Elkington, an authoritative voice on corporate responsibility, warns that key elements of the climate, biosphere and established economic order are under threat, which begs the question: is it too late to change? “We are headed into a hellish world of systemic breakdowns,” he declared in the opening pages of his latest book, Green Swans: The coming boom in regenerative capitalism.
As an advisor to leading companies for over four decades, including through his latest venture Volans, a London-based sustainability and innovation thinktank, Elkington’s views carry weight. Yet far from feeling negative, he sees the breakdown of the established order as an opportunity to create a better, more sustainable world. It could be the start of an adventure, Elkington says, as we rethink the future of the planet, societies, and capitalism itself.