From SustainAbility to ThriveAbilitv-Ralph Thurm

November 4th, 2014!Shanghai!

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Ralph Thurm!Senior Advisor BSD Consulting!Founder, A|HEAD|ahead!

From ‚Sustain‘Ability to ‚Thrive‘Ability!!Developing the context for a ‚green & inclusive economy‘ !

Understanding the need to transform!

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WEF 2010: „Our current economic model is a!global suicide pact. (...) We mined our way to!growth. We burned our way to prosperity. We!believed in consumption without consequences. Those days are gone.“ !

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„The new forecast (...) raises!the possibility that human-!kind might not survive on the!planet if it continues its path!of overconsumption and!short-termism“ !

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Decades of foot-dragging by!political leaders had propelled!humanity intoa critical !situation, with greenhouse emissions rising!faster than ever. Though it remains technically!possible to keep planetary warming to a tolerable!level, only an intensive push over the next 15 years!(…) can achieve the goal.!

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§56: (…) we consider a green economy in the!context of sustainable development and!poverty eradication as one of the important tools!available for achieving sustainable!development (…). ![Rio+20: The Future We Want, 2012]!

We need … a ‘Big Shift’ from ‘Sustaining’ to ‘Thriving’ ;-)!

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We need … a resource-revolution … while availability diminishes and time is scarce!

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We need … a carbon-intensity revolution …if a 2 degree global warming target is kept!

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PWC: Low Carbon !Economy Index 2014 !

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We need … a renewable energy revolution … to escape the energy returns ‘cliff edge’!

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Source: Report ‘The perfect storm’!

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We need … a circular and sharing economy – with unimaginable efficieny!

Accenture: Circular Advantage, 2014!

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We need … a new discussion about growth … to calibrate ‘feasible’ growth strategies!

1. Biophysical Throughput

4. Natural Resources 3. Economic Welfare

2. Production & Consumption

…if in service of 3 and 4

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We need … a new understanding of wellbeing of employees!

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Source: Gallup World Poll, State of the Global Workplace!http://www.gallup.com/strategicconsulting/164735/state-global-workplace.aspx !!

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We need … to act on the ‘tragic disconnect’ between sustainability and economic theory!

•  Abuse of Adam Smith’s ‘invisible hand of the market’ paradigm!

•  Economy as leading discipline!•  Concept of the artificial ‘homo

economicus’!•  Macro-economic and micro-economic

indicators of success (GDP and EVA)!•  The neglect of external effects and the

unwillingness to monetarize and internalize them!

•  Lack of interdisciplinary collaboration (sociology, biology, tax theory)!

•  Ignorance to discuss ‘purpose’ of economic theory in a radically changing world, leading to the folly of growth!

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We need … a reporting revolution … to describe our legacgy for ‘the future we want’!

‘SustainAbility’ as corporate

responsibility!(the license to

operate)!

‘ThriveAbility’ as a primary lens for

strategy and innovation!

(the license to grow)!

Need to close the !‘sustainability!

context! gap’!

Need to shift!emphasis from!

‘ability to sustain’ to! ‘ability to thrive’!

Sustainability Reporting for ‘the future we want’!

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More than two decades in this agenda … we have only harvested low hanging fruit…!•  Global Reporting Initiative & IIRC!•  UN Global Compact!•  WBCSD !

•  Dow Jones Sustainability Index, …!•  CDP !

•  Global Footprint Network!•  TEEB, the Natural Capital Coalition!•  The Ruggie Framework for Human Rights!•  The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises!•  ISO (14001, 26000, …)!

•  The internet (awareness raising, community building, crowdsourcing/-funding, activism, innovation…)!

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•  Reported information is - mostly relative - in comparison to past performance - mostly efficiency driven - hard to compare - showing ‘less bad’ - limited to the reporter’s own legal boundaries!

•  Ratings and rankings are - mainly ‘best in class’ approaches- mostly methodological black boxes- useless to show real impact!

•  Sustainability is managed - technocratically, mechanistically- without a ‘world view’ - without a long-term vision!

