Sustainability for tomorrow’s consumerThe business case for sustainability |
By 2030, nearly 2 billion new consumers will have joined the global middle class, bringing almost 80 percent of the world's population into a "consumer" bracket.
This is a tremendous opportunity but is also cause for concern: if everyone in this class were to adopt the historic consumption patterns of the average citizen in the United Kingdom, three planet Earths would be required to sustain them – five if they were to live like the average North American.
This report is a culmination of a 12-month process which began in January 2008 at the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos with a meeting of chief executives from leading global consumer products companies. It aims to present the business case for sustainability for consumer industries, and represents recognition by industry leaders that there is a need to go beyond mere incremental improvements in sustainability to achieve a desired future state where human consumption is in balance with natural systems.
Download the previous two reports based on the initiative.
The consumption dilemma: Leverage points for accelerating sustainable growth
Redesigning business value: A roadmap to sustainable consumption
Download the full report below.
Sustainability for tomorrow’s consumer
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