The paperback edition of this timely book from the bestselling author of The Fifth Discipline series and Presence - The Necessary Revolution reveals how corporations and organizations are, in the face of looming environmental crises and pressure from social issues, finding solutions that ensure both long- term survival and real-time business success.

Peter Senge writes in the preface: "A lot has happened in the year and a half since The Necessary Revolution was published in mid 2008. An economic downturn blossomed into the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression ---------------- All of which makes the central message of the book more timely than ever: If we look closely around the world, the basics for life beyond the Industrial Age bubble are emerging everywhere."

The Necessary Revolution is a handbook for everyone who understands the need to act and work together now to create a sustainable world for ourselves and the generations to come.

The authors claim a revolution is underway, and spreading fast. Organizations everywhere are boldly leading the change from the dead-end of “business as usual” to new strategies and transformative practices that promote a flourishing, sustainable world. Pragmatic and powerful, today’s most innovative leaders know that revolutionary—not incremental—changes in the way we live and work are necessary for their, and our, survival.

Brimming with inspiring stories from around the globe, and organizations ranging from Alcoa to Oxfam, DuPont to GE, The Necessary Revolution clearly shows that ordinary people at every level within every organization have the ability and innovative spirit to do extraordinary things. By working collaboratively across boundaries, they are amplifying their creativity to find unprecedented solutions in an intensely interdependent world.

The Necessary Revolution contains a wealth of strategies to help anyone, regardless of role or title, build the confidence and competence to respond effectively to the greatest challenge of our time.

REFERENCES

"Senge is best know for The Fifth Discipline ... this book is far better: it is better written and more powerful. On the evidence presented here, the case for business sustainability is overwhelming. Although the authors never say so directly, it seems clear that the business case for sustainability is so strong that the personal beliefs of the CEO and the board do not really matter. Even the most adamant climate-change denier must recognise where the market is going. Forget the environment: this is business. ... Their arguments are compelling and there are plenty of examples of businesses already leading the way.”
Financial Times, 3 July 2008

“Any environmentally-aware executive who is keen to change the way we live and work in order to help our planet will find much to enjoy, energise and embrace in this book.”
Human Capital Management Magazine

“The Necessary Revolution tackles the sustainability crises by asking its readers to re-evaluate the way they do business ... The book forecasts the bursting of the ‘take, make, waste’ ethos and hails the opportunity to reassess both individuals’ and businesses’ use of resources.”
The Environmentalist

THE AUTHORS
The main author, Peter Senge, is a senior lecturer at MIT and the founding chair of the Society for Organizational Learning (SoL). He is the author of several bestselling books, including The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook, The Dance of Change and Schools That Learn and Presence.

Bryan Smith, co-author with Senge of Schools That Learn and two other Fifth Discipline fieldbooks, is a member of the faculty at York University’s Sustainable Enterprise Academy, and president of Broad Reach Innovations, Inc.

Joe Laur and Sara Schley are directors of SoL’s Sustainability Consortium, and partners at Seed Systems, Inc,. a leading sustainability consulting firm.

DETAILS
The Necessary Revolution - How Individuals and Organizations are Working Together to Create a Sustainable World
by Peter Senge, Bryan Smith, Nina Kruschwitz, Joe Laur, Sarah Schley
Paperback
612 pages
Price: £12.99
Published by Nicholas Brealey Publishing
ISBN: 9781857885323

Posted on Environment Times Online on 10th May 2010.