The latest happenings show us that people, companies, cities, and entire countries are moving forward, realizing the importance of this planet where we live, our only home. In this edition, we celebrate holistic approaches and examples of goodwill which show us that another economy and society is not only possible but already thriving. From regenerative agriculture that stores CO2 through inclusive cities that invest in nature-based solutions to systems that ensure health in low-income countries, all in this edition of the Tomorrow Times.

Stay curious, keep up to date, and get inspired, all in a quick read.

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When Jacob Verhaart was little, his favorite word was “why?”. That condition never got better.

Jacob is Except’s Head of Research. An industrial ecologist and engineer, Jacob knows everything about energy and material flows, urban metabolism, impact and life cycle assessment, and the circular economy, with a particular love for building systems and sustainable building practices. He likes to get to know as much as there is to know about sustainability and translate that into concrete solutions for improving the world.

Jacob sees working in sustainability as an interesting technical challenge that is also a meaningful way to contribute to society. “You have to react and do something”, he states. “It’s the drive to do things better, not harm the planet, and make the world a more beautiful place. …

This year’s Doomsday Clock, a metaphor of how close humanity is to doom developed by the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, shows that catastrophe is creeping ever-close. The 100 seconds score beats the Cold War nuclear rough-and-tumble and continues the freefall that started in the 2010s.

The Science and Security Board of the Bulletin, who act as a jury for the Doomsday Clock, establishes nuclear threats and climate change as the main reason for their decision to move the clock ‘closer than ever’. Yet the Board also cited a fascinating and seemingly unobvious threat multiplier factor: ‘cyber-enabled information warfare, that undercuts society’s ability to respond’. In light of such dire predictions, the need for cybersecurity becomes ever-pressing — yet so is the need for sustainability. The connection between the two isn’t currently robust, even though their security implications remain intertwined and impactful for our very survival. Are there meaningful ways in which sustainability can reinforce cybersecurity, and vice versa? …

As a result of the fossil water crisis, population increase, prosperity increase, and slow sector growth, exacerbated by looming climate change, the domestic agricultural sector in the GCC is set for an expiration date. With food being a primary necessity, food security is a core element to the creation of a resilient society. The world’s arid regions are struggling to maintain food security in an unfavorable environment. We witnessed these issues during our project in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and now aim to put them in the broader narrative of growing food in arid regions.

Worsening factors…

In Saudi Arabia, only 1.5% of the total land, approximately 1.000.000 hectares, qualifies as arable. The economic growth of the sector is low, with roughly 2.5% per year, which lags behind the growth in consumption, reducing food security every year. …

Pivotal news stories on systemic sustainability from around the world. the Tomorrow Times is a monthly world news digest by Except Integrated Sustainability, a consultancy with a systemic view on sustainability challenges. Stay curious, keep up to date, and get inspired, all in a quick read.

In this edition, we talk about how sustainability can be approached with systemic frameworks. Read the latest news about transformative future scenarios, inspiring partnerships, circular initiatives, how data-based tools can change the world, and much more.

Energy & Environment

While society is struggling with the Corona pandemic, bananas are facing their own, a fungus called Foc-TR4.

It is not the first time that bananas face a serious threat. In 1950, the pathogen Foc-R1 brought the common banana to near extinction. The only surviving production crop was the Cavendish, due to its fungus-resistant genes. This seedless banana was quickly planted across the globe, replacing its diseased counterparts. This single variety is, to this day, the only banana most of us know and love.

Being able to rely on a resistant species is a good thing, but not entirely. While the Cavendish banana starred in this tale of successful adaptation, this success came at a price. The Gros Michel, the most important production banana at the time, succumbed to the Foc-R1 pandemic. …

“Go paperless, save trees”. Is that really the case? According to this popular motto, documents in digital versions are environmentally sounder than their old-school, paper counterparts.

It may be easy to think so since we’re quite aware of the link between a tree and our notebook. Yet the largely hidden life cycle of electronic devices, from production through powering to disposal, adds up to their environmental impact. Accounting for the supply chain of electronic appliances may well disqualify digital as the ‘greener alternative’. …

What links an abandoned housing complex and a green beer bottle? An innovation that instead of bringing positive results — may it be a heightened standard of living, environmental gain, or a return of profits — makes matters worse than they were before and, in extreme cases, leads to abandoning the project. Here’s a look at some of those disasters.

The stories of innovation gone wrong highlight the importance of accounting for a system the innovation is immersed in. There are three levels of analysis of an innovation’s impact: object, network, and system. Object level refers to the physical realm, so everything that we can view, touch, and quantify. Network level, a measure of interconnectedness, describes the relationships between objects. Finally, the system level allows for a bird-eye, integrated look at the previous two levels. …