SESSION THREE

Brief overview/ Summary

3 weeks into SMU and today’s the 3^rd session for TWC. I am starting to warm up to SMU and getting used to the heavy workload. Today’s topics were no stranger to me and I enjoyed hearing different viewpoints. For the first half of the lesson, we went into discussing about technology and industrial development : towards sustainability and for the second half, we discussed about technology and innovation management.

Interesting Observations and Ideas

During the lesson today, Prof showed us a video on sustainability of resources. One particular line that struck me from the video is that “if everyone in the world were to consume as much resources as the US, we would need 3 to 5 planets to satisfy the world’s population.” Indeed, US’s ecological footprint is the largest. Generally, every person has only 1.8 hectares of ecological footprint per year. However, the US footprint is equivalent to 9.7 hectares per person per year, which exceeded by 5 times the average footprint. I can’t help but think of what will become of our future generations? Will they be able to enjoy the resources like we do now? Even after these alarming statistics surface, consumption rates are still extremely high. It does seem like the continuous search for profits and the care for the environment cannot co-exist in the US or even in the world. Even the respected president of the United States, president Obama released a disappointing statement that environment laws will be less stringent so to allow businesses to carry out with more ease. This translates to exploiting the environment even more. Without the lead from the president, it seems more impossible for people consume resources such that it is sustainable. As mentioned in the video, we cannot have a linear production in a finite world.

The Love Canal is a reflection of man’s selfish act to strive to maximize profits at the expense of the environment. The Love Canal is a dumping ground for toxic waste and chemicals for factories whereby after several years of dumping, there were construction of schools and housing. This has caused health problems like birth defects of children due to the toxic waste. Just like how after years of irresponsible mining and logging by corporations and governments, Mother Earth has struck back at us with severe storms, freak weather patterns and global warming. Everything we do has a consequence and we should not let our future generations suffer the consequences for the problems we create. Therefore, although highly difficult to achieve, sustainable development is crucial.

During the second part of the lesson, Prof shared his Landscape model for Technology. I generally agree with his model. Take Valley Opportunities in the case of Bubble Tea for example. In Singapore, we see a whole range and variety of Bubble Tea shops. It was popular in the past, stagnant for a period of time and the craze is now back. The low barriers to entry made it easy for such stalls to start up as well as exit the industry. However, we observe an interesting trend that corresponds to the model. Sweet Talk, an old established brand of Bubble tea has relatively low margins of profits due to their low interest for innovation (their menu has not changed much from previous years). However, brands like Koi and Gong Cha has relatively higher margins of profits and popularity due to their higher interest for innovation. Although both are selling Bubble Tea, each of them has their own unique selling point. This sets the two apart and each appeal well to the public. Thus, the model is a good reflection of technology and innovation in businesses today.

Key Takeaway point

Our resources are finite. We cannot carry on exploiting Mother Earth as there is a limit to how much these resources can help us advance as a society. We humans have used up 80% of the Earth’s resources. Even the most important resources, oil and fossil fuels are expected to deplete by 2050. At the alarming rate at which we are consuming resources, the future of our generations is bleak. Therefore sustainable development is necessary. This is to ensure that our future generations are able to enjoy similar luxuries that we do now. To do so, everyone must do their parts to try conserve energy or recycle as we are inhabitants of the Earth. Hybrid cars, Masdar city and the use of biofuels are some examples that I believe humans will succeed in achieving sustainable development.

Issues for further discussion

Will you pay more for a green certified product given that there is a cheaper alternative that is not certified as a green product?

Personal ratings

8/10.