- 7th December 2021
- Michael McGrath
The Market will ultimately do the heavy lifting on the environment
Sustainability is vital and necessary irrespective how dire we think climate change is. We need creative solutions and innovation which is why I loved Kate Howitt’s piece in the AFR on November 1st.
She sets out the perspective that ultimately, it’s the market, driven by consumer demand, that can make the biggest contribution to improved sustainability.
Capitalism works when the spending power of customers incentivises companies to deliver the products they want. Increasingly those products will have to be genuinely sustainable, or people won’t buy them.
I am on the board of two such companies – Loving Earth and Emerald Planet are both making a huge difference and have put the environment right at the heart of everything they do, and its working!
Now plant based chocolate and directly reducing carbon through energy efficient lighting products is one thing but what about this, I saw an advert on the side of a bus on Saturday for… plant based sun glasses!
This might sound out-there but the next generation of consumers are becoming very discerning. I was shopping with my 14 year old daughter on Sunday – she is very particular about how sustainable things are or are not. I saw her walk away from several products while Christmas shopping because she deemed them not acceptable from an environmental perspective. She will be working and earning in 10 years-time, so be warned. There is an army of environmentally savvy consumers emerging and they will vote with their feet in huge numbers.
I hope you enjoy Kates’s article as much as I did, I am a big believer that human ingenuity, creativity and persistence can solve these challenges.
Read the article here: