Issue #9: Trust falls.

According to the Edelman's 2020 Trust Barometer study, established institutions like the media and government are no longer seen as competent or ethical enough to address crises like climate change and health care.

So businesses are stepping up. Why? Because it finally makes financial sense.

But it's not a wholly rosy picture. According to the study, 57% of people globally believe that capitalism as it exists today "does more harm than good in the world." The percentage of people who think capitalism is working for them is down year over year by 3%.

People trust business more than government because business is simply better at making decisions. As political parties continue to polarize us, businesses -- and business leaders -- can make more decisions, faster. And even when those decisions are the wrong ones, corrective actions can be taken more quickly that revisions to laws and regulations.

Sure, that can make us feel better about the way we do business, but it can also make us feel depressed about the role of government in society -- and business.

We need business to need government and governance, especially at a time where companies are getting bigger and bigger as technology-driven consolidation increases, and monopolies become harder to prove. It's time that government looks to business and finds ways to reinvent processes to get better at making more decisions, faster.

We can't afford for people to lose faith in government. Business can't exist without a public's faith in their government. The two are intertwined.

As the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said about science and religion: “Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge, which is power; religion gives man wisdom, which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals.”

TL; DR: Business and government can not -- must not -- be rivals; but they can and should be a check and balance on one another.

?What’s good:

Just Mercy isn't just a film. My former colleague Scott Budnick's (The Hangover) production company One Community is behind the film Just Mercy starring Michael B. Jordan, about the story of public interest attorney Bryan Stevenson. But along with producing the film, Budnick has also created a sister nonprofit, Represent Justice, backed by a $10 million social-action campaign, that will draft off the film, and features an ambitious slate of programming, much of it in partnership with activist groups nationwide.

Note: You can see Scott Budnick at Kindred 2020 (May 11-14, San Diego Convention Center)

Net-a-Porter gets even more sustainable. Net-a-Porter has identified a strict set of standards that it will use to approve beauty brands and products for its Net Sustain program, initially launched in 2019. 27 beauty brands are included in the merchandising effort, including Tata Harper, Aesop and Dr. Barbara Sturm, as well as upstarts such as One Ocean Beauty, Circumference and Cosmydor.

BlackRock takes their "purpose" argument a big step further. In his 2020 annual letter, which last year, talked about the inextricable links between "purpose" and "profit", BlackRock Founder & CEO Larry Fink, announced that BlackRock would make investment decisions with environmental sustainability as a core goal. As the world’s largest asset manager with nearly $7 trillion in investments, this move will fundamentally shift its investing policy — and could reshape how corporate America does business and put pressure on other large money managers to follow their lead.

Companies must change the rules of the game if they want to change the world. Leading sustainable business adviser Jonathon Porritt argues that companies with purpose will have to become more radical in changing the system if they are going to tackle the issues like climate emergency and systemic inequality and still grow their revenue & profits.

SoulBuffalo launches Ocean Plastics Leadership Network. Soul Buffalo creates experiential journeys that bring business executives up close to the havoc that humanity has wreaked on our climate. They just announced the "Ocean Plastics Leadership Network"with more than 50 members including HP, Greenpeace, Nestle Waters, The Clorox Company, SAP, IDEO, Dow, Pepsico, the Coca-Cola Company, National Geographic, Conservation International, WBCSD, Carnival Corporation, P&G, As You Sow, Upstream Solutions, Berry Global, Warner Babcock Institute, Ocean Recovery Alliance, Meridian Institute, First Mile, Second Muse, Circulate Capital, PYXERA Global, 5 Gyres, Kimberly Clark, Milliken, Avery Dennison, Charter NEX Films, American Chemistry Council, Waste Management, Milliken, WWF, The Recycling Partnership, Closed Loop Partners, and the Sustainable Packaging Coalition. While many of these companies could be seen as enablers of the problem, it's integral that they also become leaders on solutions -- and that we hold them accountable for the roles they need to play.

Doubling Latinx representation in Hollywood. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, jalong with Eva Longoria, Zoe Saldana and other Hollywood stars, launched an initiative to "empower the next generation of Latinx leaders" and double the Latino representation in Hollywood by 2030 -- which has declined by 50% in the last decade (even though Latinx moviegoers make up nearly 25% of movie theater audiences).

