I don't know, tell me more.

No.99

Monday 6 June

Hi, it's David here.

The irony of it all. I’m writing this on a flight back from a 48 hour round trip to Singapore where we had discussions about the possibility of building a new community of?low carbon advisors?to help leaders of companies accelerate the transition to Carbon Net Zero. (By the way, one thing I can set straight, our flights were offset.)

"Harnessing the world’s best thinkers to solve the world’s toughest problems?"?Well, there certainly is no tougher or more important problem than this one.

The reason for rushing back though is that this weekend is the Queen’s Jubilee celebration and the opportunity to celebrate one of the greatest remaining leaders with a plate of coronation chicken sandwiches, a glass of bubbly and an old fashioned picnic is something that should not be missed.

But leadership today is certainly not a walk in the park and a comparison I first found in a piece by Dr Tessa Dunlop at the end of last year?The leadership lesson Boris Johnson could learn from our Queen?should not be lost on any of us.

Whilst I was in Singapore, we had the pleasure of meeting the wonderful, well travelled, Sonia Gupta of?Accenture, who shared her belief that leadership today should follow the following six words?"I don’t know, tell me more".

I had the pleasure of meeting and working with Prince Charles, historically a champion of environmental causes, when I was involved in a film about sustainable fishing called?The End of the Line. At the time I had a company called WhatOnEarthIsGoingOn? and each time I met with the charming Prince he would ask me the same question, "David, what on earth is going on?"

Questions are currently being asked of the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall who have snubbed a call by tree campaigners to rewild their properties to the level of that of all of England. Both estates have lower levels of tree cover than the national average. The Duchy of Cornwall, run by Prince Charles, has only 6% tree cover, and the Duchy of Lancaster has 13%. The average in the UK is 16%, while in Europe it is 38%.

One person who did live by the ‘I don’t know, tell me more’ mantra was the leader of Singapore, the ultimate ‘Learn it All’ Lee Kuan Yew. A piece from the wonderful weekly newsletter?FS?entitled?12 Things Lee Kuan Yew Taught Me About the World?shares the philosophy and principles that built this sensational city in the past and is paving the way for a sustainable green future.

Danyal Sattar - CEO of Big Issue Invest pointed out in his newsletter this week that as we move through the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, it is worth reflecting on the ancient economic concept of a Jubilee – that every 50 years, long standing debts are forgiven, creditors claims on land (security) are released and bonded servants freed.

In the spirit of learning more, I researched this concept and came across an opinion piece in the?Washington Post?by the president of the Institute for the Study of Long-Term Economic Trends Michael Hudson entitled?A debt jubilee is the only way to avoid a depression.

It turns out the word "Jubilee" comes from the Hebrew word for "trumpet" — yobel and was intended as a circuit breaker, a wake up call that puts forward a way in which we could return balance not only to the increasing gap we find in society, but also in the environmental world we live in.

I hope you enjoyed the break and, as always, we are curious to hear what you think.

David Alberts

Co-Founder at?BeenThereDoneThat

1.?The Leadership Lesson Boris Johnson Could Learn From Our Queen

Read Time: 4m

According to the latest poll, we're more likely to trust social media for our Covid advice than the Prime Minister.

Read

2.?Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall Snub Tree Campaigners

Read Time: 4m

Rewilding advocates say decision by royal estates is ‘an appallingly undemocratic affront to our futures’.

Read

3.?12 Things Lee Kuan Yew Taught Me About the World

Read Time: 4m

"It’s no accident that Singapore has a much better record, given where it started, than the United States. There, power was concentrated in one enormously talented person, Lee Kuan Yew, who was the Warren Buffett of Singapore." — Charlie Munger

Read

4.?A Debt Jubilee is the Only Way to Avoid a Depression

Read Time: 4m

Even before the novel coronavirus appeared, many American families were falling behind on student loans, auto loans, credit cards and other payments. America’s debt overhead was pricing its labor and industry out of world markets. A debt crisis was inevitable eventually, but covid-19 has made it immediate.

Read

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