Joint Webinar by Southeast Asian SDSN Networks Explores the Incubation of Sustainable Solutions
On April 19 2023, the SDSN networks of the Philippines, Hong Kong, and Thailand jointly organized a webinar entitled “Incubating Sustainable Solutions” for university and high school students who are exploring to pursue a lead role in sustainability in their respective communities. The webinar featured three sustainability champions from different countries.
The first speaker, MS. Shawntel Nicole Nieto, is the co-founder and president of Sustainable PH, an organization she created with the aim of providing food, water, disaster relief, and education to over 700,000 people in the Philippines. Nieto discussed how everything comes together and the principle behind building sustainable ventures. She spoke about a Time Food Program, a project she started with her family to provide support to their community during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to this program, Nieto also runs Sustainable pH, a non-profit organization focused on raising sustainability leaders and promoting community engagement in public sustainability projects.
Next, Mr. Theirry Leung gave a presentation on incubating sustainable solutions and empowering young people to advocate for climate change issues. He shared his experience of working on a project called "Climate Advocacy Training for Youth" in Hong Kong. The aim of the project is to equip local youth with the skills and tools to advocate for their local concerns on an international level and to bring attention to the importance of climate justice.
The project includes organizing workshops that teach skills such as public speaking and persuasive speech, to prepare young people to attend international meetings. The speaker also encouraged the audience to start their own campaigns and organizations to advocate for the issues they care about. They suggest starting small, such as opening a social media account or joining a local group, and building from there.
MR. Jirapat (Jerry) Horesaengchai, the Program Manager for the Thailand accelerator program at New Energy Nexus, a global NGO that supports entrepreneurs in creating sustainable startups, talked about his passion for the subject, his background in political science and research, and the importance of entrepreneurship in achieving a sustainable future. He also shares how New Energy Nexus runs accelerator and incubator programs tailored to the specific needs of each country.
The organization's mission is to support local entrepreneurship and start-ups to turn 100% of energy into renewables in the shortest possible time. They provide funding, network support, and accelerator and incubator programs for start-ups from ideation to growth stages. Jerry defined sustainability as meeting our needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. He emphasized the importance of affordable clean energy, decent work, economic growth, industrial innovations, and climate actions.
The discussion between the speakers and attendees revolved around sustainability ventures and advocacy techniques during the COVID-19 pandemic. This included starting sustainable ventures, engaging with local communities, empowering youth to take action, networking to find mentors and funding. The speakers emphasized the importance of networking and getting involved in events, as well as utilizing social media to promote sustainable ideas. They also highlighted the role of inspiring and empowering young people to take action in their communities.
This event was jointly organized by SDSN Philippines, SDSN Hong Kong, and SDSN Thailand, through Ateneo de Manila University, Ateneo Institute of Sustainability, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Jockey Club Museum of Climate Change, SDG Move, and Thammasat University, in partnership with the Ateneo Environmental Science Society and The Development Society of the Ateneo. The webinar was moderated by Dr. Emmanuel Delocado of SDSN Philippines, Dr. Stephen Ng of SDSN Hong Kong, and Dr. Nuntinee Malanon of SDSN Thailand.