Member Article

Oxford resource forum to feature Bill Clinton

Former US President Bill Clinton will join Nobel prize-winning economist Amartya Sen and film director James Cameron at Oxford University for a forum on resource scarcity.

The forum will focus on resource scarcity and volatility, and how continued access to food, energy and water as demographic rapidly change.

An audience mainly comprising investors will hear about the financial advantages for businesses who seize the opportunities generated by a shift towards greater efficiency.

Other notable attendees will include Amory Lovins, named as one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world; David Miliband MP; the UN’s Special Representative on Food Security and Nutrition, David Nabarro; and former CEO of Tesco, Sir Terry Leahy.

The Re|Source 2012 event in July will discuss how demographic changes such as increasing populations, growth of middle classes and rising living standards in emerging economies will offer opportunities, providing that resource efficiency is increased in these areas.

Participants will also discuss investment in infrastructure and disruptive technological innovations, and will look at how a longer-term investment horizon can lead to gaining a competitive advantage.

Sir David King, Co-Director of the event and former chief scientific adviser to the government said: “There is no doubt that our current model of growth is unsustainable – and these pressures are only set to deepen in future years.

“CEOs and investors must realise now more than ever that profitability need not rely on increased resource use.

“The international financial community has the power to enact huge change to the current global system.

“Companies need to address these issues head-on and understand that resource efficiency and longer term thinking are potent drivers of shareholder value.

“Re|Source 2012 hopes to spark change by presenting a compelling financial case for solving these issues, exploring viable, commercial and proven solutions towards a sustainable future.

“The way in which business leaders respond to these issues will shape the competitive landscape over the next 20 years and beyond.

“Through Re|Source 2012 we are hoping to move away from the scaremongering and negative perceptions of the past and instead generate new ways of thinking about these critical global issues.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .