Corporate environmentalism or making money by polluting the
ecosystems is a dichotomy, which has been debated over the last several decades. It is
still questionable whether the gaps between making money and saving environment
is narrowing down.
Undeniably, the economic growth inspired by industrial revolution,
growth of capitalism, improved working condition and wellbeing for people had a
price to pay, which ultimately resulted in pollution of water, air and soil.
Significant pollution also released to environment by industrial accidents over
centuries. There are countless examples in our recent memory.
Nevertheless, this piece is not about finger-pointing and blaming
the industries who have been the major
contributors to the damage to our environment. On the contrary, I would argue
that there have been major changes in corporate attitude towards environmental
responsibility for over the last 25 years. Industries have shown far better
responsibilities towards environmental protection yet winning the public trust
and confidence have been harder, and in many cases, businesses experienced uphill
task to win customer’s hearts and minds.
It is often
debated whether the big businesses are locked into vicious cycle of
self-interests, politics and ideologies, which would eventually decide the fate
of our planet’s natural resources. I do not think for a single moment that big
businesses have suddenly woken up and became more environmentally conscious.
Another supposed
dichotomy that perhaps became blurred is a distinction between green
consciousness and corporate honesty. It may invert our traditional mindset, but
we can say that the wind is blowing in the right direction. Many
businesses have realised that there are scopes to increase financial bottom
line by going green and that eventually have triggered them to change their
attitudes.
Destined to perpetual profits, one might, therefore, wonder where
ecological modernisation fits into the corporate behaviour and practices.
Ecological modernisation is a simple concept that links up with ecology to
economy. It is an innovation-based approach to environmental policy. More
specifically, ecological modernisation combines with the natural market logic
of modernisation and eco-innovation, de
facto drive the businesses to the needs of global environmental concerns.
Big businesses are in a unique position to adhere to this concept,
developing eco-friendly innovative solutions, making money and at the same time
mitigating the impacts of environmental pollution.
It is almost impossible to separate the
connections and dependence that exist in corporate environmentalism and ecological
modernisation. Producing environmentally responsible products and carbon
neutrality are the new mantra in the world that we are living in today. Many of
these green values have now embedded within the DNA of many business
organisations.
The universal human penchant for innovation is extraordinary. Finding
new technologies to resolve problems, do things differently for our own advantages
have shown the cachet of genius and it continues till today. Technology begets
more technology and we are witnessing the marvels of technology in our lifetime
be it Information Technology, Artificial Intelligence or Genetic Engineering to
Cyborg Engineering. The list can go on.
It can also be argued that the present primacy is no guarantee for
the future primacy. Despite this, it is natural to ask a sensible question, “what
we will do with all technological advancement if we cannot even save ourselves
from an existential threat to humanity i.e., climate change?”
Climate change is affecting everybody. Increased heat-trapping
gases such as CO2 mean increased global temperature and the impacts of
increased temperature are already well known. It is marked in particularly by
the biophysical consequences e.g., stronger cyclones, increased coastal
flooding, frequent droughts, freshwater scarcity and increased water salinity.
These biophysical consequences will continue to affect people and
their livelihoods and the whole economy across sectors and human development would
suffer because of the changing weather. It is a global problem and a collective
technological approach would certainly need to drive of change in the fight
against climate change.
“Necessity is the mother of invention” is a well-known proverb and
there is no better way to put it in this context. If the necessity is the
mother of invention then what is our biggest necessity in the face of climate
change in the 21st century? The answer to that question is
unequivocal: green innovation and technological changes to combat climate
change and its impacts.
The above point can be
illustrated by a brief example. Thinking about the packaging waste which is one of the top environmental issues in recent
time. We throw packaging waste; some cannot be recycled and some can be. Our
aim should be to use less packaging, supply chain responsibility and the
packaging materials should be designed in a way that it could be reused,
recycled or even quickly decomposed into natural materials.
So, eco-innovation is the key factor in this
regard.
I believe big businesses lie at the heart of the new technological innovation.
A convenient starting point would be to drive the green innovation which would
touch the fundamentals of sustainable business practices with the aim of
reduced waste, innovative manufacturing processes that would require less water
and energy, minimising greenhouse gas emissions, using more recycled and
alternative materials to manufacture the same products.
It is also important to encourage the entire supply chain as well
as their customers to drive the green technological innovation to achieve
similar benefits. By doing this, it is possible to bring everyone on board
within the sustainability obligations. And those businesses are unable to
innovate and modernise perhaps will be left to wither.
In brief, corporate environmentalism and ecological modernisation show
a strong bond of compatibility and they are true companions of goodness, which
will eventually help to reduce human vulnerability to the adverse effects of
climate change. It will also help in supporting adaptation and mitigation
responses to the climate crisis.
