Navaka Navaratne, GRI Certified trans-disciplinary sustainability professional, with a career spanning multiple impactful roles at Dialog Axiata, 99X and Deloitte, shares his thoughts on the Good Life X developed Thrive Canvas.

It was launched in 2023, co-created by GLX Founder Randhula de Silva, GLX Alchemists Arj Wignaraja and Anushka Wijesinha, GLX Director Vihangun Ariyaratne, CEO Emma De Silva, Financial Consultant Savan Perera, Founder of RETRACE Hospitality Chalana Perera and Head of Social Sustainability at MAS, Amanthi Perera.

Through the use of this comprehensive tool, organisations can deeply redesign their core activities to integrate community and planet, whilst achieving financial prosperity.

The evolving landscape of corporate sustainability is increasingly defined by the concepts of impact materiality and financial materiality. While both are now accepted norms within sustainability foundations, the current regulatory emphasis on financial materiality, driven by standards like IFRS S1 and S2, is creating a potential imbalance.

There’s a growing concern that companies might deprioritise impact materiality, championed by frameworks like the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), especially if it isn’t directly mandated by regulations or specific stakeholder demands. This is understandable, given that a comprehensive approach to impact materiality, particularly when using a holistic framework such as GRI, can require significant effort and resources.

Initially, I considered the Thrive business model canvas as a potentially simpler, easier, and faster alternative to adopt compared to comprehensive and complex frameworks such as GRI. However, after engaging in insightful discussions with the creators at Good Life X, led by Arj, and taking a closer look at the Thrive model, my perspective shifted.

I realised that Thrive isn’t just a simplified sustainability strategy tool; it proposes a fundamental business model that embeds sustainability at its very core. This inherent integration means that for a company built upon or transitioning to the THRIVE framework, adopting other sustainability frameworks becomes a much more natural and straightforward process.

The reason why organisations often perceive sustainability as an additional burden requiring extensive effort is because their core operations were not originally designed with sustainability as a central tenet. Consequently, integrating sustainability can feel like an add-on, an extra layer rather than an intrinsic part of their operational DNA.

This often leads to the creation of separate sustainability strategies that - despite aiming to complement the core business - are frequently viewed as distinct exercises, thus hindering genuine integration and impact.

It is against this backdrop that the Thrive business model canvas emerges as a compelling alternative. Rooted in the familiar structure of the traditional business model canvas, Thrive places significant value on a business’ economic and financial viability. However, its key strength lies in its inherent integration of sustainability principles within this financially focused framework.

A business strategy built on the Thrive model naturally incorporates crucial elements of creating sustainable positive impact and reducing negative impacts. It encourages businesses to leverage their core strengths and engage their stakeholders in a manner that fosters sustainability. Importantly, Thrive transcends mere sustenance, aiming for a regenerative business model that actively contributes to the well-being of the planet and its people.

Consider a traditional manufacturing company. Using a conventional approach, they might develop a separate sustainability report based on GRI guidelines, meticulously detailing their environmental and social impacts. While valuable, this can feel disconnected from their core business strategy focused on production targets and profit margins.

In contrast, if this company adopted the Thrive model, they would be prompted to consider questions like: How can our sourcing of raw materials contribute to the regeneration of ecosystems? How can our production processes be redesigned to minimise waste and pollution while also reducing costs? How can we engage our customers in understanding the environmental footprint of our products and encourage more sustainable consumption patterns?

By embedding these considerations directly into the business model, Thrive ensures that sustainability is not an afterthought but a fundamental driver of value creation. For instance, a Thrive-based strategy might lead to the adoption of circular economy principles, not just as a sustainability initiative but as a way to reduce reliance on finite resources, lower production costs, and potentially create new revenue streams through innovative product design or waste valorisation.

This aligns both with creating positive environmental impact and improving the company's financial performance.

Furthermore, Thrive’s emphasis on stakeholder engagement ensures that the business considers the needs and expectations of all relevant parties, from employees and customers to communities and investors. This holistic perspective is crucial for identifying and addressing material topics, both from an impact and a financial perspective.

For example, engaging with local communities might reveal that water scarcity is a significant concern. Addressing this concern through more efficient water usage not only benefits the community but also reduces operational risks and potential costs for the business.

In conclusion, the Thrive business model canvas offers a powerful and practical alternative for businesses seeking to genuinely integrate sustainability into their core strategy. By providing a framework that inherently values both economic prosperity and positive impact creation, Thrive lays a robust foundation for companies to build upon their impact materiality and financial materiality initiatives.

Whether re-strategising an existing business or strategising a new venture, adopting the Thrive model provides the essential groundwork for developing comprehensive and effective sustainability strategies that address the needs of both the world and the bottom line- making the adoption of frameworks like GRI a natural next step rather than a separate, daunting task.

(The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of this publication.)