A Fair Share of Resources

Businesses depend on resources, a trivial statement. If one business does not get them, another one or a competitor will. This statement becomes interesting if we consider competition in the context of the global economy. If nations want to perform economically, measured in GDP, it becomes a question of securing resources globally, a matter of international resource strategies, geo-politics and as we all know, unfortunately warfare, too.

How much should governments intervene, regulate resource markets or defend national interests, knowing that such efforts go against open markets and free trade in a global business economy. If resources become scarce, commodities market insecurity lead to price increase and volatility. Along the commodities value chain, price increase will benefit commodities traders and inflate trader’s payroll and money pockets.

What about the economy? Low income working class will suffer most, causing unrest or revolution, as we witnessed during the 2011 Arab spring. But also, depending on the commodity affected, e.g. oil, any enterprise (industry, farming) relying heavily on that commodity will suffer, which could lead to deep recession.

A major challenge of our globalized world and economy comes from climate change. How do we reduce GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions, when resources and goods are spread globally and need to be shipped from one end of the planet to the other?

Climate change is a double-edge sword:

• Climate ethics and equity obliges us morally and materially to follow and live according to sustainable principles
• Climate change will negatively impact - in the sense of added cost - any type of resource, directly or indirectly. And the need to reduce GHG emissions will impact global trade of resources and goods, transportation, travel

And this is exactly building the case for “climate skeptical” business people. In fact this has nothing to do with skepticism, this has to do with denial, because the costs of sustainable behavior will impact all businesses, whether global or local, small, medium or large. Any industrial business depends on resources and in uncertain economic times, price volatility and price increase of commodities and goods are poison for each business.

In uncertain times, information is a crucial resource. Timely and accurate information helps businesses to reduce uncertainty. Businesses can’t reduce the impact of climate change. Only long endured change in our behaviors and in reducing GHG-emissions can. Information availability and access help businesses to improve their possibilities and quality of their climate risk management and mitigation strategy.

This is where climate science comes in. Improving climate change projections geographically and in time helps businesses to reduce their exposure to climate change.

This is why funding research in climate science is crucial. Financially supporting disinformation campaigns will hurt businesses, including those infamous donors of such campaigns.