Prince of Wales tells executives that they are squandering their grandchildren's inheritance in favour of economic growth
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The Prince of Wales has warned that the world is fast consuming its grandchildren's inheritance in the pursuit of short-term "untenable economic growth".
Charles said the "bank" of the natural world was being depleted and was in the red, as he launched a network that aims to put environmental and social issues at the heart of corporate decisions.
In a speech to senior business executives, he criticised those who ignored the evidence of climate change, saying the situation was like the moment in history when Sir Winston Churchill's warnings about global conflict - ahead of the Second World War - went unheeded.
The new Chief Financial Officer Leadership Network has been founded by Charles and set up by the Accounting for Sustainability (A4S) Project.
The aim of the network is to focus on how Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) can integrate environmental and social issues into financial decisions.
Speaking at an A4S forum held at St James's Palace, the Prince said: "In stark financial terms, all the evidence demonstrates a simple fact - we are failing to run the global bank, that we call our planet, in a competent manner.
"We no longer just take a dividend each year, instead, for some time, we've been digging into out capital reserve."
He added: "The ultimate bank on which we all depend, the bank of natural capital, is in the red.
"The debt is getting ever bigger and that is reducing nature's resilience and considerably impeding her ability to restock - it leaves us dangerously exposed.
"The bottom line of all this is surely plainly obvious - we are to a large extent consuming our children and grandchildren's inheritance in order to fuel today's short-term untenable economic growth."
He told his audience of leading finance officers from companies like GlaxoSmithKline, Burberry and Network Rail: "Am I alone then in wondering how it is that in a society based entirely on an evidence-based approach to everything we do, and despite the overwhelming scientific evidence of climate change... such evidence is disregarded and ignored."
He added that a "predominant ideology" was "arrogantly" dismissing this evidence and the situation brought to mind Churchill's warnings in the run up to the catastrophe of the Second World War.
Those already signed up to the new network include Anglian Water, Bupa, Burberry Group, British Land, The Crown Estate, Danone, Royal DSM, Marks & Spencer, National Grid, Sainsbury's, SSE, South West Water, Unilever, United Utilities, Walmart EMEA and Yorkshire Water.
Showing leadership on how companies should respond to challenges including climate change, a rising and ageing global population, rapid urbanisation and increased consumption are some of the issues to be tackled by the network.
It will also spread the message to investors and stakeholders so they can understand how there is a potential commercial gain to be made from sustainable business models.
The A4S CFO Leadership Network co-chairmen John Rogers (CFO, Sainsbury's) and Pierre-Andre Terisse (CFO, Danone) and network member Rolf-Dieter Schwalb (CFO, Royal DSM) also attended the forum.
Mr Rogers praised Charles for recognising "the vital importance of bringing sustainability issues" into corporate governance and accounting.
Arguing that this approach needed to become "natural" to company finance teams, he said: "I'm pleased to be co-chairing this significant new initiative and urge my counterparts in business and public organisations to contribute their skills and experience to the A4S CFO Leadership Network."
The network is to be extended globally during 2014.
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