ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the stories of entrepreneurs who recognize limits, and who nevertheless help their companies, employees, communities, and the planet to flourish. It looks at two multinational carpet manufacturers, the US-based Interface and the Dutch firm, Desso. Their leaders understand and respect ecological limits, and have redesigned their business models with the aim of eliminating all waste and achieving 100% environmental sustainability. The chapter discusses two unusual business enterprises that recognize that their employees – like the natural world — also have limits. It provides the stories of two small German enterprises, deckchair producer Richard Henkel and the Clemens Harle brewery. The chapter shows that companies can do exceptionally well if they recognize limits with respect to the environment, to people, and to inequality. But there is still another type of limit worth discussing, albeit one that Wall Street apostles will hardly accept – the limits to growth.
