sustainability management essay

• Business Essentials
• Leadership & Management
• Credential of Leadership, Impact, and Management in Business (CLIMB)
• Entrepreneurship & Innovation
• Digital Transformation
• Finance & Accounting
• Business in Society
• For Organizations
• Support Portal
• Media Coverage
• Founding Donors
• Leadership Team

• Harvard Business School →
• HBS Online →
• Business Insights →

Business Insights

Harvard Business School Online's Business Insights Blog provides the career insights you need to achieve your goals and gain confidence in your business skills.

• Career Development
• Communication
• Decision-Making
• Earning Your MBA
• Negotiation
• News & Events
• Productivity
• Staff Spotlight
• Student Profiles
• Work-Life Balance
• AI Essentials for Business
• Alternative Investments
• Business Analytics
• Business Strategy
• Business and Climate Change
• Creating Brand Value
• Design Thinking and Innovation
• Digital Marketing Strategy
• Disruptive Strategy
• Economics for Managers
• Entrepreneurship Essentials
• Financial Accounting
• Global Business
• Launching Tech Ventures
• Leadership Principles
• Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability
• Leading Change and Organizational Renewal
• Leading with Finance
• Management Essentials
• Negotiation Mastery
• Organizational Leadership
• Power and Influence for Positive Impact
• Strategy Execution
• Sustainable Business Strategy
• Sustainable Investing
• Winning with Digital Platforms

Why You Need Sustainability in Your Business Strategy

• 06 Nov 2019

In today’s ever-evolving world, debating whether to incorporate sustainability into your business strategy is no longer an option. Considering a values-driven approach when developing business strategies can be vital to long-term success.

Before getting into why sustainability is essential to successful business strategies, it's important to define what sustainability in business is.

Access your free e-book today.

What Is Sustainability in Business?

In short, sustainability in business refers to the effect companies have on the environment or society.

A sustainable business strategy aims to positively impact one or both of those areas, thereby helping address some of the world’s most pressing problems.

Some of the global issues that sustainable business strategies help to address include:

• Climate change
• Income inequality
• Depletion of natural resources
• Human rights issues
• Fair working conditions
• Racial injustice
• Gender inequality

Although it may sound like it, sustainability in business is not purely altruistic. As Harvard Business School Professor Rebecca Henderson notes in the online course Sustainable Business Strategy , you can't use business to do good in the world if you're not doing well financially. Doing well and doing good are intertwined, and successful business strategies include both.

Many of today’s firms have adopted the triple bottom line , which suggests that organizations should focus on more than just profits, or the “bottom-line,” and also measure their environmental and social impact. These focuses can be referred to as “the three Ps,”: people, planet, and profit. Quite often, this sustainable approach to business ultimately boosts business performance.

Why Is Sustainability Important?

In addition to driving social and environmental change, sustainability initiatives can contribute to an organization's overall success. It may seem counterintuitive that spending more money on sustainable business practices can boost a company’s profitability, but studies show that the most sustainable companies are also the most profitable.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics are often used to determine how ethical and sustainable an organization is. According to McKinsey , companies with high ESG ratings consistently outperform the market in both the medium and long term. While sustainability strategies might be an investment in the short term, they can lead to long-term benefits.

Benefits of Sustainability in Business

1. you’ll protect your brand and mitigate risks.

Ending up on the front page because of a scandal is a CEO’s worst nightmare. Not only do improper practices damage an organization’s reputation and cost it customers, but dealing with a public relations disaster can divert valuable human and financial resources from the core business.

You don’t want to become the company that allowed an oil spill or forced employees to work in unsafe conditions. By instituting a sustainable strategy that protects the environment and your workers, you also protect yourself from any damaging incidents.

2. Being Purpose-Driven Is a Competitive Advantage

Sustainability doesn't detract from business goals, and infusing your company with purpose can help attract a motivated, skilled workforce that drives financial success . In a Facebook Live discussion , Henderson noted a recent study showing that 89 percent of executives believe an organization with shared purpose will have greater employee satisfaction. Additionally, 85 percent say they're more likely to recommend a company with strong purpose to others.

Making your company an organization that does good in the world—rather than just a place that provides a paycheck—can be a competitive advantage when attracting the best talent.

Related : HBS Professor Explores the Impact Purpose Can Have on Your Organization

3. There's a Growing Market for Sustainable Goods

A 2019 study found that 73 percent of global consumers are willing to change their consumption habits to lessen their negative impact on the environment, and sustainable product sales have grown by nearly 20 percent since 2014. Millennials in particular are more willing to pay more for products that contain sustainable ingredients or products that have social responsibility claims. If your organization commits to sustainable products and practices, it could gain market share by converting sustainability-minded customers and increasing sales.

4. Cooperative Action Can Drive Change

As an individual, it can feel overwhelming, isolating, or simply impossible to effect change in a meaningful way. That’s not the case when the most innovative, successful, and powerful companies are collaborating to solve some of the world’s most pressing problems. While governments struggle to address public goods problems, purpose-driven companies working together to address these issues have experienced great success.

For example, palm oil is cheap, versatile, and found in about half of all packaged products, including soap, lipstick, and ice cream. But palm oil production has resulted in record greenhouse gas emissions and contributed to climate change.

In light of this, consumer goods producer Unilever committed to only using palm oil from certified sustainable sources in 2008. The organization cooperated with its competitors—as well as governments, NGOs, and indigenous peoples’ organizations—to lead an industry-wide adoption of sustainable palm oil. As a result, Unilever continues to be a thriving organization, and the world has reaped the environmental benefits of sustainable palm oil harvesting practices.

The Value of Sustainability

Sustainability doesn’t mean sacrificing profits or putting success on the backburner. Instead, it has become a crucial element to any organization’s successful strategy. A business that doesn't factor in sustainability risks is less successful in several measures, including profitability, growth, and employee retention.

By integrating sustainability into your business strategy , you can find success because, rather than in spite, of sustainability.

Do you want to take a more values-driven approach to business? Explore our three-week online course Sustainable Business Strategy and learn how organizations can succeed financially while also playing a role in solving some of the world’s most pressing problems.

This post was upated on March 22, 2021. It was originally published on November 6, 2019.

About the Author

News from the Columbia Climate School

Building the Profession of Sustainability Management

Steven Cohen

“In order to make an omelet you’ve got to break some eggs.” I remember interviewing a production manager in a thriving factory and that’s what he said when I asked him why his company created so much waste and refused to stop pumping pollutants into the river. For some reason, that factory closed down a few decades after our discussion. I thought of his approach as one of “damn the torpedoes, full steam ahead.” It was a form of management that was heedless of the indirect impact of production and only focused on making stuff as fast and cheap as possible. When I first started teaching and writing about management in the 1980s, I focused on adding mindfulness to the management process. I believed that an effective manager needed to think constantly about the organization’s people, and the organization’s capacity for change. The goal of the effective manager was to develop and implement strategies to ensure the organization could attract the resources needed to survive and thrive. The mindlessness of the macho manager seemed a prescription for failure and with decades of experience, I now know that is generally true.

As we entered the 21st century on this more crowded and polluted planet, it occurred to some of us that the process of formulating and implementing public policy and of organizational management needed to factor in and prioritize a concern for preserving the planet. To do this, managers and analysts needed a deeper understanding of earth systems science. That led to the development of the MPA in Environmental Science and Policy in 2002, a partnership between Columbia’s Earth Institute and School of International and Public Affairs. The path-breaking masters program we began back then continues to thrive as it nears its twentieth year. In thinking through the management part of that program’s curriculum, it became clear to me that the mindfulness of the effective manager should no longer be limited to human resource management, strategy, finance, performance, information and financial management. In addition to those functions, managers needed to systematically integrate the “physical dimensions of environmental sustainability” into routine and strategic decision-making. As our thinking on management evolved, we decided to create a second masters degree, to educate professionals in a new form of management we termed “ sustainability management .” A partnership between the Earth Institute and Columbia’s School of Professional Studies was formed and continues today as that degree program celebrates its 10th anniversary this year.

Together, both of these programs have graduated over 1,700 students and when I speak with our graduates and discuss their career paths it’s obvious that we are in the process of creating a new kind of professional — a sustainability professional, and a new kind of manager— a sustainability manager. The graduates of our programs routinely factor sustainability issues into their decision-making processes. They push their organizations to pay attention to environmental impacts. When looking at their place of work, they consider the source of its energy and the efficiency of its use. They think about indoor air quality, the use of water and where the building’s waste ends up. When thinking about the goods or services they produce, they think about environmental impacts including the production of greenhouse gasses. The vulnerability of their organizations to climate impacts and extreme weather events are typically top of mind.

