30 h o n g k o n g tat l e r. a u g u s t 2 0 1 9The Future
is Now
The 2030 Now exhibition debuts in Hong
Kong later this year. Here’s a sneak peek atthe ambitious global project, which unites
artists, scientists, celebrities and world leadersin one coffee-table book, available now
BY DANICA LOIn 2015, as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, the United Nations adopted 17 Sustainable
Development Goals, what the international organisation
calls a “blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable
future for all.” Earlier this year, Life Exhibitions
published 2030 Now, a coffee-table tome uniting artists,
scientists, celebrities and world leaders as advocates and
ambassadors—including luminaries such as Jenny Holzer,
Glenn Close and Michelle Yeoh—each sharing personal
convictions and commitments to achieving the UN goals.
This autumn, Life Exhibitions plans to mount 2030 Now as
a showcase in Hong Kong.
“People are surprised and inspired by the level of
optimism in the book—and I’m happy with that response,”
author Susanne Sayers tells Tatler via telephone from
Copenhagen. “That’s important for me to get across. I’mby nature an optimist, but I’m not naive. I can see the
huge problems towering before us, and I can also see the
progress being made on these issues. I’m from Denmark,
and 20 years ago in Copenhagen, if you fell into the
harbour you’d expect to come up a fluorescent skeleton.
Today we can swim in the harbour safely and we can eat
the fish from the harbour—and that’s a blessing.”
Here Tatler features an excerpt from Goal 15, Sayers’
piece on artist Cai Guo-Qiang, whose installation Heritage
is profiled in 2030 Now.
“Very frequently, this agenda is about things we’re
losing,” Sayers says. “But I can see the things we’re
gaining—we’re gaining public spaces that are nicer, clean
air, health. There’s so much to gain if we do it right. I really
wanted to show that this 2030 vision is possible. It’s a
question of will and collaboration—and really hard work.”