A Thousand Shades of Green

INTRODUCTION

This book is directed at today's business leaders. Thirty or forty years ago, its subject matter – excellence in environmental management – would, at best, have meant little or nothing to their predecessors; at worst, it would have been laughed at. Today, top managers who scoff at ‘soft’ environmental issues are as rare as flat-earthers.

The nature of the environmental debate as we know it in the West began to take shape during the last quarter of the 20th century, when our societies were rudely awakened to the reality of the damaging impact of human activities on our environment. Air and water pollution were the issues that produced the loudest wake-up calls. Frightening images of burning rivers, choking smog, oil-drenched birds ...