WALKING THE TALK -
Bringing new gravitas to the term, ‘purpose-driven,’ the team behind Colive is using their uniquely delicious olive oil to help end the civil unrest that has divided their native Cyprus since the 1970s — and exemplify the benefits of social entrepreneurship and peace through cooperation.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
Through a series of multi-year partnerships with business-focused nonprofits, Umpqua aims to close the opportunity gap in access to capital, resources, and expertise for traditionally underserved innovators.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
When the city of Franeker, Netherlands, turned off its lights for a night to reveal the now-rarely seen splendor of the night sky, it was a reminder of our inextricable link to each other and our universe.
COLLABORATION -
It’s 2022, and 1 in 3 homes on the Navajo Nation Reservation still do not have a tap or toilet. In 2021, human rights nonprofit DigDeep collaborated with
Kohler to launch the Water Is Life microgrant program — which is working to make safe water a reality for all residents of the Navajo Nation.
LEADERSHIP -
As a fellow leader in this sustainability movement, how might you shift to a more regenerative approach? Here, Forum for the Future’s Samantha Veide explores what the concept means for business and shares five principles for regenerative leadership.
WALKING THE TALK -
Perhaps the takeaway of the week is that the ‘next 10 years’ of business and human rights coincide with the 2030 deadline for us to halve carbon
emissions — and that environmental rights are now very clearly seen as human rights. Companies pursuing a net-zero strategy must make human rights central, too.
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE -
About half of our employees have a criminal record, and I’ve learned valuable lessons from working with them. If your business is considering hiring formerly incarcerated people, the following lessons may help you avoid common obstacles to building a positive environment, so both your new employees and your business can thrive.
BEHAVIOR CHANGE -
Consumers are more and more inclined to buy from brands that align with their beliefs and values; and anti-Black Friday is an important indicator of the
growing chasm between purpose-driven brands and those still banking on business-as-usual approaches.
THE NEXT ECONOMY -
Shimokawa Town in Hokkaido is a designated SDGs Future City and the winner of the first Prime Minister’s Japan SDGs Award in 2017. Four years on, Shimokawa is still working earnestly to achieve the goals and is keen to share its progress, new initiatives, and challenges along the way.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
Disclosure and data certainly are important, but they are not sufficient to create a more equitable and sustainable world. Companies that take a narrow or
compliance-focused approach to ESG are missing the forest for the trees.
THE NEXT ECONOMY -
In Canada’s first-ever Purpose in Business Week, business, government and thought leaders are creating a Roadmap to accelerate the purpose economy and mainstream social purpose in business that will require cross-sector engagement and collaboration across six critical levers.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
The natural intersection of citizen science and tourism is obvious: If travelers are already participating in these activities, why not encourage deeper understanding and awareness about the natural world while also advancing scientific research?
NEW METRICS -
At SB’21 San Diego, veterans from sales, marketing, certification, design, finance, agriculture and more agreed: While there’s no checklist for regeneration, a focus on interconnectivity, holistic approaches and actionable goals will lead to measurable ripple effects.
LEADERSHIP -
At SB’21 San Diego, leaders from a variety of industries and disciplines seemed to agree on three key drivers necessary for the regenerative leadership our world needs.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
With so little time left, we must prepare for the colossal
climate challenges yet to come. We hope our approach to public-private blended finance will inspire other multinationals, investors and climate funds to support protective measures that ensure the climate resilience of their supply chains and the global economy.
LEADERSHIP -
Business leaders are best positioned to facilitate meaningful change — not only for our bottom lines, but for the collective good. Together, we will create a transcendent practice of business that restores and protects the natural and social systems on which all our futures depend.
COLLABORATION -
Mobile shower pioneer LavaMae^x^ and Unilever brand The Right to Shower have built a partnership that’s given more than 38,000 unhoused people dignity, hope and a fresh sense of opportunity.
SUPPLY CHAIN -
At SB’21 San Diego, innovators in the agriculture, electronics, food and
plastics industries shared lessons learned from a variety of initiatives aimed at closing loops and optimizing value chains for a circular, regenerative future.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
Simply returning profits to investors is no longer a good enough measure of success. If any stakeholder does not see benefits in the design of a capital project, then gaining support is unlikely. Is your organization ready for multi-stakeholder investment and design?
COLLABORATION -
To regenerate the system, we have to regenerate how we work together. What if we brought the experience of elders and the courage of the next generation together with the brand leaders tasked with shifting paradigms and making essential decisions?