Fusheni's Rope
I'm in northern Ghana, kicking off The Pond Foundation’s regenerative agriculture project with WhatIF Foods.
Fusheni, pictured, is the guard at the house where I've recently moved. He is a gentleman of many years. He has a purpose. Every morning, having swept the dirt road clean of fallen leaves and any rubbish, he sets about making rope. He sells his rope in the market. He doesn't rush the process, because rope making isn't a job that wants being hurried. And he certainly doesn't invoke any tech.
Each morning, he greets me as I head off on my morning, pre-sunrise, pre-too-much-heat walk. He greets me on my return and wishes me well as I head off for my day's work. He's there when I get back in the evening, the grass reeds from the morning now coiled as strong rope that will be sold tomorrow.
Just before coming to Ghana, I was asked to look at apps that help companies determine their carbon footprint. "Which is best?" I was asked by potential investors, eager to cash in on the next bonanza, less interested in climate change.
Since arriving, I've seen tech that helps us find our purpose - by which roadside did we leave that again? Having done that, it guides us to develop an ESG Policy, all the while measuring our performance, providing of course we enter reliable data.
I'm no Luddite. I do think technology can help us. But when it comes to making tech that helps us define our purpose and setting out our ESG policies, I think we're stretching things. Even carbon calculator apps. The numbers they churn out are helpful, but it's not the numbers that will address climate change, it's the actions we subsequently take to reduce our emissions and take carbon from the atmosphere that will move the needle. The apps are mere tools.
Our purpose cannot be defined by an app; it's driven from within. Any tech that intrudes into that space won't create change. It might make someone rich, but that's not so helpful on a dead planet. We need humans to feel the need for change before change ever happens. Apps telling us our number, or magically capturing our purpose, setting out our ESG policy at the click of a button, push us further from the true connection with ourselves that's needed to deliver strong, credible climate and other ESG actions.
Fusheni and his rope can teach us something. Investing in tech might make us richer, but there's a fair chance it won't get us closer to the changes we need in the world.
Fusheni's relationship with his rope and with himself is what counts. And our relationship with our purpose, ESG policy and the actions we take to deliver change counts just the same.
If we can sidestep the allure of our screens and the dazzling technology on offer, and instead build a deep connection to ourselves and our purpose, like Fusheni, we might make something valuable.
Who doesn't need a good rope from time to time? You can't lead a cow with an app.