… but we still don’t know if we are ‘sustainable’ and what is ‘good enough’!

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Surveys show need to drastically improve quality, scope and depth in reporting!

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Sustainability Context as the first step in defining materiality … a crucial one!

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GRI G4 – Sustainability Context Principle!

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The ultimate!litmus test in!sustainability!reporting!

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Developing context in current reporting!

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Materiality, stakeholder inclusiveness and target-setting!

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Sustainability Reporting for ‘the future we can create’!

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Stickerboard on transformation needs in reporting!

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The strategic context of sustainability reporting – how to achieve a license to ‘grow’?!

Global Planetary Boundaries -> Addressing Limits To Growth In Corporate Strategies!

From Report to Reporting – use of IT and Big Data, from dialog to collaboration!

Environmental And Social Profit/Loss Accounts To Assess Impacts In Value Cycles?!

Developing ‘Science-Based Goals’ And Indicators for Reporting!

Net-Positive & Gross-Positive Impact As The Business Case For Sustainability!

True costing, true pricing and true taxation needed globally to design resilient&circular economies!

Sustainable Development Goals As Pathways Or Corridors For Agreed Action!

Integrated Reporting Based On Assessment Of Six Value-Creating Capitals!

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Context through science-based goal-setting !

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Rockstrom's    Planetary  Boundaries  

Oxfam's  Doughnut  

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IIRC capital model – value creation and value addition revealed!

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From stakeholder dialog to collaboration … by intensifying the use of software!

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Puma Environmental Profit & Loss Accounts!

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Pioneers developing context for purposeful reporting!

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Changes in corporate and social realities ask for profiling and positioning in reporting!

•  Green & Inclusive Economy, Circular Economy, Resilient & Regenerative Economy, Sustainable Development Goals (2015), Integrated Reporting, Net Positive Impact: discussion about sustainability becomes ‘systemic’ and reporting needs to capture this!

•  Positioning and profiling of reporters in this changing world towards a ‘green & inclusive economy is challenged internally and externally and needs to be legitimized; the legacy is at stake!

•  Contributions to (ecologic and social) value-added through classical (economic) value creation is challenged mid-to-long-term (rebound effects, collateral damage, stranded assets, bailouts, etc.)!

•  Accounting and governance rules will need to change!

•  No new economic paradigm without true costing, pricing, taxation!33!

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Facilitating the necessary developments …www.reporting3.org!

Purpose - Practicability - Performance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Supported by:! !!!

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Design formats of the platform…!

Reporting 3.0 Platform Formats:!•  Yearly conference in October: serves as a culmination point, an international caleidoscope of

developments on global scale, and as a trigger point for the Reporting 3.0 Platform work program in the following year (synopsis)!

•  Central Transition Labs: deepen discussion and developments in areas of specific interest, e.g. sustainability context, convergence, new forms of dialog and collaboration, new business models, developments in IT and big data for sustainability!

•  Local Transition Labs: in 2015 the Reporting 3.0 Platform will also work on 4 continents to capture the specific areas of interest in the various regions!

•  Projects: 2015 will see the start of specific projects in which diverse groups of companies will work on specifically supported projects, aimed at assessing, operationalizing and implementing some of the outcomes of Labs and the Conference Synopsis!

•  Roundtables: trigger points to attract companies, public authorities and interest groups to find out about the Reporting 3.0 Platform and how they can benefit from taking part!

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Sustainability, with its focus on risk reduction and optimization of the existing system, has failed to close the gap between what is needed for a thriving future and the trajectory we are currently on. Impact minimization has failed to motivate the vast majority of mankind and most businesses to change their mindset and their behavior. !

What  is  needed  is  a  new  worldview  that  supports  the  mindsets,  models,  methods  and  prac5ce  to  make  the  shi7  to  sustained  thrival  for  all.  That  is  the  promise  of  ThriveAbility.  

Learning about ‘Thrive’Ability …!www.thriveability.zone!

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‘It’s  5me  we  steered  by  the  stars,  not  by  the  light  of  each  passing  ship’  (Omar  Bradley)