John Elkington

Not sure where this fits into my impact metrics, but intrigued to see today that my job title has made it into the Financial Times and the new Guffipedia. The interesting thing, Lucy, is that hives do “think” – and, by doing the waggle dance, scout bees help the colony access new opportunities. So business as unusual continues, I think.

Surfaced at Tower Hill very early for me this morning, just before 08.00, for breakfast with Rick Ridgeway – Environmental VP with Patagonia.

City was lovely as I travelled in – and Rick and I had a 90-minute conversation with a couple of Rick’s colleagues from the EU end of Patagonia.

Extraordinary man – and great fun to be with. On the Tube heading in, I had read again the Harvard Business Review article he co-authored on the Sustainable Economy back in 2011.

Of course, the title of this blog is intentionally misleading, in the sense that there aren’t many people like Rick – or like Phil Agland, who Elaine and I then headed across to BAFTA this evening to see.

Phil’s new TV series, China: Between Clouds and Dreams, was being premiered – they showed the first programme out of five. Utterly stunning. The children he films across China are out of this world wonderful. Can’t wait for the series to be broadcast later this year.

Great to catch up with Phil and linked people from the deep past, among them Janet Barber, Nigel Tuersley, Julian Caldecott and, the origin of the Spoon-billed Sandpiper sequences in Phil’s new series, Dr Christoph Zöckler of the incomparably named Spoon-bill Sandpiper Task Force. Bought him a glass of celebratory Maalbec: seemed the least I could do.

Flew to Zürich late yesterday, to speak at a conference organised by öbu. Bit of a hiccup at the airport, where a busload of passengers from the same BA flight were taken to an entrance where they didn’t have to show their passports – at which point, the terminal was locked down while the BA passengers were separated out. Not fun.

But I had been through passport control, so eventually managed to blag my way out, and into a welcoming mobility car driven by Remo Rusca of Smart Identity.

Very much enjoyed the event today, which was linked to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, whose side session I joined in the afternoon. Nice interval sitting outside in the square with Joanna Hafenmayer of MyImpact, also a board member of öbu.

Had fretted that the threatened strike by French air traffic controllers would keep me in Zürich, but BA 717 took off on time and, despite a couple of turbulence-related lurches as we headed into Heathrow, I got home in good time and good order.

Former PM John Major was in the front seat of 717 as I boarded – and no doubt (this is a postscript) was pondering what he would say about the Brexit/Leave campaign. His thoughts widely broadcast today.

 

Today saw the launch of our teaser video trailing our new strategic partnership with the United Nations Global Compact. The aim: to bridge between the linear world of incumbent companies and the increasingly exponential worlds of the insurgent innovators and entrepreneurs now driving an A-to-Z of disruptive businesses creating new, different forms of value – faster and better…

By engaging companies, exponential thinkers and practitioners, the Breakthrough Innovation Platform (launching in September 2016) will explore and showcase new ideas and emerging practice around:

1. The Exponential Looking Glass

Whether from Silicon Valley, Berlin, Tokyo or Johannesburg, the Breakthrough Innovation Platform will spotlight some of the most innovative people on the planet and share their thinking around exponential technology, organizations, change – and their take on how to facilitate both radical and sustaining innovation.

2. Disruptive Technologies for Sustainability

The constant buzz around technology innovations and the next big thing can make it challenging to identify the ones truly transforming our world and our businesses. The Platform will identify and analyze the upsides and downsides of technologies that have the potential to disrupt industries and, in the process, create opportunities for sustainable performance. These include technologies ranging from big data, artificial intelligence and the internet of things through to driverless vehicles, 3D printing and synthetic biology.

3. Tomorrow’s Business Models

Business model innovation is on the Board and C-suite agendas like never before. Bridging between corporate incumbents and the wave of market insurgents, the Platform will explore and outline promising and potentially more sustainable business models made possible by breakthrough innovation and digitalization. This will include a close look at platform and network models, the shift from products to services and on-demand offerings, and other models emerging from circular, collaboration and sharing economies.

“Change is coming at business at an accelerating rate signalling an era of profound disruption,” says Lise Kingo, the Global Compact’s new Executive Director. “Our 8,300 corporate members include pioneers in corporate social responsibility, shared value and supply chain management, but the launch in 2015 the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the COP21 climate agreement signalled a new era of opportunity—where companies must shift from considering the business case for action to evolving the business models which will be at the heart of tomorrow’s economy.”

In the eight years since Volans was launched, the focus has been on innovators and entrepreneurs seeking to disrupt old ways of thinking and create new forms of value. So we are delighted to now help usher in what we call the Breakthrough Decade that will see a range of disruptions accelerating, but that also signal a new era of opportunity for developing and deploying innovative business models that will be at the heart of tomorrow’s economy.

Confetti on Paul’s shoulder, from a balloon burst by Tom Hart Dyke in opening his orchid house

Drove across to Lullingstone Castle in Kent today for the opening by Tom Hart Dyke of a new orchid house. Invited by his sister, Anya. She gave us a tour around the house. Gaia, Paul and Hania had joined by train.

Loved a number of things about Tom’s World Garden, but key among them were the Californian poppies (Eschscholzia californica, though I confess I had to look that up). Love to see them along the roads in California.

But as I walked towards them, I walked straight into the dagger pointed spearpointed leaves of a great succulent – leg was stinging for ages afterwards.