By L. Hunter Lovins, Stewart Wallis, Anders Wijkman and John Fullerton
A Finer Future is the blueprint for an inspiring regenerative economy that avoids collapse and works for people and the planet.
Humanity is in a race with catastrophe. Is the future one of global warming, 65 million migrants fleeing failed states, soaring inequality, and grid-locked politics? Or one of empowered entrepreneurs and innovators building a world that works for everyone?
While the specter of collapse looms large, A Finer Future demonstrates that humanity has a chance - just - to thread the needle of sustainability and build a regenerative economy through a powerful combination of enlightened entrepreneurialism, technology, and innovative policy.
The authors - world leaders in business, economics, and sustainability - gather the evidence, outline the principles of a regenerative economy, and detail a policy roadmap to achieving it, including:
- Transforming finance and corporations
- Reimagining energy, agriculture, and the nature of how we work
- Enhancing human well-being
- Delivering a world that respects ecosystems and human community.
Charting the course to a regenerative economy is the most important work facing humanity and A Finer Future provides the essential blueprint for business leaders, entrepreneurs, environmentalists, politicians, policymakers, and others working to create a world that works for people and the planet.
"At the heart of the book is a vision to move from a narrative of what I’m going to call divergent individualistic materialism (DIM), to one of regenerative economics. Better than ‘sustainability’, (a term that the Club of Rome invented, incidentally) regenerative systems take a leaf out of nature’s book and re-circulate energy and resources. Everything has its place and exists in balanced relationships. The first step towards this is to delay the decline and buy ourselves time. Don’t dismiss ‘green solutions’ that only make things slightly less bad, they argue. 'By delaying the crises, we give the regenerative economy time to take root.' [...] More substantive measures are necessary, and they include more democratic finance and more inclusive businesses. [...] Among the strengths of the book are the way that it combines social as well as environmental sustainability, and it demonstrates a genuinely holistic approach. There’s a sense of possibility throughout, particularly in the section where they talk about the power of cities and regions. The diverse experience of the authors gives it real credibility. [...] On the other hand, it does sometimes get a bit fragmented. As well as multiple authors, there are lots of excerpts, some of them quite long. It can feel a bit copy-and-pasted at times. It’s all good stuff, so that’s not necessarily a bad thing."
Q&A about the Book with Co-Author Hunter Lovins
Relevant Links
- The Clean Energy Transition Will Transform Our Economy Beyond Recognition. Are we ready? - OpEd by Hunter Lovins in HuffPost, 17 January 2018
- A New Economic System Based on Core Human Values: How to make it happen, book chapter (2015) by Steward Wallis
About the Authors
L. Hunter Lovins is the President and Founder of Natural Capitalism Solutions (NCS), a non-profit formed in 2002 in Longmont, CO. A renowned author and champion of sustainable development for over 35 years, Hunter has consulted on sustainable agriculture, energy, water,security, and climate policies for scores of governments, communities, and companies worldwide. Within the US, she has consulted for the Presidential Cabinet, Department of Defense,EPA, Department of Energy and numerous state and local agencies.
John Fullerton is a thought leader in the New Economy space generally, and the financial system transformation challenge in particular. He is the founder and president of Capital Institute, a think tank which aims to co-create “regenerative economies” through the transformation of finance. John is also a recognized impact investment practitioner as the Principal of Level 3 Capital Advisors, LLC. Level 3’s direct investments are primarily focused on sustainable, regenerative land use, food, and water issues.
Stewart Wallis is a business manager and advocate for transition to a new economic system. He worked for Oxfam from 1992 to 2002, for which he was awarded an OBE. From 2003 to 2016, he was Executive Director of the New Economics Foundation. His interests include global governance, functioning of markets, links between development and environmental agendas, the future of capitalism and the moral economy. Stewart graduated in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University.
Anders Wijkman is an opinion maker and author. He is co-president of the Club of Rome, chairman of the Swedish Association of Recycling Industries, and member of the Board of the Swedish Development Authority (SIDA).
