The old order we must undo to create a sustainable future

Prof. Mark Swilling

In this compelling talk, Mark Swilling argues that there is no doubt that the world is in transition. Transitions, he adds, are challenging times. They are the interregnum between the old order that has not completely collapsed yet, and the new that has yet to emerge. The key dynamics include the global transition to renewables, the nascent techno-industrial revolution, rapid urbanisation, and the unique circumstances presenting Africa (and the Global South) with an opportunity to leapfrog into the 21st century. Connect your vision to the opportunities, he posits, and you'll have a great chance of influencing what a transformed, sustainable world will look like.

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Mark Swilling is Professor of Sustainable Development at Stellenbosch University; Co-Director of the Centre for Complex Systems in Transition and Academic Director of the Sustainability Institute. He Chairs the Board of the Development Bank of Southern Africa and is a member of the International Resource Panel. He has published over 80 articles and several books, including Just Transitions: Explorations of Sustainability in an Unfair World (2012), Shadow State: The Politics of State Capture (2018) and Age of Sustainability: Just Transitions in a Complex World (2019).