Business

Jeff Nesbit is author of This is the Way the World Ends and executive director of Climate Nexus. The opinions expressed in this commmentary are his own. The sobering report issued by the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change last month was a public jolt. The report found that the Earth's temperature will warm by 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels by as soon as 2030, sparking some devastating consequences. Like it or not, if we are going to make any progress on climate change, we are going to have to look to the business world. There are roughly 100 companies directly responsible for CO2 emissions, outlined in the Carbon Majors report. Others in the utility and transportation sectors are indirectly responsible for carbon emissions. The good news is that more business leaders are recognizing that climate change is indeed a real threat, and many are leading the way in making it a priority in business decisions. Here's how businesses can tackle climate … [Read more...] about 3 things businesses can do to win the climate change fight

Leon Levy is a global macro analyst at Eurasia Group. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. One month later and the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi continues to grip international headlines. But for all the Western commentary, this story has a lot less to do with press freedom than it does about power: who has it and how it can be used. The perpetrator (or perpetrators) made a critical mistake in assuming that having the power to reach across borders and permanently silence a well-known critic meant they were free to do so without fear of repercussions. It's a miscalculation that will haunt Saudi Arabia for years. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had staked much of his political legitimacy on transforming the Saudi Kingdom from sleepy petrostate into a modern and diversified economy as part of his ambitious Vision 2030. But to do that, Saudi Arabia had to fundamentally reform and become a country that companies and governments in the West … [Read more...] about Khashoggi’s murder hurt the business ties Saudi Arabia needs most

Rose Marcario is CEO of Patagonia. The opinions expressed in this commentary are her own. What started as a conversation with a few colleagues over the summer has become a major movement of nearly 370 companies that are encouraging their workers to be citizens and voters first. This year, companies large and small are taking steps to remove work-related barriers through the Time to Vote initiative. They are doing things like making Election Day a "no meetings" day or, as Patagonia and others are doing, shutting down all US-based operations for the day. These companies employ millions of people who will now have the flexibility needed to cast a vote. But not all employees enjoy that same flexibility. It's true that 44% of US companies are giving employees paid time off to vote, but that still leaves a majority of American workers likely to be tied up at work while the polls are open. This can decrease turnout and skew the electorate toward wealthier Americans who tend to have … [Read more...] about Patagonia CEO: Voting in the US is a mess. Businesses can make it easier