Can business be a cultural force for good?

There is an image of a person in front of two ladders leading to the same destination. One ladder has steps too far apart, requiring an immense stretch to climb. The other has smaller gaps between steps, making the climb more manageable. Both reach the same place – but with differing experiences. One seems almost impossible while the other is easier from the outset. Whenever I am frustrated, I am reminded of this image and hear Dad’s voice, “Just one baby step at a time and you’ll get there.”

Dad has been working on the green building movement in the Philippines since 2009. He started when nobody else seemed interested, except maybe Mom, whom he watched building our sustainable farmhouse. He was inspired by what he learned from her. He was inspired to create structures that would not only stand tall but serve more people. It became a larger sustainable dream and a blueprint for a better world. “For my children, and my children’s children,” is what he says. As a businessman, company leader, and visionary, he began the momentous task: taking the extra time at every baby step of the way to teach and educate this one person, then another, as he slowly created an entire culture of sustainability from the ground up at Arthaland. From carefully evaluating land to ensure it's safe for future communities, to sourcing eco-friendly materials, and even engineering the country's first commercial bamboo building, his focus has always been on purposeful design. These achievements in a third-world nation where sustainability was not part of the culture of developers seem so big, so insurmountable. But Dad took the baby steps needed and they have amounted to big strides in the long run.

I love this quote by Fred Rogers. He said “We live in a world in which we need to share responsibility. It's easy to say, 'It's not my child, not my community, not my world, not my problem.' Then there are those who see the need and respond. I consider those people my heroes.” So can a business be a cultural force for good? Yes. Does it require a lot more time? A lot more effort? And ultimately even less profit? Yes. Yes. And yes. But Dad saw the need to respond to environmental concerns and he took one deliberate baby step after another to change the status quo and build a culture for a better world. I guess that’s why he’s always been my hero.