The Future of Sustainability: Have Your Say!

Week Four - “Shaping the Future”
Comment / Comentario / Commentaire

Matthew Zylstra, Foundation for Sustainable Development, Netherlands

Moderating team: Matthew Zylstra states that empowerment is key for the strengthening of civil society. Working at the decision making levels is not enough, environmentalism has to work with people’s needs. New forms of collaboration are needed, but self-interest motives and other inter-organizational differences have to be set apart.

Matthew Zylstra afirma que el empoderamiento es fundamental para el fortalecimiento de la sociedad civil. El trabajo con los tomadores de decisión no es suficiente; el movimiento ambiental tiene que enfocarse en las necesidades de las personas. Nuevas formas de colaboración son necesarias, pero dejando a un lado intereses personales y diferencias inter-organizacionales.

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To strengthen engagement, we must also facilitate the empowerment of civil society stakeholders. As already noted in this discussion, a significant proportion of youth and local communities are already willing to act, to change, and to become involved. There is a sincere concern but, at the same time, there is often no clear point of entry or focal point to harness this growing motivation at the civil society level.

I notice repeatedly in my work that many people do not feel sufficiently empowered to act. An environmental issue and/or solution may be discussed but the response is often, "that is the government's responsibility; the government should take the lead on environmental education, awareness building, implementing regulations etc". This may indeed be true but, on the flip side, one can ask: "If there is no widespread demand for (urgent) change from society, then where is the real incentive for the government (and the private sector) to act? It is a question of whether the chicken or the egg comes first.

Many communication initiatives and programme proposals repeatedly focus on 'higher-level' actors, i.e. programmes aimed at government decision-makers, inter-governmental institutions, donor & development community. And this is done with a primary objective to "convince" the right people of the relevant conservation message. However, I am not convinced that this alone will work. So we have to ask ourselves, "What will it take to provide convincing arguments to decision-makers?" And I think the answer is: "The weight of public opinion".

Therefore, we need targeted and innovative initiatives that can 'hook' civil society. As Rubens Born already mentioned, this may require a review of jargon and tools to deliver a simpler and consistent message and to "go where the people are" - not to "preach" to - but to work with - people in understanding perceptions. It may also need - depending on the target audience - to recognise the growing trends in interactive media. In Western societies, conservation awareness (‘environmentalism’) may need to adopt a marketing approach normally associated with mass media and the corporate sector. Respecting the environment needs to be seen as positively 'hip', as acceptable; as well as emphasizing the collective power one has as a ‘consumer’. As an issue, it needs to be differentiated within the 'global attention marketplace'. However, it does not need to lose the integrity of the environmental message.

Finally, in the conservation sector, it calls for new forms of collaboration between organizations. In striving for mutual benefits from joint communication initiatives delivering a ‘consistent message’, we need to ensure that such messages are not simultaneously undermined by self-interest motives and other inter-organizational differences.

We're currently seeking collaboration on developing such a communication programme which intends to address the points raised above.

"Many fingers point to the moon, but do not mistake the finger for the moon."
Based on a Buddhist proverb.