Editor’s Note: The following message was emailed to our community on March 17, 2020. If you’d like to receive updates like this, sign up for our monthly newsletter, Inbox Inspiration. To learn more about our new board chair Anthony Guerrero, read his March 2020 Q&A here.
Dear ILFI Community,
As I sit here writing this email, the streets outside my window in the city that never sleeps are sparse and sleepy. I’m sure you are experiencing the same thing outside yours. And that’s what I wanted to emphasize today—while we may be sitting by ourselves in our homes reading this email, we’re all in this together.
These are unprecedented times navigating through uncharted waters. The global pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus is grabbing all of the headlines, our attention, and more and more, our well-being. The only thing certain is that we’re not alone.
When I joined the board of ILFI four years ago, I did so out of admiration for the group of people that were leading the movement around the most ambitious sustainability goals in the world. Every day since then I’m awe-struck by the passion and expertise of our staff, project team members, ambassadors, and volunteers with our collaboratives around the world.
What we can offer now is an extension of that—our community as a virtual gathering place for everyone aligned around a common mission: a world that is socially just, culturally rich, and ecologically restorative. That commitment doesn’t waver at a time like this, and in fact, grows even more important as we are reminded daily of how critical it is to foster equity, culture, and resiliency through a crisis.
Over the coming weeks, ILFI will be sharing some ways we are sustaining hope through this crisis and inviting all of you to join us—everything from transitioning our flagship event, Living Future, into a global digital event available to more people than ever, to hosting a virtual happy hour, or giving you a Facebook Live tour of one of our more remote Living Buildings, we’re going to be thinking of all the ways we can support one another. Meanwhile, we are inviting you to share your stories and ideas with us. What is keeping you going right now? What kind of support could a community like ours provide? More online courses? Interviews with our technical experts? Stories from your own living room?
Hope doesn’t replace good handwashing, but it does help us get out of bed every morning, care for others, and stay committed to the communities and causes we love. We’ll be sharing our ideas too, on our social media channels and in emails to come. Come join us online. And keep watching for us in your inbox.
With gratitude,
Anthony Guerrero
Board Chair, International Living Future Institute
P.S. Many of you are asking us about our annual Living Future event, and we can’t wait to reveal how we’re moving this event online and transforming it into a global gathering and call to action for our entire community. Details are coming together rapidly, please keep it on your calendars!