10 ways purposeful business will evolve in 2020. The Purpose Collaborative, the world’s first and largest collective of purpose-first agencies and experts, shared its members’ 2020 predictions on how purposeful businesses will need to evolve in the year ahead.

Nike is building a basketball court at the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. Jorge Casimiro, Nike’s Chief Social & Community Impact Officer and Nike Foundation President, discusses Nike’s commitment to help build an athletic facility at the Obama Presidential Center — and why Nike partners for impact.

Sweetgreen comes clean on their sustainability journey. Running a purpose-led business is a journey, and one where the means have to justify the ends. Sweetgreen executive Kevin Quandt gives an inside look at how Sweetgreen is on a constant journey to improve its impact on the environment; and what it does when it doesn't meet its own standards.

Scientists, designers, and activists are working together to tackle fashion's sustainability problem. The climate emergency we find ourselves in today demands that fashion and science harness the power of each other to fulfill our collective global climate goals. There are some good perspectives in this piece on how that needs to happen.

A roadmap for redefining the purpose of business. As global executives meet at Davos in Switzerland, Colin Mayer, Professor of Management Studies, at Oxford, defines corporate purpose as producing “profitable solutions to the problems of people and planet, and not to profit from producing problems for people or planet. It is about producing solutions, doing so profitably not just philanthropically, and measuring fair – not fake – profits."

Climate activists turn their attention to CEOs. Greta Thunberg's rousing speech at the UN General Assembly led to not much action at the UN's Climate Summit, just a few weeks later. So activists are now turning their attention to global business leaders who can move faster. There's a specific push on Siemens, for example. (This is one of the main reasons why we decided to build Kindred.)

Are Davos' attendees' words bigger than their actions? Criticism, scrutiny, and jadedness abound as we approach the annual executive and politician retreat.

Capitalism under fire. Despite a strong global economy, people are increasingly skeptical about how they will continue to fare under the current forms of capitalism.

Hyatt and Headspace partner on mindfulness and meditation. It's really worth reading this press release, as it's a great example of how a brand/company can partner with another in a way that is mutually beneficial, and clearly brings out its corporate mission for both its employees and customers.

Activist April Reign reflects on #OscarsSoWhite and its continued relevance today. April Reign created the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite, a viral call-to-action that turned into a social movement and spurred the Academy to change the composition of its membership, adding more women and people of color. But she says there is still lots of room for improvement -- and the onus is on everyone. April is also a Kindred 2020 speaker.

UK society wants greater control on everyday issues. Mindshare's just-published annual trends report shows that people want to have a better grasp of control over each aspect of their lives, particularly against a backdrop of recent economic and political uncertainty in the UK market.

Microsoft makes waves with a "carbon negative" pledge. As they say, "big if true." Microsoft has pledged to remove "all of the carbon" from the environment that it has emitted since the company was founded in 1975. CEO Satya Nadella said he wanted to achieve the goal by 2050. To do so, the company aims to become "carbon negative" by 2030, removing more carbon from the environment than it emits.

B Labs makes it easier for employers to find job seekers who want to be a force for good. As more workers seek jobs that provide a sense of purpose as well as a competitive salary, B Labs is rolling out a new addition to its screening assessment to help employers identify workers who want to be a force for good on the job. Fun fact: B Corporations attract 2x as many applicants as non-B Corporations.

There's a global trust crisis. Edelman's 2020 Trust Barometer study is out, and the findings are in. “We are living in a trust paradox,” said Richard Edelman, CEO of Edelman in a press release. “Fears are stifling hope, as long-held assumptions about hard work leading to upward mobility are now invalid.” More people trust business than government to address global challenges. But is it enough?

The global parental leave paradox. Parental leave is steadily becoming ubiquitous around the world, but workplace cultures in many countries continue to prevent employees — especially fathers — from taking time off.

How hasn't this toothpaste packaging been thought of before?

And that's a wrap. A new edition of Kindred's Good for Business drops every Monday (usually). If you enjoy this, please share it with your colleagues and friends. It's easy and fun to do!

Don't miss your chance to attend or sponsor Kindred 2020 (San Diego, May 11-14, 2020) — THE event for sustainable, purpose-led business transformation. Now, every ticket purchase gives you an option to give a portion of the price to the charity of your choice.