The theme of the Ellen McArthur Foundation’s annual summit was “Regeneration by Design”. In other words, we need to move from an economic system that harms nature on a large scale to one in which damage is minimized, and then to one in which the impact on nature is positive.
According to Kate Raworth, a radical change is underway:
“I reflect on the long journey we’re all on when it comes to the mindset we’re told companies must have. We’ve gone from a situation where companies wondered what they could do with impunity to one where they wonder what they should do [pour se mettre en conformité]. Today, the question is completely different: what can they give in return? I believe that, if we are to make this transition [vers un endroit où cet état d’esprit est le plus courant], the frontier of design lies beyond products. It lies in the conception of the company itself. This is the space where really big and exciting innovations are going to happen, and they’re just getting started.”
Ms Raworth also mentioned in her speech that we hadn’t yet found a way to create a fully regenerative economy on a large scale, in which humanity thrives within the confines of the natural world and nature is restored on a large scale:
“We are one of the richest nations in the history of mankind. And yet, politicians and economists continue to tell us that the solutions to our problems lie in even stronger growth. This is nonsense. We need to learn to prosper. We need to create policies, economic models and businesses that serve this purpose. It’s very easy for me to sit here and say that. It’s really hard to do and we shouldn’t talk lightly about regenerative design.”
