The world’s becoming a better place
Though at a slow but steady pace
But problems are still there for sure
And climate change is at the fore.
Inequality is also dire
And steadily getting higher.
If progress on all these is slow
The consequences are grave, we know.
Their skills and their constraints are such
That governments can't do that much.
NGOs have few means but skill
And business has means but no will.
These issues aren’t part of their core.
For profits is how they would score.
But businesses now realise
That profits are a short-term prize.
For after all what do they gain
If they die out and don’t sustain?
How much can they afford to spend
To ensure their existence doesn't end?
The answer isn’t easy to find
But a thought still comes to mind.
If the efforts of all are combined
The synergies that we can find
Reduces costs and raises gain
And obviates inevitable pain.
There is a capitalistic strain
That enthrones shareholder gain.
And Milton Friedman could well see
That this simplistic philosophy
Could lead to great efficiency
But wherever there's externality,
This capitalism, red in tooth and claw,
Can prove to be a dismal flaw.
Correction can come from regulation
Or even from self-remediation
And Adam Smith himself foresaw
That business could address this flaw.
It should be clearly understood
One can do well by doing good.
Doing it smartly we do better
So why not be the trend setter!
In capitalism's early days we see
Some social responsibility
To dissipate the urban gloom
Both Cadbury, Lord Leverhulme
Then pioneered the company town.
There are observers who would frown
At this paternal attitude
But some view it with gratitude.
We should remember that in that age
It compensated their lowly wage.
And doing good is very sound
What goes around does come around.
My grandfather probably saw
These examples and found no flaw.
He bought faraway marshy land.
His critics just couldn't understand.
They concluded he had gone quite mad
But today we are glad, not sad.
A township then slowly arose
And this is where our business grows.
We provided every needed tool
Housing, hospital and school.
My uncle known as SPG
Way back could very clearly see
The environment was under stress
Neglect he knew would be a mess.
Our creek side land was reserved.
The mangroves there were well preserved.
And from my office I gaze out there,
A Mumbai view that's very rare
With greenery all the way
Until you sight New Bombay.
And now and then, with friends I float
On a gently moving boat,
With pink Flamingos in full flight,
To my mind a splendid sight.
In saving tigers he played a role.
The environment was a major goal.
Our foundation has a role to play
But CSR is another way.
And here I think that we all ought to
Pay careful heed to Michael Porter.
With Shared Value there's no cost
For doing good as nothing's lost.
All it takes is a thinking brain
To remove a societal pain
And combine it with a business gain
To create a sustainable chain
Of endless mutual benefit.
This concept is a tremendous hit.
We thought that we should also try
And see if we could apply
This philosophy to our group
Our employees also joined the loop.
In the year 2010
Studies were commissioned and then
With the help of Dasra and FSG
Our new program, one could see.
We aptly named it Good and Green
And what a journey it has been!
And how do we define our role
What could be a proper goal?
The environment we clearly see
Then health and employability.
It is no longer Climate Change
Within a tolerable range.
A crisis is what it’s about
With fires, floods as well as drought.
Every week a constant blast
Far worse than seen in the past.
If we must, we will adapt
Prevention though would be more apt.
There is a cost to adaptation,
It’s rising fast in every nation.
In fact we should by now conclude
Prevention would be really shrewd.
It actually would cost much less
Indeed avoid a lot of stress.
A uniform carbon tax
Would protect all our backs,
Collected by each Nation state
But universal in its rate!
All GHGs would be fair game.
Every country should charge the same.
The benefit that this would yield
Would be a level playing field.
Competitors just wouldn’t care
Because this system’s very fair.
Just how high should this tax be?
A range of numbers we can see.
But Sixty dollars per metric ton
Would surely get reduction done.
For carbon this could be the rate
For others we would calibrate.
The appropriate rate we would select
Based on the Greenhouse Gas effect.
Based on today’s emissions rate
Quite candidly I should state
It wouldn’t be a trivial sum
But there’s no reason to be glum.
In dollars it would be Two Trillion
It is a lot but not a Zillion!
Compared to global GDP
The percentage is less than three.
Compared to taxes then again
The percentage is less than ten!
Of course some would then take a call
To reduce emissions not pay it all.
But bear in mind it’s not a cost.
For the economy nothing’s lost.
A UBI could be instated.
Some other tax could be abated.
And if this is indeed just so
The economy would still grow.
Don’t you think it’s very nice
That there is hardly any price.
And very little would be lost
As adaptation has a higher cost!
In the Godrej Group it is seen
That our goals of Good and Green
Though ambitious will be done
Sustainability can be won.
With the pandemic still in play
There would of course be some delay.
And so without partiality
Our goal for all was neutrality.
Whether water, carbon or solid waste
By 2020 we would make haste
To make our net emissions zero.
Would that make the group a hero?
In 2010 the goal looked tall
But we took a reasoned call
Technology would save the day.
So far it has turned out that way.
As technology takes a leap
Green energy gets very cheap.
Technology can lead the way.
Technology can save the day.
New technologies can be great.
We always love to investigate.
Once they are tried and pass the test
We sometimes choose to invest.
Keen observers quickly saw
That Solar also tracks Moore's law.
Whether groundnut shell or bagasse
Our India's full of biomass.
At first we thought we'd have to spend
But that's not true, for in the end,
The more we thought, the more we slaved
We did invest but we also saved.
And solar will hit the goal
Of being cheaper than even coal
In just a handful of years.
Already we and our peers
Are sourcing solar electricity
At lower rates than from the utility.
For quite some time we've been extorted
As their finances aren't still sorted.
A silver lining can be seen,
Since it incentivises green.
There are many paths that we can see
For achieving Carbon neutrality.
But the cheapest way is certainly
Through energy efficiency.
In times of plenty it was fine
To overuse and over design!
But now we find we always gain
If we only use our brain.
Real interest rates are very low
And high returns quickly flow
From any energy saving device.
For business this is very nice.
Not only are returns quite brisk
There’s also very little risk.
In India mandated CSR
Can help us go very far.
Multiple benefits is what one sees
With water projects or growing trees.
Good livelihoods are created.
Our carbon emissions are abated.
Trees planted at a river’s source
Maintain the flow throughout its course.
So many benefits we can see:
The preservation of biodiversity,
Now different species can be tried
Useful products can be supplied
Like biomass or edible fruits
And yet the trunk and the roots
Can sequester carbon, clean the air,
A win win that is very fair.
So, while we decarbonise
Why not also monetise.
So never fall for either or.
Our hearts and minds demand much more.
Through action and advocacy
We can help all humanity
To create a world that’s just and fair
And everyone is free to share
Nature’s bounty and be fulfilled
And then I’m sure we’d all be thrilled.
The question now is really whether
All of us can pull together.
We will get collective traction
Only with committed action.
The only way we can gain
Is to unitedly sustain!
