The Natural Advantage of Nations (Vol. I): Business Opportunities, Innovation and Governance in the 21st Century

... In Section 1 we argued that no one part of society can address the scale of the sustainability challenge on its own. In a world where business, government and civil society all have significant roles to play, we need to find the best ways to move forward together. This section will focus on the role business can play in this process.

This section cannot emphasize enough the importance in business of seizing new opportunities, encouraging creativity and the ability to work effectively in teams to achieve innovation. Running a business requires skill and frequently demands long hours and significant personal sacrifice. If there was an easy way always to stay ahead of the competition, we would all be millionaires. But there isn’t. Successful business people seek to remain up to date with the shifting market for their products and services and will come to see that sustainability provides numerous opportunities for unleashing creativity and innovation.

Whilst this section, and the online databases it references, is designed to assist any business to do its homework faster, improve its strategic position, and unleash the creativity of its staff, this is not enough. Genuinely innovative and highly competitive businesses are always on the look out for new opportunities and ways to improve business. The frameworks and guides that follow will, we believe, help but at the end of the day someone has to have good ideas and be willing to take risks. In the end, success comes down to the determination and united purpose of those people involved.

Is the risk worth the effort? Many companies, such as Close the Loop® and Interface, believe it is...