Sustainability and everything else...  The Balancing Act.

Sustainability is always a positive ideology within the community and a country's development. However, there is a thin line between an understanding of why sustainability is important for humanity's survival, and the never ending factors of history, culture and even societal acceptance. 

This requires further thought, as governments and policy makers across the globe have grappled with finding an innovative method of inputting this into the societies that they exist within. Notwithstanding the usual pulling and tugging of interest groups, naysayers and in this era's case "influencers", who may seek to instruct a populous based on their own personal convictions.

We can now understand why the 2030 SDG agenda is as important as a manifesto by a political organization, or even more important than selling pie in the sky dreams to a population that is more consumed with the idea of temporary fixes for their respective economic conditions. Here in Trinidad and Tobago, this seems to be an uphill task, given the cultural context in which people exist and live by.

As much as the government has subscribed to the idea that the 2030 SDG agenda is positive regarding sustainable development, one must stop to think if this message is even understood by the wider population. There is a saying which states 'culture eats policy for breakfast'. Comical in one sense, but a sobering thesis on the other hand.

What does sustainability mean to the man or woman on the street? How does the public view the goal(s) that are being sold as 'making the world a better place'? To determine how accepting a society is to this type of development, seems all but a mammoth task. However if we examine already existing structures that have been tried, tested and already established, we can at least make a significant dent into the shift in focus of the people. 

Education Platforms - The now virtual world and demand for content:
As the Covid19 pandemic has created a new but aggressive need for creating online content geared towards education and learning, this is a golden opportunity for educators, schools, and even learning institutions to come up with content that seeks to insert the SDG agenda. If executed correctly, there can be much positive feedback seeing that children in particular are impressionable and inquisitive, when it is they hear things for the first time. 

For children in particular there is a keen interest and curiosity when they find something fascinating enough to try to understand it's content, relevance and importance.
This usage of virtual content and online learning is also useful when showcasing discussions. Society is always interested to hear the opinions from various sectors and this can contribute significantly to re-shaping the ideologies people have on sustainability and sustainable development in general. 

When such meaningful discussions are broadcasted via education platforms locally, it opens the young and curious minds and their appetite for understanding in its entirety, how sustainability contributes to growth and development within their respective communities, and by extension the country. 

Cultural Input and Understanding Local Context:
Just as every other society, Trinidad and Tobago (more specifically Tobago), there must be a working understanding of what is important to the people.
These 'acceptable' norms are not to be mistaken with information given and expecting a favorable reception. This is done through the streamlining of information to reach the local parlance, understanding, what is practical and applicable to the average citizen of Tobago. 

Say food security for example. In this instance, people are concerned with 'how we go eat'. Which is a very realistic approach to take. One of the pillars of sustainable development (and the SDG goals) is food security. We know for a fact, that fishing in environmentally sensitive areas (the reef for example), and illegal hunting practices outside of the stipulated boundaries and timeframes, are part and parcel of the practices here. How do change this need to go beyond the law in the name of 'food on the table'? 

Presently, the world is not on track to achieve Zero Hunger by 2030. If recent trends continue, the number of people affected by hunger would surpass 840 million by 2030. As for our local context, such messaging should become part of the discussion to sober people into understanding that if we hunt, plunder and fish in every imaginable space, we would be depleting our already strained resources and destroy the environment. (Animals, plants and insects contributing towards the existing eco-systems that are responsible for clean air, water quality life on land and in water). The reality is that we can easily become part of that morbid statistic if we continue.

When we examine all of the factors required to get a society on board with sustainable development, we are surely a far cry from where we should be.
However, all is not lost since your friendly civil society groups and NGOs such as Environment Tobago, are pushing aggressively and are watchdogs to ensure that the private and public sector are adhering to the principles outlined by the SDG agenda.
Together this is possible once a collaborative approach is continuously upkept. There definitely is room for improvement, and we have a chance to write a history that the next generation can benefit from.