A timely and fascinating account of the revolution going on in the world of finance from the acclaimed author of Double Entry. This is the story of a twenty-first-century revolution being led by the most unlikely of rebels: accountants. Only the second revolution in accounting since double-entry bookkeeping began, it is of seismic proportions, driven by the 2008 financial crash and our ongoing environmental crisis. The changes it will wreak are profound and far-reaching and not only will transform the way the world does business but also will alter the nature of capitalism. While the wealth of nations and corporations has been vital to the global economy, increasingly the world is coming to realize that such endless growth is limited by the earth's resources and comes at a huge price to the planet and to human well-being. It simply cannot be sustained. This revolution demands that we go beyond merely accounting for traditional financial and industrial capital and take account of the benefits and detriments to the natural world and society. It urges us to include four new categories of wealth: intellectual (such as intellectual property), human (skills, productivity, and health), social and relationship (shared norms and values), and natural (environment). Making them part of our financial statements and GDP figures may be the only way to address the many calamities we face. Just two years ago this revolution seemed idealistic and unlikely. Today it is quickly unfolding. In 2012, the sea-change year, two key initiatives took root: an international movement to transform how corporate accounting is calculated and the rise of incorporating the effects on the environment to the accounting of national and global economies. Six Capitals tells the story of this coming new age in capitalism, evaluating its promise and the disaster that lies ahead if it is not implemented.

A timely and fascinating account of the revolution going on in the world of finance from the acclaimed author of Double Entry. This is the story of a twenty-first-century revolution being led by the most unlikely of rebels: accountants. Only the second revolution in accounting since double-entry bookkeeping began, it is of seismic proportions, driven by the 2008 financial crash and our ongoing environmental crisis. The changes it will wreak are profound and far-reaching and not only will transform the way the world does business but also will alter the nature of capitalism. While the wealth of nations and corporations has been vital to the global economy, increasingly the world is coming to realize that such endless growth is limited by the earth's resources and comes at a huge price to the planet and to human well-being. It simply cannot be sustained. This revolution demands that we go beyond merely accounting for traditional financial and industrial capital and take account of the benefits and detriments to the natural world and society. It urges us to include four new categories of wealth: intellectual (such as intellectual property), human (skills, productivity, and health), social and relationship (shared norms and values), and natural (environment). Making them part of our financial statements and GDP figures may be the only way to address the many calamities we face. Just two years ago this revolution seemed idealistic and unlikely. Today it is quickly unfolding. In 2012, the sea-change year, two key initiatives took root: an international movement to transform how corporate accounting is calculated and the rise of incorporating the effects on the environment to the accounting of national and global economies. Six Capitals tells the story of this coming new age in capitalism, evaluating its promise and the disaster that lies ahead if it is not implemented.

This is the story of a 21st century revolution being led by the most unlikely of rebels: accountants. It is only the second revolution in accounting since double-entry bookkeeping emerged in medieval Italy - and it is of seismic proportions, driven by the 2008 financial crash and the environmental crisis. The changes it will wreak are profound and far-reaching. They will transform not only the way the world does business but alter the very nature of corporate capitalism. The accounts of nations and corporations are vital to the 21st century global economy. They translate value into the language of modern times - numbers and money - in the shape of GDP and profit figures. They rule the world. But increasingly the world is coming to realise that the seemingly endless growth that capital offers us is in fact limited by the earth's resources and comes at a huge price to the planet and our own wellbeing. It simply cannot be sustained. This revolution demands that we start accounting for nature and society. It urges us to rethink our idea of capital, insisting that the familiar categories of industrial and financial capital bequeathed by the mercantile and industrial ages be broadened to include four new categories of wealth: intellectual, human, social and natural. Incorporating them into our financial statements and GDP figures could be the only way to address the many crises we face today. Just two years ago this revolution seemed idealistic and unlikely. Today it is unfolding at speed. 2012 was the sea-change year, in which two key initiatives took root: an international movement to transform corporate accounting, and the rise of natural capital accounting for nations and the global economy. Six Capitals tells the story of their rise to prominence, which signals a new age in capitalism, and evaluates their promise - and their threat. The revolution is here. But will we embrace its potential or deny its urgency? Can accountants save the planet - or will we destroy it for future generations?

