Making a Living in the Anthropocene, Vincent Stanley | Yale School of Management

Oct 15, 2024

On April 24, 2024, Vincent Stanley, Director of Philosophy at Patagonia and CBEY Resident Fellow, joined SOM’s Social Impact Lab to discuss the ways that businesses can contribute to restoring living systems.

On April 24, 2024, Vincent Stanley, Director of Philosophy at Patagonia and CBEY Resident Fellow, joined SOM’s Social Impact Lab to discuss the ways that businesses can contribute to restoring living systems. The talk aligned with Yale SOM’s mission to educate leaders for business and society and came at the right time for students pondering post-graduation employment.

Stanley underscored the benefits of working within business to drive social and environmental change, emphasizing the nimbleness and financial self-sustainability of the private sector in comparison to the public and non-profit sectors.

He then opened the discussion reflecting on three key lessons he learned throughout his time at Patagonia:

Finally, before opening the floor to questions, he highlighted a few key areas of future work for students interested in the intersection of business and the environment: electrification, regenerative organic agriculture, 30 x 30 conservation initiatives, circularity, and reconciliation ecology.

Stanley was asked about evaluating employment opportunities outside of responsible businesses such as Patagonia, and how to drive social and environmental impact in less impact-focused companies. Stanley advocated for students to look at employment opportunities within B-corps. “Don’t waste any time, exercise your values,” he advised.

Stanley closed the talk on an optimistic note, stressing that the human beings who work in business have human values, they just “need to be given permission” to drive impact.