It does not seem to be business as usual in many South African companies. As more corporates strike to shed jobs, we have hit a 10 year high with retrenchments.

Following the recent natural disasters hitting Japan and New Zealand, one looks for something positive emerging from such events. I stand in awe when disasters propel leaders to get people from across the globe to work together effectively and in an open, trusting manner to solve problems. This gives me hope that trust can become part of a global growth initiative. Building, maintaining or recovering trust is a very important leadership skill and is needed, among others, for successful management of sustainability projects that can change the way we look at the built environment.