Marian Tupy and Gale Pooley have a book, Superabundance. This discusses how prosperity has increased and what this means for pessimistic views of the world. The book is published by the Cato Institute. This is a right-wing think tank in the US, although the institute did not endorse Donald Trump’s view of the US in…
Category: Sustainability
Is It Marketing? Who Cares?
Women traditionally face disadvantages in business. These can be especially pronounced in some societies. There is good reason to want to change this, not least the moral argument. That said, it is often helpful to go beyond the moral argument. What impact does empowering/hiring female micro-entrepreneurs have on society? Is it a zero-sum game, where…
Agreeing And Disagreeing At The Same Time
A second post on Conscious Capitalism. Reading John Mackey and Raj Sisodia’s book I found myself agreeing and disagreeing at the same time. As I said in the last post, I agree with the general idea and found much to like about concepts in the book. That said, I have to say that the tone…
Conscious Capitalism As Stakeholder Management
John Mackey’s book, Conscious Capitalism (written with Raj Sisodia) gives some interesting stories. It has inspired a movement so that is wonderful. The core idea in the book, mainly that stakeholders matter, is a great message. Next post I’ll explain that some things Mackey says don’t work for me. That said, if it does persuade…
Environmental Strategy And Competitive Advantage
Daniel Esty and Andrew Winston’s Green To Gold is a detailed look at the link between environmental strategy and competitive advantage. It is an ambitious book, seeking to reframe green issues as a way for businesses to drive success. This contrasts with green choices being things that are done out of a sense of duty….
Lawyers Debating What Corporations Are For
Are you interested in lawyers debating what corporations are for? If so, I have just the historical reference for you. The Harvard Law Review in the early 1930s saw a series of debates about what firms are there to do. This was discussed by Joseph Weiner a generation later in the Columbia Law Review. It…
An Ineffective Defense Of Degrowth
One of the most interesting divides in the sustainability field is around degrowth. The idea of degrowth is hard for many business people to embrace. I must confess, as you will see, I find that the logic of the degrowth people often eludes me. As such, I was interested to see what Christopher Marquis had…
Are Only Stupid People Positive?
Andrew McAfee has a positive view of where we are going as humans. This he outlines in his 2020 book, More from Less. It is worth emphasizing that the positive tone isn’t because McAfee doesn’t see the problems in the world. Indeed, he finishes with a list of seven issues he thinks should be prioritized…
Changing Marketing To Be Sustainable
Sustainability requires changes on several fronts. In business changes to supply chains are an obvious area to address. Marketing is another discipline with a key role in creating a more sustainable future. This is not least because it can help persuade towards both sustainable and unsustainable behavior. So how might we go about changing marketing…
How To Make The World Better
Sustainability is about not infringing upon the future while delivering for those here now. The good news is that there isn’t necessarily a conflict between the two. Just because people get richer (current generation) doesn’t necessarily mean they need to do more damage to the future generations. Progress can happen without stealing from the future….
