Capitalism at the Crossroads: Aligning Business, Earth, and Humanity, Second Edition

9. Toward a Sustainable Global Enterprise

When the hijacked planes flew into the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, many believed that the world had changed fundamentally. They were wrong. The world was exactly the same as it had been the day before. The horrific events of 9/11 simply focused our attention in a new way: It was now clear that the world was inextricably interconnected and that unrest in one part of the globe would not remain geographically isolated.

Many in the wealthy nations of the West—particularly the United States—became aware, perhaps for the first time, of what others in developing countries had known for a long time: When people are desperate, disenfranchised, or humiliated, they will resort ...