Settled civilisations leave a legacy; Nomadic ones leave no trace

CorporateNature No 145

Most of what we know about ancient civilisations is from the remains of their settlements. Nomadic people leave almost no trace. In a similar way, army ants and forest ants can be observed as long as they are alive but it is the "cities" of termite mounds that change the landscape.

Leading a nomadic lifestyle, both professionally and personally, is good when you are young. It makes perfect sense to try out many new places, experiences, and career paths as possible in your youth, in order to find out what you enjoy. However, to build anything of substance, you need to find your place, settle down, and pull your sleeves up.

To illustrate this, let’s look at two species that predate us by millions of years and that will probably outlast us.

1. ARMY ANTS

The life of a colony of army ants passes in a constant cycle between two phases - nomadic and stationary. The nomadic phase starts about 10 days after the queen has laid her eggs. During this time, the whole colony covers long distances in search of food for the new larvae. The ants are always on the move during the day and only settle down in temporary camps at night. Once the larvae are big enough, the whole colony settles down for the stationary phase. This only lasts a few weeks and, in no time, the colony is out foraging again.

2. MOUND-BUILDING TERMITES

In sharp contrast to the destructive army ants, some species of termite are best-known for their impressive building abilities. Termite mounds are true engineering masterpieces, which have inspired architects to build more efficiently. A termite mound is essentially an insect-scale skyscraper, which acts as the external lungs for the whole termite colony living below. The mound helps control the temperature, humidity, and the exchange of carbon dioxide and oxygen within the nest. Building such a complex structure is only possible with a settled lifestyle.

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TAKEAWAYS:

A nomadic lifestyle is consumer-based but not sustainable in the long run and does not leave much trace.

Significant achievements, such as building a termite mound, take time and considerable effort but also leave a long-lasting legacy.

Termite mound (image source: Wikipedia) 

Clouds with their silver linings and storms are like Cities with their opportunities and hardships

CorporateNature No 144

Clouds produce both beautiful views and rainstorms depending on your relative position as observer. Cities create opportunities and offer hardship depending on your social status.

1. CLOUDS

Does every cloud have a silver lining? It depends on your point of observation.

You may get to see a silver lining if you are under a cloud looking up towards the sun but this is nothing compared with the vast expanse of silver and silk that you would see if you were flying by plane above the clouds. The way the cookie crumbles is:

A) If you are high up, you are bound to enjoy the resplendent brightness of the clouds beneath you.

Z) If you are under the clouds, you may occasionally see some silver linings but you are quite likely to get soaked by the rain.

2. CITIES

The same principle applies to the world’s cities:

A) If you are well-off or well-positioned in society, you are likely to see cities as exciting places full of opportunities: higher earning potential, access to education and social networks, beautiful architecture and parks, glamorous restaurants, offices and conference venues.

Z) If you are lower in the social hierarchy and at the bottom of the wealth distribution pyramid, you will hardly see many of these opportunities and you will experience a lot of the hardships: high rents, relatively expensive transportation and food, long commutes, crime and insecurity. 

The higher you go, the more the skies beneath will open up for you in your city. The lower you are, the more exposed to the elements you'll be. Sadly, this is how "the cloud crumbles and the city thunders."

Every cloud has a silver lining (image source: Wikipedia) 

Tale of Three Cities: Oak Forests, Aspen Colonies, Bamboo Groves (Part 3: Shenzhen)

CorporateNature No 143

Cities come in different shapes and sizes. If global cities were groups of plants, they could be divided into three categories: old oak forests, colonies of quaking aspens, and fast-growing bamboo groves. 

Shenzhen as a bamboo grove

Bamboo is the fastest-growing plant in the world. Some species of bamboo can grow up to 9 centimetres an hour. 

Shenzhen, in southern China, has emerged as a city as rapidly as a bamboo grove. It was only founded in 1979 when Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping started the policy of opening up China to the world. However, only after 40 years, its population is now 13 million and its GDP of around USD 400 billion is bigger than that of neighbouring Hong Kong. Remarkably, it has also managed to reinvent itself economically: starting from low-cost manufacturing, it has moved up the value-added chain and is now a global hub for computer hardware, finance and fintech.

