From Sustainability to Regeneration: The Transformation of Techno-Economic Paradigms

The technological change that has transformed the world in the last two centuries has been facilitated by new modes of finance and governance, engineering, management and organization. Recurrent waves of innovation have delivered mechanization, steam power, railroads, steel, electricity, the internal combustion engine, petrochemicals, electronics, aviation, digital networks, information technology, biotechnology, big data, the industrial internet of things, and cloud computing. However, the next fundamental waves of innovation will be typified by environmental science, including biotechnology, renewable energy, green technology and regenerative industries, and this will form successive revolutions in sustainability and regeneration. The concept of changing paradigms goes beyond the technological transformation achieved by advances in digital technology in recent decades, to encompass the dramatic changes that have occurred in terms of globalisation of value chains and cultures, strategic rethinking of business purpose and direction, transformation of organisations and conceptions of stakeholders, and most of all the all-embracing imperatives in a resource constrained world of sustainability and regeneration. These new waves are overwhelming economies and societies, with the objective of sustaining the environment and ecology upon which we all survive (Clarke 2019; Clarke 2023; Clarke, Benn and Edwards 2026; Clarke and Clegg 2000). The overwhelming ambitions of business and technology have to be tempered by the increasing realization that we are reaching the limits of environmental planetary boundaries, and these must not be transgressed if we wish to ensure the survival of humanity and the stability of the planet. The ecological limits of the planet have now a scientific basis in the planetary boundaries framework (Rockström et al 2009). The concept of a “safe operating space for humanity” is based on the best knowledge of the fundamental dynamics of the earth system: the planetary processes that together maintain climate stability and ecological resilience. The regeneration paradigm ironically has the task of restoring all the ecological damage created since the beginning of the industrial revolution. The first paradigmatic shift towards mechanization and steam power, besides greatly expanding the material wealth of human economy and society, began an unfortunate and ultimately disastrous destruction of the natural world, and ultimately of the ecology of the planet. All of the paradigm shifts that have occurred in the last two centuries have in some way contributed mightily to this despoilation of nature, and undermining of the ecological balance. Now it is time to repair the damage before it is too late. Instead of destroying nature we have to work in service of nature, restoring and enhancing ecosystems and diversity. In the process we have to work towards reducing the harshness of inequalities that undermine societies and promote the well-being of communities. The advance of the well-being and health of the people and the planet, providing habitat for native plants and animal species that have been brought to the brink of extinction is a worthy goal. We have to create the means to withstand the dangers of climate change with nature based design, developing new protective eco-systems. If we achieve all this, the regenerative paradigm will be recognized as the greatest human and scientific achievement of all (Konietzko, Das and Bocken 2023).