fiddlythings's review
3.0
Well written and researched, insightful, and easy to read.... But oh so very wrong.
I simply can't agree with the core proposition of the book - that private enterprise is the future of environmentalism. In our society and economy, I do believe that our companies absolutely have a moral obligation to be stewards of our future just as we all do, but the reality is that few corporations would agree unless 1. driven by responsible leadership / bylaws (ie. Patagonia, B corps), 2. focused on a customer base that cares (ie. Costco), or 3. required by regulation. The primary legal obligation of publicly traded companies in the US is to 'maximize shareholder value,' and 'value' is almost invariably interpreted as meaning 'profit' or 'growth.' Especially as companies become more and more short-sighted and focused on immediate returns, companies that take such a long view are fewer and further between.
This book lays out an idealistic, though impressive, plan that depends on motivations that simply don't exist in reality, and there are far, far too many examples to the contrary for their plan to be considered feasible. Still, there is value in this book and many of the examples and ideas given are excellent studies, and anyone looking to run a company responsibly should read this book.
The core precept, however, is demonstrably flawed. An overwhelming number of counter-examples exist.
I simply can't agree with the core proposition of the book - that private enterprise is the future of environmentalism. In our society and economy, I do believe that our companies absolutely have a moral obligation to be stewards of our future just as we all do, but the reality is that few corporations would agree unless 1. driven by responsible leadership / bylaws (ie. Patagonia, B corps), 2. focused on a customer base that cares (ie. Costco), or 3. required by regulation. The primary legal obligation of publicly traded companies in the US is to 'maximize shareholder value,' and 'value' is almost invariably interpreted as meaning 'profit' or 'growth.' Especially as companies become more and more short-sighted and focused on immediate returns, companies that take such a long view are fewer and further between.
This book lays out an idealistic, though impressive, plan that depends on motivations that simply don't exist in reality, and there are far, far too many examples to the contrary for their plan to be considered feasible. Still, there is value in this book and many of the examples and ideas given are excellent studies, and anyone looking to run a company responsibly should read this book.
The core precept, however, is demonstrably flawed. An overwhelming number of counter-examples exist.
hybridpubscout's review
3.0
Now that I've finished this book, I'm probably going to have to start it all over again to pick out all the things that I can actually absorb and apply. Lots and lots of suggestions and hypotheticals in here, and since it was written so long ago I'm not sure what is applicable today, what has already been done, and what still CAN be done. Oy.
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