What is sustainability?

Transcription

1 International Society of Sustainability Professionals Marsha Willard Executive Director Making Sustainability Standard Practice What is sustainability? Meeting the needs of today without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Triple Bottom Line: economy, environment, equity The failure of the Industrial Revolution Air pollution in China NASA 1

2 20th Century Capitalism Nature is free and available for plunder Machines can replace humans because energy is cheap Built in obsolescence keeps the economy growing Monocultures are efficient to manage Growth is good Jobs OR the environment Stuff makes us happy Hierarchy of E s environment society economy Principle of interdependence Economic Unemployment Income disparity Illegal immigration Outsourcing Oil/gas prices Poverty Healthcare Education Crime Population growth Housing Environment Climate change Pollution Fisheries Farmland Extinctions Fresh water 2

3 For example Maintain CAFE Stds Increase health costs Increase climate change & air pollution Increase health risk Why should your boss care? What do polar bears have to do with our organization? Watching the Trends 3

4 Global Trends to Watch Living Systems Raw materials Disposal costs Regulation Customer pressure Wasted investment Legal risk Supply Demand Population X Consumption X Technology Threats and Opportunities 1. What does this information imply for your organization? 2. What threats and opportunities does it pose? 3. What does it suggest you should do? Three phases Avoiding risk/saving $ Sustainability 1.0 Competitive advantage Sustainability 2.0 Solving world s problems Sustainability 3.0 Reduce impacts (esp. energy, waste, purchasing) Eco-efficiencies Protect image New products, services, markets Improved reputation Supply chain innovations Using core competencies to solve serious world problems Question/reinvent your own business model 4

5 Eliminating waste 94% goes to waste 6% goes to the product 89% of what we produce becomes waste within 6 weeks of point of sale Waste: UPS saves millions UPS saved 3 million gallons of fuel by eliminating left turns Ups.com Waste: getting to zero! _ Epson (zero waste) Achieved zero waste to landfill 90% reused/recycled; 10% burned for energy Reduced overall waste by 37%; VOC s by 96% Ink used as paint pigment Saved/made $308,000 in 2000 If you re not for zero waste, how much waste are you for? GrassRoots Recycling Network 5

6 Efficiencies: Bottom line improvements 1998 Klamath Falls: Various projects, sander dust reuse, heat exchanger, new 300 hp motor => $ 750,000 + savings /year 2001 Kane: Replacing old compressors with new and mill sawdust sold => $ 81,000 savings / year 2001 Chester: More efficient use of log yard transportation methods and equipment => $ 42,000 savings / year 2002 Lakeview and Klamath Falls: Energy efficiency with back pressure turbine =>$ 500,000 savings /year Total savings in first five years $6 million+ Life Cycle Thinking Electrolux (life cycle assessment) Largest appliance mfr pressured to develop CFC/HCFC-free refrigerators/freezers Reduced haz waste 95% in Minn. plant Developed washing machine using 12 gal. (vs. 40+) Environmental lines fastest growing; highest margin Innovative design Multi-access Walk-in coolers - Eliminated compressors and save energy High efficiency lighting Skylights for light and ventilation Inert surfaces ceramic, stone & steel Water heater uses waste heat from ovens - used once for 15 minutes in 2 plus years 6

7 Innovative design DesignTex (cradle to cradle design) We need to put the filters in our heads, not our factories. Bill McDonough Innovative design At Interface we seek to become the first sustainable corporation in the world, and, following that, the first restorative company. It means creating the technologies of the future -- kinder, gentler technologies that emulate nature's systems." Ray C. Anderson, Chairman, Interface Market distinction _ The Collins Company First US company to have all forests certified More board feet of timber than they had 40 years ago 7

8 Partnerships Oregon Dept. of Corrections. Food Bank, local farmers Takes excess produce from farmers Inmates sort/repackage into family-sized bags Truck to Oregon Food Bank Diverted millions of tons from landfill to hungry families Part of restorative justice Community building Farmers get tax deduction and avoid disposal fees Restoration New York City Avoiding $8 billion water treatment/filtration facility ($300 million to operate annually) Spending $1-2 billion to restore watershed For more resources International Society of Sustainability Professionals 8