The Regenerative Society

Overview

In 2015, Andrea Illy found out that 50% of the world’s arable coffee land would become unavailable by 2050 due to climate change. This realization marked the beginning of a journey that led him to rethink the relationship between business and nature, growth and well-being.Conceived as a map, this book describes a possible transformation from the extractive paradigm that has dominated Western economies since Descartes and Bacon to a regenerative model that places people at the center, as custodians of natural capital. Across eighteen chapters and dozens of interviews with regenerative pioneers, Illy explores the frontiers of a revolution already underway.This is not an environmental utopia. With scientific precision, Illy documents how companies adopting regenerative practices systematically outperform traditional ones: renewable energy sources now cost less than fossil fuels, and cities designed for people generate cascading benefits for society as a whole. The question the author seeks to answer is not whether this transformation is possible, but what must be done to make it tangible for everyone.

Author Biography

Andrea Illy is Chairman of illycaffè S.p.A., founded in Trieste in 1933, and served as Chief Executive Officer for twenty-two years. He is Co-Chair of the Regenerative Society Foundation. He holds a degree in Chemistry from the University of Trieste, an Executive Master from SDA Bocconi, and completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. He studied Total Quality Management in Japan, Innovation at MIT in Boston, Exponential Technologies at Singularity University, and Complexity Science at the University of Oxford. He has published Espresso Coffee