Breakthroughs for the 21st Century

Breakthroughs for the 21st century logoOn 1st July 2009 we unveiled 19 ideas which could help transform the UK into a more sustainable society. » Press release

The ideas were showcased at a London event, attended by HRH the Prince of Wales, the Rt Hon Ed Miliband, the Rt Hon Hilary Benn and Welsh Assembly Minister Jane Davidson, and hosted by Jonathon Porritt, Anna Ford, Jonathan Dimbleby and Rosie Boycott.

Around 400 high-level delegates from government, business, academia, think tanks and community organisations joined us to hear all about the 19 Breakthrough ideas, and discuss how to make them a reality.

View this video on YouTube

This short film showcases the 19 final Breakthrough ideas, as selected by the SDC. It includes footage from the Incredible Edible Todmorden project in Yorkshire, Greater Manchester’s Retrofit Plus idea, and the idea to transform the Royal Bank of Scotland into the 'Royal Bank of Sustainability'. The film was shown at the 'Breakthroughs for the 21st Century' event on 1st July 2009.

 

 The 19 breakthrough ideas

Breakthroughs for sustainable lives:

1. Incredible edible communities – encouraging communities to grow and eat local food

2. Rethinking the community garden – building community and resilience by turning public spaces and under-used land into urban farms

3. Natural values: Outdoor experiences for all children in the UK – getting young people reconnected with the natural world

4. Taking happiness seriously – discovering what makes for a happy life, and teaching this in our schools

5. Mobilising popular support and collective action - the growth of active community networks and organisations for change

6. Congress for the future – avoiding short-termist policy making by involving citizens in national decision-making

Breakthroughs for sustainable places:

7. Low Carbon Zones –combating fuel poverty, health problems and emissions by brining poor-quality housing up to highest energy efficiency standards

8. Greater Manchester retrofit plus – future proofing Manchester’s building stock while providing employment, skills and long-term investment opportunities

9. From 'pre-pay' to 'pay as you save' – financing home energy efficiency measures through future savings on energy bills

10. Biochar and soils: A win-win for climate and communities – providing renewable heat, improving soil quality and creating carbon sinks with biochar

11. Fewer patients are a virtue – by 2020, 20% of all health spending dedicated to preventing illness and public health

12. Making cycling mainstream – transforming our roads and giving people the confidence and incentive to cycle

Breakthroughs for a sustainable economy:

13. Cap & share – cap the carbon and share the income with an innovative, citizen-centred permits scheme

14. Kyoto 2 – tackling climate change with a global carbon price on fossil fuels

15. Personal carbon budgets – individuals and communities taking responsibility for reducing emission of CO2 through personal carbon budgets

16. Green bonds – financing the transition to a low-carbon economy through individual investments

17. Royal Bank of Sustainability – using the public stake in the Royal Bank of Scotland to create a bank to support the transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy

18. Green Inc. - A truly sustainable labour market – shaping jobs and skills around the needs of a sustainable, low-carbon community

19. Algae carbon capture and sequestration – the ‘short carbon cycle’ – using algae to capture industrial carbon and sequester it through agricultural engineering

 

The 19 ideas are the outcome of a year-long project initiated by the SDC. We wanted to bring together a dynamic and hard-hitting collection of breakthrough ideas, with the aim of really inspiring and motivating policy makers and others to catalyse change and accelerate the pace of progress on sustainable development. This aim was in the context that although there has undoubtedly been some progress towards sustainable development, all the principal indicators reveal how slow that progress has been. And in our opinion, this is not due to a lack of good ideas - there is no shortage of proposals across the UK for innovative new policies, technologies and practical shifts in behaviour.

So, back in October last year we invited people to submit their 'breakthrough' ideas to us, and we were delighted by the volume and variety. There were around 300 ideas in total, received from organisations and individuals across the UK. As we sifted out those we felt were the strongest, we were looking for ideas that could create some kind of shift in the next three to five years – or at least make steps towards a longer term change – as well as inspire others to make that change.

Our selection meetings, involving Commissioners and policy analysts from across the SDC, led to a shortlist of 40 ideas which we then took to a wider audience, to get more feedback and see whether others shared our enthusiasm. Over 200 commentaries helped us decide the final package of ideas.

The nineteen 'Breakthrough Ideas' are spread across the spectrum of sustainable development, with solutions ranging from policy change to grassroots action to technological innovation. They encompass varying levels, from individuals, to communities, cities, and things that need to be done at national or international level. Indeed, many of the ideas are driven from the grassroots, but require government to act as the enabler.

The ideas are not all completely new, and they are certainly not rocket science. Some have been around for a while, but need to be mainstreamed or scaled up. The breakthrough is sometimes about simply making a good idea happen! Others build upon concepts about self-reliance, community and frugality which have served our nation well in the past – concepts which have renewed relevance in an economic downturn and given the climate change imperative.

We've presented the ideas grouped into three broad categories:

  • Sustainable lives: ideas which are symbolic of the ways in which we as individuals can be directly enabled to change our own lifestyles and work with others at a community level
  • Sustainable places: ideas which are iconic in terms of changing the built environment, our infrastructure and green spaces, in ways which could help reinforce and ‘lock in’ new and more beneficial ways of living
  • Sustainable economy: ideas which change the marketplace, the signals about price and value, making more sustainable choices easier and more accessible.

Our selection represents just a few of the great ideas out there – the tip of a rather impressive iceberg. The process we have been through to reach this point demonstrates the sheer amount of creativity and innovation there is in the UK in response to the challenge of creating a more sustainable society. Most of the ideas we've picked are at an early stage and will need a great deal more work in the form of research and development.

The report, and the events that go with it, are simply ways of throwing the spotlight on innovative thinking and encouraging everyone to help convert the thinking or demonstration projects into concrete initiatives. The real breakthroughs will come in the way Government, business and other organisations nurture this talent and enable ideas like these to happen quickly and at a transformative scale.

» Download Breakthroughs for the 21st Century report

» Where we are now: A support document for Breakthroughs for the 21st Century

» You can still view the 40 shortlisted ideas 

Further information

Ian Fenn (Project support) - 0300 068 6290