Next week Plovgh is headed to Austin for SXSW Eco. The conference, now in it’s second year, was started to help move the many conversations surrounding sustainability toward progressive solutions. We’ll be there to participate in the Startup Showcase, but there are plenty of panels and discussions that we are psyched to see. The following is just an overview of some of the talks we plan to check out. For a full list of speakers and events you can view the schedule here.
Mix Parts, Stir Well: Tech Soup for Food Economies
This panel covers how software developers are aiding local food systems and how these new tech tools are fueling rural-urban economics and better regional food economies.
Life in the Street: Reclaiming Public Space
Companies are finding that there is excess capacity in cities and communities that can be repurposed for the greater good. This talk shares how pop up street improvement projects are helping to motivate change throughout cities.
The Sharing Economy for Sustainable Development
“Straight to the Point” is a series of 15 minute sessions given by thought leaders in different fields from around the world. “The Sharing Economy” is one such session given by Jennifer Schmitt that discusses “collaborative consumption” and how it can change the way traditional systems operate.
Good Food: Turning Popularity into Power
Don Carr, Erin Flynn, Tom Philpott, and Jason Mark answer the question of how sustainable food choices can shift to become the norm rather than the exception despite barriers in the existing market.
Creating Significant Change at the System Level
“Most sustainability challenges are rooted in systemic problems and need to be solved by a new form of approach: system innovation.” This panel will discuss the theory and practice of creating change at a system level.
Plenty for the Planet: Sustainable Food and a Well-Fed World
Anna Lappé will cover the divisive argument over whether sustainable or industrial agriculture is the answer to world food security. Along with the screening of her new video, Anna will “explore the role of sustainable food systems, share emergent global innovations and expose food industry flacks.”
I’m personally looking forward to checking out this panel on how social media trends can influence sustainable systems. The dialogue will touch on data insights, content development, brand management and more.
Building Value in the Age of Less
How will collaboration and community shift the standards of a “successful” business? The topic of “collaborative consumption” is revisited and pondered by a group of entrepreneurs including Casey Caplowe, Micki Krimmel, and Elizabeth Stewart.
Measure it, Improve it: Data for Better Cities
We get excited about data at Plovgh. This panel will examine different scenarios of “how data is being collected, analyzed and visualized for planning and designing sustainable cities.” Panelists will also identify the ways crowd sourcing and mobile phone sensors are being leveraged in areas where data does not yet exist.
We’re looking forward to hear from some of our peers and agricultural leaders on this panel as they discuss the emerging new generation of farmers and what can be done to help make direct from producer economies more viable.
