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Caring Management in the New Economy pp 197–220Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Caring Entrepreneurship and Ecological Conscience—The Case of Patagonia Inc.

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Abstract

Entrepreneurship is critical for increasing the capacity for innovation and responsiveness of business. However, not all entrepreneurial activities are geared to solving the real and most serious problems facing society. One of the biggest challenges today is climate change, which is the major problem for the Earth and, in particular, for future generations. The paper asks what characterizes the development of the character of entrepreneurs who genuinely care about nature as a primordial stakeholder. It presents the case of Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, a clothing company which has succeeded in creating innovative solutions and has implemented a number of pro-social and pro-environmental activities that inspire other business leaders and organizations to create more sustainable practices. The paper gives an account of the background of Chouinard’s ecological consciousness that makes him and his business a role model for other companies. The paper also reflects upon what would be a fitting education for business leaders at a time when management theories and the field of economics are dominated by abstract conceptions according to which narrow self-interests and a mechanical worldview reduce nature to resources to be exploited.

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Acknowledgements

The author is grateful for comments received from anonymous reviewers, for the opportunity to present the ideas contained in this paper at the conference “New Economy, Old Traditions: Caring Entrepreneurship” in Tel-Aviv during 4–6 Sept, 2017, and for detailed comments by Peter Pruzan, Ora Setter, Bram Timmerman, and Laszlo Zsolnai on an earlier draft.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Norwegian School of Economics (NHH), Bergen, Norway

    Knut J. Ims

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  1. Knut J. Ims
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Correspondence to Knut J. Ims .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv, Israel

    Ora Setter

  2. Business Ethics Center, Corvinus University of Budapest, Budapest, Hungary

    László Zsolnai

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Ims, K.J. (2019). Caring Entrepreneurship and Ecological Conscience—The Case of Patagonia Inc.. In: Setter, O., Zsolnai, L. (eds) Caring Management in the New Economy. Palgrave Studies in Sustainable Business In Association with Future Earth. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14199-8_11

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