Business Meets the Doughnut v1.0

Summary

Kate Raworth discusses the concept of 'The Doughnut' as a vision for human prosperity, focusing on meeting essential needs within the planet's ecological limits. She highlights the challenges posed by climate change, environmental degradation, and inequality, and explores how businesses can respond. Raworth introduces the idea of regenerative and distributive design, urging companies to go beyond incremental change and embrace sustainable, socially responsible practices. The video emphasizes the importance of purpose, governance, ownership, and finance in shaping a company's ability to contribute to a balanced, thriving future for both humanity and the planet.

Takeaways

• 🌍 The 'donut' is a framework aimed at ensuring human prosperity by meeting everyone's essential needs without overshooting the planet's ecological limits.
• 🚰 The inner circle of the donut represents essential life needs like water, food, and health that all humans are entitled to.
• 🌱 The outer circle of the donut represents Earth's planetary boundaries that must not be exceeded to maintain a balanced environment.
• 🔥 Humanity is currently overshooting planetary boundaries, contributing to issues like climate change, wildlife destruction, and pollution.
• 🏢 Businesses need to rethink their approach and aim to contribute to achieving the goals of the donut, not just maximizing profit.
• ♻️ The ideal business should be regenerative by design, meaning that it restores and supports natural ecosystems rather than depleting them.
• 🤝 Companies should also be distributive by design, ensuring value is shared more equitably across employees, supply chains, and communities.
• 💡 Some companies, like Interface Carpets, have shifted toward more sustainable practices, embracing renewable energy and circular design.
• 🛠 The key factors that define whether a company is extractive or generative include its purpose, networks, governance, ownership, and financing.
• 🏆 Companies that aim to do the donut are those that are regenerative, equitable, and designed to balance profit with social and environmental impact.

Q & A

What is the 'donut' in the context of this script?

The 'donut' refers to a model of human prosperity that aims to ensure no one falls short of life's essentials, while also staying within the ecological boundaries of the planet. It represents a balance between meeting human needs and protecting the environment.

What are the two main goals of the donut model?

The two main goals of the donut model are to ensure no one is deprived of basic human needs (like water, food, and healthcare) and to avoid exceeding the planet's ecological limits (such as climate change and biodiversity loss).

What does the 'hole in the middle' of the donut represent?

The 'hole in the middle' of the donut represents people who are falling short of essential human needs, such as access to food, water, health, education, and housing.

What does the term 'ecological ceiling' mean in this model?

The 'ecological ceiling' refers to the nine planetary boundaries that, if exceeded, could lead to environmental degradation, making the planet less habitable for humans and other species.

What are some of the key environmental and social issues highlighted in the script?

The script mentions issues such as climate change, wildlife loss, microplastics in human bodies, toxic air affecting children, land degradation, water shortages, phosphorus pollution, ocean acidification, and wealth inequality.

How do businesses typically respond when introduced to the donut model?

Businesses respond in a variety of ways, ranging from doing nothing to doing incremental changes for cost savings, to aiming for more ambitious goals like mission zero, and finally to embracing the donut model fully by becoming regenerative and distributive by design.

What does it mean for a business to be 'regenerative by design'?

A business that is 'regenerative by design' operates in a way that restores and regenerates Earth's resources. It uses circular processes, such as recycling and reusing materials, and aims to eliminate waste by ensuring that waste from one process becomes input for another.

What does it mean for a business to be 'distributive by design'?

Being 'distributive by design' means that a business shares value equitably with all stakeholders, including employees, customers, suppliers, and communities. It focuses on ethical practices, such as fair wages and open-source collaboration, to create a more just and balanced system.

What is the significance of ownership in shaping a business's ability to be regenerative or distributive?

Ownership structure plays a crucial role in determining whether a business can be regenerative or distributive. Different ownership models, such as employee ownership or state ownership, influence how decisions are made and whether the company prioritizes financial returns or broader social and environmental goals.

What are the five key design traits that determine whether a company can embrace the donut model?

The five key design traits are: Purpose (the company's mission), Networks (how the company interacts with its ecosystem), Governance (its decision-making structure), Ownership (who controls the company), and Finance (the type and expectations of financial backers).