Forks - SDG.SERVICES

1 In the world of business and sustainability , John Elkington s work soars above all it is honest, practical, compassionate and deeply informed. Cannibals with Forks is a brilliant synthesis of his genius for cutting through the thicket of tough issues and producing elegant solutions that can be applied today. Paul Hawken, Author, The Ecology of Commerce John Elkington forthrightly and clearly conveys that sustainability , as a new value, will be the price of entry that society will demand for business success in the 21st century. I believe this is an essential message for all forward thinking businesses. Deborah D. Anderson, Vice President, Environmental Quality Worldwide, Proctor and Gamble The triple bottom line is becoming an imperative. Environmental and social responsibility should beat at the heart of every business leader. Anita Roddick, CEO, Founder of the Body Shop Leading edge corporations must be moving up a gear, beyond eco-efficiency.

2 The winners are driving up the sustainability curve and and enriching social capital. Those idling, satisfied with Beyond Compliance , will end up in the scrap yard. This book is the corporate citizen s route map. Patrick Thomas, CEO, ICI Polyurethanes I commend this book. John Elkington has consistently both challenged us all to think differently and offered us a way to do so. The issue of how to define sustainability in day to day terms is one which all companies should face up to. There are no ready answers, but Cannibals with Forks provides us with a good compass. And it is both constructive and stimulating to read. Rodney Chose, Deputy Chief Executive, British Petroleum While not everyone would accept John Elkington s assertion that most company boards are both deaf and blind when it comes to monitoring the emerging agenda on sustainable development, I suspect that almost all would benefit from a greater understanding of the issues he describes so well.

3 Sir Anthony Cleaver, Chairman, AEA Technology plc The face of corporate environmentalism has changed dramatically in the past few years. Cannibals with Forks is a testament to that shift, and shows how sustainable development has become a priority for astute CEOs. Companies are increasingly using efficiency to achieve what John Elkington calls the triple bottom line : profitable operations, sound ecology and social progress. By encouraging business to be more resource efficient, to do more with less, efficiency will benefit society at large. Bj rn Stigson, Executive Director, World Business Council for Sustainable Development John Elkington has reached new horizons in bringing to light some key trends you may have missed so far. Cannibals with Forks tests best management practices against the sustainability imperative and, in so doing, challenges managers to discover and examine their companies blind spots.

4 The result is a thought-provoking and practical guide to rising above the waves in the rough business seas ahead. Claude Fussler, Vice President, New Businesses, Dow Europe II Since the Brundtaland report, many have tried to answer the question: what does sustainable development look like and how can we get there? , Cannibals with Forks not only gives us a glance at how business could be practiced in a more sustainable society, it also identifies 7 key parameters that can guide everyone involved, not only business, in evaluating and improving their practices, behaviour and policy making for a more sustainable future. As John Elkington rightfully concludes, changes will be fast and those who can anticipate them will be surfacing as the shapers and creators of a sustainable society. The next challenge for John is, once the cannibals know how to cat with a fork , to try and identify the most wholesome and healthy diet to expand their life expectancy Joke H.

5 Waller-Hunter, Director, Division for sustainable Development, United Nations This is not exactly the easiest agenda to have your finger on the pulse of it s fast moving, multi-layered and often invisible to all but the most tutored observer. John Elkington is second to none in that department, and whisks his readers briskly and confidently through an enormous range of issues, case studies and trends. In the process he immerses its in the detail whilst never once losing sight of the bigger picture which all makes for indispensable, reading. Jonathon Porritt In this book John Elkington shows that he possesses sensitive antennae, for the aspects of sustainable development that are becoming increasingly important in today s civil society. Indispensable reading for anyone concerned with the relationship between business and society.

6 Maria Buitenkamp, Coordinator, Friends of the Earth Sustainable Europe Campaign John Elkington has done it again in helping those who care about how their enterprises an survive in the next century navigate what should be obvious routes for good business. In pulling the strands and tools together in a lively and convincing piece of work, the question is asked whether our business leaders are prepared for the local and global societal responsibilities thrust upon them by the revolutionary final decade of the 20th century. Working with and listening to the best and most farsighted should not distract us from the frightening challenge of convincing the many of the imperatives of sustainability . Robert Davies, Chief Executive, The Prince of Wales Business Leaders Forum Cannibals with Forks is a truly useful book.

7 John Elkington pragmatically and convincingly spells out the agenda that business must deal with to survive and prosper into the next century. The book helps its answer the questions we must respond to if we are to keep our customers, attract the employees we really want, and keep the friendship and respect of our children and their friends. Mods vlisen, Corporate Environmental Deportment, Novo Nordisk In a time when doomsday prophecies sell best, John Elkington remains a well-grounded optimist. He argues that we can all do better in meeting the triple bottom line . This will demand new values, attitudes, concepts and tools. His powerful new book will help motivate the business leaders and executives who must now invest in innovation and help to drive the necessary transition. Professor Ulrich Steger, Institute for Ecology and Business Administration, European Business School CANNIBALS WITH Forks The triple bottom line of 21st Century Business John Elkington CAPSTONE IV Copyright John Elkington 1997 First published 1997 by Capstone Publishing Limited Oxford Centre for Innovation Mill Street Oxford OX2 OJX United Kingdom All rights reserved.

8 Except for the quotation of short passages for the purposes of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN 1-900961-27-X Designed and typeset in 10/12pt Century Schoolbook and Futura by Kate Williams, London Digital processing by The Electric Book Company, That s a brilliant idea. But how could it possibly work in my organization? How often do you think as you read a business book that if only you could ask the author a simple question you could transform your organization? Capstone is creating a unique partnership between authors and readers, delivering for the first time in business book publishing a genuine after-sales service for book buyers.

9 Simply email to leave your question (with details of date and place of purchase of a copy of Cannibals With Forks ) and John Elkington will try to answer it. Capstone authors travel and consult extensively so we do not promise 24-hour turnaround. But that one question answered might just jump start your company and your career. Capstone is more than a publisher. It is an electronic clearing house for pioneering business thinking, putting the creators of new business ideas in touch with the people who use them. Contents FOREWORD VII NOTES XII ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS XIII EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1 NOTES 13 PART I 15 INTRODUCTION 17 NOTES 39 THE THIRD WAVE 41 NOTES

10 66 THE triple bottom line 69 NOTES 94 PART II SEVEN REVOLUTIONS 97 MARKETS 99 NOTES 119 VALUES 123 NOTES 156 TRANSPARENCY 159 NOTES 185 LIFE-CYCLE TECHNOLOGY 187 NOTES 216 PARTNERSHIPS 219 NOTES 242 TIME 245 NOTES 272 CORPORATE GOVERNANCE 275 NOTES