Although I have always considered myself a person holds the values of equity and social justice highly, I am rather ashamed to admit that up until late 2006, I was ignorant in the face of issues such as conservation, poverty or climate change. Instead I opted to 'offset' my negative karma through the purchase of 'karma credits' in the form of sponsorship of a child in a remote country. For me, and perhaps many other Australians, this sort of activity was going above and beyond what we were obliged to do as working citizens.
Around that time, I spent my career as a management consultant tasked with finding better ways of measuring, documenting, analysing, strategising and fine tuning businesses with the aim of improving corporate performance. The bottom line really was and still is the highest priority in our world. We live in a world where shareholders are king and investments are being held for shorter and shorter periods. Unlike in the past, people who 'own' businesses today are mostly often not operating them, insulated from effects that their investments are having on the world. For me this was ok. It was the commonly accepted norm. In delivering my work I used methodologies and models founded upon rather unquestioned economic principles. It was only when I left my firm to embark on 20 months of solo backpacking that I was given the freedom and clarity to reflect on my values. Like many recent sustainability converts, I reached an epiphany after travelling and exposing myself to more of the world (in particular the contrasts between developed Japan and underdeveloped Indonesia).
I came to the conclusion that our conventional economic and business models are fundamentally flawed. As business students we are taught about the word "externalities" but due to the global nature of the economy, rarely do we get an opportunity to see what externalities are in real life. Toxins are released into water ways far from where most of us live. Waste is dumped out of sight. Carbon dioxide is invisible and the species that are most in danger don't live in our backyards or rate on the cuteness factor. I propose that the term "externalities" be recoined to "external realities" in all educational literature.
After returning to Australia in 2008, launching into a sustainability consulting career and reviving my academic career through this course, I have been investigating the barriers to tackling climate change. In doing so, some themes really struck me. Given that the science on climate change is so compelling and in the face of the climate change threats, why hasn't humanity changed its behaviours? Why haven't we agreed on a solution yet? Yes, there will be mass extinctions, severe human health implications, mass water shortages (the list goes on),but the recent Bali conference on Climate Change where no binding targets were agreed upon, shows that despite all of the agreements in rhetoric, we still struggle to translate them into significant sacrifices.
Today as I write this reflection, an article appeared talking about the failure of an important climate change bill in the United States Senate. Senator Obama is quoted as saying "Every credible scientist and expert believes action is necessary. This is critical and long overdue legislation that represents a good first step in addressing one of the most serious problems facing our generation." He adds "Unfortunately, the Republican leadership in the Senate has chosen to block progress, rather than work in a good faith manner to address this challenge. This is a failure of our politics and a failure of leadership".
It is consistent with my personal view that it is a fundamental part of human nature to resist change and to shut our ears when what we hear inconveniences us, forces us to reflect on ourselves or change our lifestyles. Prosperity generally wins out, with posterity for our immediate loved ones coming in second.
I believe that our society's actions are played out through our consuming decisions and that anthropogenic Climate Change is a direct result of the types of products and services available to us. Certainly the increase in CO2 since the industrial revolution suggests this is so. In purchasing our products and services from corporations, we have relegated our social responsibilities onto them which they in turn externalise.Regardless of how we feel about the environment, we as consumers are collectively constrained by the lack of access to more sustainable choices.
Perhaps this is because, in the corporate world, longer term environmentally considerate behaviours are unnatural and uncommon. Corporate entities do not behave as conscious humans nor do they have a rational human conscience. Sadly, its because of this that moral arguments tend to be less effective than business cases. In fact, the argument for posterity goes against the obligations to deliver maximum returns as set in corporations law. This is why in the face of activism and compelling science, politicians and corporations still resist.
As long as we live in a free market paradigm (complete with externalities and all) things will not change any time soon. Academia and activism can help increase awareness and help governments shape policy, but ultimately it is the corporate entities which have to translate and implement those policies into products and services which will be consumed. Although this has happened in the past, such as the translation of the 1989 Montreal Protocol into the development of CFC free products, the Climate Change problem requires sacrifice and change from all people, permanently.
