Regeneration is a necessary course correction, an intentional shift away from extractive systems toward ones that prioritise balance, reciprocity, and long-term thriving. It challenges the dominant profit-first, short-term mindset by recognizing that true value isn’t measured solely in money, but in our ability to sustain life, human and non-human, together.
A regenerative system, like nature itself, gives back more than it takes. At its core, it acknowledges that our current systems are broken, and that survival depends not on domination, but on cooperation with the living world.
With growing distrust in institutions and governments to fix the damage, it is now up to individuals, communities, and organisations to step into this responsibility, to restore, to rebalance, and to regenerate.
Good Life X, an innovations and development catalyst in Sri Lanka, is firmly rooted in enabling businesses, organisations, and creative communities to make the shift from extractive to regenerative.
This enables organisations to move away from the singular focus on profit and shareholder value maximisation and co-create solutions that will enable wealth and value creation for the generations to come.
Making ecological and societal concerns an integrated part of the answer, while creating and enabling eco systems instead of silos, is the way forward.
Organisations must begin to think of themselves as stewards of planetary and human wellbeing, which can happen through a myriad of ways, yet it is difficult to make the transition, convince others of your mission and conceptualise what would work and what would not.
It is with this understanding that the Thrive Canvas was developed.
The Thrive Canvas was co-created by Good Life X to support this transition through a framework that maps out the multiple avenues through which organisations can contribute to ecologically and socially sustainable systems.
By positioning their current activities onto the Canvas, organisations can identify opportunities, challenges, gaps and links which can be refined to build a more regenerative system of operation.
The Canvas is divided into nine distinct pillars and together they form a holistic framework that supports innovation that helps any entity do well for oneself, the planet and its people.
Organisations which invest in regenerative practices will begin to see success in greater ways than achieving the normative sales goals or employee motivation statistics.
The regenerative approach towards building a company is seeing each asset, whether it’s a person, place, process, or material, beyond functional use but as entities of deeper value creation.
Further, it involves creating new value in the already-existing and understanding the impact of our actions which create ripple effects on ecosystems, communities and generations to come.
Take the example of Interface Inc. Its founder, Ray Anderson, described his epiphany as a “spear in the heart” moment in 1994, when an employee challenged him with a simple question: What is your company doing for the environment?
At the time, Interface was a highly profitable carpet manufacturer following standard industry compliance practices but that question sparked a deep reckoning. Anderson soon realised that meeting minimum legal requirements was not enough.
He committed to transforming Interface’s business model from the ground up, addressing climate change at every level. What began as a mission to reach net zero evolved into a bold vision to become climate negative, removing more carbon than the company emits (UNFCCC, 2023).
Today, Interface stands as a global sustainability leader, valued at over one billion dollars, proving that regeneration and profitability can go hand in hand.
Good Life X is working with organisations in Sri Lanka to make this transition. Our work with the Thrive Canvas is divided into three consecutive action plans, with the first being the Thrive Masterclass: A comprehensive half day session introducing attendees to the Thrive Canvas, and a practical overview of how it can be implemented.
Startups, established companies, non-profit organisations, government bodies, creative communities, innovation agencies, and any curious individuals are welcome to join. Contact us at ‘connect@goodlifex.com’ to enrol for the session, and take the first step towards your regenerative journey.
(The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of this publication.)