Ideostone

What is ‘Sustainability’?

Like many words that are used to describe our businesses, “sustainable” and “sustainability” are at risk of becoming devalued by their over use. Think of companies using the word “green” in their marketing information and you tend to be sceptical about the claims they are making and assume they are just adopting this stance to sell more products or services.

In the context of sustainability, this is a pity because in its true sense, this encompasses everything about the way we should live and work if we are to safeguard the earth for future generations.

The use of the word in the context of the environment stems back to the Brundtland Report or, to give it the correct title, “Our Common Future”, the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development of 1987, chaired by the former Norwegian Prime Minister, Gro Harlem Brundtland. The full definition of “sustainable development” put forward by the Commission is:

“Development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”

From our perspective, this means that if we use a resource at a faster rate than it is being replenished by the environment, the use of that resource is unsustainable in the long-term. Thus, the use of fossil fuels, which take millions of years to form, is inherently unsustainable and the resource will run out at some point. The same goes for many of the other ‘natural resources’ we dig from the ground, use to manufacture a consumer item and then discard to landfill.

To meet the definition of being a sustainable business, therefore, you will need to think very carefully about the resources you use and whether they are being replenished or if you can help to replenish them. At the very basic level, if you use paper in your business (and, of course, every business does), you should:

  • treat it as a valuable resource, not a disposable commodity;
  • use recycled paper wherever possible rather than material that has been manufactured from primary sources;
  • check the provenance of any new paper you have to buy with your supplier to make sure that the paper manufacturer
    • is not using old-growth forest (that is, the timber is from plantations rather than virgin forest);
    • is replanting timber as quickly as it is being cut down (or more quickly if possible).

If you follow this thought process through for each resource used in your business, it will quickly become second-nature to you to think in a sustainable way and ensure that the impact of your business is as small as possible. Taking action in this way can help you reduce your costs, minimise risk, improve your reputation and create business opportunities.