Bold Choices, Collaboration, and Viable Innovation with Climate Technology Leaders… At a networking event organized by HBS’s Business & Environment Initiative (BEI), I met with leaders of some of the world’s most exciting climate technology startups.
The goal: To build a bridge between academia and business. The topic of discussion: What should the business world do today to address the climate crisis?
Here are 5 critical takeaways I jotted down in my notebook that night, which every leader can implement in their own organization.
5 Leadership Takeaways (with panelists’ names)
1. Mitchell Goldstein (CFO, Commonwealth Fusion Systems) – “Fusion will become a commercial reality, but don’t wait.”
Takeaway: Don’t put off what you can do today while waiting for big technological leaps. Leadership means “today,” not “someday.”
2. Pasi Miettinen (CEO, Sagewell Inc.) – “Data is the new currency of climate action.”
Takeaway: You can’t manage what you don’t measure. Carbon reduction is a “data science” problem, not a “goodwill” problem.
3. Emily Stoler (Principal Scientist, Wyss Institute) – “Nature is our greatest technology platform.”
Takeaway: High-tech solutions are exciting, but we must consider nature-based solutions with the same seriousness.
4. Prof. Mike Toffel (BEI Faculty Chair) – “Regulations cannot replace leadership.”
Conclusion: The fastest transformation happens through government intervention, yes. But leaders should be in a position to shape regulations, not just wait for them to be implemented.
5. Networking itself – “The climate crisis is not a problem that can be solved alone.”
Conclusion: The common thread among everyone I spoke to that night: Nothing happens without collaboration. Perhaps even with your competitors.
So how does all this global debate benefit me?
I left Harvard with this conclusion: Great transformations begin with small but measurable steps.
From HBS Research to Frontline Action: 5 Ways to Rethink Decarbonization
1. MODE SWITCHING: AIR TO SEA SHIPPING
HBS insight: Shifting routes from air to sea is one of the fastest ways to reduce carbon in logistics.
Max Energy sentence:
“Just as HBS shifts from air to sea to lower carbon, Max Energy shifts companies from passive consumption to active energy generation. Your employees’ every step is no longer a cost – it’s a power source.”
2. FUEL SWITCHING: GREEN FUEL PRODUCTION
HBS insight: Switching fuel is the most fundamental step of decarbonization. Zero-carbon green fuel production is the future of industry.
Max Energy sentence:
“While HBS invests in green fuel production, Max Energy asks a more radical question: What if, instead of buying energy from outside, we generated it from within? Every walking, jumping, pedaling employee is a human kinetic power plant. Max Energy turns that potential into measurable carbon savings.”
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3. FUEL SWITCHING & AUTONOMY: CARGO TRUCKING
HBS insight: Fuel switching + autonomy = a multiplier effect on carbon reduction.
Max Energy sentence:
“Just as autonomy and green fuel revolutionize trucking, ‘energy autonomy’ revolutionizes your organization. Max Energy transforms employee movement into a decentralized, individual energy generation system – turning companies into self-powered, autonomous organizations. Leadership is no longer just strategy. It is making every person’s energy visible.”
4. FUEL SWITCHING: CONTAINER SHIPPING
HBS insight: Fuel transition in container ships – the backbone of global trade – is essential for global carbon reduction.
Max Energy sentence:
“As container ships transition to ammonia and methanol, companies are transitioning to human energy. Max Energy goes beyond being ‘carbon neutral’ – it creates ‘energy positive’ organizations. Not just consuming, but producing. Not just reducing, but transforming. This is not an environmental strategy. This is tomorrow’s competitive advantage.”
5. FUEL SWITCHING: SCHOOL BUSES
HBS insight: Even the smallest-scale fuel switching (school buses) creates meaningful social impact.
Max Energy sentence (emotional & social impact focused):
“Harvard aims to electrify school buses so children breathe cleaner air. Max Energy turns your employees’ every step into tangible proof of your responsibility to future generations. According to Ipsos, 30% in Turkey believe ‘it’s too late.’ Max Energy says: ‘It’s not too late. It’s exactly the right time.’ Step by step. Jump by jump. Pedal by pedal. Because leadership is not just a balance sheet. It is the world you leave to the next generation.”
HBS Climate Research – And What They Mean for Leadership
Harvard Business School’s climate research focuses on large-scale system transformation: ships, trucks, buses. But what if transformation didn’t have to wait for a new fleet? What if it could start today, right now, in your office?
Max Energy is the answer to that question. It converts your employees’ movement into measurable carbon savings, into your ESG report, into your brand’s story of radical transparency.
You can wait for fusion energy. Or you can start walking today. Because leadership is not just big strategies. It is every small step you take.
Max Energy does exactly that:
- It turns every step your employees take into measurable carbon savings.
- It provides GRI-compliant data for your ESG report.
- It sends a message to Generation Z that “good things are happening here.”
While you wait for fusion energy, you can start with the treadmill in your office today.
I remember a question from a participant at the BEI event: “What’s the biggest obstacle?” The answer: “Getting people to stop saying ‘it’s too late’ and start saying ‘we’re starting now.’”
Leadership isn’t just about grand strategies. It’s about every decision made, every step taken, today, here, now.
Here are three questions for you:
How do you convince those in your company who say “it’s too late”? Do you see carbon reduction as a “cost” or an “opportunity”? Are you making your employees a part of this transformation?
