Happy new year everyone! 2023 was jam packed and I can’t wait to see what 2024 will bring. On the personal front, my experience and learnings working for myself and then transitioning back to full-time employment, while also continuing business coaching and wrapping up consultative projects, was challenging but extremely rewarding. I hope to look back fondly, as I do now, on the amazing opportunities 2023 gave me. The interesting and fulfilling projects, and wonderful people I’ve met and worked with, all aligned in the goal to fight climate change.
The founders I’ve met this past year inspire me to embrace the change and innovation necessary for the years ahead. Organizations I’ve worked for, with, and partnered with, remind me of the importance of the ‘team brain’ and how when we work together, we can achieve much more than when we’re on our own.
Reflecting outward, 2023 saw ups and downs. The climate crisis is becoming more pervasive in Canadian’s everyday life, from wind storms to flooding to being smoked and fired out of homes. More historical temperatures highs. More displacement. Political unrest and warring continues to plague many parts of the world, as economic and social instability is exacerbated by the strain climate change puts on all of us (physically, mentally, financially).
Despite everything ‘wrong’ with the world, 2023 was also a year of hope. COP28 finally acknowledged the leading role fossil fuels plays in the climate crisis. Renewable energy is becoming mainstream. The dial is moving for marine renewables, with projects like New York’s South Fork Wind and (more locally) the Yuquot Wave Energy project. Federal and provincial governments are investing in the transition for a cleaner future, through proven but young technologies including zero emissions vehicles, battery manufacturing, and hydrogen development. First Nations leaders and governments are paving the way, despite the many obstacles still in their path.
Through the many conversations I had in 2023, there was a theme of ‘what can I do?’. With the world moving and changing as fast as it is in the 21st century, there is a strange combination of anxieties. Many people worry they will be left behind; unaffordability, job and industry disruption, low confidence in which technologies will be adopted. While at the same time, many are worried we’re not solving problems fast enough; that we aren’t adopting new legislation, new technologies, quickly enough. How can we move faster to mitigate existential damage, without leaving too many people behind? I don’t have the answers, and I don’t believe there is one right way to tackle these problems. But I know that the best thing we can do as individuals, is to act in whichever small ways we can.
Best of luck in 2024 and keep being hopeful.
If you have topics you’d like to discuss or elevate, reach out to me or leave a comment!