The rise of eco-nomics: From ego to eco: How to improve future competitiveness and the environment by changing the corporate consciousness

Abstract

This thesis addresses the rising pressures from climate change and various stakeholders that are being put on companies to adapt to it. Around eight billion tons of carbon dioxide are emitted into the atmosphere each year due to the burning of fossil fuels, which is approximately five billion tons more than the biosphere can absorb every year. This results in hotter temperatures and global warming. But there is more to climate change than rising temperatures. Water shortages, rising sea levels, more extreme weather phenomena, species erosion, polluted oceans, and deforestation are among other consequences of climate change that impose strong pressures on companies. However, every action within a company has to be connected to the bottom line and many companies have had prejudice toward sustainability, that it is e.g. merely a cost and too complex to implement. This line of thought has hindered these companies in embedding environmental sustainability in the way they operate. It is, however, apparent that there are many points on which a company can improve competitiveness and earn profits by going green. To identify them this thesis therefore seeks to answer the following research question: - How can companies adapt to climate change and simultaneously improve competitiveness and profits? In order for companies to realize the green business opportunities it is the assumption of this thesis that companies first need to change the deepest place from where they operate, i.e. their collective consciousness, from the dominating short-termed, egoistic, greedy, and narrow-minded Ego-consciousness to a holistic, systems thinking, open and long-termed Eco-consciousness. Not because it is moral, ethical, social and responsible but because there is more competitiveness and profits in doing so. This thesis therefore argues that in order for companies to break out of the climate crisis they need to break in to the ecological cycle by changing their collective consciousness and thus aligning the economy, i.e. businesses, with the ecology, i.e. the environment. This should be done by arguing that going green is going black on the bottom line. Companies that understand this achieve competitive sustainability. Welcome to the new business world of ECO-nomics.