Business Sustainability: Do You Get It?

One approach to innovation is to wait for it to come to you.  Another approach is to seek it out.  Such is the case with sustainability.  Some get it.  Some don’t.  What is it that the early adopters of business sustainability get that others are missing?

Specifically, leading organizations are finding ways to address current challenges and transform economic roadblocks into business sustainability opportunities.   How are they doing this?  Well, as we comment in our business sustainability programs, the universal concepts of business sustainability apply to all businesses, but how they are implemented in a specific business yield unique results.   Currently there are several trends continuing to create business and individual opportunity:

 •    Sustainability is expanding business and entrepreneurship: Described as the next “gold rush”, sustainability is creating opportunity for new ventures and business expansion.

 •    Creating an incentive for Innovation: Response to sustainability challenges/questions is sparking new ideas and technologies that are creating business opportunities.

 •    Creating New Market: The exponential growth in consumer demands for more sustainable products is creating new markets for businesses.

 •    Breaking Down Barriers: Corporate sustainability programs are refining supply chains.  New supplier criteria and qualifications are opening doors for new products and more sustainable companies that may not have access before.

 •    Creating Jobs:  Corporate sustainability programs are redefining employee qualifications and creating new skill requirements and positions in business.

 By recognizing and taking decisive action, small business and entrepreneurs are creating a competitive advantage over traditional competition.  Our sustainability consulting interfaces with businesses seeking to capture the value from business sustainability opportunities.  Do you get it?  Let us know

Searching for Sustainability Indicators

Is sustainable progress an absolute or relative measure? Is it common or unique to a specific application or pursuit?

As a business sustainability consultant, I am forever engaged in the conversation of sustainable progress.  Whether discussing it in terms of environmental responsibility, social engagement, eco awareness, or business sustainability, the conversation as a whole has dramatically advanced over the past five years. 

But how do we know the steps taken are in the right direction…can sustainability be measured, evaluated, and compared?  What are the true measures of progress?

In a recent post, Sustainability Measures for a New Economy, we discuss the relative indicators of sustainable success.  With each business navigating the economic dynamics and shifting sustainable expectations in the marketplace, we find the definers of sustainable progress are relative and unique to the experiences of the individual businesses.  

Our professional consulting subscribes to the concept of unique measures and leverage Guy and Kibert’s suggested criteria for identifying business sustainability indicators:

•    Validity – do they measure something relevant?
•    Available and Timely – is the data available on a regular basis?
•    Responsive – do they respond quickly and measurable to change?
•    Representative – do they cover the important dimensions of the evaluation?
•    Flexible – will they be available in the future?
•    Proactive – do they act as a warning or a measure of current state?

By constantly searching for indicators, rather than measures, of success in our own pursuits, one moves away from comparisons that might deviate from unique and specific goals.   Our sustainability consulting helps clients identify specific indicators that define the successes in each individual business sustainability plan.

Does Your Commuter Bike have a Name?

How many short trips do you make by car daily?  Think about it…maybe a quick jaunt to pick up some milk or items for dinner.  Run to the post office?  Drop off kids at sports practice?  Approximately 40% of all trips in the US are two miles or less.  Considering that each trip in the car is contributing to issues of the environment, an alternative solution is bike commuting.

Cycling is part of a sustainable lifestyle, is alternative transportation, helps the environment, and also raises eco awareness.   It seems that most people think of bikes as recreation but in our sustainability consulting with business and individuals, we encourage employers and workers to consider cycling as alternative transportation as well as part of a sustainable business strategy.

Not sure if bike commuting is for you?  Well, now that fall is approaching with cooler temperatures, now is the best time to find out.  Those living a sustainable lifestyle and bike commuting do enjoy fringe benefits.

In fact, you can get paid to bike to work.  Your two wheels are now recognized by the IRS as a “qualified transportation fringe benefit” which means that the costs (up to $20/month, $240/year) associated with riding your bike is eligible for reimbursement.  Explained in our eco friendly consulting, that things like spare tubes, bar tape, riding gloves, eye wear, cycling clothes, commuter bags, rain gear, lights, gloves, helmet, cost of maintenance, even the cost of a new commuter bike, basically anything you can purchase at a bike shop qualifies for reimbursement.

