Business Buzz
Creating a “Regenerative Economy” to transform
global finance into a force for good
What if the economy protected
people and the planet?
John Fullerton and Hunter Lovins
John Fullerton is President of the Capital Institute, and a former
managing director at JPMorgan. Hunter Lovins is President of
Natural Capitalism Solutions and a professor of sustainable
business. Both are members of the Steering Committee of the
Alliance for Sustainability And Prosperity, and advise Richard
Branson’s B-Team.
Science tells us we are in ecological overshoot. We are using
Earth’s resources faster than they can be regenerated. So, too,
are we in economic and financial overshoot, propelled by a
financial system that demands growth with no concern for the
environment and little regard for human well-being. Common
sense tells us that an economy that is growing by using up its
material resources at an exponential rate is fundamentally
misaligned with the finite boundaries of Earth’s ecosphere. Unless
we shift to a new economic model, the result will be a series of
mutually reinforcing crises--economic, social, and ecological--a
catastrophe on a scale without historical precedent.
Our modern global economy, recent crises notwithstanding, has
delivered remarkable historical achievements, and prosperity
(for many) unmatched in human history. Now, however, it must
evolve to address the grotesquely inequitable distribution of
wealth, intractable poverty in much of the world, and chronic
failure to deliver living-wage jobs, all while respecting ecological
boundaries. The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund,
the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development
and the International Energy Agency all agree that meeting these
challenges demands not merely problem solving as we’ve done
in the past, but systemic change to address root causes.
“”The speculative excess and ethical shortcomings of
contemporary Wall Street are now legend. But wh ]Z[