Photo: Geisel García Graña. CADProductions.
Inequality is rapidly growing: according to Oxfam, the 26 individual multimillionaire fortunes of the planet accumulated in 2018 the same wealth as the less prosperous half of humanity. An inclusive and green alternative is the only way to overcome an economic model that exploits the world we depend on and marginalizes a large part of its inhabitants.
The Green Leap to an Inclusive Economy (Routledge) offers for the first time in a publication of its calibre a complete overview of what is and how to put in practice an equitable and sustainable economic model. The book will be officially launched this Friday 8 of March.
The editors of the book, Stuart L. Hart and Fernando Casado Cañeque, challenge the two biggest issues facing humanity and the planet today: inequality and environmental degradation. They present the new design thinking required for a more inclusive and sustainable economy which respects both people and planet.
Far from simply presenting the problems, this book offers insightful case studies that showcase the challenges and opportunities of venturing with low-income communities in different geographical and cultural contexts. This publication provides a detailed description of the tools that have been proven to enhance the innovation of business models to address the issues.
Through compiling these stories, the authors provide a roadmap to make the inclusive and sustainable economy a reality, where opportunity and prosperity are available to all. People participating in the economy as workers, consumers, owners and the wider community are seen as equal economic rights holders, whilst addressing the risks to the natural capital we all depend on.
This book aims to accelerate the transformation to fairer societies, healthier environments and more inclusive markets. It seeks to promote the transition towards a new form of sustainable capitalism, driven by a market system focused on innovating new, sustainable production and consumption patterns; a more inclusive market that ensures more equal economic opportunities for all, and an environmentally sustainable economy where decisions and strategies reflect the full value of resources and costs of waste and pollution.
This book is essential reading for practitioners looking to accelerate the implementation of inclusive business, as well as for those researchers of the base of the pyramid and sustainable business solutions.
Photo: Geisel García Graña. CADProductions.
The structure of the book follows seven strategic transitions inside the business value chain and how they relate to the inclusive business ecosystem. They include the leap to frameworks for Inclusive Design Thinking; to the concept of sustainable production; new models of inclusive distribution; to innovative recycling systems; to models of empowerment through access to opportunities; to ecosystems for an inclusive local economy and to frameworks for inclusive and sustainable business.
Each transition has been illustrated through in-depth case studies and the description of tools to speed the transformation to inclusive and sustainable business models.
The book brings together perspectives from more than 30 authors in around 20 countries with different conditions and solutions in the field of the green inclusive economy.
About the editors
Stuart Hart and Fernando Casado count on a long path on Inclusive and sustainable innovation and collaboration in the frame of the BoP Global Network. This vibrant community of academics and practitioners share knowledge and disseminate information regarding the theory and practice of sustainable business at the base of the economic pyramid. The BoP global network creates BoP Learning Labs that promote research and development of entrepreneurial business methods to stimulate new enterprises that are economically competitive, environmentally sustainable, and culturally appropriate.
The editors have authored together Raising the Base of the Pyramid through Enterprise. Innovative Case Studies of BoP Ventures and Initiatives and Base of the Pyramid 3.0: Sustainable Development Through Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
Stuart Hart is an American academic, and the founder of Enterprise for a Sustainable World, a non-profit dedicated to helping businesses make the transition to sustainability. He is the author of the 2005 book Capitalism at the Crossroads. Hart is one of the world’s leading authorities on the implications of sustainable development and environmentalism relative to business strategy. He is the S.C. Johnson Chair of Sustainable Global Enterprise and Professor of Management at Cornell University’s Johnson School of Management; he is also the founder of the school’s Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise and the Base of the Pyramid Learning Lab, comprising seven global facilities.
Fernando Casado is the founder and director of GlobalCAD bringing together 25 years’ experience working with international organizations in the development field. He is a PhD economist and journalist specialized in projects related to economic and sustainable development. He has worked as a strategic advisor to a variety of international organizations, as General Coordinator of UNDP’s Millennium Development Goals initiative and as a Senior Consultant in the Department of Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in New York. He is the author of several books on sustainable and human development as well as several social documentaries addressing development and environmental challenges. He is also the Associate Director of the BoP Global Network.
More information
The Green Leap to an Inclusive Economy (Routledge)
Six transitions for entrepreneurs to take the “green leap” to an inclusive economy
