After our meeting concluded, it was entirely clear to me that “innovating the smartest way forward” is much more than a simple motto for Marlon Kobacker and Sustainable Future Group. A veteran of the renewable energy sector with over 14 years of industry experience, Marlon has consistently demonstrated a deep commitment to the goal of helping Australian transition to a sustainable future. As director of Sustainable Future Group, Marlon is able to work toward this lofty goal through the development and espousal of innovative concepts and principles concerning sustainable business solutions.
A brilliant and energetic young professional, Marlon’s encyclopedic knowledge was on full display throughout our meeting. Thankfully, Marlon is also quite skilled at simplifying the most complex subjects pertaining to renewable energy and sustainable design, which ensured that I departed our meeting feeling as though I had been thoroughly enlightened regarding some of the most critical and complicated issues facing the world today.
The intelligent and engaging sustainable design expert was quite gracious with his time and was thorough in his responses to my interview questions. Although we covered a wide range of subjects, the following excerpt is perhaps the most relevant portion of the conversation as it relates to Marlon’s professional efforts and achievements with Sustainable Future Group.
Tell me a little more about Sustainable Future Group.
We agreed to adopt a holistic service model that would allow us to provide clients with advisory, technology, and finance aimed at ensuring a sustainable and cost-effective future. Sustainable Future Group accounts for specific considerations regarding the operations of our clients, including existing building infrastructure, utility usage, and, of course, the client’s own sustainability goals. We can then offer guidance on reducing both capital and operational costs while achieving even the loftiest of sustainability goals. For example, on a recent $20M residential development we developed a strategy that reduced capex by 1.5% leveraging clean energy finance to fund a range of clean energy technologies that will deliver $50,000 of opex savings annually. Furthermore, this increase in performance significantly improved the Green Star rating of the building.
Our company is unique in its ability to offer products and services that include advisory, technology, and finance. It is our belief -- and our results support this belief -- that a comprehensive approach to sustainability is the most efficient and most effective course of action.
What is it that you and your company hope to accomplish?
In working with and meeting the needs of our clients, we intend to demonstrate that environmentally sustainable solutions are superior not only from an environmental perspective, but also from an economic and operational perspective. Although we have come a long way in terms of a societal understanding, there is still a great deal of misinformation regarding the costs and the overall efficacy of environmentally sustainable solutions.
We truly believe the continued success of Sustainable Future Group will play a significant role in addressing these unfortunate misconceptions.
Do you believe these issues are properly understood?
I believe that, at least in a general sense, most people understand that there are serious global issues that must be addressed on an immediate basis. That being said, it seems likely that most people underestimate just how serious these issues are and just how necessary it is to address these problems in the most effective way possible.
As far as the results we are able to achieve through sustainable design and other environmentally friendly practices and principles, there is still a large percentage of the population who would be surprised to learn that it is possible to improve operational efficiency and reduce operating costs through sustainable and environmentally friendly business practices.
What do you find most rewarding about your professional responsibilities?
There is so much about my work with Sustainable Future Group that I find rewarding, particularly since our company is founded on the idea that environmentally sustainable design principles benefit businesses in so many different ways, including from a financial standpoint as well as from an environmental standpoint.
This allows me to help clients of Sustainable Future Group as they seek to operate in a more sustainable and environmentally responsible manner without having to compromise the efficacy or efficiency of their business operations.
How do you remain motivated and optimistic while facing so many obstacles and challenges?
As director of Sustainable Future Group, I am constantly in search of new and innovative approaches that will benefit our clients while moving closer to a more sustainable future. It is the obstacles and challenges I encounter along the way that serve as a potent source of motivation as well as inspiration since the only way to overcome such obstacles and challenges is through the development of new and innovative solutions.
As far as my continued optimism, I can look back on the progress that has been made over the past decade or so as evidence that we are headed in the right direction. There is still a great deal of work that needs to be done, but it is clear to me that my efforts and the efforts of my colleagues and industry peers has made a difference and has yielded positive results worthy of pride and continued optimism for the future.