Is Growth Possible?

Aaron James

by Aaron James, Erb MBA /MS Class of 2010

I would like to draw your attention to a BBC article on a report by the New Economics Foundation asserting that economic growth is not possible: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8478770.stm

Of particular interest is the disconnect between the authors’ perspective and that of Tom Clougherty, executive director of the Adam Smith Institute.

This article reflects the disconnect between the economic perspective that dominates business school education and the ecological perspective that dominates natural resources education.

It is not as if we are observing different facts or studying different subject matters. We look at the same set of facts and draw different conclusions. The conclusion that I draw from this is that we work with different perspectives, different assumptions, perhaps even different paradigms. I am interested in identifying and articulating the assumptions behind these perspectives in pursuit of greater synthesis and greater understanding.

Erb Community Newsletter Winter 2010

Erb Community Newsletter: Winter Elements 2010 now online http://ow.ly/128rH

Good COP, Bad COP

Amrita Vijay Kimar

by Amrita Vijay Kumar, Erb MBA /MS Class of 2011

This story is cross-posted on the Michigan at COP15 Blog site

I left Copenhagen on Wednesday morning, just as World Leaders started to descend into the city and protestors mounted their most “direct action” on COP15 yet. Like the rest of the world, I can only watch and wait, nervously for a positive outcome from the last few days of negotiations. From a personal point of view, attending the COP has been a lesson in understanding ‘how the world works’. I’ve a much stronger appreciation for the participating actors, their arguments, the sticking points, the administrative process and the political process. On the flip side, being at the COP just as easily can be a frustrating, overwhelming and disappointing experience.

Sustainable Business

David Fribush

by David Fribush, Erb MBA/MS Class of 2010

The focus of the Erb Institute is to address environmental problems through the enlightened application of the power of business.  As such, the majority of our focus is on how we can apply what we learn about business to environmental issues.

However, we rarely take what we learn in our environmental studies and apply it to our study of business.

Take, for example, carbon dioxide.  The tremendous environmental, economic, and social problems we face with CO2  emissions are a testament to how small our world has become.  Carbon dioxide is pollution we cannot get rid of.  There is no smokestack high enough for us to make it someone else’s problem.

(Fizzy) Bubble Busted: Why Big Business CANNOT Save the Earth

A response to the Dec 5^th, 2009 NYT Op-Ed Will Big Business Save the Earth? by professor Jared Diamond.

Brian Moss

by Brian Moss, Erb MBA/MS student, class of 2012.

After reading Prof. Diamond’s new “nuanced” views on the recent environmental actions of several large corporations, I was left vaguely dissatisfied with his seemingly shallow and shortsighted analysis. This was a puzzling conclusion for me considering his thoughtful testimonials about the long-term effects of environmental decisions on civilizations in his insightful 2005 book, Collapse.

I guess it all comes down to your definition of “environmental sustainability”. After taking Prof. Gladwin’s Erb seminar for first year students, mine goes something like: total worldwide consumption of renewable resources occurring at a level no greater than that which can be replaced each year by natural systems, and near-zero consumption of non-renewable resources. As far as I can tell from his piece, Prof. Diamond’s definition of environmental sustainability apparently lies closer to a ‘greener’ version of business as usual.

A Clockwork Green?

Russell Baruffi

By Russell Baruffi, Erb MBA/MS student, class of 2010.

Entertainment, which seems like a fairly harmless indulgence from your a movie theatre or your couch, turns out to be remarkably wasteful and resource-intensive industry. Working for Sony Pictures this summer, I got to dig in onto the sets. A movie can make millions or it can flop, so the industry spares no incremental expense or resource to create the marginal extra pizzazz that will spellbind an audience. For the climactic scene of an upcoming big-budget tent-pole movie, I saw film-makers build a fake riverbed of wood, steel and foam block stretching five stories tall, which they sculpted into a downward sloping terrain with a realistic skin of trees, bushes, bamboo and boulders, and proceeded to pump 80 thousand gallons of water over it in a continuous loop to create an actual river on the set. In the biz of show biz, millions of extra dollars spent making a two-minute scene really pop can be good economics, so energy, water and resource throughput is big.

The Limits of Carbon Pricing: Can High Prices Alone Cut Emissions?

Professor Andy Hoffman

by Andy Hoffman

This article originally appeared in the Newsweek.com “Green Business” blogger on November 18, 2009.

We place too much faith in pricing as a singular mechanism for solving environmental problems in this country. The most vivid example is the call to create a price for carbon as the solution to the climate change problem. As the logic goes; if we set a price for carbon high enough, innovators will create new gadgets that emit fewer greenhouse gases, investors will invest in them, companies will adopt them and consumers will buy them.

But, not so fast. We are not like some sort of mice chasing a piece of cheese whenever it is placed in front of us. Unlike mice, we are not so singular in focus. We actually care who is placing the cheese and we may even ignore the cheese if it is not placed in the right way.

In short, pricing is never contextually or politically inert. Contrary to what many would like to think is a quick fix, a price for carbon is but one tool that must be accompanied by others to make sure that markets respond effectively and efficiently. Put too much faith in pricing as the only answer and success will be either elusive or found through sheer luck.

Ross is #1 in US in Environmental and Social Issues and #1 in Leadership Development

April LaCroix

By April LaCroix, Erb MBA/MS student, class of 2012.

As a student in the Erb Institute, I have the privilege of experiencing first-hand how my fellow students and professors are at the cutting-edge of sustainability; lunch time conversations frequently circulate around topics such as the latest in financing carbon offset projects or a new social enterprise opportunity. Recently, it has been rewarding to see the accomplishments of our “Erbers” and the communities we are involved in recognized outside of Ann Arbor.

The Stephen M. Ross School of Business has received two significant accolades in as many weeks: Leadership Excellence magazine has chosen the school as its top pick for 2009 Best in Leadership Development and the Aspen Institute’s Beyond Grey Pinstripes survey ranks the Ross MBA program no. 2 in the world (no. 1 in the US) for integrating environmental, ethical and social issues. (See http://www.bus.umich.edu/ for more information.)

Compassionate Capitalism: Serving the Poor Profitably with David Green

Tina Tam

By Tina Tam, Erb MBA/MS student, class of 2011.

An Ypsilanti native who now lives in Berkeley with his family, David Green’s warm and approachable style made it easier to picture him as your friendly, lawn-mowing neighbor than a legendary social entrepreneur who has impacted the lives of millions.

Green is best known for making healthcare affordable for the poor by significantly reducing the manufacturing costs of medical technologies. Green is an Ashoka Fellow and VP, a MacArthur Fellow, and a globally recognized leading social entrepreneur. A University of Michigan alum, he came to Ann Arbor to receive his well-deserved Alumni Humanitarian Service Award a few weeks ago. Although his visit was short, he graciously squeezed in a breakfast with a small group of students through the Ross Emerging Markets Club. Among those inspired by Green were several Erb students in attendance.

How Newsweek’s Green Rankings Could Be More Effective

Dautremont- Smith

By Julian Dautremont-Smith, Erb MBA/MS student, class of 2012.

This blog entry is cross-posted on Triple Pundit.

Last week, Newsweek released its first “Green Rankings,” which ranked the 500 largest U.S. companies on environmental performance.

The rankings have been welcomed by many the sustainability community, and certainly, there is a lot to like about them.  They provide a reasonably objective tool to inform to inform purchasing and investment decisions by consumers and investors.  Similarly, they enable companies to compare themselves with others in the same industry, or even in other industries.  This can stimulate competition among companies to improve their environmental performance and thereby improve their relative standing.  More generally, the rankings help keep sustainability on the minds of business leaders and the public.