Nature-Positive Leadership: What Can We Learn from Japan and Japanese Companies

This book looks at how Japanese companies approach sustainability amid current global challenges. It takes a close look at the cultural background to these efforts including the importance of nature in Japanese society and how it has influenced modern day sustainability programmes. The book does not argue that Japan has been free of environmental problems or that all Japanese companies have the same approach. Nor does it assert that Japanese companies or a Japanese approach is perfect. Instead, it provides some hints about why a Japanese approach-style may just be the way forward in these difficult times. What can Western business leaders learn from Japanese culture and the Japanese leadership mindset? We live in a time of radical uncertainty. The future risks of climate change are more than well known. But they are being suppressed by both politics and business. Science and physics are very clear. Nature-positive means more than just minimising the damage. For business leaders, it also means giving something back to nature and seeing this contribution not as a cost, but as an investment. This book is a journey of transformation of companies. And a journey through the mountains and nature. Over the centuries, Japanese culture has developed a deep respect for natural systems. And from this, it has also developed a logic for business that considers companies, society and nature in equal measure. It is a must-read for companies struggling to maintain a positive balance sheet and remain sustainable at the same time, in the backdrop of climate crisis and mitigating regulations.