Bamboo Grove (image source: Wikipedia) 

Tale of Three Cities: Oak Forests, Aspen Colonies, Bamboo Groves (Part 2: New York)

CorporateNature No 142

Cities come in different shapes and sizes. If global cities were groups of plants, they could be divided into three categories: old oak forests, colonies of quaking aspens, and fast-growing bamboo groves. 

New York as an aspen colony

The quaking aspens of North America are the kings of adaptation. They reproduce mainly by growing root sprouts, so an individual tree can create a vast colony of clones. In Utah, the Pando aspen colony is a single quaking aspen (about 8,000 years old) and is the heaviest known living organism on Earth.

Global network cities like New York are the quintessential aspen colony: adapting and changing with the times. It is now the biggest financial centre in the world, but as recently as the 1950s, New York was the hub of the biggest industrial cluster in the US and the industry was garments.

       

Quaking aspen colony (image source: Wikipedia)                     

Tale of Three Cities: Oak Forests, Aspen Colonies, Bamboo Groves (Part 1: Detroit)

CorporateNature No 141

Cities come in different shapes and sizes. If global cities were groups of plants, they could be divided into three categories: old oak forests, colonies of quaking aspens, and fast-growing bamboo groves. 

Detroit as an old oak forest

Detroit is a prime example of a city in decline. It boomed a century ago when Henry Ford founded his Ford Motor Company there in 1903. After Ford, a range of companies set up shop in the city: Dodge, Chrysler and Packard, making Detroit the fourth largest city in the US. But the automotive industry has fallen on hard times in recent decades and the fortunes of the city sank with car-making. In 2013 Detroit filed for bankruptcy.

Downtown Detroit, 1905 (image source: Wikipedia)

Big Cities and Modern Democracies are like Cars: All three need regular maintenance

CorporateNature No 140

1. NEW YORK CITY AND THE “BROKEN WINDOWS” APPROACH

When crime rates in New York City skyrocketed in the 1980s and early 1990s, the local government launched a law enforcement campaign based on the “broken windows” theory. The idea is simple: when you reduce low-level offences such as graffiti, vandalism, loitering, and general public disorder, this creates the perception of a better urban environment, which in turn deters more serious crime. By the late 1990s, violent crime in New York City had dropped by a staggering 56%, compared to a drop of 28% in the US as a whole.

While there is no hard data on the size of the impact of the “broken windows” policy and although other factors such as economic growth played a key role in crime reduction, it seems that improved quality of life for New Yorkers translated into a more orderly society.

2. DEMOCRACIES AND WHAT MAKES THEM TICK

For a modern democratic country to function properly, it needs to implement fundamental principles such as rule of law, freedom of expression, pluralism, freedom of participation in the electoral process, etc. It takes time, effort and multiple iterations to set up such complex cultural and institutional constructs. Once we get them (somewhat) right, we must strive to keep them in good working order. Running a democracy is a continuous process which involves maintaining the overall structure and adjusting to the current times.

Analogous to the New York example, if we live in a democratic environment of sub-par quality, the cracks in the system would make true democracy difficult to maintain.

3. CITIES AND DEMOCRACIES REQUIRE "CAR MAINTENANCE"

Big cities and modern democracies are complex social machines. Your car is a less complicated machine, but its need for maintenance is not all that different.

A brand-new car is like the conceptual idea of a democracy that exists in theory: they are both in perfect working condition. However, as time passes and the car gets driven, it picks up small dents, it gets exposed to the elements, and its mechanisms start to deteriorate. Soon these minor issues add up and if there is no regular maintenance, it gets to a point where the car becomes a road safety concern.

Wouldn't it be better if we took care of the minor issues promptly, rather than wait for them to stack up and overwhelm the system?

Manhattan skyline (image source: Wikipedia)