Discover the exclusive interview from Gérald SANTUCCI, President of the European Education New Society Association (ENSA). He will be one of the speakers in the WiseMedia & Nuecir roundtable entitled “Will the Digital Society Meet its Circular Economy Goals?” during the TRUSTECH conference cycle, on Tuesday 2 December at 16:30.
1) ENSA’s mission is to accelerate the transition to a Digital Economy and Sustainable and Resilient Society. How do you see financial institutions and technology providers such as those present at TRUSTECH contributing concretely to this transformation?
ENSA is convinced the world is staged in a process of unprecedented and continuing scientific and technological change bringing new tools and abilities. Indeed, the internet, mobile telephony, social media, the internet of things, and artificial intelligence have already altered the course of human history, and even if many people believe that we are poised to potentially resolve whatever vast, outstanding issues confront us, technology equally undermines sustainability as it enables ever-more effective resource exploitation. What we generally pinpoint as “global issues” – climate change, biodiversity loss – are actually interlinked with what and how we produce and consume.
The impacts of these issues are far-reaching, affecting almost every aspect of our lives: they threaten food and water security; increase the frequency and severity of natural disasters; displace communities; make humanity vulnerable to pandemics; and exacerbate existing social and economic inequalities. It’s not insignificant!
Addressing these global challenges requires a holistic approach that recognizes the interdependence of environmental health and social wellbeing. At ENSA we advocate collaborative efforts among all key stakeholders – governments, businesses, NGOs and communities – to create sustainable solutions that protect our planet and its inhabitants without compromising the chances of creativity, innovation and economic prosperity.
But concretely, if we want action to take place and reach its goals, resources and capacity building must converge. I’ve no problem to admit that current multilateral and international bodies and government-to-government initiatives are useful and have already achieved good results; however, given the severity and continuous amplification of the issues, it is obvious that to channel resources more effectively commands going beyond the existing. We need to edge sharper guidance and motivations for the financial and corporate sectors to meet with the real needs and efforts of achieving sustainability on the ground. And yes, we need co-creative and co-operative initiatives between all private actors to align investments with the gigantic challenge of achieving a sustainable and resilient economy and society.”