The science is clear. Our human impact on this planet has become unsustainable. We are on a crash collision course with a metaphorical iceberg – large-scale multi-systems breakdown that threatens our global health, wellbeing, and prosperity; indeed our very existence. Today’s human driven systems – both economic and social – are out of touch, offtrack, and out of balance with our natural systems; creating the dangerous reality in which we currently live. 

Business is one of the most powerful human-engineered systems on the planet. Modern business is responsible for much of today’s prosperity and economic growth, but today’s focus on growth at all costs has caused disastrous impacts on the planet and human health and wellbeing. We are at a tipping point where today’s business decisions and actions will either enable us to survive and flourish or doom us to extinction.

Fortunately, rising concerns and pressures on the business community over the past few decades, especially in the past 10-15 years, have established a new era of business sustainability which is growing as a recognized and necessary operational strategy; and increasingly as a core strategic priority. This awakening has been shaped and supported by some of the most forward-thinking scientists, politicians, academics, activists, business strategists, and management consultants. It is also being accelerated by the growing demand from key business stakeholders, including employees, investors, customers, and suppliers, for Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) accountability.

Unfortunately, in spite of efforts to dream up, design, and create the sustainable strategies and solutions to build the sustainable future we envision, we are not moving forward with enough ambition, execution success, and positive results; and we are running out of time. The world’s leading scientists agree that we have less than ten years (2030) to cause large-scale systems changes to neutralize and even reverse our negative impacts on the planet and society in order to avoid catastrophe.

To be successful, we need to be able to turn our awareness and vision into action at unprecedented scale and speed. While much effort and investment has been put into strategy formulation and technical solutions, we have not yet scratched the surface when it comes to human and leadership development for sustainability. People need to change, behaviors need to change, cultures need to change. The best way to change behaviors and cultures is to start at the middle and the top with the organization’s leaders e.g. how and what they prioritize, how they make decisions, how they communicate and align their people.

This will require new ways of learning, understanding, thinking, communicating, collaborating, and relating to one another. Sustainability leadership development has not yet reached the level of strategic importance and investment in the business community that we believe is essential for this shift (vision to action) to happen. Most of today’s business schools, learning and development, and leadership development solutions are not designed to teach business concepts through a lens of sustainability e.g. within the context of a sustainable business system.

As adults, we learn best through observation, practice, and reflection over time – we learn best through experience. However, most business models today are nested within traditional systems that are no longer sustainable, leaving little room for leaders to develop new mental models and skills quickly and effectively through practice, reflection, feedback, and application on the job. We also do not have the luxury of time for traditional forms of learning or for organizational change to happen organically. We must accelerate the work we are doing to develop our human capital – starting with our leadership skills, capabilities and mindsets.

It is our point of view that experiential learning solutions are the most effective way to shift mindsets and help leaders learn quickly. A well designed, interactive and immersive experiential learning program provides a platform for participants to break through old mental models, develop new insights, and practice new skills. Participants experience both a familiar (old) and unfamiliar (new) set of stimuli, contexts, scenarios, challenges, and feedback loops that cause a new way of looking at themselves, their role within their organization, and their business role within society and the planet – a new sustainability lens, if you will. Effective programs will include opportunities for small and large group discussions, interactive activities, and sufficient time for comparing approaches, feedback, reflection and application.

You are invited to join a digital movement that gathers practitioners, world leading experts, and thought leaders who are passionate about sustainable business transformation through human and leadership development. We explore what it takes for people to cause and lead this organizational and systemic transformation – specifically the leadership skills and mindsets that are essential for success – and how to leverage a growing body of experiential learning methodologies to accelerate sustainability and regenerative leadership transformation for greater scale, impact and results…before it’s too late!