Here are three takeaways from our webinar with Mighty Earth CEO Glenn Hurowitz––including how radical transparency may shake up more industries, and why Hurowitz feels Mighty Earth is actually looking out for corporate interests.

Several times a year, Future 500 brings members of our Corporate Affinity Network exclusive webinars with activists, campaigners, and sustainability thought leaders who work to drive transformative change on social and environmental challenges.

In early October, we hosted Glenn Hurowitz, CEO of Mighty Earth on the theme of “remaining competitive in a time of environmental crisis.” 

Mighty Earth is a global campaign organization that works to protect tropical forests, oceans, and the climate. It has played a key role in persuading companies to adopt sustainable practices in their supply chains.

Here are a few of Hurowitz’s pearls of wisdom:

• Like many NGOs, Mighty Earth has leveraged emerging technologies and an abundance of publicly available data to closely monitor companies linked to deforestation. “Transparency is here,” said Hurowitz, hinting that Mighty Earth may expand technologies used to track deforestation in palm oil, livestock, and soy supply chains to other industries in the future.

Tip: For more on this, see trend #5, “Data-Driven Activism Brings Radical Transparency,” in our 2018 trends report.

• Hurowitz emphasized that companies often approach the threat of a campaign with a “risk avoidance” mentality, and miss out on opportunities in a market where there is demand for sustainably sourced products. He cited Louis Dreyfus as an example of a company that, through engagement from Mighty Earth, went from being a laggard to a leader. He cited Cargill as an example of a company that in his view has repeatedly failed to live up to its leadership commitments.

• In addition, Mighty Earth contends that deforestation and degraded soil also lead to lower crop yields over time—damaging the financial health of companies in the agricultural value chain. By campaigning against certain practices, Hurowitz considers himself not only a steward of the environment, but also a steward of companies’ long-term financial interests.

Those in the Future 500 Corporate Affinity Network receive exclusive briefings like this one several times per year. Past guests have included leaders from the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, Color of Change, and Harvard Business School.

Through coaching, counsel, and peer-to-peer learning, our Network helps business leaders navigate complex stakeholder landscapes and address the day's most pressing social and environmental challenges. To learn more, contact Erik Wohlgemuth via ewohlgemuth@future500.org.

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