Inclusive Capitalism for the New Reality: Insights from our 2025 Steering Committee Meeting

In Spring 2025, the Council for Inclusive Capitalism was honored to convene our Steering Committee members and friends to provide strategic direction for the Council’s work in building a more inclusive, sustainable, and trusted economic system. The Council is deeply grateful to Madame Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank, and Secretary-General Mathias Cormann of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) for co-hosting this gathering of global leaders from North America, Europe, Africa and India at the OECD headquarters in Paris.

Lynn Forester de Rothschild, CEO and founder of the Council for Inclusive Capitalism, set the stage by discussing the global backdrop to the meeting, where economic actors must navigate a combination of urgency and uncertainty.  “The global economy has entered a New Reality,” she observed. It is a reality marked by seismic shifts—in policy, trade and technology—that are fundamentally altering market dynamics amid ongoing polarization and deep social discontent. Highlighting Inclusive Capitalism’s guiding principles of equality of opportunity and fairness across generations, she called upon attendees to address one simple question, yet without easy answers: How do we make sure that decisions made in today’s volatile environment lead to more inclusive outcomes and stable societies?

Secretary-General Cormann led discussion on the importance of private sector leadership in advising policymakers on what works and how to effectively operationalize it, particularly when it comes to the evolving fields of energy, technology and trade policy. President Lagarde then focused discussion on the importance of streamlined regulation and predictable legal frameworks for guiding the markets in times of high uncertainty.

Following the co-hosts’ remarks, the meeting was held under the Chatham House rule. The gathering of large asset owners, asset managers, CEOs, policymakers, and philanthropists discussed how business at its best still aligns with the principles of Inclusive Capitalism, focusing on practical strategies to make progress within the ‘New Reality’.

Inclusive Capitalism as a necessity in Global South

At a time when growth markets of the Global South offer new opportunities in a world adjusting to changing geopolitics, participants from South Asia and Africa emphasized a people-first approach for their economies. A senior official of the Indian government said, “Inclusive growth is a political and a socioeconomic imperative in India. As part of that journey, if we end up being an economic powerhouse, we won’t be complaining. But it’s not a goal that we are seeking.”

An African business leader underscored the urgency of putting Global South front and center of the international agenda for inclusive growth: “We can’t talk of inclusive capitalism without thinking of the world’s left-behind regions. We should think beyond sectors, and think of geographies that are also left behind,” pointing to how transition financing decisions made in the Global North also impact communities in Africa, where broad energy access remains an unsolved problem.

The issue of geographic divide was also echoed in discussions of technology, with participants raising concerns that Artificial Intelligence could widen inequalities.  “We are very clear that we would not like AI to become the preserve of a few geographies or a few big companies. That’s a huge challenge which we are going to address in the coming years,” one attendee noted.

The head of a large Africa-based energy company said that inclusive growth is often part of the operating model for companies emerging markets – yet it remains difficult to incorporate community impact into company valuation, in Africa and worldwide. This sparked a robust discussion of impact accounting, which quantifies a firm’s environmental and social impact in financial terms, capturing the broader value a firm creates—not just to shareholders. Another approach discussed was to deepen understanding of the financial materiality of hard-to-measure social risks, including systemic racism.

Participants from Europe and North America agreed that Global South economies and businesses are creating their own models for inclusive development and growth, with potential to offer global lessons.

Smart regulation for boosting growth and innovation

The meeting spotlighted a clear trend toward regulatory simplification, with the EU Omnibus proposal a pivotal milestone.  In contrast to the US policy debates framed as regulation versus de-regulation, the Europe discussion highlighted smart simplification as a constructive third way.  A European policymaker predicted that, under the EU’s new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the upcoming sustainability reporting cycle would be more streamlined, but still robust.

Simplification does not mean deregulation, but rather a framework so that players know the rules of the game.  “We need that minimum regulation and framework in order to deliver predictability. Stable regulation is an underappreciated asset. At a time when some jurisdictions are making their regulatory environment exceptionally unpredictable, Europe’s stable commitment to its climate goals, for instance, becomes a competitive advantage,” noted a participant.

Europe offers valuable lessons in balancing the tradeoff between accelerating decarbonization and competing with markets where businesses face lower regulatory costs.  By contrast, US-based business leaders highlighted the tension between short-term investor pressures and long-term sustainability goals. US investors, in particular, prioritize quarterly performance, whereas European and emerging market investors take a longer-term view.  Regardless of these differences and contexts, participants agreed that corporations are increasingly under pressure from civil society and long-term asset owners such as pension funds to confront systemic risks posed by climate, inequality and artificial intelligence.

Business and public policy innovations to shape Responsible AI

When it comes to the deployment of AI, participants discussed methods by which North American investors are the ones taking a longer-term approach. Research shows that shareholder proposals in the US concerning AI ethics and oversight are on the rise, with more than half of such proposals citing the societal risks of AI.

The CEO of a technology company described his company’s commitment to Responsible AI highlighting use cases like precision agriculture that enables farmers to optimize resource efficiency and crop yield.

Several participants discussed the benefits of expanding the ownership economy, particularly in the context of AI’s rapid transformation of work and society.  As AI reshapes industries, giving workers a direct voice in the direction and decisions of the business will be even more important.  The CEO of a construction company, which has an employee ownership program as well as joint ventures with historically under-served communities, discussed the importance of the ownership economy and mindset to wealth-building for employees throughout the workforce. “Those are real-life examples of included capitalists because they not only get jobs and develop their skills, but share in the profits of the activity,” he said.

Innovative public policy can also steer AI in a more inclusive direction.  Participants discussed how India has developed its digital public infrastructure as a “public good” to facilitate financial and social inclusion for millions of people across the informal economy. Beyond providing services, India’s digital stack also aims to strengthen the start-up, entrepreneurial ecosystem in an economy facing tepid jobs growth.

Looking Ahead

This gathering yielded critical insights that will shape the ongoing and future work of the Council for Inclusive Capitalism. In the near term, our Fall 2025 convening will build on this meeting by inviting a deeper discussion on investor and corporate strategies to harness AI for economic growth and societal benefit.