Introduction to David Cecil

We are thrilled to welcome David Cecil to the Subak Australia board. His wealth of experience in water management, pollution issues, and climate change advocacy will enrich our mission to solve climate change. As a professional services leader with deep connections to the environment, David’s expertise in business management and development will be invaluable for our members. 

During our recent interview, David shared his insights into the intersection of business management and climate change action. He emphasised the pivotal role of businesses in addressing environmental challenges, and highlighted the critical need for corporations and NGOs to collaborate if we are to create meaningful change.

Join us as David shares how climate change has changed the game and now requires different and radical interventions. In our Q&A we glean insights into the future of environmental stewardship in Australia and beyond.

1.  Can you tell us about your journey and how your background in water and pollution issues led you to become involved in climate change and sustainability?

At the start of my career many of the solutions we thought could stabilize and improve the situation with regards to pollution and water quality more generally were contingent on a stable climate – e.g., controlling runoff to save ocean habitat, limiting volumes of inland waterways available for irrigation and hydro use to conserve river and wetland habitats. Climate change has meant that these expensive interventions can not achieve their original aims – its humbling but also horrifying that the issues of sustainability have come to dominate the future of our environment, including in our oceans and waterways.

 2. How do you see the intersection between business management and climate change action, and what role do you believe businesses play in addressing environmental challenges?

In my view, the role of business could not be more central. Without tapping into both the behaviours and investments of established businesses, and the thinking and energy of entrepreneurs driving new businesses, we are not going to get far.

 3. What motivated you to join Subak Australia Board, and how do you envision leveraging your experience and expertise to further Subak Australia's mission and impact?
Chris Wilson’s local leadership of Subak has inspired me and I’m so delighted to be asked to assist him in building out the Subak community. The idea that an ecosystem of organisations and people is needed to work on this most vital and multi-faceted problem is a great insight. I’m looking forward to helping that ecosystem thrive.

4. Given your interest in entrepreneurship and leadership, how do you think our members and fellows can inspire the next generation of leaders to take action on climate change?

One of the things I’ve learned in business is that the combination of a great idea, and people who know how to operationalise and scale those ideas into action, is where magic really starts to happen. Subak’s members and fellows are at the heart of this process. Their leadership both directly and by example, can have an outsized impact.

5. As a resident of Melbourne, are there specific environmental initiatives or projects in the local community that you believe need to be more addressed and supported?

There are many necessary and exciting projects that Melbourne needs to tackle. Firstly, with an expanding population comes the need to address the decline in greenspace available for all of us. Regulating new greenspaces on the edges of Melbourne is vital to the long-term health of our city. Secondly, our river systems need remediation from long-term environmental damage. And the entry points to our rivers need to be improved so that our city’s arteries are as clean as possible. Lastly solid waste management, particularly recycling in Melbourne, has remained a sore point despite so much good work in this arena over the last decade. We need long-term sustainable solutions that are practical and reliable.

6. Looking forward, how do you see NGOs and corporations collaborating to address environmental challenges?

Corporations increasingly are stretched to be focused on increasing shareholder, community, and legal obligations – unfamiliar and broad territory for many. Those with switched-on leadership know that they need help developing projects and ideas that will give them the license to continue their business – particularly with respect to sustainability – as this is not core business for any corporation. NGOs are non-threatening collaborators for corporations. Potentially they are a veritable petri-dish of the ideas needed 

7. In your opinion, what are the biggest impediments for not-for-profits to have an impact?

I don’t think about impediments. The sky's the limit, and you can get anything done if you ‘have a go’. Not-for-profits, like all sectors in the economy, have limitations – funding, leverage, access, etc. – but these should not intimidate, but rather be faced into.

 8. Are there any environmental initiatives or local projects that you feel require more attention and support in Australia?

 As the oceans warm and currents change, time is running out on projects related to seagrass and coral health. These problems may be intractable, but the science has shown that there are solutions worth trying. I would love to see a redoubled effort on our southern sea-grasses in particular, as the benefit would not just be saving habitat, but also positively impact our carbon account.

 Additionally, we can all see the collision coming between the environmental impacts of not doing anything at all vs. the impact of potentially positive projects. For example, covering the environment in solar panels; the ports needed for establishing offshore wind; the impact on our river systems in increasing use of dams as ‘batteries’. We need better ways of understanding these trade-offs and getting to no/yes much faster or we risk missing out on investment, or worse, doing more harm than good.