When Change isn't about Change: Rethinking Climate Tech

What do you do when sustainability is no longer sustainable? When climate affirmative action doesn't guarantee results and therefore becomes part of the problem?

What would happen if we shifted our focus from climate, and turned it toward people?

On September 7th, 2023, Malm? became the center for Europe’s largest climate-tech event, bringing hundreds of startup founders, investors, and climate enthusiasts from all over the world to find a way to collectively make that shift happen.

Hosted by Pale blue dot , a Swedish venture capital firm focused on backing early-stage climate tech startups, The Drop brought together some of the foremost minds within the climate movement to ask the right questions:

• Are our solutions solving actual problems?
• Do the solutions in place come from parties with other interests?
• Are we being misinformed and distracted from solving the actual issues?
• How do we redirect our focus to solving the real problems?

The Drop wasn't about presenting new technology or renewing our commitment to saving our planet by reducing waste and setting new carbon emission goals. Instead, the narrative was focused on how change shouldn’t be for the purpose of change, but about making an impact for people.

When we focus on people, we find a two-fold solution, avoiding prevalent and critical mistakes within the climate movement that severely hinder progress:

1. We stop focusing on effort, which easily becomes mere motion, meaning that we don't work towards results that aren't actually solving problems because we are measuring the wrong metrics due to our misguided focus, and we safeguard ourselves from parties looking for profitable opportunities during crises.
2. We direct our efforts to the people who are affected, allowing us to clearly define the issues at hand, and the origin of the issues, to efficiently create a strategy and make a guided effort to tackle the actual problem in order to take the right actions.

Held at Malm?'s 'Lokstallarna', a transformed locomotive service center, the day began with Hampus Jakobsson , co-founder of Pale blue dot , introducing a lineup of eminent speakers.

Dr. Toby Kiers, a leading fungi expert, set the tone, emphasizing the importance of harmony and sustainability within climate tech. Following her were known 'disruptors' Stella Levantesi, Melinda Janki, and Adam Weiss, each renowned for challenging negative green movement norms and advocating for genuine change.

While these four speakers all work in separate fields, from different backgrounds with different characteristics and approaches to tackling the issues at hand, their unison in the urgency to realign our vision to a people-focused approach to make a real impact reflected the vision of the conference.

"We need changes to our systems if we are actually going to change things in a lasting way" - Adam Weiss

After each keynote from the four speakers, attendees were invited for an in-person QA session with the speakers to further explore the spoken topics, allowing for deeper discussion and connection between the participants.

Throughout the day, attendees could also visit numerous ‘ripple roundtables’. Smaller, intimate, topic-focused gatherings conducted by leading industry experts.

You could find packed ripple gatherings engaged in deep discussions on topics ranging from carbon-neutral production to venture-backed biotech, how to utilize AI, the challenges of globalizing climate tech, and how to maintain an actionable climate consensus.

"The Drop was like opening up a door to another world. This is different, and this gives me hope" - Melinda Janki

Even as the topics varied, every ripple had engaged participants eager for knowledge and thought-through points of action. Seeing the mix of brilliance combined with a genuine passion for change was inspirational for everyone present.

The message was clear: Climate change is having a real impact on humanity, but through collective action and the right focus, we can still make a difference.

What truly distinguished The Drop was its emphasis on deep engagement and involvement. It signified that our efforts are for the benefit of people, as we too come together as people to collectively find the right solutions.

"There is so much opportunity, so many people, so many ideas. An event like this, with these people here, it's a testament to that 'we can do this', we just need to be courageous and get going." Peter Jorgensen, Maersk

Ultimately, genuine change transcends mere motion or public approval, it's not about attention, virtue, new products, innovation, efforts, or opinions, but about the people whom we care for - it's about all of us.

The Drop was a drop in the bucket, but at the same time a complete mic-drop, leaving participants shaken to a new perspective:

Change isn't about change, it's about people.

The Drop offered a platform for like-minded individuals to unite, collaborate, and envision impactful solutions with the right focus, and I'm eagerly awaiting the next conference, convinced that such people-focused gatherings are pivotal in addressing today's pressing challenges.

For those intrigued by 'The Drop' and keen on joining this newly forming tribe of world changers, visit www.thedropconf.com.

A heartfelt thank you to all participants for making this event memorable, and a huge 'thank you' to Pale blue dot and Sk?ne Startups for orchestrating such a meaningful gathering. Until next year!

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