>ds herself<br />
put off by the trapp<strong>in</strong>gs of fame and fortune. “I’m not someone<br />
who really enjoys the glamour and the red carpets and all of<br />
that,” expla<strong>in</strong>s the 41-year-old. “I’m still very shy, although I<br />
don’t panic when people approach me and I can speak more<br />
easily <strong>in</strong> those situations compared to how nervous and<br />
uncomfortable I would have been earlier <strong>in</strong> my career. I still<br />
have a hard time see<strong>in</strong>g myself on magaz<strong>in</strong>e covers or on film<br />
posters though.”<br />
A defender of the vulnerable, Marion Cotillard is a staunch<br />
environmentalist and spokesperson for Greenpeace. In 2005<br />
she was among the artists <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> Dess<strong>in</strong>s pour le climat<br />
Global Compact International Yearbook 2017 55
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