The Key to Addressing Climate Change in Modern Business

Topics: Climate, Climate Change Words: 1794 Pages: 4

Climate change is one of the major concerns of the modern age. The high level of globalisation, industrialisation, and rise of global corporations promoted the increased topicality of the topic and its transformation into a shared problem that should be addressed by governments, organisations, and companies. It means that business has become part of the problem and should also accept responsibility for trying to find an appropriate resolution for it (Crane & Matten, 2016). However, the successful transformation of companies and acceptance of sustainability issues are linked to values shared within the organisations, employees, and top managers. It means that the individuals’ perception of the problem and their attitude to it play a central role in action on climate change.

The critical importance of appropriate values can be explained by their correlation with the ethics, responsibility, and sustainability (ERS) issues. For instance, accepting responsibility for the results of a specific activity requires authority, confidence, and the correct understanding of the existing environmental issues (DesJardins & McCall, 2014). Adopting sustainability ideas within any business requires strong leadership values, power, and achievement; otherwise, there is a high risk of failure (Dunphy & Benn, 2006). That is why it is possible to state that values are fundamental for understanding the necessity for change and making it part of everyday activities (Schaefer et al., 2020). They help to make sense of the environmental activities and devote attention to them.

From another perspective, appropriate values can help to resolve a complex sensemaking challenge linked to the action on climate change. The problem is that regardless of the fast deterioration of the environment, climate change remains a disputable issue. Some individuals and organisations prefer to disregard ethical issues (Singer, 2005). Others view it as an insignificant factor or part of the world. This attitude is dangerous and might result in the critical deterioration of the environment. Thus, climate change and boundaries of human activity are closely linked to values shared by individuals at different levels (Rockström et al., 2009). The readiness to accept responsibility for different types of pollution resulting from business activity emerges from the appropriate attitudes and understanding.

Finally, individuals’ values can be viewed as motivators promoting positive change and highlighting the necessity of action. Numerous authors admit that a leader’s power, achievement, and creativity might serve as the central factors cultivating the reconsideration of individuals’ attitudes to the existing problems and guaranteeing their readiness to engage in sustainability activities and actions (Albani & Henderson, 2014; Bendell, 2020). It becomes vital to cultivate a particular organisational culture characterised by specific ethics and shared values, helping to address the nagging problem and resolve it through a collaborative effort (Howard-Grenville et al., 2014). From this perspective, values should be considered the foundation of the climate action and help to make sense of ERS.

Altogether, climate change is one of the most critical issues of the modern age. Its addressing requires a collaborative effort because of the scope of the challenge and numerous factors affecting it. For this reason, it is vital to outline and cultivate the values necessary for supporting sustainable ideas and making them part of the business organisations’ activity. It will help to resolve the main sensemaking challenge and guarantee employees, managers, and CEOs are engaged in action on climate and are ready to cooperate the find an effective resolution to the problem.

From the 13 individual level marker values chosen in your SVS exercise, which three values mean the most to you?	What experiences/influences have taught you to prioritise this value: why is this important for you?	Reflect on a moment in your life when you really lived this value. What behaviour did you exhibit that supports the value?	How does this value link with your ideas about ethics, responsibility and sustainability?
1. Equality	People belong to various communities as they are social creatures. However, the roles and resources are distributed unequally, meaning some individuals suffer from the lack of access to the necessary good. I have witnessed numerous cases of unequal treatment, and it impacted my choice.	Being a student means meeting people of different cultures, races, and social backgrounds. However, they should be treated as equals, regardless of all factors. As for me, I demonstrate tolerance and consider my friends equal.	I believe that equality is a fundamental component of ethics, responsibility, and sustainability. It is impossible to remain ethical and demonstrate unequal attitudes to individuals, communities, or issues requiring attention.
2. Creativity	Creativity is the art of resolving complex tasks by using unusual approaches. For me, it is important because by using innovative approaches, a person can attain success in various spheres, save money and time, and inspire others to follow his/her example.	I always apply creative ideas and approaches when trying to resolve a complex task. It requires specific thinking and trying to look at the problem from a different angle.	Creativity is the factor that might help to resolve sustainability issues. I think that by using creative approaches, it is possible to find an effective solution to problems.
3. Successful	Society appreciates successful people and respects them. Moreover, success and achievement help to move forward and launch new projects, which are vital at the moment. For this reason, this value is fundamental to me.	For me, to be successful means to achieve existing goals. For this reason, I always try to plan my activity in a way, that would help me to succeed and move from one stage to another.	Success and achievement are basic elements of ethics and responsibility. It is vital to accept the idea that some goals are not worth achieving as it might cause harm to others.

I believe that my ethical journey started in my early childhood, as the values are formed by parents and family. I acquired the ideas of good and bad things and the basic principles of socially accepted behaviour. At the same time, I was inspired by nature and its beauty. However, these basic ideas were radically transformed after my studying and the improved understanding of how the world functions and the problems it faces. At the moment, I think that my ethical journey continues, and I have reached a critical point. I realize that the problems of climate change and environmental pollution cannot be disregarded.

