Newsletter | This is Business Reaching for its Highest Potential

April 21, 2023

Newsletter of the Council for Inclusive Capitalism

The Council for Inclusive Capitalism recently held our 2023 convening of our steering committee. Hosted at Lambeth Palace Library in London by the Most Reverend and Right Honourable Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, this meeting brought our steering committee, board, and leadership team together with representatives from faith traditions from around the world to take stock of needed reforms amidst growing climate and inequality risks and chart onward steps for the Council for Inclusive Capitalism and its members to address these challenges. Discussions included some of today’s most critical business issues: advancing a just energy transition, accurately measuring and accounting for impact, and advancing private sector uptake of inclusive and sustainable practices to the benefit of business and society.

It’s one of the most important things that we do. I founded the Council for Inclusive Capitalism with the belief that not only is there a moral imperative to do this work, but that the world’s religious and ethical leaders can provide vital guidance on how we as business leaders take action. We are honored that His All-Holiness Bartholomew I, Archbishop of Constantinople—New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch, and Sheikh Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Grand Imam of al-Azhar al-Shareef, have agreed to provide moral guidance to the Council, alongside the Holy Father Pope Francis, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and Prof. Azza Karam of Religions for Peace, among others.

In many ways, the world has entered a period of global uncertainty, but that turbulence makes the work of inclusive capitalism more important than ever as a determinant of our economic and social future.  Archbishop Welby said it best when he shared that, “We are in a community where climate change is driving conflict, and that conflict will affect every business in this room, every organization around the world… Capitalism is the only economic system with the capacity to reimagine and remake the world, so that the workings of business can be undertaken to the benefit of all.”

Good business has always been about companies profitably evolving to address market demand and meet public need. This is business profitably reaching for and serving its highest potential for people and the planet. Members of the Council for Inclusive Capitalism are committed to sustainability and inclusivity because it is not only the right thing to do, but the right business thing to do.

We invite everyone to join us, be inspired by this moral imperative, and take action for a more inclusive and sustainable capitalism.

Lynn Forester de Rothschild
Founder and Co-Chair

 

Photo by Marcin Mazur. View full resolution image here.

Pictured from left to right: Meredith Sumpter, CEO of the Council for Inclusive Capitalism; Eduardo Bartolomeo, CEO of Vale; Michael Archbold, Board Member of the Council for Inclusive Capitalism; Emmanuel Faber, Chair of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB); Jeff Ubben, Founder and Managing Partner of Inclusive Capital Partners; Dr. Azza Karam, Secretary General of Religions for Peace; Rich Lesser, Global Chair of Boston Consulting Group (BCG); Rick Lacaille, Executive Vice President and Global Head of ESG at State Street; Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons Private Limited; the Right Reverend Professor David Walker, Lord Bishop of Manchester; the Most Reverend and Right Honourable Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury; Bernard Looney, CEO, bp; Monsignor Hilary Franco, Adviser Emeritus at the Permanent Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations; Feike Sijbesma, Advisor to the Council for Inclusive Capitalism; Lynn Forester de Rothschild, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Inclusive Capital Partners; Carlyn McCaffrey, Partner at McDermott Will & Emery; Lim Boon Heng, Chairman of Temasek; Marcie Frost, CEO, CalPERS; Eileen O’Connor, Senior Vice President of Strategic Communications and Policy at the Rockefeller Foundation; Jean Pierre Casey of the Holy See Investment Committee; Pelin Akin Özalp, Board Member of Akfen Holding; Owen Tudor, Deputy General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC); Franz Paasche, Senior Vice President and Corporate Affairs Officer at PayPal; Ben Lucas, Managing Director at Merck; William P. Lauder, Executive Chairman of The Estée Lauder Companies. Not pictured: Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, Chairman of the Ayala Corporation; Punit Renjen CEO Emeritus, Deloitte Global; Mathias Cormann Secretary-General, OECD.


