The Future of Business: Why Climate Resilience is Essential

By Jacob Vahr Svenningsen

The Need for Climate Resilience

In a world of rising costs and unpredictable supply chains, transitioning to climate resilience is no longer just a choice—it's the only way forward, no matter the cost. However, the positive side of Investing in this shift creates a ripple effect that benefits multiple aspects of business, from costs to innovation to long-term survival.

Opportunities in a Changing Market

As the price of raw materials climbs and supply sources shrink, industries are facing increasing pressures. But this shift also opens up new opportunities.

In emerging markets, practices like regenerative agroforestry are driving better yields and more sustainable methods, eventually at a safer and lower cost. These advances, rooted in the balance of nature and technology, are poised to reshape how we produce and consume.

Less cost, higher yields. What's not to like?

This approach is the opposite of the predicted future gloom of rising production costs and a deadly competition for raw materials, faced by all decision-makers. This is due to the need for increasing inputs and still lower yields despite all conventional efforts. The Causes are faltering deliveries of raw materials under pressure from extreme weather events. Any industry sourcing from primary production—whether it be food, textiles, timber for building, or energy for industry—will be affected.

Building Resilient Supply Chains

Climate resilience methods, to avoid these collapses in the supply chains, are not just a distant, dreamy goal but something almost simple and actually very accessible. When other companies enter crisis mode, those ready for the blows become more solid businesses. As adversity in the industry increases, they become more competitive.

The future may cry wolf. No doubt. There will be an increase in chaos and occasional crises in food markets and the industry as a whole, due to several of the latter factors. The root cause, however, is climate change, and the "magic pill" lies in securing the bottom of the value chain with climate-resilient production methods for all raw materials.

As prices soar, every company will start seeking new sources. The available sources will be locked in, and future contracts will go to the highest bidder or most powerful players in the markets, making inflation insurmountable.

The first to venture into building their own uninterruptible supply chains are the ones positioned for the collapses of the future. Instead, they will be ready for continued production with their existing product lines when push comes to shove. These are the decisions that make or break companies and determine who will emerge as industry leaders and who will become the "dinosaurs" that will be disrupted. You can either prepare as a camel for the future, or become a skeleton in the graveyard of stock market depressions.

Either your brand will continue to exist, and customers will return to your ledgers, or you will fail to deliver and wither away as others secure themselves for this chaotic future scenario.

So, without going as far as promising everyone the earth, the case is as clear as when Columbus promised to find the New World for the Spanish Queen. It is clear that there is a promise of gold and green forests, as we say in Scandinavia, on the horizon for those who decide to follow that compass direction and set sail for a new definition of true north. Climate resilience holds the secrets of building value chains fortified for future environments, which can sustain themselves without external inputs. The bottom of the value chain and the people working there are the foundation for making the entire upstream supply chain self-sufficient for the processing and manufacturing industry—eliminating risks associated with sourcing bootnecks and price hikes.

Our previous article on Agroforestry: The Green Renaissance of Mankind explains how agroforestry systems, when scaled globally, could store vast amounts of carbon, create millions of jobs, and transform underproductive lands into sustainable sources of raw materials while promoting biodiversity and climate resilience. In the future, we will share more technical insights on our blog at reGro.pro to help decision-makers understand the incentives behind investing for future crises. This will be in the context of a world that understands the value chain and its connection to global business markets.



Founder of ØNSK, a Danish specialist coffee importer learning about climate resilience in Nicaragua

Securing Long-Term Success

Once inducted into the class of climate resilience and regenerative culture, any business can rest assured that everything has been done to mitigate future risks. At the same time, you will be capable of seizing opportunities for positive growth, while competitors fail due to their inability to adapt to future needs. To learn more about how sustainable practices are shaping the future of business and how your company can get ahead, explore Fellow Future’s sustainability strategy here.