Connections

Connection. 

It’s the essence of our existence as humans. Our world has never been more connected, and with that comes a greater understanding about the impact of our choices. In this issue of Disruption Magazine, we’re exploring themes related to ESG (Environment, Social and Governance), a set of investment criteria used to measure the social impact and ethical performance of companies. 

As we put this issue together we learned that the components in ESG are interconnected, and a business isn’t likely to develop a successful ESG strategy by looking at any one in isolation. Strong social policies can feed strong environmental approaches, and both require thoughtful and intentional governance policies. In our issue we looked at ESG from four distinct approaches: business, academic, community, and government. 

This month’s cover story features Amit Ramlall, a 20-year-old entrepreneur and CEO of the Chintan Project, whose advisory and consulting firm is focused on helping businesses around the world uncover their purpose using his unique view and perceptions of human behaviour. 

We’re proud to partner with iSAW, international Strategic Accelerator for Women, on the release of its impressive report showing that gender equality is the key to accelerated ESG progress. That research and analysis is the foundation for iSAW’s call to action for senior executives that care about their sustainable performance to adopt gender equity and in turn improve their ESG measure—not just because it’s the right thing to do, but because it is also the smart business decision. 

This issue also includes stories from Victor Beausleil of SETSI—Social Economy Through Social Inclusion—on the importance of building strong coalitions in pursuit of progress in the social economy sector, and from Helle Bank Jorgensen, whose company, Competent Boards, is helping senior leaders of organizations around the world gain insight and confidence when it comes to climate and ESG. Our Women Making a Difference feature spotlights Bonnie-Lyn de Bartok who is using data to identify and rate the social impact of companies, funds and sovereigns around the world with her company, The S-Factor.

We’ve also put together a breakdown of ESG approaches in three Canadian provinces, showing how they stack up against each other, and this month’s Last Word features the viewpoints of tech influencer Evan Kirstel and environmentalist and author Jim Harris, who make the case that innovative tech can help companies develop strong ESG strategies. 

The stories in this issue have shown me that we have an opportunity to make a lasting, positive impact on our world by harnessing the power of strong ESG plans and actions. To do that, we need to disrupt the status quo and adopt radically different mindsets. Businesses have an opportunity to be leaders in that quest for change, and in the process, will ensure their own sustainability. By making better choices for our world, everyone benefits—because as you’ll see in this issue, it’s all connected.