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Since 2006, the B Movement has produced evidence that it is possible to think and do business differently. We recognize that this progress is important and insufficient in the face of the exponential challenges we are experiencing, both climate and society. We have been able to help build a new business culture, but we need to foster structural changes in the rules of the game.
According to the World Bank, there are more than 125 million businesses in the world. How can we help businesses behave like businesses with the purpose of being accountable to their stakeholders and earning a commitment to measure, manage and be transparent about their impact? It is precisely in response to this challenge that legal frameworks have emerged that are redefining the role of businesses in society. In 2010, the U.S. state of Maryland passed this law for the first time. Benefit Co., Ltd.. More than 50 different jurisdictions have now passed this legislation, and 30,000 companies in 44 states have adopted it. At the global level, eight other countries have approved similar regulations, including five in Latin America: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Uruguay, and Panama.
The most important climate conference in history has already begun. COP30 must usher in a new moment: a shift from an era of negotiation to an era of implementation. Latin America has a historic opportunity to contribute to this global economic transformation. The COP30 manifesto produced by the B Movement from Belém do Para, Brazil, proposes interdependence as a new economic intelligence and resilience strategy. The future of business is no longer based on extractivism, but on a legal obligation to care for the planet and communities – an architecture of change that connects prosperity, justice and regeneration.
The linear, extractive model that dominated the last century has brought the planet and society to breaking point. Seven of the nine planetary limits have now been exceeded, while inequality continues to grow. The richest 1% have captured almost two-thirds of the new wealth created since 2020. This system of governance cannot balance growth and welfare.
In the context of economic and environmental crisis, the COP30 manifesto emerges as a concrete roadmap. Evidence-based evidence shows that the scalability of B Corporation practices (organizations that advance the B movement and meet the highest standards of social and environmental performance) can reduce global warming by 0.5 degrees Celsius by 2100, prevent 600,000 heat-related deaths, and reduce the risk of extinction for thousands of species.
Key to this redesign is stakeholder governance, forcing workers, communities and nature to be formally considered in decision-making. In this way, companies can embed purpose into the fiduciary responsibility of their managers, set science-based goals, and thrive without disrupting.
This architecture of change is based on three pillars: a just transition rooted in human dignity, due diligence across the value chain, and a shift from extractivism to ecodesign and circularity. Public policy must penalize the destruction of natural and social capital while encouraging sustainable value creation.
Home to more than 40% of the world’s biodiversity, Latin America is home to fundamental ancestral wisdom about the interdependence of humans and nature. Belém calls on the Amazon to become a laboratory for this new paradigm, demonstrating that competitiveness and social equity are complementary objectives.
The Manifesto argues that this interdependence is the new economic intelligence. No business can succeed in a divided society and a sick planet. Caring for people and the environment is not an ethical concession, but rather a recovery strategy and the best preparation for the future.
Latin America today has a unique opportunity to lead the redesign of the global economy, linking prosperity, justice and regeneration. The future of the economy will not be decisively decided only at the summit, but will be determined by the consistency of decisions made by businesses and the people every day.
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