ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part addresses the limits of business and markets as mechanisms for solving the world's problems. It explores the risks of expecting too much of business and the corollary responsibility of government regulation and public activism. The debate about the impossibility of continued economic growth on a small planet is touched on. Sustainability is invisible and yet permeates every aspect of business. After major wars and economic collapse, there is a "reset" period in which business takes a strong leadership role in profitably solving many of the world's toughest social and environmental problems. It does so not only out of moral reawakening but because the economic, social, ecological, cultural, technological, and mind-set factors of that future era align to make it a matter of self-interest.
