Giving Compass' Take:

• As a world in climate crisis enters a new decade, Eco-Business highlights five major trends that could shape society and business in the coming year.

• How is your organization thinking about sustainability? How can philanthropy help inform CSR planning?

• Learn about next-generation corporate sustainability leadership.

In 2019, environmental disasters and social upheaval held a mirror to humanity’s inability to safeguard both environment and people, leading many to question if the global systems in place were still relevant or viable.

“Perhaps what has most informed last year is the growing awareness that we are entering a critical decade in which we must reduce carbon emissions, but that [signs of] increasing turbulence and uncertainty in the years ahead will make it difficult to do so,” said Ariel Muller, managing director of sustainability non-profit Forum for the Future Asia Pacific.

Eco-Business gazes into the crystal ball and identifies five major trends that will shape business and society this year.

  1. Big tech’s threat to human rights
    Although digital technology is widely recognised as a force for good that has allowed people greater access to information and opportunities, the rising power of big tech is coming under greater scrutiny for posing further risks to human rights, especially in the realm of surveillance and data privacy.
  2. Sustainable finance takes off 
    As investor awareness around climate risks has grown, so too has the sustainable finance market. Defined as any form of financial service which integrates environmental, social or governance (ESG) criteria into business or investment decisions, sustainable finance has been growing, particularly in the issuance of green bonds in Europe and Asia Pacific over the last five years.
  3. Capitalism challenged
    Capitalism received a bashing last year by disillusioned segments of society worldwide, and is set to evolve further in 2020 as more people demand an end to the current socio-economic system.
  4. Lab-grown meat to hit our dinner tables
    Last year, Impossible Foods did pretty much the impossible by making plant-based meat that tastes almost like the real thing accessible to diners. Since then, the market for alternative meat has expanded to Asia, where the appetite for meat is growing along with its middle class.
  5. Circular economy begins to spin for big business
    More businesses will be abandoning the take, make, waste model in favour of the circular economy, especially as consumers keep up the pressure to cut single-use plastics and waste pollution. Already, more than 60 countries have introduced measures to limit single-use plastic waste through bans or levies, while refill stations and reuse services have become more popular.

Read the full article about trends that will shape business and sustainability in 2020 by Zafirah Zein at Eco-Business.