Creating partnerships for adaptive entrepreneurial innovations for a green recovery and promotion of an inclusive, just and resilient economy in South Africa
Indalo Inclusive South Africa is hosting their virtual Indalo Inclusive South Africa Symposium on 23 – 25 March. This symposium is a flagship event implemented through the “Reaping the potential of Entrepreneurship for a Climate-Smart Inclusive Green Economy in South Africa (ECSIGE) Project”, which is funded by The Government of Flanders and implemented in partnership with the Climate Innovation Centre SA.
The theme: ‘Creating partnerships for adaptive, entrepreneurial innovations for a green recovery and promotion of an inclusive, just and resilient economy in South Africa.’
That’s quite a mouthful, but every word speaks of Indalo’s vision and passion to empower entrepreneurs in particular rural communities.
We sometimes forget that even before Covid-19 broke out, our country’s economy was on its knees – thanks to consecutive quarters of negative growth, credit downgrades, and massive job losses. The pandemic simply made things worse.
Millions of people have lost their jobs or their businesses, and many have little hope of getting back on their feet without massive stimulus to the economy, powered by more than government alone.
Where will this stimulus come from? Multiple sources.
Entrepreneurship offers one of the best immediate and long-term strategies to get people working, especially in underdeveloped communities which were hard hit by the pandemic.
These days, entrepreneurship cannot stand alone. It needs to be intrinsically linked to responses to environmental degradation and global warming, which threatens both species and livelihoods. This is what Indalo Inclusive calls Indalopreneurship! A type of entrepreneurship that brings together the positive net triple bottom impact on the economy, environment, and society.
Scientists have warned for decades that human activity is pushing up greenhouse gas emissions, which causes global warming, which kick-starts a domino effect of collapsing ecosystems, species loss and freak weather patterns. Floods, droughts and intense storms are on the rise, and only the most contrary among us cannot see the link with global warming. Hardest hit by these freak weather patterns are the world’s poorest, who survive on subsistence farming.
One of the little silver linings to Covid lockdowns was that CO2 emissions suddenly dropped. For a while, reports showed that nature was recuperating. What is needed now is an economic recovery that does not entirely decimate these gains.
The South African government has stated in its Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan (2020) that it is committed to investing in green industries and technologies. This seminal document recognizes that green technologies offer ‘a sustainable solution to climate vulnerability and … economic competitiveness. Green industrialization also guarantees the security of energy, food, water, and electricity supply.’
We have the theory and we grasp the benefits of green technologies, but do we practice what we know to be true, important, and urgent?
Symposia like the Indalo Inclusive South Africa virtual Symposium provides a platform to bring these ideas to the fore and show the world what can be done. It is clear that both new and existing businesses have to build some degree of environmentally friendly practice into all future projects. All stand to benefit from symposia like this.
Indalo Inclusive is a non-profit company that promotes and supports eco-inclusive entrepreneurship and the promotion of responsible business practices. In everything they do, entrepreneurship and the environment are joined, each aspect as important as the other.
Inherent in Indalo’s discourse for a green economic recovery is that all actions must also demonstrate a move towards a more just, inclusive, and of course, sustainable economy.
The symposium – a high-level line up
On the first day of the symposium, attendees can look forward to an impressive selection of speakers. Dr. Geraldine Reymenants, general representative of the Government of Flanders, will open the symposium, while Nardos Bekele-Thomas, the Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in South Africa, will give a keynote address.
The day will end with a panel discussion on broad policy issues and green strategies for key South African institutions.
Day two of the symposium will consist of parallel discussions which will include themes such as:
- a just transition towards a low carbon and resilient economy;
- climate adaptation policy;
- traditional leadership in response to strategies for climate change; and
- the Enterprise Development Fund for sustainable tourism.
On the last day, some exciting and innovative green entrepreneurs will showcase their business modules,
with the possibility of establishing new networks and securing funding for further development.
For example:
- an entrepreneur uses locally sourced shells of macadamia nuts for an activated carbon block which is used to absorb chemicals like chlorine and pesticides as part of a green water purification system.
- Another generates electricity from biogas emitted from animal waste. She has already trained a community in these practices, so that they generate their own electricity.
- And many more!
Don’t miss it
The symposium will bring entrepreneurship and the environment together in ways that are bound to excite and stimulate anyone with an entrepreneurial spirit looking for better ways to do business.
To register please click on this link https://confsa.eventsair.com/indalo-inclusive-south-africa-symposium-2021/