The way forward for EBBF
The elected 2007/2008 EBBF board offered this statement as the starting point for its strategy for the next years:
"EBBF is a community that sees an opportunity and a responsibility to contribute to the well-being of humanity, and then looks for practical ways to act upon it, giving each member an opportunity to make a difference.
Rather than looking at what is wrong in the world today, EBBF's aim is to show how organizations and most importantly the people in those organizations can adapt from an old to a new world order underlining the virtues and opportunities of human beings and the way they relate with each other."
The role at a turning point
The world is reaching a turning point where economic, social and environmental instabilities signal the unsustainability of present trends and the need for the world economy and society to turn in a new direction. The increasing weight and role of business in world affairs emphasizes both its responsibility in creating many of the problems besetting the world and its growing opportunities in finding creative solutions to these problems.
In this context, EBBF can have a potentially significant role in turning the world away from crises by raising up people who can inspire responsible business. We are challenged to understand and apply the core values that EBBF sees as critical to business success and show that they work in practice. We must find the language to speak of spiritual concepts in a business framework. We must have the courage to break out of the existing paradigms of business, the entrepreneurial spirit to see and seize opportunities, and the vision to move business to fulfil its potential to contribute to the prosperity of humankind. We can draw on the rich diversity of experience in our membership, our partners and the outside community to look beyond business and integrate into business many outside factors critical to its success. We should explore new business frameworks that can contribute to the evolution of a new more altruistic and cooperative economic system able to create employment and reduce poverty in the world. We must recognize that there is a a role for everyone in this process regardless of their level in the business or community, as this new system must grow from the grassroots in response to real needs and priorities. We should help everyone to see how our values open up this potential and enable everyone to participate, to be ourselves in a new enterprise, to contribute practically to a better world.
Key principles and values
We recognize that no one has all the answers to our present problems, but that spiritual principles and our core values can guide us in the right direction. We have learned some things and are ready to share them, and shall keep learning about others as we go forward with many friends and partners. We believe, and therefore we act on our beliefs, and try to learn from the outcomes how we can do even better.
Business must come to see that it has a key role in pushing for improvements in global governance necessary to manage the world economy and to create a level playing field in which businesses can operate efficiently. We must help business to rise to the challenges and opportunities this represents to lay the pattern for future society.
We look forward to walking this path with you, finding new ways and reinforcing the successful old ones that will make EBBF and its community relevant to you, to your needs and to your challenges.
