Poisoned truth and assembly line economics - an incentive to do business differently

While watching the news the other day, I had a déjà vu: "Serious accusations against Exxon". When it was reported that the oil multinational Exxon Mobil had been massively disinforming people since the seventies about the dangers of fossil fuels for our climate, I thought, "I've heard that before!"

True, the story of a "truth poisoned by greed" is actually old hat. Unfortunately, however, as the current reports on Exxon show, it is still dangerous. Because decisive changes to manage better and healthier, to leave your children and my children an environment worth living in, take far too long. So what can we do?

Unfortunately common management

What examples do you know of that show how long it often takes before known grievances are rectified? Companies in particular often don't exactly cover themselves with glory, especially with regard to ecology and also the health of employees and customers. Although Exxon knows better on the basis of its own studies, it has sown doubts about climate change for many years. In Altötting, residents are not allowed to donate blood because the entire district is contaminated by a Dupont chemical plant with PFAS, which is produced during the manufacture of Teflon. Although the harmfulness had been known for a long time, little happened. And that, unfortunately, is a consistent pattern.

James E. Lovelock, for example, the discoverer of the hole in the ozone layer and the harmfulness of CFCs, who died in the summer of 2022, already pointed out forty years ago (in his book on the GAIA theory) the great problems that the "conveyor belt economy" will cause us. A form of economy that leads to such things as "poisoned truth" because profit and responsibility do not go hand in hand.

An incentive to manage differently

Unfortunately, the assembly line economy is the form of economy that is still the standard. Because the realization that life and also healthy economic activity is organized in cycles, which Lovelock also formulated back then, has still not penetrated to everyone.
Unfortunately, many companies still do not understand that profit and responsibility for our planet can go hand in hand.
And when I am reminded of this by a déjà vu like the one with Exxon, I find it frightening.

But I also find it inspiring to show with our work at allsafe: Hey, that's possible: we can make a profit and act in an ecologically responsible way with an economy that is oriented toward cycles! Blue business is a business strategy that works!

For me, the logic of the assembly line economy leads to a dead end. Because it works in a way that is not natural - and it doesn't care how narrow the ridge is that we can consider our habitat on Earth. But a blue economy that relies on business models committed to circular thinking has a future because it understands what's at stake: our earth seems so big, the sky so wide. How then should our resources be limited? Why should we, our children, lack anything for once?

But our atmosphere is only suitable for us as a comfortable living space up to a height of two kilometers (I find a nice comparison with the onion: The atmosphere is only a very thin veil. As thin as an onion skin compared to the size of an onion). Our life takes place in a very thin layer, a very fragile layer. For me, a very emotional idea and one that makes you think.

I find that if you and I have the chance to preserve this fragile layer - and enjoy good profits at the same time: why wouldn't you?

Jens Laufer

 

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