Empowering communities to restore mangroves

Caux Dialogue on Land and Security 2019

17/09/2019
CDLS 2019 Tom Duncan

 

Tom Duncan is CEO of Earthbanc and passionate about problem solving and strategic systems thinking, primarily in regenerative economics, green finance and financial technology, as a means of restoring relationships between society and nature. He first came to Caux as a Caux Scholar in 2007 and helped to launch the Environment & Economy Group, which was a precursor to the Caux Dialogue on Land and Security (CDLS). He attended CDLS in 2013, 2018 and 2019.

 

CDLS 2019 panel Laubsch Duncan Brown

 

For Tom Duncan, the CDLS offers a unique opportunity to explore world problems in an atmosphere of honesty, trust, inspiration and integrity. Time slows down in Caux and the profound can emerge from a place of stillness and quiet, looking out at the majestic mountains and shimmering lake, amongst inspiring changemakers. ‘I have experienced great healing in this place,’ he says. ‘I have made friends for life, and feel that together we can change the world, by bridging its divides and restoring a healthy planet.’

Tom grew up on two Australian farms, one in an inland desert, and the other in mountainous land on the east coast. Inspired by the energy of Caux, he has committed himself to enable land restoration and to help scale up the restoration of mangroves in the delta region of Myanmar.

 

Bremley Lyngdoh Tom Duncan CDLS 2019

 

He is an entrepreneur and wears several hats professionally, with experience in fund management, technology development, investment banking and commercialization, in many countries and at all levels of society. He advises governments and institutional clients on designing financial instruments to support the upgrade of infrastructure and on the issuance of green bonds on blockchain.

He is now working with others from the CDLS on a project to empower communities in Myanmar, impacted by rising sea levels. Some have lost their homes to cyclonic storm surges. The project will link investment and finance to vulnerable coastal communities, so that they can restore the mangrove forests that defend them against the sea. It will begin with 20,000 ha of degraded mangrove ecosystems in the delta region of Myanmar. Large-scale restoration and marine permaculture here will benefit more than 5,000 households.

Once implemented, this project could be replicated across the remaining 350,000 ha of degraded coast in Myanmar and Bangladesh, enough land to plant between one and three billion mangrove trees by 2050. Three billion mangroves trees would sequester at least three gigatonnes of carbon – about 1.5% of humanity’s total emissions over the past 25 years.

At this year’s CDLS Tom was introduced to Conrad Sangma, the Chief Minister of Meghalaya. He is now developing collaborative partnerships with the Government of Meghalaya to deliver infrastructure to improve water quality, with the potential to deal with the pollution caused by no longer active coal mines. This would enable the Government of Meghalaya to create green jobs for its people, to earn revenue for industry, government and communities, and to protect water sources on which over a billion people depend.

Featured Story
Off

related stories

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...

Salima Mahamoudou 21 July 2021 FDFA workshop CDES 2021

Remaking a world in peril

The Caux Dialogue on Environment and Security (CDES) 2021 ran online from 20 July until 30 July, for the second consecutive year, comprising three open plenaries and seven workshops. This year’s discu...

CL 2021 Hope square

A Journey from Uncertainty to Possibility

2021’s Creative Leadership conference took participants on a six-day journey ‘From Uncertainty to Possibility’. Between 25 to 31 July around 150 online participants living in over 50 countries engaged...

FDFA Baobabcowherd-1 Noah Elhardt through WikiCommons square with logos

A pathway to peace and prosperity in West and Central Africa

In the context of their partnership, Initiatives of Change Switzerland (IofC) and the Peace and Human Rights division of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs organised a webinar on the them...

LPM report 2021 square

Peacemakers in the making

‘I am super happy to have been part of the Learning to be a Peacemaker course – we learned the true colours of Islam!’ wrote 18-year-old high-school graduate Nma Dahir, from Erbil, capital of the Kurd...