With the coming introduction of the emissions trading scheme, Australia may see the most rapid changes in economics and climate change action to date. The commoditisation of the commons may prove effective, although I still find myself rather uncomfortable with the suggested notion of ownership rights placed on other commons such as the forests, oceans, rivers and wildlife. The estimated value of ecosystem services shows that these natural assets are indeed valuable, but the danger with ownership is that it grants rights to protect but also abuse.
Recent studies have shown that even mechanisms put in place to influence positive change such as the Clean Development Mechanism are being abused (BBC 2008). While immoral corporate behaviour remains technically legal behaviour, our system of economics will continue to imply that prosperity is more important than posterity.
In order to address these particular issues, I see that corporate culture must first shift from short term profit cycles to longer term planning. This is almost impossible today for publicly listed companies with CEOs operating on 3 to 4 year timeframes as their performance is usually pegged to their ability to maximise quarterly returns.
Education is ultimately what will drive a long term shift as informed citizens will demand better policy, products and services. The green collar industry needs to be able to attract the best talent to solve the climate change problem in all industries. Business students, managers and executives need to be taught to view the economic world in the context of the entire real world. Externalities must become visible and consumers through labelling so that they can make informed consuming decisions.
Winston Churchill once said "Americans always do the right thing, but only after exhausting all other options". Could the same be said for all of humanity in the context of climate change? If so, then chances are we may well change, but not on our own terms, and not without unnecessary loss of biodiversity and suffering.
I know its been about 6 months since I last blogged, I'm sorry.
Here is a list of reasons: FACEBOOK.
Im also in the very stressful and demoralising phase of job searching. Not just any job searching...searching for THE job. A job that I can wake up in the morning and be happy doing.
What have I done since I returned from overseas?
Breaking non stop. Job hunting. Networking and learning about sustainability.
Why am I back? um....to upload some video. Im such a user, sorry multiply.
Ok, I lumped two of the goals together, not because Im lazy (which I know I am), but because learning in some respects is dependent on direction.
One of the perks of taking a looong break from being in your home country, and traveling alone, with no ties, is that you gain some mental clarity. Sort of like the dancer watching a replay of his or her own performance.It can be shocking and embarrassing. No amount of instruction from others can give you that same insight. Coaching and feedback helps, but like they say: seeing is believing. In hindsight, I think that applies to almost everything.
Provided that you aren’t distracted too much, you might be shocked by your own habits or even disturbed. Korea, as fun and great as it was, was a distraction. Only when Iwalked around Japan that I started to question what I actually value and look inside as ask myself what made me happy. A sunset walk alone in TokyoBay with the right song playing through your ipod can elevate you to that state in no time. No attachments, just memories and beautiful scenery. Its probably Zen, I dunno.
As an analyst, I can plot specifically how I got to my current state (which Im yet to describe). For a while I was reflecting back on working back in Australia. By most measures it was a great job. (Management Consultant) but I didn’t not feel like I had any passion. Come to think about it, its something I hear pretty often now amongst my friends. For a person like me who likes to rock the beat and goes on creativity sprees and can lift houses given the right feeling, then lack of passion equates to lack of motivation.
It was what I wanted all through University, to be the guy who “Sort of sits between the IT and business world sorta and sorta like helps the businessy people out by doing computery sorta stuff”.OK I’m getting side tracked. The point is that setting out on my trip my learning goal was to:
Become a master of ASP.NET reporting
Become a master of SQL Server 2005
Both of these goals were sadly not achieved, primarily because of the Zen walk like I described previously. Its not such a big problem though now, more on that later.
Anyways, I took a lot of those Zen walks, and one of them led me to Kinokuniya bookstore in Roppongi Hills, a expensive and beautiful, and expensive place. Did I mention it was expensive? Sifting through books I came across one called “Why right brained thinkers will rule the future”. Interesting since I always considered myself a right brained thinker trapped in a left brained body. I know it’s a fact because my right brain always comes up with crazy business ideas and my left brain shoots them down by figuring out some reason why it will go wrong. Its not healthy, I needed help.
The book was short, but enough to get me thinking about what my future role really could be in a continually outsourced world. The message was clear, the left brain is analytical and methodical, attributed to calculations, accounting, coding, call centre, in effect – outsourceable. The right brain is attributed to empathy, creativity and abstract problem solving, in effect – unoutsourceable. I added another goal – Fatten my right brain.
