If business leaders want to regain our trust, they must act on climate risk

Business leaders seem astonished that community trust in their activities is at an all-time low, trending toward the bottom of the barrel inhabited by politicians. To the corporate leader dedicated to the capitalist, market economy success story of the last 50 years, that attitude is no doubt incomprehensible and downright ungrateful.

 ‘Already one of the world’s largest carbon polluters when
 exports are included, Australia is complicit in destroying the
 conditions which make human life possible’

But it is hardly surprising given continuing scandals and declining ethics across the corporate and banking worlds, driven by the pernicious impact of short-termism, rising inequality and undue political influence; in large part the outcome of the oxymoron of “pay-for-performance” remuneration. So how is trust regained? The need for stronger leadership, ethics, greater transparency, open communications and improved culture feature prominently in current responses.

But a far more fundamental requirement is ignored, namely that business must lead on really critical issues, particularly the point raised long ago by economist Kenneth Boulding: “Anyone who considers economic growth can continue indefinitely in a finite system is either a madman or an economist”. The constraints Boulding anticipated have now arrived, as burgeoning population and economic growth crash into global biophysical limits which cannot be circumvented.

Read the piece from The Guardian by Ian Dunlop  - “If business leaders want to regain our trust, they must act on climate risk.”

Societal ethics and personal morality have important role to play

Climate change solutions are to be found in societal ethics and personal morality.

Much of the world’s existing market system is hierarchical and vertical with mitigation being almost wholly dependent upon a horizontal based system that is about collaboration, and gender equality.

UN climate boss Christiana Figueres says, in an RTCC story, that a climate deal must create an equal economy for men and women.

The story headed: “Christiana Figueres: Climate deal must bring gender equality”, she discusses her determination to put gender equality at the heart of efforts to tackle climate change.

We're asking the wrong questions about geoengineering - Prof Gardiner

"We are asking the wrong
 questions" - Prof Stephen
Gardiner.

Stephen Gardiner has argued that we are asking the wrong questions about geoengineering.

The Professor of Philosophy and Ben Rabinowitz Endowed Professor of Human Dimensions of the Environment at the University of Washington, Seattle, says the traditional question such as “Are you for it or agin’ it?” obscures much of what is a stake and trivialises the conversation.

Listening to the more than 45 minute lecture it was abundantly clear that nothing is ethically clear, in any sense, about geoengineering.

With Prof Gardiner holding the audience’s hand, we took a journey down the slippery slope of ethics and morals that must first be addressed when discussing, and considering, geoengineering.

Prof Gardiner spoke at an event in the Yasuko Hiraoka Myer Room at The University of Melbourne as a guest of the Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute (MSSI) .

The topic for his lecture was: “If a Climate Emergency is Possible, is Everything Permitted? Reflections on some ethically slippery arguments for geoengineering”.

His book, “A perfect moral storm; the ethical tragedy of climate change” ( a favourite of MSSI deputy director, Prof John Wiseman) provides an accessible view of Prof Gardiner’s values.

Understanding the ethics of climate change

Our June gathering Beneath the Wisteria will focus on the ethics of climate change.
What, we will consider, are the ethics surrounding a reasoned response to our changing climate; should it be driven by consensus or will the gravity of the situation demand an authoritarian, almost dictatorial response?

Any discussion about ethics can quickly become deeply philosophical and quickly grind to a non-productive outcome and that being the case, BtW supporter, Lou Cook, conscious of the potential difficulty, turned to the internet as a resource.
A Google search by Lou found the following:

Defining Ethics

If we expect to understand ethics, we must know exactly what the word means. Surprisingly, not everyone does. The words ethics, morality, and values are commonly confused with one another, perhaps because of their inherent overlap.

Values:
Our values are the qualities or ideas which each of us cares about and considers important. They can be morally or ethically based, or simply based on natural want or need. They can be good or bad, reasonable or unreasonable. Values are the elements on which we base our actions.

Morality:
Morality is one's individual perception of right and wrong, good and evil. While one's perception of morality does not directly affect others, it does influence the attitudes and values of a society.

Ethics:
The word ethics refers to a set or system of moral ideals. Just as it takes the thoughts and ideas of many people to make up an ideology, ethics are a product of society. Being so, it is not surprising that many ethical issues deal with the relationship between the individual and the group. It is in this area that the most change has occurred in ethics throughout time.

All those who plan to join us on June 30 Beneath the Wisteria in the Maude St Mall at 11:30am, are encouraged to think about values, morality and ethics and as Lou has done, research and hopeful bring an understanding of the term to the gathering.