Jane Davidson is Pro Vice-Chancellor Emeritus at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and chairs the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission’s Wales Inquiry. From 2000–2011, she was Minister for Education, then Minister for Environment, Sustainability and Housing in the Welsh Government where she proposed legislation to make sustainable development its central organising principle; the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act came into law in April 2015. She introduced the first plastic bag charge in the UK, and her recycling regulations took Wales to third best in the world. She created the Climate Change Commission for Wales, the post of Sustainable Futures Commissioner and the Wales Coast Path. In education, she piloted major curriculum changes for early years – the Foundation Phase, the Welsh Baccalaureate and integrated Education for Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship – into the Welsh curriculum. Jane is a patron of the Chartered Institute for Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM) and Tools for Self Reliance (TFSR Cymru). She holds honorary fellowships from WWF, Chartered Institution of Wastes Management, Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management. Jane is chair of the RSA in Wales and in 2017 was guest faculty on the Executive Education for Sustainability Leadership programme at Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She lives on a smallholding in west Wales where she aims to live lightly on the land.
Kirkus Reviews— 'Wales stands as a leader of sustainability.
Davidson, the former minister for Environment, Sustainability and
Housing in Wales, among many other public roles, chronicles the
complex, ultimately successful process by which the nation created
the Well-being for Future Generations (Wales) Act, which became law
in 2015. . . .A useful primer for environmental reform.'
Foreword Reviews— 'Wales, though small, is a vanguard when it comes
to integrating sustainable development via government policies and
actions. The chief architect of its Well-Being of Future
Generations Act, Jane Davidson, chronicles the law’s enactment in
the lively #futuregen, which encompasses both her personal
evaluations and the sweeping policy shift’s intriguing
processes.'
Booklist, Starred Review— 'A valuable insider primer for those
hoping to enact equally sweeping green legislation in America and
beyond.'
‘Be inspired by this fascinating story of how Wales made into law
the obligation for a country to pursue sustainable development on
behalf of future generations.’–Gro Harlem Brundtland
‘A truly pioneering Act that puts sustainability at the heart of
every governmental decision combined with a country seeking to
reimagine itself – the story of this revolutionary engine for
change holds enormous possibility and is a true beacon of
hope.’–Michael Sheen OBE, actor and UNICEF ambassador
‘As the effects of climate change and ecological degradation become
ever more apparent it is not despair that must drive us, but
action. Jane Davidson’s wonderful #futuregen tells the inspiring
story of how one country stepped up with just that – a
groundbreaking new law to protect the interests of future
generations. For those searching for hope, this is a
must-read.’–Tony Juniper CBE, Environmentalist
‘Once at the forefront of the industrial revolution, Wales now
leads the world in the sustainability revolution. At the
intersection of sustainability, economics, law, morality and
politics, the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act
enshrines the responsibility of a government to take care of its
citizens, especially the vulnerable, and extends that
responsibility to those who are the most vulnerable because they do
not yet have a voice – the generations as yet unborn. In
#futuregen, Jane Davidson, its chief architect, relates what
inspired this groundbreaking Act and what impact it has had in the
five years since it was passed. Politicians are not generally noted
for their long-term, upstream thinking. Influenced by systems
thinker Donella Meadows, Jane Davidson is an inspiring exception
and has earned the gratitude of generations both future and
current.’–Roz Savage MBE, ocean rower and sustainability
advocate
‘Please give this book to the sons and daughters of our leaders,
then ask them to give it to their parents. Maybe they won’t make
the change needed for the people who voted them in, but they might
just do it for their children.’–David Hieatt, co-founder of Hiut
Denim Co. and of The Do Lectures, author
‘The very definition of sustainable development embodies the need
to ensure the well-being of future generations and yet, until Wales
in 2015 enacted its Well-being of Future Generations Act, no
country had passed legislation to look ahead and give itself the
ambition, permission and legal obligation to improve social,
cultural, environmental and economic dimensions of well-being for
current and future generations. Jane Davidson was a pioneer in
pushing forward Wales’s pathbreaking Future Generations Act,
blazing a trail for the rest of the world, and WWF was delighted
and honoured to support her on that journey. Decision-makers
everywhere should read her book to understand the importance of
putting future generations at the heart of all they do and the
actions needed to make that a reality.’–Pavan Sukhdev, President,
WWF International
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