Business in the age of mass extinction

NWORK VS. LIFE ature and its vital contributions to people … are deteriorating worldwide” says a new, critical report from the United Nations. The New York Times puts it another way: “Humans Are Speeding Extinction and Altering the Natural World at an ‘Unprecedented’ Pace.”

What can, or should, business do? It’s time for radical changes in how we live our lives and run our businesses. Here are a few pathways to consider.

— UNDERSTAND YOUR BIODIVERSITY FOOTPRINT: The gold standard on this topic is the Global Footprint Network, and it’s a good place to start (along with Project Drawdown). I suggest mapping out your business and its supply chain to understand your major land and sea impacts, including

mining and metals, oil and gas exploration, coal production, fisheries, cattle grazing and agricultural products like soy and palm oil that drive destruction of virgin forests.

— EXPLORE RADICAL NEW BUSINESS MODELS: I see three key elements of what I call “the big pivot” mindset: decoupling, circularity and regenerative models. The first means continuing to provide for more and more people, but decoupling the growth of production from material needs (energy, water, stuff). Businesses need to move much faster to embrace circularity (closing the loops on all materials to find reuses and dramatically reduce virgin-material use) and regeneration. The prime examples of the latter are “regenerative agriculture ” and “holistic grazing,” which use farming and cattle to improve soil quality and sequester carbon from the atmosphere.

— SUPPORT AGGRESSIVE POLICIES AND INITIATIVES TO PROTECT HABITATS: The science on biodiversity “hot spots” is strong — we know where we get the biggest species bang for our buck. Leaders should lobby for protections around the world; support policies that put a price on natural resources and eliminate subsidies for fossil fuels and industrial nonsustainable agriculture; endorse international aid to help compensate developing countries with less financial resources but abundant natural resources; and publicly and financially support initiatives like National Geographic’s Last Wild Places and E.O. Wilson’s Half-earth Project.

— SUPPORT LEADERS WHO GET IT: With countries as diverse as the U.S., Brazil, Hungary and Poland embracing nationalist leaders, we’re moving away from global action. Short-term tax cuts are poor reasons to support leaders who do not recognize this global emergency.

— TALK TO CONSUMERS AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS: Companies can help consumers understand the choices they make and offer better alternatives. Few companies discuss biodiversity issues on packaging or marketing, so it’s a real opportunity for new leadership.

— CHALLENGE THE GROW-AT-ALL-COSTS ECONOMIC MODEL: We have to face harsh reality that our current model of measuring “success” in our economy and companies is coming at the expense of our ability to thrive.

The news on the state of the planet is relentlessly bad. We’re really out of time for pretending business as usual will continue to work. We need bravery to challenge the status quo now. What an amazing opportunity for real leaders to step up.