I was awed listening to one of the participants in a revolutionary land rights project in Brazil describe he and his team’s work saving trees, innovating policy, and working with a wide range of stakeholders -- including indigenous people, government officials, business owners, and environmentalists. As he described his challenges and triumphs, it became so clear: partnerships are essential and bad ideas will contaminate, but good ideas can be contagious. As one of the panelists put it:
The way forward can only be done collectively. These are not things we can push back on the consumer as they will not pay for it and rightly so. They do not know that palm oil is in products. When you say this is leading to deforestation they say well take it out, that's your responsibility. Governments have got to cut us some slack on this.
You, too, can listen here.
Think about it. This is where you and I, regardless of whether we ever get the opportunity to go to the Skoll Forum, come in. It’s why I am sharing these experiences and lessons, so that perhaps you will pass on these blogs and links to just the person who needs them. This is what happens when good people come together, whether in real-time or online, with a strong purpose and with intention to change what needs to be changed to create a more sustainable peaceful, prosperous planet for all. By being the carrier of these contagious good ideas, we all commit ourselves to being a part of the outcome.
Spread the word. Spread the ideas. Share the passion. Participate.