Elephant in the Boardroom: Why Unchecked Consumption is Not an Option in Tomorrow’s Markets

The document asserts that most business growth remains dependent on selling more goods to a growing global population, a model that is incompatible with finite natural resources. It warns that continuing this approach will lead to increased business risks and costs, as efficiency improvements are insufficient to offset anticipated growth. The paper calls for the adoption of new models, such as circular manufacturing and collaborative consumption, to ensure long-term viability in a resource-constrained world.

• Current business growth models are largely based on increasing the volume of goods sold to a growing population, with the global population expected to exceed 9 billion by 2050 and the middle class to grow by 3 billion by 2030.
• Maintaining current business-as-usual consumption patterns would result in a demand for resources three times higher than current levels, exceeding the planet's capacity to provide.
• Existing efficiency improvements are inadequate to counteract the projected global growth in consumption across consumer durables, fast-moving consumer goods, and consumables.
• There is a significant lack of attention to natural resource limits within corporate sustainability reports, and the traditional model of consumption-driven growth remains an unaddressed 'elephant in the corporate boardroom'.
• Alternative business models that deliver value without increasing resource use—such as circular manufacturing, collaborative consumption, and selling services instead of products—exist but have not yet become mainstream.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Elephant in the Boardroom: Why Unchecked Consumption is Not an Option in Tomorrow’s Markets. https://www.wri.org/research/elephant-boardroom-why-unchecked-consumption-not-option-tomorrows-markets

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Elephant in the Boardroom: Why Unchecked Consumption is Not an Option in Tomorrow’s Markets. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/elephant-boardroom-why-unchecked-consumption-not-option-tomorrows-markets.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Elephant in the Boardroom: Why Unchecked Consumption is Not an Option in Tomorrow’s Markets |url=https://www.wri.org/research/elephant-boardroom-why-unchecked-consumption-not-option-tomorrows-markets |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendelephant, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Elephant in the Boardroom: Why Unchecked Consumption is Not an Option in Tomorrow’s Markets}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/elephant-boardroom-why-unchecked-consumption-not-option-tomorrows-markets}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }