Jan 12 2010
Sustainability Trends of the Oughts
It’s 2010! As we leave the decade of the “oughts” behind, we wanted to take a look back at some of the trends we’ve seen emerge in sustainability. The emphasis on sustainable business has intensified during this time as the changes in our climate have left an indelible mark.
Here are some of the notable trends :
- Sustainability became a career path. Job titles with the word “sustainability” in them are on the rise, and the LA Times reports that increasingly, the responsibility for sustainability initiatives is moving into the executive suite. Over the past five years universities have added sustainable business degree programs - Sustainable Industries listed 22 such programs just on the west coast, and they are becoming prevalent nationwide.
- Green Teams have come into existence, creating change in the employee ranks in support of corporate sustainability objectives. Employees have become empowered to implement programs and provide a grass-roots, bottom-up engagement model. Check out GreenBiz report on Green teams
- Businesses have started to see cost reductions through energy efficiency and supply chain efficiencies, and a corresponding potential for increased market share. Wal-Mart models this trend by requiring suppliers to report on their supply chain, as do other industry leaders like Philips, Proctor & Gamble, and Coca-Cola.
- Carbon measurement and management software is finally taking off, providing companies with a broad selection of tools to use to track emissions and report environmental impact easily. SAP’s purchase of Clear Standards may presage an acquisition spree.
- Cleantech investment continues to be strong even in a recessionary dip: from $500M in 2001, to $5.6B in 2009, according to Cleantech Group.
- Companies have begun formalizing their sustainability communications by reporting to third parties like the Carbon Disclosure Project (from 235 in 2003 to 2204 in 2008) and the Global Reporting Initiative(from 175 to 1226).
Clearly, there is a lot of activity, and a lot of good news. Despite this, few standards have emerged, and confusion reigns about exactly how companies should characterize their “green” efforts. Companies are in a quandary about when, what, and how to communicate about sustainability. Fear of being tagged with labels like “greenwashing” leads to “green-shushing,” a new term that describes a company’s desire not to go public with their green messages lest they be exposed and found wanting.
No doubt these trends will continue. If your organization is ready to measure and report on the impact of your sustainability efforts, and you’re not sure where to start, we can help. Drop us a line or give us a call to start the conversation.