Author: Adam Werbach

What: After being elected at age 23 as the national president of the Sierra Club, Werbach left the Sierra Club to start the technology and strategy company Act Now Productions, which was best known for helping Walmart launch its sustainability efforts. Werbach sold Act Now to the Publicis Groupe in 2008 and became the global CEO for Saatchi & Saatchi S, where he helped launch products from the Toyota Prius to wind turbines. He later co-founded the venture-backed online re-use platform Yerdle, which powers the re-use programs for companies including Patagonia, REI, and Eileen Fisher. Today he advises companies on strategies to grow their businesses sustainably and outlines such strategies and frameworks in his book, ‘Strategy for Sustainability.’

Why it is important:  Werbach shares a dialogue around sustainability as a true competitive strategic corporate advantage, and believes that building sustainability into the core of a business is the only means to ensure that a company will survive.

Developing and crafting a company’s strategy that takes into account all aspects of sustainability is key to survival. Included in this belief involves employees and the community in every part of the process. In today’s rapidly changing world, with more changes to be expected tomorrow, developing and executing a strategy for sustainability is critical for business survival. A successful strategy must take into account every dimension of the environment in which the business impacts including social, economic, and cultural, as well as natural.

Strategy for Sustainability