Other benefits mentioned in our eco friendly consulting:

Bike commuting improves your health:
•    Staying in better shape will decrease your chances of getting sick.
•    National health statistics show that when you’re more active, you decrease your risk for cancer, heart disease, obesity and diabetes.
•    Bicycle commuting allows you to include your workout in your daily schedule and helps to meet fitness goals.

Bike commuting improves your mood:
•    More energy available throughout the day.
•    Improved health and happiness.
•    Regular participation in a cycling routine naturally shifts your focus to include thoughts of the weather, areas in your community to ride, road safety, and traffic.  Thereby increasing your awareness of the link between the environment and your community.

Bike commuting saves you money:
•    Reduce car maintenance.
•    Reduce your gas bill.
•    Reduce parking costs.

Bike commuting helps the environment by reducing your carbon footprint. And it can be fun too.  My commuter bike is red, her name is Ruby, and she has a ladybug bell on her…everywhere we go, we share eco cheer.  Join in the fun!

via blog.taigacompany.com

Tips to Living a Zero Waste Lifestyle

Were you aware that the average American throws out 550 pounds of paper, 318 pounds of food, and 90 pounds of glass per year?   About 80 percent of that garbage ends up in landfills.  Inspired to do better, those living a sustainable lifestyle are striving to live a zero waste lifestyle as well. 

 Within our eco friendly training we share the intention behind a zero waste lifestyle is to  maximize recycling, minimizes waste, reduces consumption and ensures that products are made to be reused, repaired or recycled back into nature or the marketplace.

 A quick start to set you on your personal sustainability plan on waste reduction will not only reduce waste, but save you money as well.  But what does reducing waste mean?  When you avoid making garbage in the first place, you eliminate the disposing of waste or recycling it later.  It’s the first component of the sustainability concept of the three R’s: reduce, reuse, and recycle. 

 Ready to get started?  Check out your garbage!  Your garbage gives you clues as to how to reduce waste, save money, and live a more sustainable lifestyle. 

 Clue #1:
This is an easy one.  If you look in your garbage and notice paper, plastic, aluminum, kitchen waste and more all combined together, then your first step towards building a personal sustainability program is to embrace the sustainability concept of recycle.  Separate the paper, plastics, glass, and aluminum into bins and begin a recycling program. 

 Clue #2:
Inspect the paper and plastic in your garbage.  Are the paper products you are using made from recycled content?  Do you receive a lot of junk mail? Are you using reusable containers?  What kind of garbage bags do you use?  Take eco action and make a difference.  Address each area and explore ways to reduce your waste as well as make more environmentally friendly choices. 

 Following are some suggestions from our eco friendly training classes:

 Reduce Food Waste:
•    Pre plan your meals, buy in bulk, and prepare what you need.
•    Compost and turn your old food into healthy soil.

 Reduce when you shop and shop with the environment in mind:
•    Purchase products that are returnable, reusable or refillable.  Use reusable and refillable containers in your home instead of disposable items.
•    Purchase products with the least amount of packaging.
•    Get the most out of what you buy by comparing warranties and cost to repair or replace the item.
•    Look for products designed with the environment in mind.  Organic clothing, sustainable furnishings, and solar powered products are just a few examples.
•    Rent or borrow instead of purchasing.  Check out the post, Buy or Barter? Best Trading Websites for ideas.

 Reduce items at home:
•    Reduce paper consumption- go paperless.  In fact, try using technology to go paperless.
•    Find new life for old furnishings, appliances and clothes.

 By evaluating the contents of your garbage, there exist the opportunity to make more sustainable purchase choices, to reduce your waste, and to modify behavior to support the environment.

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Shaking Things Up with Business Sustainability Action

Traditional business models have focused primarily on maintaining profitability; however, companies are now including environmental and social impacts in the profitability equation.  Executives are putting on their ‘green’ glasses and asking their current model some basic business sustainability questions and taking some non-traditional action.

The ability to remain open to test new ideas and different strategies will often payoff in the long run and sometimes even equate to immediate value.  Companies that take chances and experiment often respond to changes in the market easier and more quickly.  

Our sustainability consulting find organizations and individuals most often benefit when they step outside of traditional structures and a little bit of spontaneity to their personal and business sustainability journey.  We find successful implementations, especially in a business environment, recognize communication and learning as critical success factors. 

