Sustainability Mindshift

A new era of leadership is emerging…

Sustainability and Regeneration are now leadership imperatives.

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!

Welcome to Sustainability Mindshift!

Our Team

Brad Peirce,

Chief Transformation Officer

I have worked in the field of global sustainability for over 25 years, both as an international consultant and corporate practitioner. I currently run a boutique sustainability / ESG consulting firm called SEED Strategies, LLC that helps companies bring their sustainability strategies to life; focusing primarily on strategy and the people side of sustainability – leadership, human development, and stakeholder engagement. I am also working as a Senior Consultant for Transitioning To Green that helps companies accelerate their corporate sustainability and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) efforts by working with them to develop the training, leadership development, and engagement tools and programs necessary for success (including sustainable business simulations and other innovative learning methodologies).

Several years ago, while working for a leadership development consulting company that uses business simulations as their primary methodology, I had an epiphany that leadership development has been a critical missing gap in our efforts to transform businesses for a sustainable future. I also realized that the mental models many corporate leaders use to make decisions are quickly becoming outdated in this rapidly changing world. Business, social, economic and ecological systems are interdependent and interconnected. To cause a shift in how leaders experience their roles within their business, and their business’ role within society and the planet, we need to break through these mental models so that new essential skills can be learned, quickly. Time is not on our side. I believe that experiential learning is the most powerful tool we have to help leaders shift their mindsets – causing a sustainability mindshift – and accelerate their scale, impact and results before it’s too late.

I look forward to collaborating with you!

Melker Larsson,

Executive Producer

Based in Sweden, I am a generalist driven by curiosity, and I guide that curiosity with the question: “How on Earth can we live together?”. To find answers to this question, I’m currently pursuing a degree in Business Administration with a focus on Sustainable Enterprise Development, and I am also co-hosting and producing another podcast called The Decade where we yarn with experts to explore and connect different fields of holistic sustainability.

As a student and young adult, I’m trying to educate myself to become an expert navigator of systems and complexity while also applying myself practically with projects that align my curiosity and passion for creating a better future where both humans and the planet can thrive. My passion for sustainability combined with my curiosity has led me far down the rabbit hole where I’m now convinced that plenty of the answers to my question, “How on Earth can we live together?”, lie in changing our perceptions and mental narratives – both personally and collectively. This is why I’m thrilled to be part of the Sustainability Mindshift team, and I’m hoping that we can help accelerate the transition towards a thriving society within a thriving biosphere.

Additionally, I’m also the Race Director of ATOBE, a swimrun event company, where the emphasis lies on creating meaningful collaborative experiences for participants in wild and awe-inspiring nature. I’m also a co-creator of the World of Wisdom Community as well as a hobbyist music producer and artist under the name of Tellus Time.

Ruben Jut,

Marketing Strategy Manager

Strategy Manager

Based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. I’m currently working as digital & customer marketer for SAP – a company that helps other businesses run better by providing software solutions within all industries, from supply chain to finance to CRM systems. Previously, I worked at Coca-Cola as a shopper marketer. Both companies have in common that they are significantly putting effort into the topic of sustainability:

  • At SAP, they provide the right insights in easy to digest dashboards on lowering a company’s logistics, manufacturing and overall business footprint.
  • At Coca-Cola, they reduce their water usage and the amount of plastic in their bottles, and also use sustainable POS materials. 

 

My interest has always been with sustainability and mainly within the context of the environment. How can we all live sustainably and happily together and ensure that we do not deplete the Earth? That is a question that triggers me into being conscious about my lifestyle choices and actions, like reducing my meat consumption, my energy usage, and my travel behavior.

Within the Sustainability Mindshift team, we try to make people aware of what is happening in the world and believe me, that is quite challenging in a rapidly changing world. We must break through the established norms and work towards a sustainable future, discuss the topics that should be addressed and spread them widely. My job is to ensure everyone will hear our message, not just for us but for generations to come. And why, if we can, should we not put our best foot forward? Working at Sustainability Mindshift is how I want to do my part. Will you join me?  

I look forward to starting the conversation with you and helping you achieve your sustainable business outcomes!

New book underway…