What was I to do? I gave up art class ages ago. I suck at design now.
Anyways, back to values, I saw the documentary called the Corporation. In fact I watched it because I had the habit of putting on random movies to make me go to sleep. I listened to it a little but I couldn’t sleep! I felt jittery and nervous, and angry and upset and worried. My heart was racing. The final parts of the documentary had interviews with Ray Anderson, CEO of Interface Corporation who some people might know as now one of the principle proponents of Corporate Sustainability. He said “One day there will be a day when men like us will be in jail”. I agreed.
Since then, I read, listened and watched more. I never realized there was such a strong sustainability movement that had started years ago. There also was so much that needed to be done. It’s stupid that you have to find these things out for yourself. What was University teaching me? I distinctly remember the term “sustainability” being glazed over quickly at the end of some business lecture slides. I never thought twice about it since then.
Global warming, yes, it’s the buzz word, in fact I must confess I’m sick of hearing it. Im beginning to relegate it to the ranks of “War on Terror” ,“eWhatever” and “iWhatever”. I must also confess, as catastrophic as it is, it doesn’t rate as high in comparison to other concerns such global poverty as well as ecological and cultural extinction. The more I learned the more side tracked I got from my initial learning. Right now I have a massive archive of unread articles that I feel compelled to read through and it keeps building.
These days my right brain is buzzing, be it with anger and frustration, but nevertheless my right brain is still buzzing. So it took as long as it had to, but I finally found something that I can say I value with some passion and feeling.
As I stated before, learning is related to direction, so now that I have some sort of a new direction, my next step is to fatten my brain and perhaps find a way to consolidate my past experiences and interests into a new competency. Im a little worried that I’m starting a bit late, but I guess I’ll keep you posted on how I go, wish me luck. If you’d like to talk more about it, drop me a line!
Surprisingly, being a part time English teacher really taught me a lot of things that I never expected. I developed to ability to talk for ages and ages about a new topic every day for the most of 6 months. I don’t know how I did it. Its like being a host at a party everyday and ensuring everyone is entertained and happy.Amongst other things, I taught about bees, ghosts, spas, tropical fruits, history, energy, real estate, wedgies, space, morality, and the environment. I’d say that not a day went by when I didn’t do some sort of environmental evangelizing. I wasn’t out to change people, I was just disseminating facts that I had read, and the discussions were enlightening. What I found is that many Japanese people care, but they don’t know what to do besides recycle and use less plastic bags. The same can be said for me too.
This might sound like I’m blowing my own horn a little, but back in Australia, it was just too easy to meet people, and I was busy always, just socializing. It was great, and yes I have some awesome friends, but I wanted to see how it was like to be a loner for a while. To really push myself and maybe learn something in the process.
I invite you to read some of my earlier blogs from when I first arrived in Korea. It was scary! And I felt like a massive loser having no friends. I don’t need to reiterate, suffice it to say, I really had to take risks and embarrass myself at times. Nevertheless the last holiday within a holiday I made to Korea in recent weeks really highlighted to progress I had made. Sadly I couldn’t meet everyone due to time constraints and bad scheduling, but what also hit me was how great the friendships still were and in fact some acquaintances who were quiet and reserved last year seemed much more open and friendly this time around.
Not all is merry though, in Japan it was very difficult to get to know new people that I would regard in the same light as friends I met in Korea. You could blame different circumstances, lack of communicative ability or the shifting polarity of Uranus, but the difference was noticeable. In about 10 months of Japanese life, I had met only a handful of people I could regard as my friends (mostly other bboys by the way) in contrast with the boatful in Korea in less than half the time.
The good news was that it didn’t bother me at all, because by that time I finished my stint in Korea and reached Japan I no longer fostered the desire to invest more mental energy in Networking. I became a bit of an introvert, and a loner, but it felt great! I felt a different sort of itch by then.
By no means am I implying Japan is unfriendly. In fact, the people in Japan gave me such a warm goodbye, I felt compelled to post it up on youtube. What more fitting than a battle on Dottombori Bridge?! - Lazy Susan Cup 2007!!!
Warning – this is sorta boring if you’re not that interested in dancing.
