Jesper Brodin

As I’ve gotten to know Jesper Brodin through our work together on the board of the nonprofit the B Team, I’ve seen firsthand how he has made it his mission to dispel the myth that sustainability is at odds with profitability. Under his leadership, Ikea operator Ingka Group set ambitious climate targets and in November revised them to be even stronger. The company is now committed to reducing greenhouse-gas emissions by 50% by 2030 and hitting net-zero by 2050. All while continuing to grow. The result? Since 2016, the company’s carbon footprint has fallen 24% while its revenue has grown by nearly 31%. Projects include recycling mattresses in the Netherlands, promoting sustainable food, and replacing furniture pieces requiring more complex assembly with parts that simply click together (a reduction in frustration that might make more marriages sustainable). As Jesper writes, “climate change is not in a distant future,” so we have to act now. And he’s leading the way, showing that, as he puts it, “being climate smart is business smart. It is good for business to be a good business.”

Huffington is founder and CEO of Thrive Global

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