3 steps to achieving the SDGs | Linda Midgley | TEDxAlkmaar

Summary

The speaker emphasizes that anyone, not just activists or experts, can contribute to making the world a better place by embracing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in daily life. Using three simple steps—listen, act, and listen again—the speaker encourages individuals to reflect on their choices and their impact on the world. Personal experiences illustrate the importance of understanding oneself and others to create meaningful change. Whether through small actions like choosing fair trade products or larger ones like influencing systems, the message is that sustainability is accessible to everyone.

Takeaways

• 😊 You don't need to be an expert or activist to make the world a better place.
• 📊 The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are integrated into our daily lives and are relevant to everyday issues.
• 📰 News headlines often reflect key SDGs, such as education, migration, mental health, and economic growth.
• 👂 Listening is a critical step—first to yourself, then to others—before taking action toward making a difference.
• 🛠 Taking action should be personalized, fitting both who you are and the world around you.
• 🔄 Reassessing and adjusting your actions through continuous listening helps ensure progress toward your goals.
• 📚 The speaker's personal journey—from pursuing activism and expertise to becoming a sustainability consultant—demonstrates that finding your unique path is key.
• ♻️ Sustainable choices involve considering how your decisions impact others, including future generations and those in different parts of the world.
• 🚗 Companies increasingly involve listening in their innovation processes, which makes their products more sustainable and customer-centric.
• 💡 The framework of ‘Listen, Act, and Listen Again’ can help individuals and organizations align their actions with sustainability goals.

Q & A

What is the main message the speaker is trying to convey?

The main message is that anyone can contribute to making the world a better place without necessarily being an expert or an activist. The speaker emphasizes the importance of integrating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into daily life through listening, acting, and reassessing.

What are the three steps the speaker suggests to bring the SDGs into daily life?

The three steps are: 1) Listen to yourself and others, 2) Act by creating a plan that fits your identity and the world around you, and 3) Listen again to check if your plan is working and make adjustments if necessary.

How does the speaker relate the SDGs to everyday life?

The speaker relates the SDGs to everyday life by showing how headlines in a newspaper touch on various SDGs, such as education, migration, and mental health, demonstrating that the SDGs are integral to our daily experiences.

What personal experiences does the speaker share to illustrate the steps of listen, act, and listen again?

The speaker shares her experience of quitting a PhD program, which taught her to listen to herself. She also discusses her work as a consultant, which taught her to listen to others. Lastly, she talks about trying different jobs across sectors and continents, which helped her find her way of making a difference.

Why did the speaker quit her PhD program?

The speaker quit her PhD program because she was miserable on a day-to-day basis and felt it wasn't the right path for her. Quitting lifted a weight off her shoulders and made her happier.

How does the speaker describe her current role as a sustainability consultant?

As a sustainability consultant, the speaker sometimes acts as an activist, sometimes as an expert, but mostly as herself, making a difference in her own way.

What does the speaker mean when she says she helps companies have a 'healthy long-term relationship with the world around them'?

The speaker means that she assists companies in understanding and implementing strategies that align with the SDGs, fostering positive, sustainable interactions with their stakeholders and the environment.

How does the speaker connect the process of innovation in companies to the SDGs?

The speaker connects innovation to the SDGs by explaining that modern innovation cycles involve faster feedback loops and active listening to customers, which can lead to more sustainable and effective products and services.

What example does the speaker give to show how companies are adapting to consumer behavior related to sustainability?

The speaker gives the example of car manufacturers who, after noticing that people were using their electric car batteries to store solar energy at home, started making batteries for home energy storage.

What is the speaker's final call to action for the audience?

The speaker encourages the audience to figure out how to bring sustainability into their own lives by listening to what's important to them and those around them, acting on it, and reassessing to ensure their actions are effective.