I think everyone in the world knows this, but the dance scene in Australia is really still archaic. Despite a few people, not too many know about what other dance styles exist. In fact there are even those who say “Pop Lockin” and “Urban” dance. Hate me if you must but I believe they are two words that should NOT exist in “Hip Hop”. Anyways, im not gonna write an essay about that, because I can.
Suffice it to say, it takes a step outside the borders to see what we’re really missin out on. To any dancer who wants to know what real dancing is, youtube just doesn’t cut it.
I am by no means claiming to be an expert at dancing myself, but being in Korea and Japan, just two countries in the world of dancing, you can see the dedication and talent. 8 and 9 year old children can do hip hop dance better than most so called “Hip Hop” dance crews in Australia (except for Amplified keke). The scene in Australia needs some real education.
Some girls practicing at OCAT
I took part in a monthly club event in Osaka called “Guda Guda Night” which is pretty much just a big jam for all types of dancers in Japan. Sort of where all the best dancers in Osaka and I guess Japan go to mingle. Perhaps the greatest clubbing experience of my life, and amongst 200 two person crews, a little 9 year old locker and a massive popping dude beat all others in the freestyle battle.
Big Phill and I at Guda Guda Battle
If you are a dancer, Japan and in particular Osaka is the place you need to be.
So in all this time, what generalisations have I developed? Who is better at what? If you saw the 2002 world cup you should understand the color system. Here goes!
Foundational Bboying Creative Bboying Conventional Power Bboying Innovative Power Bboying Middle School Hip Hop Locking Popping Reggae House Krump (nobody, maybe Brisbane is better even!) Wacking Punking
In Korea, although I had the help of many bboys, I don’t feel that I improved much at all. I spent most of my time correcting my mistakes that I had repeated from training in Australia. Osaka definitely has more of a jam and cypher atmosphere, and that counts a lot. What both countries share is a “Ganbatte” and “Fighting” spirit. Overall, I'm still shit, the difference is now I know HOW shit.
Many dancers work all day and dance all night, everyday. I don’t know how they do it, but its something that I didn’t manage to pick up sadly. Energy levels are a bitch. I understand why the Decepticons made such a fuss over Energon cubes. I found every second day training to be optimal considering I had a habit of pushing myself to not being able to walk properly sometimes.
Bgirl Hemmy, one of the best BGirls in Seoul
I'm going to miss practice here in Osaka, it’s a pilgrimage all bboys have to make. I miss my crew Planet Fresh, I hope I can share with them my learnings.
So its been a while since I blogged. To some of you its pretty obvious. So what happened since July? Hmm..a lot. I guess pictures can really describe more. A lot of really crazy and interesting stuff has happened, some bloggable, a lot not. All I can say is that It’ll be a week before I return back to Australia again so its probably appropriate that I reflect on the experience now. I cant anticipate how long this post is going to be because one again its just a stream that I’ll let out.
So I left home around June 2006, its November 2007. The plan changed MANY times. In fact I ended up living in Osaka for around 11 months, and Seoul a total of around 6 months, as opposed to 3 months in Seoul and 9 months in Tokyo.
I just returned from a month holiday within a holiday in Korea, which was a blast, and it was funny being at a different place in my life. The first trip to Korea was at the beginning of my 1.5 years of craziness, where I knew nothing, had no friends etc. I think I'm at a place now where I’m certain that I need to stop having so much fun. I’ve O.D’d on craziness, partying and general frolicking.
Seeingas its probably going to be my last blog for my journey, its appropriate for me to do a reconciliation of my goals, to prove that I actually achieved something in this year and a half.
_____________________________________________
My (Initial) Goals:
Dance
Network
Learn something
Get some direction
Appreciate more
Settle down a bit
_____________________________________________
I know for a fact that this crazy trip has brought me closer to achieving these goals, and in that sense, the experience was priceless. Sometimes along the way, I doubted whether I was wasting valuable time or money. While I was away from home, people were saving up to buy their house, getting promoted or starting their own business. All of the things I wanted too and sometimes cast doubt on whether I was doing the right thing. Maybe after I pen these thoughts everything will be a lot clearer, so bear with me.
