The impact of human action on planet Earth is unquestionable. There is no doubt that we find ourselves fully within the Anthropocene. The results of this impact are becoming increasingly clear, confirming scientific concerns that are now evident to the naked eye. For this reason, fears that our existence on the planet, or even the existence of the planet itself, may be seriously at risk are justified. The most catastrophic positions seem to be the most realistic. The data are relatively unequivocal; what varies are the interpretations and the actions that follow from them.
Indeed, the most pessimistic would say that nothing can be done. Some positions even argue that this is a natural process, in which we are merely agents of nature like any other, and therefore the destruction of the conditions for life is itself natural. Just as life emerged, it will tend to disappear – at least human life. At the other extreme, some optimists claim that nature itself will resolve the matter, dynamically adapting to new conditions. Both of these extreme positions dispense with human responsibility, since the very concept of responsibility does not enter the equation when everything is reduced to a natural movement devoid of human freedom.
If, on the contrary, we assume that humans are free and that their actions, shaped by problematic decisions, have led to this situation, then all that remains is to believe, or not, in the possibility of altering it. Once again, the most pessimistic (or realistic?) consider that nothing significant can now be changed and that we are condemned to disappear. We would then be left to make the most of our remaining years, perhaps struggling for survival and reverting to primitive barbarism – the law of the jungle – something that even appears to resonate with emerging geopolitical dynamics. The most optimistic, by contrast, believe that technological discoveries, the same ones that enabled us to bring the Earth to its current state, will allow us to solve the problem. The facts, however, do not yet seem to confirm that such a solution is in sight.
If we truly assume responsibility for what is happening, we must also assume responsibility for seeking a solution, however difficult. We must move from responsibility understood as guilt to responsibility understood as care — specifically, responsibility for the Earth, which includes responsibility for the living conditions of future generations. It is within this context that corporate responsibility for planetary sustainability and its future – human and non-human alike – must be situated. Companies, as human enterprises, represent the totality of human action, and it is within the business sphere that the most significant impact on planetary conditions occurs.
Fundamentally, this implies recognizing that we are not inert factors within an unfolding natural process, but that our decisions are genuinely free and consequential. It also implies believing that, through changes in behaviour, it is still possible to alter the seemingly catastrophic situation in which we find ourselves.
From a pragmatic perspective, sustainability is no longer optional, whether driven by managers’ personal convictions or marketing strategies. Nor is it merely a trend or a means of complying with legal requirements. In reality, it is a matter of survival and, in that sense, one of the deepest expressions of human responsibility. Ultimately, this concerns the most fundamental level of human activity: what would be the value of success or profit if there were no future?
At the same time, the dramatic process we are experiencing has made us aware that the future of humanity’s living conditions on the planet depends on the future of other planetary agents, living and non-living alike. Sustainability therefore, concerns not only humanity but the planet as a whole, in all its dimensions and elements. Accordingly, responsible and sustainable corporate action is not guided solely by concern for humans, including future generations, but by care for all elements of the planet and for the balance of relationships among them. This is what it truly means to care for our Common Home. And there appears to be no other path.
Have a Great and Impactful week!
João Manuel Duque, Professor at Católica-Lisbon School of Business and Economics