Interview based on presentation as keynote speaker at the Malta Chambre of Commerce conference on: Globalisation, Consumerism or Quality?
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What skills do people need that would like to trade with countries all over the world?
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Irene Maldini’s PhD research discusses the quantity of clothing produced and consumed, its growth, and the environmental challenges associated with it. Moreover, Maldini examines how the field of design has reacted to this issue, reflecting critically on the gap between the expected and the actual effects of design strategies aimed at reducing clothing demand. Clothing personalization and durability have been central strategies to that end; however, this research points out that their expected effects are based on partial historical views and simplistic perspectives of clothing consumption. Therefore, the study proceeds in offering an alternative perspective on clothing consumption building on the systemic nature of the wardrobe.
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There are a plethora of drivers of change in energy systems until 2015. The role of social and political actors is likely to be more noticeable. In Europe, locally, high-impact ideas like green consumerism and limited acceptance of energy systems that result in trade-offs will be important. Nationally, the empowerment of individuals and communities and the politicization of energy-related issues will be drivers of change. Internationally, energy issues will become more important in the foreign and security policies of state and non-state actors.
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The Nature Spectacle: On Images, Money, and Conservation Capitalism by Jim Igoe is, as its Preface states, an ambitious book that seeks to make connections between diverse times and places. The preface also, in many ways, tells more about the background and intention of the book than its chapters do, tying together the author’s origins and motivation. Igoe recalls his childhood in St. Louis, Missouri, much of which he spent “in front of a television and at a neighborhood movie theatre” (p. XII), once watching a musical, which was “essentially an extended Chevrolet commercial set among the geysers of Yellowstone” (P. 109). It is the mix of such absurd and comical observations of commercialism merging with Nature, and much heavier criticism of the capitalist cult of economic growth, development, and also conservation that characterizes The Nature of Spectacle. Much of Igoe’s outdoor experiences were shaped by green spaces, created in St. Louis as part of commodity exhibits at the 1904 World’s Fair. The author admits to feeling both critical and nostalgic of those places that have merged (sub)urban aesthetics with that of industrially developed commercial “spaces” (p. XII) – important concepts that form a leitmotif throughout the book. https://doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2018.1488355 https://www.linkedin.com/in/helenkopnina/
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Sportverenigingen staan momenteel voor grote uitdagingen zoals bijvoorbeeld vermeend consumentgedrag van leden (Van der Roest, 2015), steeds meer eisen vanuit de overheid om bij te dragen aan maatschappelijke vraagstukken (Waardenburg, 2016) en teruglopende ledenaantal in krimpregio’s. Enkele honderden verenigingsondersteuners werkzaam vanuit sportbonden, gemeenten, sportservices en vanuit de private sector staan voor de uitdaging om deze verenigingen te helpen vitaliseren. Veel ondersteuners nemen hierbij een expertrol in waarbij generieke interventies op thema’s als vrijwilligersbeleid, sponsoring en veilig sportklimaat worden toegepast. Sommige ondersteuners neem een meer procesgerichte rol in waarbij een holistische strategische verandering als uitgangspunt genomen wordt voor duurzame ontwikkeling van de organisatie (Schein, 1999). Doel van dit onderzoek is om inzicht te krijgen hoe de verschillende stakeholders betekenis geven aan deze ontwikkelingsgerichte aanpak en de gebruikte competenties en interventies door de ondersteuner/procesbegeleider.
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