Hot flat world

If you have read Thomas Friedman who started with a flat world (The World is Flat, 2005) then followed it up with the sequel on how we should green the world (Hot, Flat and Crowded, 2008), that was a good 15 years ago. And today, listening to Lopez Group chairman Federico “Piki” Lopez speak, we are in big trouble. Our world is hotter and only a conscious effort to rebuild, renew and regenerate our planet will save it from burning out.

We had Mr. Lopez at the annual membership meeting of the Nextgen Organization of Women Corporate Directors (NOWCD) and he talked about REGENERATION. “Sustainability alone is not enough,” he shared. The power of billions of people to bring this world to hotness can be the same power to regenerate it. The solution really sounds simple, if we all make the effort.

Who wants to live with floods and heat waves, forest fires and tsunamis? We definitely do not want to. And the way to do it is really to avoid the use of coal and start going electric. But electricity must also be from greener sources like solar, wind and hydropower if we are to enjoy its benefits. And first and foremost is to make businesses think about how to be green and still be profitable.

We are now in a good place to convert to renewable sources of energy. There is an array of electric vehicles and hybrid cars available, albeit still with a steep price. There also is the seemingly disposable electric tricycle, because its battery replacement cost is almost the same as the cost of a complete brand new unit.

As early as 15 years ago, we had a campaign called “Live Green” and we gave talks on the use of CFLs (now LEDs) instead of fluorescent lamps, the use of power strips which you could turn off rather than have all your appliances on the “wait” mode, consuming power even when not in use. We also started adopting the use of inverter appliances like air conditioners. Today, technology has inverter models of washing machines, power drills and other equipment. There is no reason not to change over to inverter and power-saving versions of household staples like air conditioners.

Today, making green choices is easier than ever. There are solar lamps and chargers for household