Between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. (if we are to be completely honest, 7 a.m. and 11 p.m.), I think, talk and read about the property industry and its efforts to achieve a more sustainable tomorrow. Recently, I have become preoccupied with what could be described as a conceptual dilemma – is the transition in the property world a process or a goal? Agenda 2030 influences all areas of today's green politics, but can such a clearly defined goal have a negative impact on the way we view a problem? Whatever happens, I wonder what will occur on 1 January 2031? asks Axel Stenbom.
Although the basis for this idea has recently been corrected, there was a period in 2012 when everyone was talking about the end of the world. With a marketing campaign that only Hollywood films can offer, most people were familiar with the Mayan calendar and the (then) fact that nothing seemed to happen after 21 December 2012. No more calendar days, no more Mayans, nothing. The most obvious interpretation – captured in Roland Emmerich's film 2012 – was that the world would end.
If you stood on the street today and asked a random person, ‘What comes to mind when I say “the end of the world”?’ they would probably think in terms of climate change or nuclear war – not the Mayan calendar. This must be considered progress, if only because these threats are, unfortunately, very real.
Novels have been and will continue to be written about humanity's reluctance to accept, the cognitive dissonance that arises from the desire to save the world AND fly to Dubai – the difficulty of reacting to something you don't see every day – political camps and oil company lobbyists who, with the gentle hands of King Midas, massage our elected representatives. But in the midst of it all, there is also hope, protests, Greta Thunberg, the Paris Agreement and, of course, Agenda 2030.
Agenda 2030 is an action plan with goals for the transition to a sustainable society for the planet. This is great! I love agendas with a clear goal for the year 2030. And the year 2030 seems to have taken hold. Joe Biden aims to halve carbon dioxide emissions by 50% by 2030. Boris Johnson wants(ed) to ban the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2030, Justin Trudeau wants to see emissions reduced by 42% by 2030, and Ulf Kristersson wants emissions from the transport sector to be reduced by 70% by 2030. And the property world is no worse. 2030 seems to be the year when we can all be expected to live in climate-positive homes and the sun itself will get a tan from the reflections of our solar panels. This sounds good – all successful achievements are preceded by a clear goal.
But the climate is not a dragon you defeat on New Year's Eve 2029 – the climate is something you have to learn to live with. We have been smoking indoors for a very long time and our landlord is starting to complain, so what should we do? We should improve! We should not smoke as much and as often, at least until 2030. Because then we should...?
Perhaps that is the question the metaphor is trying to raise. What will life be like after 2030? Who dares to talk about our future lifestyle – not just the path to get there? I imagine that few politicians look in the mirror before a town hall meeting and think, ‘I'm going to tell them they have to get used to eating significantly less meat’ – instead, the meat industry should reduce its emissions before 2030. Just as few want to say during a debate that ‘future generations will not be able to fly as easily as we have done’ – instead, emissions from the transport sector should be reduced by 70% by 2030. With just over 40% of the country's total energy consumption, I imagine that even fewer people want to say that ‘buildings must immediately improve their energy efficiency’ – instead... Well, you get the picture.
Living better – more sustainably – greener, must at some point be considered a lifestyle, not a project whose delivery date we, like the most indifferent craftsman, simply push ahead of us. Because unlike the Mayan calendar, the climate threat is a real threat, and real threats require real insights. They are difficult to swallow and even more difficult to sell, but there they are – ready for delivery well before 2030.
At Mestro, we help property owners reduce their carbon footprint with our product range. Here and now. When an agreement is signed, the target is not set for 2030, but for tomorrow. It is often said that a problem without a solution is a truth to be accepted. When it comes to the year 2030, it sometimes feels as if the idiom should be read the other way around. Because we must accept the truth that we already have solutions to many problems.
So let's start solving them.
