Sustainability - Personal Application of a Very Large Concept

Sustainability is a word we often hear these days and yet, I suspect that you, like me, may easily dismiss whatever comes after that word because we do not know how to personalize the meaning. I certainly did not know how to get my head around the term until very recently. Now I see the meaning and application in almost every conversation, almost every situation, almost every day, much like you notice all the red vehicles after you buy one, when you did not notice them before.

As I continue to ponder and reflect on what sustainability truly is for me, one of the first realizations that I come to is that true sustainability requires thinking way beyond ourselves. Three recent yet seemingly unrelated events shape my thoughts in this regard. First was the passing of my father and my brother this year. Second was the opportunity to sit quietly on the family farm, some 15 feet up in a tree stand, for two days and look over the farm that my parents bought in 1950. The third event was this past Friday: we received a call that my mother-in-law was hospitalized in New Jersey and spent the weekend traveling and sitting with her. It was from the hospital that I wrote this article in quiet contemplation. As I reflected, it became clear to me that in order to even begin to think and act in ways that are sustainable, we must first think beyond ourselves and our current situation, then act in the present, in ways that support that much longer term thinking.

My parents did that as they bought and worked the farm. As they thought beyond themselves, they created a family farm trust that ensured the farm could remain in the family for generations to come. They thought beyond the current season, and each year they made long term decisions coupled with short term action to build up the nutrients in the fields to support the various crops we grew. I became acutely aware of their prior actions as I sat in the tree stand and looked over what they worked hard for and what they provided to their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.

As we traveled to New Jersey, I seemed to be more aware of not only the physical environment, but the activities of so many people who were both contributing to and detracting from true sustainability for future generations. I was reminded again of two organizations whose collaboration embodies sustainability: The Natural Step and Comparison International.

The Natural Step (www.naturalstep.org) is a non-profit organization with the vision of creating a sustainable society. It was founded in 1989 by Dr. Karl-Henrik Robèrt in Sweden, The Natural Step has offices in 11 countries and a list of partners that includes some of the world’s leading brands. They have developed a lexicon and framework for understanding the basic principles of sustainability.

Comparison International (comparisoninternational.com) is a benchmarking consultancy based in the UK. With offices in the United States and Australia, Comparison's benchmarking tools are used globally in industries across the board. Their PROBE (PROmoting Business Excellence) methodology for benchmarking supports business development and growth by improving performance through the transfer of "Best Practices." PROBE tools are utilized by governments, industry specific organizations, research collaborations, individual firms and global institutions. Over the last 5 years the company has become one of the leading suppliers of "Best Practice" benchmarking in the world.

These two organizations are collaborating to provide education, training, and perhaps most importantly, assessment and action planning tools to help individuals, companies, organizations, and governments understand the underlying principles of sustainability and build implementation action plans to implement practical sustainability practices.

The Natural Step has approached sustainability from a perspective of science and systems thinking. They have developed a framework and four system conditions for understanding sustainability. In a sustainable society, nature is not subject to systematically increasing:

1. concentrations of substances extracted from the earth's crust;
2. concentrations of substances produced by society;
3. degradation by physical means;
4. and, in that society, people are not subject to conditions that systemically undermine their capacity to meet their needs.

Comparison International, in its collaboration with The Natural Step, has developed practical assessment tools which any organization can apply to determine the current level of sustainable practices, processes, and performance. These tools are comprehensive as they examine the four critical best practices aspects any organization must consistently evaluate if it is to survive in the long term:

1. Mission, Vision & Context;
2. Leadership & Mobilization;
3. Products, Services, & Business Processes;
4. Business Continuity.

These tools enable the forward thinking and action planning today that truly support sustainability for the organizations for generations to come.

The combination and collaboration of these two organizations provides an extremely scalable thinking process that we can apply to our personal and business life by thinking of the four system conditions and the overarching aspects. This model gives us a practical way to routinely assess and adjust our business actions and performance in support of business, community, and global sustainability for generations beyond ourselves. Just as my parents did for us, and generations before them, so we can do for generations that follow us, but only if we think and act with that view in mind.

To learn more or have Ray speak to your group or organization, please email or call him at (518)227-0224.