FULLY REVISED AND UPDATED 'A fascinating read. Gleeson-White artfully captivates the reader as she explores the fast-evolving language, metrics, actors and laws that are profoundly reshaping "capital" in the 21st century.' KATE RAWORTH, author of Doughnut Economics Climate change is here and capitalism is implicated: it's programmed to privilege profit and growth over human communities and the living earth. We need to change this system - and we need to do it now. Six Capitals charts the rise of four movements designed to overthrow capitalism as we know it: multi-capital accounting, for society, nature and profit; the push for a new corporation legally bound to benefit nature and society while making a profit; ecosystem accounting for nations; and legal rights for nature, which resonate with indigenous earth-centred laws.These movements are critical for the future of human life on this planet. Together they override the profit-driven modern corporation, the growth-driven nation state and the legal status of the natural world as lifeless property. Multi-capital and ecosystem accounting, benefit corporations and the rights of nature movement are here to stay. Six Capitals tells their story, from their first emergence in the postwar era to today. This revised, updated edition is for the new generations of business leaders, entrepreneurs, activists, accountants, economists, scientists, farmers, food growers and distributors, teachers, parents, politicians, bureaucrats and concerned citizens everywhere. 'broaden financial reports to include measures of social and environmental issues and just watch how it changes the behaviour of business people. Gleeson-White makes a good case for the success of her unlikely revolutionaries.' ROSS GITTINS, Sydney Morning Herald 'Six Capitals reveals the critical role of accounting in reimagining the way we do business and make policy in the twenty-first century. It's time for everyone to pay attention.' CARL OBST, lead author, United Nations System of Environmental-Economic Accounting

Climate change is here and capitalism is implicated: it's programmed to privilege profit and growth over human communities and the living earth. We need to change this system - and we need to do it now. Six Capitals charts the rise of four movements designed to overthrow capitalism as we know it: multi-capital accounting, for society, nature and profit; the push for a new corporation legally bound to benefit nature and society while making a profit; ecosystem accounting for nations; and legal rights for nature, which resonate with indigenous earth-centred laws. These movements are critical for the future of human life on this planet. Together they override the profit-driven modern corporation, the growth-driven nation state and the legal status of the natural world as lifeless property. Multi-capital and ecosystem accounting, benefit corporations and the rights of nature movement are here to stay. Six Capitals tells their story, from their first emergence in the post-war era to today. This revised, updated edition is for the new generations of business leaders, entrepreneurs, activists, accountants, economists, scientists, farmers, food growers and distributors, teachers, parents, politicians, bureaucrats and concerned citizens everywhere.

This book analyses how and why we are living at a critical moment in the history of human life on earth and explores how we find grounds for the hopes that will enable us to address the challenges and crises of our time. The author analyses hope both practically and philosophically as a generative virtue to realistically discern the situations in which we find ourselves, and imaginatively to anticipate possibilities when the future is unknown and uncertain. The author argues that hope is a mean between anomy, disillusionment, and despair, on the one hand, and wishful thinking, dreaming, and fanaticizing, on the other hand. The book not only examines – and analyzes from a historical perspective - the contemporary crises such as climate change, environmental degradation and its effects such as the social costs of these developments, but also further analyzes the character and micro-dynamics of hope and how it makes a difference in how we manage the crises which inevitably emerge. Though contemporary crises are those we tend to focus on, the author also engages with what is involved in a due regard for history and the relevance of a sense of history for addressing the crises of our time. He shows us what we can learn from revisiting some thoughtful reflections by thinkers like Niebuhr, Jaspers, Camus, and Arendt. Finally, the author shows us what is involved practically in anticipating possibilities, by looking at hope as a social practice and noting how hopeful people make a difference.

This book addresses the growing interest among policymakers, practitioners and academics in the evolution and the future implications of social, environmental and sustainability accounting. To do so, it examines the conceptual and practical application of accountability at multiple levels and contexts, and presents a range of case studies focusing on salient issues, perspectives and the potential of multidimensional accounting and reporting regimes. Intended for a diverse audience, the book allows readers to gain a better understanding of the topics, encourages dialogue and debate, and stimulates innovation in scholarship, policy and practice.