Every day, millions of people give their time and creativity to the world without asking for anything in return. Think of YouTube tutorials, TikTok videos, or personal blogs. Behind them are countless hours of unpaid labor — people sharing knowledge, skills, or joy. We take it for granted, but this is a striking form of a gift economy in action.
Nature has always operated on this principle. When I walk through our garden, I see it overflowing with black currants, plums, apples, pears, raspberries, blackberries, mulberries, and grapes. Who benefits? The birds, the insects, we humans and the sheep. Our sheep are crazy about pears. If I don’t toss them the fallen fruit at the end of the day, I get an earful. They won’t stop bleating until they’ve had their share. A good reminder of assertiveness — and of sharing fairly 😉
The earth gives freely. Abundance is the rule. Scarcity the exception.
And yet, so much of our thinking — especially in economics and leadership — is based on the idea of scarcity. We talk about competition for limited resources, about efficiency and productivity. But if we look closely, the so-called “market economy” doesn’t exist in isolation. The lives of many people are built on invisible gifts like:
- the free labor of mothers and wives creating safe, nurturing homes
- the ecosystems that provide air, water, and food
- the digital commons where people share knowledge without expecting a transaction
to name a few. These invisible gifts are not side notes — they are the foundation of our livelihood and well-being. Leaders in sustainability need to start here: by seeing, valuing, and protecting what already sustains us.
For those of us working in sustainability, this shift in perspective is crucial. Leadership is not about extracting more from a system, but about recognizing the gifts that are already present and nurturing them. It’s about protecting the abundance of nature, valuing the unseen care work that sustains communities, cherishing the creativity and generosity that flow through digital spaces, and so on.
The question for leaders is simple:
What gifts are already present in your system? How can you circulate them, rather than deplete them?
Imagine walking across a farm that practices regenerative agriculture. At first glance, it looks like any other field — rows of crops swaying in the breeze. But the real magic happens beneath the surface. The soil is alive: a network of roots, microbes, and worms working together in quiet collaboration. Farmers here don’t just take from the land; they give back. They add compost, rotate crops, and plant cover crops.
Each action strengthens the soil’s ability to thrive, making it more resilient to storms, droughts, and heat. And when the soil is healthy, it gives back abundantly: nourishing plants, feeding pollinators, and supporting communities.
Now imagine applying this principle to leadership in a corporate setting, let’s say, in a solar panel manufacturing company. What if we led like regenerative farmers?
- With employees: Instead of extracting maximum output, we invest in their growth. We rotate responsibilities, offer space for learning, and build trust. Just as soil grows stronger when nourished, people thrive when their well-being is cared for.
- With customers: Instead of focusing only on transactions, we build long-term relationships. We listen deeply, adapt, and create solutions that meet their real needs. Reciprocity becomes the foundation of loyalty.
- With resources: Instead of consuming without thought, we find ways to give back: designing panels that are recyclable, reducing waste in production, and reinvesting in the communities where we operate. Like cover crops, these actions enrich the system rather than deplete it.
The lesson is simple: when we give back to the systems we depend on, they respond with resilience and abundance. Just like regenerative soil, a business culture grounded in reciprocity doesn’t just survive: it thrives.
For leaders in sustainability, this shift is key. Leadership is no longer about extraction; it’s about regeneration. It’s about asking,
What am I putting back into the system that allows it to thrive long after my work is done?
If we learn to lead from abundance rather than scarcity, we discover that sustainability is not something we have to invent. It is already here, woven into the fabric of life. Our role as sustainability leaders is to see it and to tend to it.