Impact Summit 2018 Impact Summit 2018 v Prahe bol modelovou konferenciou OSN. Zúastnili sa jej tudenti a prednáatelia z 50 krajín sveta. Hlavnou témou konferencie bol 16. cie OSN k Udratenému rozvoju: Mier, justícia a silné intitúcie a bol zaloený ako súas agendy 2030 poas Summitu OSN  k Udratenému rozvoju v 2015. roku v New Yorku.  Hlavným cieom konferencie bolo vybudovanie systému a globálnej siete, ktorá by pomaly ale isto rieila najpálivejie otázky dnenej doby vo svete ako je chudoba, vzdelanie, ivotné prostredie a nedostatok mieru.  estnásty cie smeruje k oblastiam konfliktných zón, kde násilie a nebezpeenstvo má veký vplyv na spolonos, deti a mladých nie iba ako udské bytosti, ale aj vplyv na ich vzdelanie, rozvoj a pracovné príleitosti.    Konferencie ako táto vychovávajú budúcich lídrov, dávajú vetkým úastníkom monos prejavu a zapojenia sa v procese rezolúcií, ktoré su v závere prezentované riadnym lenom OSN a teda hlas tudentov je vypoutý rovnakou mierou ako hlas riadneho lena - zastupitea v OSN. Jednotlivý speakri prezentovali ich vlastné príbehy, ako oni sami prispievajú k udratenému rozvoju. Impact Summit zorganizovali praskí tudenti. Obsahove aj organizane pripravili vynikajúcu akciu, ktorá oprávuje k miernemu optimizmu pri pohade do blízkej budúcnosti. 

Date: Sept 21 2018
Ing. Monika Babanová, member of the Informal Economic Forum economic club and  laureate of the Peace Prize from Slovakia 2015 for the year 2016.

Impact Summit Prague
Goal No. 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We live in a global world. All of us more and more often travel to other countries, either for an education, business or holidays. While traveling we can observe differences between regions, communities and cultures. If we keep visiting one place over some period of time, after couple of years we realize changes made in that region, either positive, or negative. We believe that it's a duty of the world top leaders and politicians to set the trend, to direct the future development. Sometimes we do not realize the power in us, every person, each of us, how "WE" can contribute to the development to be environmentally, economically and socially sustainable. And not only by the way of waste separation or purchasing ecological products.

I would like to share with you my personal story. I promise it will not be boring :)

I can see here many young, beautiful faces for which my story can be an inspiration or, just give a thought about how your life can change if you follow your intuition. You can change not only your life but you can help many other people to improve their lives.

I started my financial carrier with KPMG, an international audit and accounting company. After couple of years I moved to Investment banking working in internal audit of investments and private equity projects. It was very interesting, and challenging. However, after more that ten years in finance I felt that I needed a change. I was tired, exhausted. I decided to leave the world of business and in one day I swapped all my securities for a big unknown. My natural curiosity and love to travel moved me much further away from the financial groups and investment projects.

I started my trip in South America, and visited many countries, but one of them changed my life. Colombia. I had an opportunity to spend couple of months in an Amazonian rainforest with an indigenous community. These people here live connected with the pure nature, without technological advances and cell phone service. They do not have many opportunities to travel, study, no access to information. I was surprised how basic material life it was but how rich in spiritual, inner life they live. For them traditions and community is the most important thing.

Watching the everyday life of Indians, I discovered a treasure - La Tagua nuts. La Tagua nuts are also called "vegetable ivory", because it is the only vegetable product, which is as hard and white and so identical to ivory of elephants. We do not have to kill elephants for their tusks anymore. We can use this alternative ivory for making products. Later I studied that during World War I American army used buttons on their uniforms made of La Tagua nuts. Later the plastic materials were introduced and La Tagua was not in trend any more. By collecting all information the vegetable ivory I decided to start a new project.

And this is where we are now: Company called ColoMBiana is operating in USA and Europe. We produce and sell products from vegetable ivory. Not only buttons but also accessories, and me personally, I am mostly concentrating on design of ecological jewelry. We cooperate with indigenous communities in Colombia on a fair trade basis giving them a chance to survive in the jungle. By supporting them they can send their children to school and so to increase the educational level in the group. They have better access to information, which improves their lives. By promoting this story in civilization we are able to grow and collect enough resources to support the growth and development of communities in the jungle.

And finally, we are not only helping the people in the jungle. This ethical business helps also the environment. Because we use the tree nuts that fall on the jungle floor we do not harm the trees. We help to stop deforestation what is a big problem in Amazonia. Because of cutting the rain forest, many animals are loosing their homeland. All of this should be limited.

This story was just an example of what can happen if someone follows his/her intuition. Every person can find the way to contribute to a sustainable development.

Let us hope that the important personalities leading the world institutions that have the ability to materialize the ideals, and at the same time, to get the support of successful economic leaders, are growing up to their maturity. These are personalities so much needed today for the renaissance of human society and the return to humaneness. According to the opinion of leaders, all the problems that are frightening can be settled by radical reduction of arms spending in a very short time. It is one, or if not the only, way to solving hunger, poverty, suffering and wars, crime and migration, ambitions of big nations for supremacy over the small ones, followed by their removal from the current history.