Impact Days: Where Courage meets Collaboration

Change the word, then change the world

Suddenly, a roll of thunder shook the room and the conference fell into a complete blackout. This dramatic turn of events turned out to be staged for Mark Elsberg, one of Austria’s most successful authors, as a dramatic reminder of the climate consequences already being felt around the world. Elsberg’s books deal with the current and future crises stemming from climate change, digitalization and banal human greed. But the threat of a total system collapse isn’t a mere trope of fiction—it’s a very real warning. The need to change is more urgent than ever, but where do we start? “Before we change the world, we have to change the word,” was Elsberg’s challenge to us. Our current narrative is dominated by the pursuit of growth and prosperity. But that narrative must not only be changed, it must be utterly transformed. In doing so, we must ask ourselves: What is the real price of the energy and resources we briefly use and throw away? What are the opportunities in renewables and circularity that could transform not only the way that we live, but all life on Earth for generations to come?

Alma Zadic reinforced this call for disruptive change when she took the stage. Drawing from her youth as a war refugee and her inspiring rise to become Austria’s Minister of Justice, she encouraged the audience to continue to strive forward and find collective ways to overcome the many obstacles before us: “You have every right to be heard, so be courageous, brave and work together.”

Collaboration across continents

Collaboration across continents is a critical component of tackling complex issues such as the climate crisis, health and poverty. A full session was dedicated to the cooperative efforts of initiatives based in African countries and their Austrian partners, demonstrating how the pooling of resources and know-how can significantly amplify impact. One of the case studies was presented by Sheila Maina, a medical doctor and director of Flare Emergency Response in Kenya. The winner of the Kofi Annan Award introduced her game-changing, emergency service platform rescue.co. In Nairobi, a pizza could be delivered within 30 minutes, but ambulances could sometimes take hours to arrive. Maina’s platform is able to coordinate ambulance services at a moment’s notice, and in some occasions can even direct rescue teams to arrive within minutes at the site of an emergency. Maina is just one example of the diverse social entrepreneurs working across the African continent, and impact investors can play a significant role in supporting their work to scale up impact.

Deep dives across Vienna

Along with transnational collaboration, Impact Days also explored topics such as the climate transition, challenges in health care and inclusive investment. On the second day of the conference, the Impact Days community had the chance to dive deeper into these topics at specially selected locations across the city. At Climate Lab in Spittelau, participants talked with start-ups working on climate innovations in areas such as mobility, energy and construction. At the Future Health Lab, discussions focused on topics such as patient-centered care and the role of digitalization in the healthcare system. Impact Hub offered sessions on impact investing, capital for startups and rebuilding strategies for Ukraine. Finally, the “Vollpension” welcomed guests for a deep dive on inclusive entrepreneurship.

Committing to being a good ancestor

As the Impact Days came to an end, we had to ask ourselves again: Are we doing enough? Will future generations look back and say that we were good ancestors … or that we failed them? Stephanie Brobbey, founder & CEO of the Good Ancestor Movement, closed the Impact Days with a vision of a world that is just and sustainable in which all communities can thrive within planetary boundaries. To achieve this, she called on the Impact Days community to challenge traditional ideas about the economy and the redistribution of resources and power, and to commit to being a good ancestor. Because the decisions that we make today, and the initiatives and sectors that are supported now with investment—these are the ones that will not only determine our own fate, but that of our children and all the generations to come.