April 22 marks Earth Day 2023.
View 48 actions to support biodiversity and life on land.

Explore actions

Business Leadership in Advancing Racial and Economic Equity

Council for Inclusive Capitalism members are invited to join us at 12:30 p.m. EDT on May 23 as we partner with PolicyLink to host a webinar on corporate performance standards for racial and economic equity.

Developed by the Corporate Racial Equity Alliance, a partnership between PolicyLink, JUST Capital, and FSG, the standards will provide investors and corporate leaders a clear playbook for equitable action, including bold goals and the guidance businesses seek to advance equity.

Learn more

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY AS “ENLIGHTENED SELF-INTEREST”

by Rabbi David Rosen KSG CBE.

The Biblical promise for long life is associated with the principles of just, fair, and righteous business ethics; for a society has no longevity if there is no social-ethical contract on which all commercial dealings are based. Corporate responsibility to function in a righteous manner is in fact a matter of enlightened self-interest as it guarantees the establishment and the continuity (prolongation) of a healthy society.

But based on the verse in the Torah “You shall do what is right and good in the eyes of God” (Deuteronomy 6:18), Judaism teaches that it is not good enough to rely upon legal requirements. We are obliged to do our best to go beyond the letter of the law (see TB Bava Metzia 83a) and to ensure that we conduct our commercial dealings in a manner that also serves the wellbeing and flourishing of others, of society as a whole…

Continue reading

 

This written reflection by Rabbi Rosen was shared during the 2023 convening of the Council for Inclusive Capitalism Steering Committee in London on March 24, 2023. It is shared publicly with his permission.

 


Find the council at upcoming events

2023 National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI) Annual Conference
June 6-8, 2023
The Council for Inclusive Capitalism will join the NIRI Annual Conference on June 8 in Chicago to discuss systemic change. NIRI is the premier professional development and networking event of the year bringing together IR professionals from across the U.S. and around the world.

Learn more
GreenFin23
June 26-28, 2023
The Council for Inclusive Capitalism is a community partner of GreenFin 23, taking place in Boston on June 26-28. The event will convene an influential audience of finance, investment, and sustainability professionals to share insights, address key challenges, and showcase leading sustainable financial products and services. Click below to register and apply our exclusive 10% discount code GF23C4IC at checkout.

Learn more

🤝Steward Action: Repsol tests methods for assessing and protecting natural capital

When they joined the Council in 2021, Spanish multinational energy company Repsol made a commitment to mitigate the impacts on biodiversity during planning and development of their operations by adapting and improving the Global Environmental Management Index (GEMI) to enable a natural capital approach to decision-making.In a recent progress update shared with the Council, Repsol shared that they have “developed pilots that are helping us complete our GEMI methodology and scale the associated digital tool (READS), in order to improve the quantification and economic valuation of environmental impacts under a natural capital approach for decision making.” On their website, they highlight the “Block 57” project in Peru’s Amazon basins, where based on natural capital assessments, the company has created multiple plans for “maintaining the integrity and quality of the forest and protecting habitats.”

Click below to learn more about their internationally recognized methodology.

Learn more

 

Share your progress and impact.
When business leaders are open about their commitments, the progress they are making, and the challenges they encounter and overcome, they take truly meaningful action and guide others looking to learn. We want to share your impact, experience, and lessons with the Council for Inclusive Capitalism community and the world. Contact us at info@inclusivecapitalism.com at any time to share an update about your goals.

📖 Ally resource: Plan for plastic reduction with Plastic Credit Exchange

Council for Inclusive Capitalism Ally member Plastic Credit Exchange (PCX) is leveraging market-based solutions to accelerate the transition to a circular economy and build a future where no plastic waste ends up in nature.

