Sustainology UK Limited

The recent extreme weather events in June and July 2021 have been a real wake up call to some and this article highlights the time for words is over and now actions have become ever more important.  For those of you who don't consider climate change as a reason for becoming more sustainable then it's worth a read.

As well as saving the planet there are many good business reasons to become more sustainable and some of these are covered here

There are also softer issues with making the transition to a more sustainable approach with your business.  The most important of these are connected to your health and well being.  By making a change to a more sustainable business this represents a positive and meaningful change which in turn generates positive feelings.

How Can My Business Become More Sustainable? Part 2 - Where to Start?

Sustainability is an extremely complex area.  It covers a broad spectrum of principles and not all of these are connected to the environment.  The UN has specified 17 Sustainable Development Goals ("SDG") to outline its objectives.  These are reproduced below.

Because climate change is a global issue it can only be tackled by trying to balance up the planet so that people become more incentivised to act in sustainable ways.  Developed Countries are responsible for 79% of carbon emissions so the emphasis is on us to address the issue.

Many businesses look at the SDG and initially want to focus on goals 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, & 15.  Over time and through dialogue it is apparent that only by addressing other goals can these be attained.

As a starting point businesses need to establish where they are.  What impacts do they have on the planet, their community and this includes through their stakeholders, supply chains and customers? What messages do they share?  What are their values and how are these communicated? What is your carbon footprint?  What are your power and water usage statistics? What are your approaches to diversity and staff welfare?

This is by no means an easy exercise and may uncover some uncomfortable truths.  This process may work better if it is facilitated by external parties.

How Can My Business Become More Sustainable? Part 3 - Beginning Your Journey

Once you have begun to understand your starting point and the potential size of the task in front of you, you need to contemplate your journey.

A simple approach of knowing where you are, assessing where you want to get to and then understanding how to get there may well be the most constructive approach to use.  That sentence may be an over simplification of the process but in essence it captures the process involved.

One point worth making is that in terms of sustainability there is no finite destination for example Net Zero is a target that once reached needs to be maintained or superceded.

This is one aspect where your business may need to consider its mission and values for example B Corps require comapnies to legally enshrine in their articles that the company's objectives include people and planet as well as profit.

This triple bottom line approach will generate transformational change for many busineses and will heavily influence the corporate journey.

The journey itself is one of the main challenges as it may involve using GAP analysis to identify and address skill and resource shortfalls.  In addition, there may be process reviews to ensure that more beneficial practice is adopted.

All of these ideas and concepts may well feature as part of the change to be undertaken.

No one said this would be easy!

The sustainable journey may well be a series of stepping stones to a greater goal or perhaps a wider journey that fundamentally transforms your business.  It is dependent on what type of business you are.

As with any journey a tour guide will ease the task and if you are interested in considering a sustainable journey please do not hesitate to get in touch to arrnage a free call to discuss what you are seeking to achieve. Click here