In an ever-changing world it is easy to live in the moment, to blame others for the state of the world, be it human conflict, climate change, financial market crises or even the availability of certain commodities including food.

The Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre (DHI) supported TEDxGlasgow’s Climate Action Initiative by challenging colleagues to help walk or cycle the distance to Expo 2020 Dubai. DHI, is keen to help promote and develop initiatives that will help us to make a positive impact on climate action, faster.

As we get ready to launch our 2022 theme and the next Climate Action Initiative, we caught up with Dr Karin Helwig, Senior Lecturer and Programme Leader, Msc Climate Justice at Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) on the humanitarian issues and outcomes of 2021 and how GCU and TEDxGlasgow partners plan to enable the next generation to act on climate change and climate justice for people from all communities.

Dr Liz Wilks, European Director at Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) Sinar Mas, our CAI corporate partner and one of the largest pulp, paper, and packaging companies in the world, highlights how CAI and TEDxGlasgow partners created a platform to share best practices, discuss and act on the missing part of the equation: a ground up effort to enable the next generation to act on climate change.

As we get ready to launch our 2022 theme our partners, Dr Liz Wilks, European Director of Asia Pulp and Paper, the largest forestry company in the world, and Dr Karin Helwig, Programme Leader of the MSc Climate Justice at Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU), come together to share their ‘make-or-break’ collaboration experience. Enabled by the Climate Action Initiative and TEDxGlasgow, APP will collaborate with Glasgow Caledonian University’s (GCU) on the newly established Programme Advisory Group for its Masters in Climate Justice, therefore supporting the development of employment and career opportunities in climate justice.

Our Climate Action Initiative was launched in June 2021. We built a proactive community of organisations that met at virtual ‘Climate Action Initiative Monthly Meet Ups’ and in person. Our mission was for our partners to share their climate action work and knowledge; learning from one another and sharing challenges and successes.

In conversations with business leaders, we’ve talked about the climate-linked forces that forward-thinking leaders see at work - and the tough questions they are asking themselves in response to help ensure true climate resilience. These forward-thinking leaders are unlocking a world of opportunity for their firms to be at the center of a future low carbon economy.

Our everyday lives are founded in community, it’s that human spark that we feel when we come from the same place, share attitudes or have interests in common – it means everything. A strong community is a giver of safety, happiness, confidence and a common purpose that can change and transform lives.

Green construction is not a new idea, and the industry has already made significant progress on decarbonisation. However, the scale of the projects in construction or development currently means more innovative approaches and sustainable technologies are required to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

Each year, over 150 million non-decomposable crayons are thrown away by restaurants alone while teachers spend nearly $900 a year on supplies for their classrooms. Crayon Collection has developed a solution!