Sustainability History Project

[This post was written by Teresa Celestine, Scott Demming, Stephanie Lewis, and Stephanie McCarthy.]

Sustainability is not only defined in terms of how things should be done in order to reduce material consumption and waste, but practical in ways that are actually being put to use by various individuals and organizations. Speaking from a purely academic point of view, ideas about how to be sustainable are endless. People can dream up an infinite number of ways to reduce consumption and waste. Most definitions of sustainability are subjective, correlating to the perspective of individuals and their experiences. Moving beyond personal interpretation toward a common language would improve the general acceptance and commitment of individuals to further advance the cause of creating more sustainable behavior individually and by organizations. There are an equal number of infinite applied sustainability practices that could be placed into effect. The key component for sustainability in business operations is to strive for this common language and understanding about what is real and what is not. The last thing a start-up business needs is to commit to a sustainable idea that is not real, but is simply green washing. The costs for running a business are only magnified when considering the additional time; effort and money necessary to navigate a business with the additional layer that sustainability questions add to the endeavor.

The definition of a sustainable business today is not the same definition of a sustainable business ten or twenty years ago. Keeping an eye on the bottom line is no longer enough, for a company to thrive in our economy it must also keep an eye on what is now known as the “triple bottom line,” a measurement of performance based on human, natural, and financial resources [1]. Industry, manufacturing, and businesses are increasingly incorporating environmental responsibility and social equity, along with economic considerations, into their business plans. Many businesses in Oregon are leading the way in sustainable business practices while at the same time nurturing successful operations. Gone are the days when a company only had to answer to its shareholders. Also gone is the unsustainable model of consumerism and consumption. Modern day consumers and businesses share the responsibility to insure environmental, economic, and social needs are being met now and in the future. Younger consumers (according to the US Census Bureau, over half the world’s population is under the age of 30) are increasingly more influenced by their social networks than they are by advertisers. While consumers expect value and low cost, more than ever they demand the products they purchase be produced in a sustainable manner. Many modern consumers seem willing to do with less in order to insure the products they purchase are consistent with their overall personal values. In the same vein, many businesses are willing to do with less profit to ensure not only their own sustainability, but also that of the environment and the community. In this new environment, it is vital for businesses to balance economic concerns with environmental and social considerations if they are to remain solvent. Sustainable business practices such as lowering energy usage, recycling and net-zero practices (zero landfill waste), community food drives, and Adopt-a-Highway programs are just a few low to no cost options that have tangible returns.

Even if we get everyone to agree that a common language should be found for the term sustainability and everything that goes along with it is difficult to create union if there is discourse over the definition and what it should actually mean. Even if we crossed that bridge and had union with the definition we then have another challenge. The need to create a good evaluation system of sustainability. There is entirely too much green washing going on and not enough people know how to dig through the evidence to discover if the company is truly green or just green washing. There also needs to be room for improvement within the business relating to green and sustainability. These two terms will be ever changing as new ideas surface and increase our ability to be more sustainable in the future. There is much work to be done to bring sustainability as a system into our everyday lives. There will be much opposition in the world of business because of the cost the business must absorb to become more sustainable. Not everyone wants on board. There are many companies that are all about profit and don’t focus on environmental issues. We would be naive to think that all for profit businesses want to jump on the green bandwagon if the costs are too high. If sustainability is our universal goal then how do we show businesses that there is more to sustainability than just being green? That to be sustainable you should focus on the social and economic sides of sustainability? If sustainability is our plan then who will set the standards and investigate to uncover the truth? Do we focus on just the environmental sides of sustainability? Or is that our focus because businesses seem to understand and grasp the economic and societal sides of sustainability so environmental is what is left to be discussed?

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[1] Graeme Byrd, interview by Mason Walker. “[3BL]ooming Honcho: Graeme Byrd.” Sustainable Business Oregon, July 13, 2011.
http://www.sustainablebusinessoregon.com/columns/2011/07/3blooming-honcho-graeme-byrd.html.

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