If your organization is ready to step outside the box, here are a few ideas to add spontaneity to your business sustainability plan:

1.    Create a culture to express and share ideas.
2.    Encourage the organization to get out of the office.
3.    Have regular “brown bag” lunch discussions on sustainability concepts defined by the employees.
4.    Create sustainability contests in the office.
5.    Reward creative idea generation and innovative implementation.
6.    Implement business sustainability concepts defined by the organization.
7.    Strive to make sustainability a fun and engaging part of every work activity.
8.    Celebrate successes!!!!!

By anticipating embracing sustainability concepts internally and taking proactive steps to address change in the organization, your business can not only capture immediate value but can create a fun and exciting place to work.  In our own sustainability consulting practice, we maintain an open culture as part of our core values and encourage clients to include spontaneity into their daily activities.

Eco Math

There’s math, new math, and now eco math.  What is eco math?  Super easy! 

Eco math = the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.
 
Each day we are presented with opportunities to expand eco awareness and make informed choices.    By making changes that are inspiring and manageable relative our current lives, the process of incorporating sustainability becomes much easier. 
 
The question is, how good are you at eco math?  It’s all about taking as many eco actions you can in a day, every day, of every week, of every month multiplied by the number of people you inspire with eco awareness.   Cumulatively, all the actions add up and contribute positively to addressing the complex issues our world faces today. 
 
Not sure what an eco action is? Start by familiarizing yourself with the different areas of life that you can embrace sustainability concepts.  Next, take action on the ideas that are most appealing to you.  Keep at it; take on more as you learn.  Inspire others. Click here to continue reading.
 
Home to one third of the earth’s trees, the Taiga is the largest land-based biosphere and encircles the globe. Its immense oxygen production literally changes the atmosphere and refreshes the planet. It is this continuous renewal that has shaped Taiga Company’s vision to drive similar change in the business world. Taiga Company seeks to be the “oxygen for your business”.

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Posted via web from 3BL Media, CSR News, and Emily

Yunus and Social Business

I just finished reading Creating A World Without Poverty by Muhammad Yunus, the gentleman who created micro-credit and won a Nobel Peace prize for his micro-credit work in Bangladesh. The book is the most inspiring business book I have ever read. Part One, especially, created a one-person think-tank brainstorm in this head.

Dr. Yunus is a visionary AND he’s a hands-on practitioner committed to transforming his homeland through outside-the-box thinking, flexibility and effective implementation. Brings to mind a modification of the old Sinatra refrain from New York, New York: “If he can do it there, we can do it everywhere.”

Do what? you might ask. Use business to tackle social problems. Micro-credit is an inspired notion and an effective reality. ElegRoo supports micro-credit through the totally great KIVA.org.

But we at ElegRoo are taking a lead from Dr. Yunus beyond micro-credit. In Creating A World Without Poverty, Dr. Yunus proposes the idea of “social businesses”, that is, businesses organized as for-profit enterprises, but whose sole goals are to achieve some social benefit. All profits are plowed back into the company. Investors receive no dividends, no profits whatever. They can expect to receive back their initial investment and will still own the company and direct its efforts.

A “social business” must compete head-to-head with ordinary for-profits by dint of the value of its products and/or services.

LuAnne Speeter reports that “[65%] of consumers believe businesses are responsible for having a greater social purpose beyond profit … that businesses have a shared responsibility to address and solve today’s social and environmental issues through a blending of social initiatives and business operations.”

But other attempts at formalizing business commitments to social issues, like B Corporations, are hybrids that attempt to serve two masters — social benefit and investor profit. Dr. Yunus predicts that, at some point, each of these hybrids will face a choice, and that investor profits will prevail. No such Hobson’s Choice can afflict a “social business” — investor profit motive is simply not present to diverge from the social benefit motive.

100% of the ownership of Elegant Roots agrees with these notions and believes also that the vision and mission for Elegant Roots [to promote social justice and eco-consciousness by providing a market for goods that further these goals] fits squarely within the notion of “social business” propounded by the good Dr. Yunus.

100% percent of the ownership has directed that ElegRoo management begin the process of formally converting Elegant Roots into a “social business.” Watch this blog for the ANNOUNCEMENT when the conversion is complete.

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Posted via web from 3BL Media, CSR News, and Emily

Kindness, Generosity, Willingness: 3 Essential Qualities of Sustainable Living

Imagine someone doing something nice for you right now.  A sincere compliment or holding the elevator for you.  It’s a good feeling, isn’t it?  Kindness has the ability to change us, and our emotions, immediately. 