Led by CEO Sebastian DiGrande, the organization partners with companies to develop a business strategy to analyze their plastic footprint and set short-medium- and long-term goals for reducing impact. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, they explain on their website: “The war on plastic demands bold solutions. The best way is to reduce, reuse, and recycle any unessential plastic. But for all the rest, a solution set which includes a comprehensive offset program can keep plastic waste out of nature.”

PCX pioneered a fully traceable offset platform to help companies verify the positive impacts of operations changes and purchased offsets. Their commercial plastic credit marketplace, PCXMarkets.com, connects companies to opportunities to invest in both small and large projects in PCX’s broad ecosystem of carefully vetted partners that recover, process, and recycle plastic waste.

Explore PCX’s Approach

👋 WELCOME NEW COUNCIL MEMBERS

Nick Harinos
Global CEO, 180 Degrees ConsultingNehemiah Chipato
Executive Director, African Renaissance Sustainable Development (ARSD)Samer Yousif
Interim CEO, BLCK VC

Henrik Jones
General Partner, Buckhill Capital

Peter Tichansky
President and CEO, Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU)

Lisa Laplante
Professor of Law and Director, Center for International Law and Policy at New England Law | Boston

Thomas Venon
Executive Director, Centre for Development Finance Studies

Noor Muhammad
CEO, Civil Society Support Program (CSSP)

Mary Cerulli
Founder, Climate Finance Action

Yana Buhrer Tavanier
Co-Founder and Executive Director, Fine Acts

Alberto Horcajo
Chairman of the Board, Fundacion ImpactunPrabhat Labh
CEO, Grameen Foundation IndiaRodrigo Tavares
Founder and CEO, Granito Group

Fabrizio Ferraro
Academic Director, IESE Sustainable Leadership Initiative

Elie Goldman
CEO, InnerView Education

Dan Ariely
Co-Founder and Partner, Irrational Capital

Kingsley Bangwell
Co-Founder, KNOSK N100 A Day Charity School

Evren Ay
Founder, MotaWord

Sanjina Gupta
CEO, Rangeen Khidki Foundation

Ashif Mawji
Managing Director, ScaleGood Fund LP

Lim Boon Heng
Chairman, Temasek

 

View all Council Members

📰 Inclusive Capitalism in the News

Task Force on Inequality-Related Financial Disclosures | Joint statement on convergence between TIFD and TSFD

Responsible Investor | Groups exploring social and inequality TCFD equivalents announce merger

Columbia Law School’s “Beyond Unprecedented” Podcast | Lynn Forester de Rothschild and Jeffrey Ubben: ESG Losing its cool

Harvard Business Review | Why businesses must resist the anti-ESG movement

MarketWatch | Brian Moynihan, Bank of America: When workers are an employers no.1 priority, stockholders benefit, too

Robert G Eccles | The path to a peaceful settlement in the ESG culture wars

Net Zero Investor | CEOs gather in London to discuss sustainable business practices

PBS News Hour | Darren Walker, Ford Foundation: proposes shift in focus of giving in new book ‘From Generosity to Justice’

Chief Investment Officer | Michael McAffee, PolicyLink: A new ‘blueprint’ for increasing equity in investing — and why it matters

Politico | Ajay Banga: Biden taps former Mastercard CEO — and founding Council for Inclusive Capitalism member — Ajay Banga to head World Bank

Reuters | Alistair Phillips-Davies, SSE: SSE to invest $122 million in Scottish pumped hydro project

Sustainable Future News | Meredith Sumpter, Council for Inclusive Capitalism: Rebranding with ‘imperfect circularity’ at heart

Vanguard | Akinwumi Adesina, African Development Bank: AfDB invests over $5.2bn to support Africa’s water, sanitation

Bloomberg | Bernard Looney, bp: Reimagining energy for people and our planet: bp publishes 2022 sustainability report

Fortune India | Rajiv Shah, Rockefeller Foundation: India’s G20 Presidency apt to address global climate change

PR Week | PRWeek US Awards 2023: Best in corporate social responsibility

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