The Corporation


I'm looking forward to seeing The Corporation - A film by Mark Achbar, Jennifer Abbott, and Joel Bakan (Via Martin G.) which is showing in New Zealand at the International Film Festival [from July 9 -August 1, 2004.] There is also a book: The Corporation : The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power by Joel Bakan.

Ray Anderson, CEO of Interface says:
"Since Rachel Carson's Silent Spring began to expose the abuses of the modern industrial system, there has been a growing awareness that profit at the expense of Earth--of individuals, society, and the environment--is unsustainable. Joel Bakan has performed a valuable service to corporations everywhere by holding up a mirror for them to see their destructive selves as others see them. The clarion call for change is here for all who would listen."

Ray Anderson is a multi-millionaire former capitalist polluter turned environmentalist. He has restructured his whole business so that sustainability is now considered as important as profitability, and sees a "future that merges economic growth with social responsibility."

I like the sound of that future, and hope we can do our own little bit at TMet Recordings. It's becoming evident that many business models are unsustainable and a major threat to the planet. My corporate heroes are the geeks at Google. I love the fact that they freely admit in the their IPO statement that it's likely their incredible growth rate is unsustainable and likely to slow down. They are being open, honest, realistic and above all fair to the people who have made them such an enormous success - their team of 2,000 employees. Maybe the geeks shall inherit the earth.