 The pursuit of a sustainable lifestyle goes beyond just ‘greening’ your life.  Personal sustainability is a mindset change that shifts the personal value drivers in daily activities.  As a professional and sustainability consultant, I see how kindness, generosity and willingness are intrinsically linked to a sustainable lifestyle or green living.  While we are here on this planet, at this precise time in history, many of us want to make a difference in the way we treat our environment.  Many of us want to make a significant contribution to the role business takes in shaping our economy, society, and environment.
 

• Kindness in living green is not only being kind to our planet, but kind to each other.  Compassion for where each of us is in relation to the green path.

 

• Generosity in green living is not only sharing eco awareness and eco resources, but also going above and beyond to inspire, promote, and encourage others on the green path.

 

• Willingness in green living is demonstrating your values through eco action and generating results. 

 
Throughout our lifetime, there comes a time when we as individuals sit down and lay out a path for personal development.  We day dream about all the things that we want in our life and the things we want to achieve.  Living values of kindness, generosity, and willingness paves the way for a brighter future for us all

Posted via web from 3BL Media, CSR News, and Emily

Consumer Perception Becoming Business Reality

When you think of a sustainable business, what first comes to mind?  More importantly, what do you think of when someone mentions a non-sustainable business?  Do you think of industries, specific companies, or specific business actions?  Too often these business perceptions become reality, and in today’s environment, the wrong perception can prove costly.

With the growth in global eco awareness, companies are experiencing firsthand the full impact of shifting ‘green’ consumer expectations and the overall perception of business.  In the past businesses may have focused exclusively on economic performance; however, many companies are realizing the real impacts of sustainable action. 

Because not all businesses and individuals are at the same level of sustainability understanding or implementation, the characteristics often used to create comparisons can lead to different conclusions.  For this reason, our sustainability consulting tends to evaluate an organization less on levels of implementation and more on the quality of the business sustainability direction. 

We view leading organizations, at any level of business sustainability understanding or level of implementation, as those looking to engrain sustainability concepts across all aspects of the business and with key business stakeholders.  These companies:

•    Define a clear relationship between sustainability, brand and reputation.

•    Promote consumer engagement in product development and innovation.

•    Establish close relationships with aligned business partners to create efficient environmentally conscious and ethically responsible supply chains.

•    Create transparent governance structures that facilitate effective stakeholder  engagement and reporting.

At Taiga Company, our professional consulting provides information and resources to promote a positive perception of any company through a clear direction and demonstrated action.  We work with clients interested in integrating stakeholder engagement and transparency  into specific business sustainability programs.

Posted via web from 3BL Media, CSR News, and Emily

Inside the Footprint

The “Footprint” has long been a metaphor for authors and poets as a journey worth following.  In more recent history is has been a symbol that has in a moment unified humanity: A point of study in the origins of man.  An image that captivated the world with the first man on the moon.

Today’s Footprint has a made a new impression in the sand but has the same lasting affect.  This globally recognized residual mark provides a basis of common understanding.

The “Carbon Footprint” emerged out of the UK in the early 2000s and has received a lot of attention.  Probably the most well known of the footprint terminology, the Carbon Footprint primarily focuses on CO2 waste streams from energy production.  An energy consultant might use the term in discussions about Global Warming or Climate Change. 

The “Environmental Footprint” measures individual and business impact on the environment.  Environmental businesses and consultants speak of it relation to resource consumption, business process impacts, and company waste streams that effect the environment.

The “Ecological Footprint” or “Global Footprint” is the most comprehensive term and is defined as the human demands on our world’s ecosystems.  It is used to examine the continuous balance between our consumption of resources and the regenerative forces that create them.

The newest to the group is the “Personal Footprint”.  It estimates individual impacts in terms of how much land area it takes to support an individual’s lifestyle.

Like the examples from history, this new footprint is a continuous topic of study and a source for individual inspiration and creativity.  Companies and individuals are pouring into this impression on the planet faster than ever before. 

As a sustainability consultant, Taiga Company works with clients in all areas of the footprint.  From consumption to waste reduction, our professional and personal consulting works to implement solutions that meet specific needs.  Understand your impacts and build a sustainability plan.