Business is Personal: Putting people and planet before profit

Chad Dickerson, CEO of Etsy, visits the RSA to share his experiences of building an internationally-renowned sustainable enterprise, and to challenge the notion that people and planet can’t come first in business.

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It’s easy to look at mainstream commerce and consumption and see that we have lost the connections to how items we consume are produced and made, and to the people behind them. But how can we minimize the harm and maximize the positive impact that businesses have on others and the planet, and how are the brands driving value-led change in this arena faring?The popular online marketplace Etsy is one of the world’s leading examples of what the RSA has termed ‘enlightened enterprises’. By emphasising artisanship over mass-production; community over anonymity; recycling and reinvention over waste; and relying on the passion, craftsmanship and entrepreneurship of its members, Etsy now has over 25 million members and 60 million unique visitors every month.

Speaker: Chad Dickerson, CEO of Etsy, visits the RSA to share his experiences of building an internationally-renowned sustainable enterprise, and to challenge the notion that people and planet can’t come first in business.

Chair: Dr Adam Lent is director of programme at the RSA.