A Factory Like a Forest: Interface and Biomimicry 3.8 Announce the Positive Performance Methodology

By: John A. Lanier

Ray Anderson and the people of Interface were pioneers in creating a model for corporate sustainability. We need corporations to go beyond that benchmark though, seeking ways to be regenerative enterprises. What might that framework look like? Interface and Biomimicry 3.8 have the answer, and it’s called the Positive Performance Methodology.

How do you keep climbing a mountain once you’ve reached the top? The answer is, “You don’t.” But I’m speaking metaphorically here, not literally, and the metaphor is one that has long been near and dear to my heart - climbing Mount Sustainability. That’s how Ray Anderson described Interface’s ambitious goal set in the 1990s. He called it a mountain higher than Everest, and only at the summit could a business claim to be truly sustainable.

From the beginning though, Ray knew that the summit of Mount Sustainability was a waypoint, not a finish line. Given the scale of environmental degradation, any business that becomes truly sustainable must keep going, working to become a regenerative enterprise. If sustainability is about doing no harm, regeneration is about doing good. A regenerative company is one that, by the very nature of how it operates, helps to heal and enrich both communities and the environment. In a sense, Mount Sustainability and its seven different fronts were the framework for how any business can pursue sustainability. But what about a corresponding framework for a regenerative enterprise? What might that look like?

 

Continue Reading

Everyday Climate Solutions: Tools to Help You Take Action at Home

A Drawdown Georgia Webinar

Is the change in the seasons inspiring you to clean up your carbon footprint? Join Drawdown Georgia for a free webinar that will give you the tools you need to take action, from eating less meat to upgrading to an electric vehicle to starting a compost pile in your backyard.

Read More

Sudoc Mimics Liver Enzymes. Creates Biomimetic Solutions for Eliminating Toxic Chemicals in the Built Environment

Sudoc's innovative application of biomimicry creates solutions for eliminating toxic chemicals in the built environment

Read More

Biomimicry Finding Success in Deep Tech: Three Ray of Hope Prize Alumni Win Big at the Hello Tomorrow Deep Tech Global Summit

Reprinted from the Biomimicry Institute Blog by Sarah McInerney

Sarah McInerney, Ray of Hope Prize Manager at the Biomimicry Institute recaps the excitement of having three Ray of Hope Prize Alumni teams win big at the Hello Tomorrow Deep Tech Global Summit in Paris.

Read More

Mycocycle - Innovation Inspired by Fungi

Read More
Read more articles