Can businesses deliver strong returns to shareholders while also promoting the health of people and the planet? In this audio lecture recorded at Bridging the Gap, the 2005 Stanford Net Impact conference, Gary Hirshberg, the phenomenally successful pioneer of the organic foods industry, utters a resounding yes.
When it comes to environmental sustainability, William McDonough is nothing less than a hero for the planet. In this audio lecture, he discusses how he has designed eco-friendly buildings with unique properties, such as the ability to produce oxygen. He urges his audience of Stanford Graduate School of Business students to set goals not toward an efficient bottom line of doing the wrong thing less badly, but rather toward the effective top line of doing the right thing.
Oil dependence is an unnecessary problem, argues Amory Lovins, an internationally recognized expert in energy policy. In this audio lecture, Lovins demonstrates how, by the mid 2040s, the United States could reduce its need for oil completely and strengthen its economy in the process. Addressing the 2005 Stanford Net Impact conference audience, he talks about the fundamental shifts that the American society needs to undergo to make this scenario a reality.
Alice Tepper Marlin created some of the most innovative models for corporate social responsibility. Her energetic work over decades has helped provide concrete research and practical methods for bringing companies, investors, consumers, and workers together to address issues of environmental and economic justice worldwide. In this audio lecture, Tepper Marlin traces her own history from her early days on Wall Street to her ongoing work in the not-for-profit sector, providing blueprints for social entrepreneurs.
As the market demands more products and services that address social and environmental issues, what are the various challenges faced by green companies in securing capital funding? How will initial investments affect the future success of these companies? Discover how venture capitalists envision the role of capital markets in green companies in this panel discussion from Bridging the Gap, the Stanford 2005 Net Impact conference organized by the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
From clean water to disease control and global climate change, a new breed of business people is designing sustainable solutions to promote international development and reduce global poverty. Hear from the leaders in this panel discussion about how they are applying business discipline to improve livelihood in many different nations.
Vyomesh Joshi is an executive vice president at Hewlett-Packard who has helped lead the company to success over the past 25 years. In this audio lecture, Joshi discusses how HP is integrating social and environmental responsibility into its bottom line with efforts such as a program to retrieve and recycle 200 million pounds of used inkjet and LaserJet printer cartridge paraphernalia each year.
Talking with Globeshakers host Tim Zak, Amory Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute argues that the United States can operate on a fourth of the energy it now uses, while still providing the same or better services. This may seem far-fetched, but Lovins has been accused of taking off on flights of fancy before, though time has a remarkable way of proving his assertions correct.
An area the size of Connecticut is being developed every year. That's how fast nature is being lost to concrete in the world today. In this audio lecture recorded at Bridging the Gap, the Stanford 2005 Net Impact conference, Will Rogers discusses strategies for sustainable land use in a context where the boundaries that separate land conservation from public health, housing, economic development, transit, energy-use policies, and urban design are rapidly blurring.
As the world awakens to the challenges of global warming and water shortages, corporations slowly recognize the reduction of their environmental footprint as a significant component of corporate social responsibility. This panel discussion explores some of the leading corporate initiatives toward environmental sustainability.
