Beyond Sustainability: Innovation Alone Won't Shape the Future

By Erika Johansson, Ph.D.

We are living in a transformative time. Never before have we had so much knowledge about what is required to create a sustainable future – and the resistance to change has never been so strong. While science, businesses, and various social movements are driving the transition, we see a growing backlash: politicians who stall climate- and sustainability actions, companies that continue to prioritize short-term gains, and a public that feels alienated and confused by the pace of change.

We see misinformation and conspiracy theories gaining traction as a reaction to uncertainty and change. Sustainability efforts are questioned by climate deniers and opponents, who sometimes even claim that they are driven by hidden economic interests, despite the fact that it is the old systems that have built their entire existence on profit maximization. When the scientific and political debate is poisoned by false narratives like this, it becomes harder to build a common path forward. 

This is no coincidence. We exist between two narratives – an old world that is dying and a new one that has not yet fully taken shape. That’s why it is crucial that we don’t focus only on technology, or political decisions. We need to win the most fundamental battle of all: the narrative of the future.

The Old Narrative Holds Us Back

For centuries, we have lived in a narrative where success is measured in growth, material consumption, and economic expansion. Our culture has been built around the fundamental ideas that “more of everything is always better,” nature is a resource we can exploit without limits, and individual wealth and success is more important than relationships and collective well-being.

But this narrative is breaking down. We see it in the climate crisis, in the growing divides between the rich and the poor, the rapid loss of biodiversity, and in the rising rates of mental health issues in the world. Despite this, many cling to the old order because it feels safer than to leap into the unknown.

In critical times like this, where there is war and destruction, democracies are challenged and the future role of superpowers is uncertain, this fear grows. Here lies our greatest challenge: we need to create a narrative of the future that feels more attractive and positive than the past.

Resistance to Change – A Natural but Dangerous Reflex

When the winds of change blow, it is easy to seek refuge in the old—to bury one's head in the sand rather than face the uncertain. This is why we see all this with populist movements opposing climate action, companies doing everything to dilute sustainability legislation, overconsumption, and people living in complete denial, longing for a time when the future is more predictable.

But we cannot back into the future. Holding on to fossil dependency, mass consumption, and an unsustainable economic model is not defending a stable world – it is accelerating towards collapse. Those who oppose the transition often do so believing they are protecting something more valuable, but what they are really defending is a structure that is killing both society and the planet.

Resistance is not always about ignorance or fear. For many, it is the uncertainty that causes them to cling to the old. But this fear is also exploited by those who benefit from our stagnation. Those with economic and political interests in the old system portray the transition as a threat rather than an opportunity – even though it is the opposite. This narrative can only be overcome with another story, one that inspires strength, courage, hope, and a belief in people, and the future.

The New Narrative Must Be Bigger than the Crisis

It is not enough to say we must “save the climate,” “stop consuming,” or “stop using fossil fuels.” We need a narrative that goes beyond merely avoiding disaster – one that showcases the potential gains and emphasizes that a sustainable and flourishing future is within reach. 

What if we start talking about the future in a different way?

• What if we see the transition as an opportunity to create a fairer, more peaceful, harmonious, and meaningful society?
• What if we measure success in health, happiness, and ecosystem recovery – rather than GDP?
• What if we view entrepreneurship as a force for regenerative development, not just for good business or economic profit?
• And what if we let love – for each other, for future generations, for nature – become the driving force behind our choices?
• And what if we truly believe in our ability to shape this future and embrace the wave of positive change ahead of us?

The transition we face is fundamentally not just technical or economic. It is emotional. It requires us to believe in ourselves and the positive forces that can shape our future. It concerns what we love, what we want to preserve, and what we want to create. This is the narrative that we at Fellow Future and so many others out there are trying to build. A narrative where we not only avoid catastrophe but foster peace and create something more beautiful, thriving, and alive than what we have today.

The Future Is Created by Those Who Dare to Imagine It

We live in a time of deep divides – between those who cling to the old and those who build the new, between those who believe in something better and more sustainable and those who do not. But these divides can be bridged if we succeed in formulating a vision that more and more people want to be part of.

It is not technology that will save us, but our ability to rethink, dream bigger, and dare to change. It is through uniting our forces and collaborating – across borders, cultures, and opinions – that we can create meaningful change. It is our own ability to act, to lead, and tell a story about the future that makes people not only see it as inevitable– but as something they want to fight for.

The new narrative is waiting to be written. Who dares to take up the pen? Let’s work together to rethink, innovate, and create the future we all want to see.