OUR obsession with productivity, efficiency and rapid technological advancement is disrupting the balance of our ecosystem, which may in time, lead to an unsustainable future for mankind.
According to a presentation by Water Air Food Awards (Wafa) Business Driven Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) senior adviser Brian Sundstrup, 85% of the earth’s soil has been degraded and by 2027, the world could face a 214 trillion calorie deficit.
“By 2050, the world population is expected to reach 9.1 billion and we will need to produce about 70% more food than today to feed everyone.
“If we continue to degrade at this rate, the earth will not be able to produce enough food to feed the growing population, and mankind will ultimately suffer. This is why we need to come up with a path towards a sustainable future,” he said.
Since 2008, Wafa has been recognising pioneers for the creation and implementation of projects that are sustainable, innovative, scalable and replicable in the fields of water, air and food.
For this effort, UBM has stepped forward to support Wafa’s corporate fundraising event for a documentary series entitled Silent Heroes in Kuala Lumpur.
UBM Asia Asean Business managing director M. Gandhi said UBM was more than happy to support efforts that can make the world a better place.
“As one of the largest exhibition organisers in Malaysia and Asia, we have a wide range of subjects and want to share its solutions and offerings with business players and the public for the betterment of society.
“Some of our favourite subjects are in line with Wafa’s topics and conferences, making this initiative even more relevant,” he said, adding that this was also part of UBM’s CSR initiative.
By supporting Wafa, UBM hopes to bring silent heroes to light, share and promote their projects to stakeholders and ultimately, encourage the public to come together and replicate the effort.
“Understanding the effects of what we’re doing and their potential disasters is key to coming up with solutions that are sustainable for the future of mankind.
“Why wait until disaster strikes when we can do something about it now? We should not take what is abundantly available to us now for granted,” he said.
Also present at the conference were Wafa founder and president Tina Lindgreen and communication consultant and video journalist Peter Zuethen, who both presented the potential and positive impacts of Wafa’s silent heroes.
UBM Malaysia organised the Livestock Malaysia 2017 Conferences and Exhibitors to bring new products, services and technology to improve the productivity of the livestock sector.
The exhibition is at Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang in Seri Kembangan, and open to the public this weekend from 10am to 6pm. Admission is free.