Reflections from Sustainability Week: Countdown to COP29 in AmsterdamBecoming Positive about Net Positive

Reflections from Sustainability Week: Countdown to COP29 in Amsterdam

‘It’s an exponential problem, and we’re moving at linear speed’. Paul Polman, former CEO of Unilever, and author of the book ‘Net Positive’ left the audience in no doubt as to the challenge we face when it comes to sustainability.

Sustainability Week: Countdown to COP29 brought together business leaders and sustainability professionals to drive actions for the most pressing problems we face. Convened by the Economist, Paul Polman’s keynote was the first highlight of a packed agenda, featuring panel sessions, fireside chats, round table discussions and networking. The objective to focus minds on the lead up to COP29, the annual global environmental conference.

Paul Polman kicked off the event, in conversation with Phillip Cornell of the Economist Impact, by framing the problem. Speaking to a packed room, he noted that we are using resources beyond the sustainable bounds of our planet. This year, by the 1st August the world had used up a year’s worth of resources, a moment described as ‘Earth Overshoot Day’. Resource use beyond this date is borrowing from future generations.

But his overall message was positive. He emphasised the need for leadership, and particularly for CEOs to take collaborative action. Net positive is an opportunity to realise value as well as to avoid bigger costs down the line. The cost of innovation is less than the cost of inaction, and if businesses shift from a competitive to cooperative mindset, existing technologies could provide practical answers to 80% of the problems . He also warned against the tendency for many organisations to have their sustainability departments acting as the compliance department. Instead of aiming for perfection from the beginning, he believes that simply putting forward the best effort is more important.