Pivot Projects

We believe that recovery from COVID-19 can be a catalyst for achieving Net Zero carbon emissions by 2050 and accomplishing the UN’s global sustainable development goals for health, education, and equitable prosperity.

Objective

Create evidence-based recommendations for post-COVID19 stimulus policies that promote public-private partnerships to achieve 2050 Net Zero and UN Sustainable Development Goals using the UN Disaster Risk Reduction and Earth Charter frameworks and putting health, education, and sustainable development at the centre.



Approach

More than 100 people from around the world have joined workgroups to develop new tools, insights, and approaches to problem solving. We target critical areas of inquiry and use systems thinking and modeling to better understand problems and opportunities. We use an artificial intelligence platform from SparkBeyond to deepen our understanding and search for systemic solutions. We formulate new strategies to inform policy and engage with communities. Working with community leaders, we customize our models and AI inquiries to help them develop bespoke solutions. Working with educators we offer graduate student the experience of working with our team in complex systems problems.



Targets for Recommendations

  • G20 (Riyadh, Nov. 2020)
  • COP26 (Glasgow, Nov. 2021)
  • EU post-COVID stimulus policy, 2020
  • UK Government Climate Champion
  • Individual city, regional and national governments
  • Interim reports are published quarterly



Governance

Pivot Projects is a non-commercial initiative connected to The Ecological Sequestration Trust, a UK-based non-profit organization, and to the Trust’s consulting arm, Resilience Brokers. SparkBeyond is an Israel-based Artificial Intelligence company. It provides AI services to Pivot Projects on a pro bono basis and provides services to Pivot Projects’ clients and partners on a non-profit basis.



The Shortcomings of Current Policies

Evidence suggests that current post-COVID19 stimulus policies will have significant negative impacts on climate change, increasing the likelihood of natural disasters, future pandemics, famines, mass immigration, and other societal shocks.



Pivot Projects Status

  • Initial findings emerging from 18 weeks’ progress across 23 workstreams and 5 international testbeds; interim report due in August.
  • Targets for policy recommendations engaged
  • 70+ experts engaged representing institutions including Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), ICES Foundation, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zürich, Tribe Impact Capital, Swedish Sustainable Economy Foundation, Univ. of Washington School of Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, EIT Climate-KIC, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Univ. of Birmingham, UKCRIC, Singapore-​ETH Centre, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies
  • Discussions ongoing with foundations in the U.S., UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), David and Lucile Packard Foundation, X-Prize Foundation



What We Need

  • Contributions of data and expertise from testbed locations, academic research and commercial businesses
  • Access to international policy influencers
  • Funding to sustain a small core coordinating team