Two Lessons from Jeff Bezos’s Commitment to Sustainability/ESG

When Jeff Bezos acts, the world notices. Recently the world’s richest person and Amazon CEO announced that he was going to commit $10 billion from his personal fortune to fight climate change as part of a new initiative, the Bezos Earth Fund.

“Climate change is the biggest threat to our planet,” he wrote in an Instagram post. “I want to work alongside others both to amplify known ways and to explore new ways of fighting the devastating impact of climate change on this planet we all share.” He indicated that the initiative will fund scientists, activists, and non-profit governmental organizations fighting to project planet Earth.

This isn’t the first time in recent months Jeff Bezos has put a stake in the ground with sustainability. In September 2019, Amazon issued a “Climate Pledge” that urged businesses to be net-zero carbon across their businesses by 2040, which would make them also reach an important sustainability goal 10 years ahead of the Paris Agreement’s goal of 2050.

“We want to use our scale and our scope to lead the way,” Bezos said, citing Amazon as a role model to make the world sustainable.

To be sure, the actions of Jeff Bezos and one of the world’s leading brands matter. At the same time, I think there are some interesting lessons to learn from these recent news events besides the obvious takeaway that Jeff Bezos has amplified the global fight to protect the earth. Here is what stands out for me:

1. Employees Have a Voice

Jeff Bezos has stepped up his efforts following constant pressure from Amazon employees to make a stronger commitment to sustainability. Amazon employees have been staging walkouts and openly challenging their CEO to effect change. The actions of Amazon employees might seem surprising to some, but not to me. In fact, the surging Gen Z population increasingly wants their employers to practice sustainability. Gen Z consists of anyone born after 1997. As more Gen Zers enter the workplace, we should expect more employees to publicly challenge their own employers to be more sustainable. This development, in turn, will put more pressure on businesses to do a better job telling the story of their sustainability efforts as part of recruitment and retention strategies. How are you responding?

2. Be Prepared for Blowback

Jeff Bezos’s actions and statements have inspired strong commentary – and not all of it positive. As reported in Business Insider, the launch of the Bezos Earth Fund triggered a flurry of negative social media commentary from people critical of Amazon’s packaging practices. Here is just one example:

Others, including Amazon employees, have called upon the company to stop providing cloud computing services to the oil and gas industry. As noted in The New York Times, critics say that “making fossil fuel exploration and extraction less expensive would make it harder for the global economy to transition toward using more renewable energy.”

Does the blowback mean that Bezos and powerful business leaders like him should perhaps not draw so much attention to their good deeds? No. Criticism is part of the price you pay for being visible and influential. And criticism is good. The naysayers are giving Jeff Bezos and Amazon valuable intel on ways they can both get better. It’s not always easy to get that kind of input publicly, but it provides insight that can be used to improve.

Learn More

Sustainability/ESG is one of the defining topics of our time, affecting how all businesses communicate to their employees, clients, and shareholders. Recently Investis Digital published a white paper on why ESG is shaping the corporate agenda, The New ESG Agenda. The white paper is based on our own extensive helping companies find a clear, authentic, and inspiring voice to engage with their audiences on ESG issues, driving advocacy, and engagement. I urge you to download a copy to learn more.