The photo above is relevant to me as it reflects my concerns and worries. I have seen beaches polluted by plastic waste; however, this image represents the true scope of the problem. Thousands of tons of plastic impact people’s health globally, promote climate change and make animals suffer. It means that the issue should be resolved; however, it requires a collaborative effort. For this reason, it is vital to cultivate specific values among broad populations and ensure they are engaged in the process. Otherwise, it is impossible to attain success and promote positive change.

Questions based on the ‘individual level marker values’ of the Schwartz Value System (SVS)

What’s in it for me? (Self-enhancing)

I like to feel a sense of social power, that I’m in control or have authority over others		Transfer the number of crosses to POWER
It’s about wealth, material possessions and money
I like to have authority and the right to lead and command others
It’s important that I preserve my public image / face	*
I am ambitious and enjoy working hard and aspiring to do better	*	Transfer the number of crosses to ACHIEVEMENT
I like to feel I can make a difference, that I am influential and can have an impact on people and events	*
Its important that I do a job well and that I’m recognised as capable, competent, effective, efficient	*
I like to be successful and to achieve goals	*
I am motivated by pleasure and the gratification of desires		Transfer number of Crosses to HEDONISM
It’s about enjoying life, food, sex, leisure etc
I am self- indulgent, and focus on doing pleasant things

Concern for others (self-transcendence)

Loyalty is important to me and I am faithful to my friends, group	*	Transfer number of Crosses to BENEVOLENCE Transfer number of Crosses to Universalism
I am honest, genuine, sincere and expect that in others
I like to feel helpful and that I am working for the welfare of others	*
I am responsible, dependable, reliable and respect that in others	*
I am forgiving, willing to pardon others and appreciate when this is offered to me
Equality is important to me	*
I want to see a world at peace, free of war and conflict
Feeling a unity with nature, like I am part of nature is important to me
I can see how everything is inter-related and that matters to me
A world of beauty, of nature and the arts
I want to see social justice, correcting injustice, care for the weak	*
I am broad-minded, tolerant of different ideas and beliefs and respect that in others	*
The preservation of nature and protection of the environment are important to me	*

Protecting how things are (conservation)

I have respect for tradition and want to preserve time honoured customs	*	Transfer number of Crosses to TRADITION Transfer number of Crosses to CONFORMITY Transfer number of Crosses to SECURITY
I am moderate and prefer to avoid extremes of feeling or action
I am humble, modest, self-effacing
I accepting my portion in life and will submit to life’s circumstances
I am devout, holding to religious faith and belief
I am polite and courtesy and good manners matter to me	*
I value self-discipline, self- restraint, resistance to temptation
I honour my parents and elders and showing respect matters	*
I am obedient, dutiful, and would prioritise meeting obligations
Social order and the stability of society are important to me
National security, protection of my nation from enemies matters	*
The reciprocation of favours and the avoidance of indebtedness is important
Family security, safety for loved ones is a priority	*
I like to be clean, neat and tidy and respect that in others	*

Openness to Change

I want an exciting life full of stimulating experiences	*	Transfer number of Crosses to STIMULATION Transfer number of Crosses to SELF -DIRECTION
I want a varied life, filled with challenge, novelty and change
I seek daring, adventure and risk
I need to have freedom of action and thoughts
I want to use my own creativity, uniqueness and Imagination to understand and solve problems	*
I want to be independent self-reliant, self-sufficient
I need to choose my own goals, and select my own purposes	*
I am curious and interested in everything, I need to explore and find my own way	*

Schwartz Circumplex Model

The model shows that hedonism and stimulation are not important to me. At the same time, other spheres and values, such as universalism, benevolence, and achievement are critical and shape my actions and behaviours.

References

Albani, M., & Henderson, K. (2014). Creating partnerships for sustainability. McKinsey. Web.

Bendell, J. (2020). In the company of rebels. In D. Murphy and A. Marshall (Eds.), Citizenship and sustainability in organizations (pp. 110-125). Routledge.

Crane, A., & Matten, D. (2016). Business ethics (4^th ed.). Oxford University Press.

DesJardins, J., & McCall, J. (2014). Contemporary issues in business ethics (6^th ed.). Cengage Learning.

Dunphy, D., & Benn, S. (2006). Corporate governance and sustainability: Challenges for theory and practice. Routledge.

Howard-Grenville, J., Buckle, S., Hoskins, B., & George, G. (2014). Climate change and management: From the editors. Climate Change and Management, 57(3), 615-623. Web.

Rockström, J., Steffen, W., Noone, K., Persson, A., Chapin, F. S., 3rd, Lambin, E. F., Lenton, T. M., Scheffer, M., Folke, C., Schellnhuber, H. J., Nykvist, B., de Wit, C. A., Hughes, T., van der Leeuw, S., Rodhe, H., Sörlin, S., Snyder, P. K., Costanza, R., Svedin, U., Falkenmark, M., … Foley, J. A. (2009). A safe operating space for humanity. Nature, 461(7263), 472–475. Web.

Schaefer, A., Williams, S., & Blundel, R. (2020). Individual values and SME environmental engagement. Business & Society, 59(4), 642–675. Web.

Singer, P. (2005). Ethics and intuitions. The Journal of Ethics, 9(3/4), 331–352. Web.

Sporrer, A. (2022). 175 nations endorse resolution to end plastic pollution. American Shipper. Web.