I’ve been accused at times of being rather analytical. In fact I’ve been nicknamed “Spreadsheet” by my mate Kieren, but I guess that’s my nature. I like graphs, sue me. Spreadsheet saved my ass on this trip, I put everything in spreadsheets. In fact if I could, this blog would be a spreadsheet. I have one awesome spreadsheet surprise which I will save as a treat to all you nerds.
Ok I ended up needing to write more, so I split this blog into sections. ...to be continued!
There is this one TV show that I hold out for every Tuesday night in Osaka, Super Chample!!! its a dope show that showcases dancers from Japan. This one particular episode showcased kiddies talent. It was INSAAAANE! These kids dance better than probably any crew I have seen and they are around 10 years old.
I dont normally make it a habit to post up videos that I didnt take myself but here i had to make an exception.
I saw some dope hip hop dancer girls at OCAT a while back, perhaps better than all the ones Ive seen back home. One in particular, the best one, looks sorta like Eriko dont you reckon?
Ok, so I know I have been a bit slow with the Blogs, and well now that I have finally moved to Osaka, I'm now in a position where I finally have some free time.
So whats been happening lately? Maybe too much to explain all in a blog, pictures usually do the trick. I guess I'll break some of Japan down into a few small chapters.
Ok right before leaving Kobe, we had a bit of a sayonara party for my favourite chill out pad, which happened to be closing. It was perhaps one of the saddest moments ever. This here is a little bit of a tribute to 'Star Childs', a burger joint run by an awesome couple, and made THE undisputed best burgers I have ever had in my life, a fact agreed upon by even some American friends.
Why was SC special? Atmosphere, and big greasy burgers. U could get a massive pint of heineken, a big phat double cheese and bacon burger while oldschool funk or soul music was playing in the background. On the screen we could watch some lockin, poppin, or even American idol. Call it home away from home...sigh. It is now just a memory, as the couple has decided that they wanna try something new.
A Sad Sad Day
The Move
Ok Kieren and I sort of underestimated the amount of work that would be required to get our asses shifted over to Osaka. I travel light out of necessity, but I didnt realise how much shit Kieren has. We spent endless hours cleaning, and did an awesome. Moving also involved carrying all our stuff by hand from Kobe to Osaka twice on the JR train.
Off we go!!
Painful, yes. Having arrived at our new apartment, my fears were realised. The previous tenants, being capoeira people, did what capoeira people do best...Malandro. Ie...laziness. The place was a wreck, there was even meat in the fucking fridge. I knew it would happen, having experienced years of brazilian culture, and yeh it was expected. I just wanted to cry.
Zoned out
Well anyways, after hours of endless scrubbing and trash disposal, we still really arent finished, eg. the stove is soooo damn greasy. We created a garbage pile around 30 metres long!
Brazilian trash. It took all night to remove
Having said that, moving was the best thing I have done in ages, and if you could see how much of a good deal we got, you would know why we suffered. A minute away by bike is dottombori,right in the heart of the downtownentertainment district. In fact, last week we went out clubbing for the first time in ages, and rode our bikes home in a little over 5 minutes i reckon.
Life in Osaka
Interesting! Almost everynight I go midnight bike riding, and its amazing how much life in interesting stuff there is going on. Close to us is also the seedy part of town, where hosts and hostesses love to gather. Its a pretty entertaining ride! Ki and I usually pump music and ride around town, although we get wierd looks when we play 1940s classical music. Pictures speak louder than words.
Some of these photos are of a battle we had with our crew J-Needs in Kobe. IT was great to go back to kobve and see all the ppl that we missed, in fact the Sannomiya bboys won the battle which was of a pretty high level!
Some of the shots in the club are for the show that we did, the crowd was really fun but our show was ful of mistakes since it was the first time we actually performed it together as a whole group.
Some other pictures are of UK Champs prelims. Enjoy
Some photos are taken in a bar, Star Childs which sadly closed. IT was one of the saddest days of my life as it had the greatest burgers ever made. Some have said Zeus himself spawned them from his left ear.
Other photos are of Kieren and I cleaning our Kobe and new Osaka place. There was a line of trash that went about 30 metres.
My mum also came to Japan and I took her to Kyoto.
I decided I need a place to put the creative stuff, im gonna keep adding to this. (I started delving into tagging, feel free to give critical feedback, Im having trouble with some letters)