What has been particularly interesting to me is how the curriculum of these programs has evolved in ways that I could not have predicted. My colleagues on the faculty, and our students and graduates all recognize that this is a new and dynamic field. Early on, we divided our ecology curriculum into general and urban ecology. A course on land use evolved into a course on toxics and risk. We added courses on green architecture and the built environment, on green infrastructure and energy efficiency. An entire subfield in sustainability finance has developed under the leadership of my brilliant colleague Satyajit Bose, and courses on the circular economy, environmental law and gender and sustainability have also been established. This year, we added a course on sustainability and fashion, and we are also offering a course on corporate sustainability reporting and another on the changing nature of consumerism. In response to the national movement against racism and for equity and environmental justice , we are changing existing courses and adding new ones. The list could go on, but you get the point, the field of sustainability management continues to be defined.

A conclusion I reached years ago is that organizations that were managed sustainably needed to be located in sustainable cities that were populated by people leading environmentally conscious sustainable lifestyles. If people spread out into the countryside in order to “get back to nature,” they could damage the planet and certainly lose the economy of scale provided by cities. But COVID-19 makes density difficult and has convinced me that a key piece of urban sustainability infrastructure is a robust, functioning global system of public health. In the second edition of my book, The Sustainable City , my Columbia colleague and now co-author, Dong Guo and I have added a number of sections on systems required to ensure public health. This is not the first pandemic nor will it be the last, but the multi-trillion-dollar impact of COVID-19 requires that we do better at detecting, isolating and treating viruses; and we need to invest in the capacity to develop vaccines to address the next pandemic. Sustainability requires densely settled cities and those cities require comprehensive public health systems.

If you “google” the definition of a “ profession ” it states that a profession is “a paid occupation, especially one that involves prolonged training and a formal qualification.” That is true, but I would add that professionals operate within a similar set of values and have a shared understanding of how the world works. Sustainability is both a profession and a paradigm. The sustainability paradigm places great importance on understanding the interconnectedness of ecosystems and environmental impacts and the problems caused by the deployment of technologies without considering their possible negative impacts on human and environmental health and welfare. Sustainability managers understand that negative impacts such as toxics in drinking water, polluted air, global warming, or the transmission of dangerous viruses must be understood and mitigated. But they also understand that renewable energy is less expensive than fossil fuels (and will be even less expensive in the future). They understand that environmental impacts on a crowded planet can lead to huge costs for clean-up and compensation for damage. Ask the folks running BP and Volkswagen about the financial costs of sustainability mismanagement and then ask those running Walmart how much money they’ve saved (and therefore made) by installing solar power and requiring their suppliers to report on the sustainability of their supply chains.

My view is that all competent managers must be sustainability managers and therefore, the profession of sustainability management should eventually be subsumed by the profession of management. Of course, it could happen the other way around and the only type of management taught in business and public policy schools will be sustainability management. No manager would be considered competent if they could not read or understand a balance sheet or a financial control system. A manager who ignored the cost of energy or waste and ignored potential environmental liability should also be considered incompetent.

Accounting was developed as a critical management profession in the mid-20th century, resulting in the creation of the position of chief financial officer (CFO) in many organizations. At the end of the century, we saw a similar development as information management became central and we saw the rise of chief information officers (CIO) in many large organizations. In this century, we are starting to see the development of organizational units that work to promote the principles of environmental sustainability. The professionals we are educating at Columbia and in a growing number of universities are being prepared for those roles and have already begun to fill them. Today, most of those running sustainability units are trained in other fields. As they retire they will be replaced by well-trained sustainability professionals.

Related Posts

Alumni Spotlight: Charting a Flight Path to Sustainability

Can Digital Payments Help Countries Adapt to Climate Change?

From ‘Asthma Alley’ to Green Spaces: A Field Trip with South Bronx Unite

Excellent and easily understood for us non-professionals! I intend to post this article on my Facebook page.

I am a retiree and has done my research on sustainability from the systemic perspective. I applaud your work and enthusiaism on sustainability management. As your article reflected, your experiences tell you that sustainability management involves many disciplines. Most of all, your stated that “The sustainability paradigm places great importance on understanding the interconnectedness of ecosystems and environmental impacts and the problems caused by the deployment of technologies without considering their possible negative impacts on human and environmental health and welfare.” This statement somewhat jell with my research, which has a strategic overarching view on sustainability management, that tackles the root cause of sustainability issues. Yes, there is a root cause.

Specifically, I am working on the management of economic system, which covers all disciplines. Thus, my paper is coming from an entirely different perspective from yours, including the economists, because it is from the systemic perspective. Yet, although the system theorists came up with the systemic perspective, they have not explore what I did from the management and economic aspects. In essence, I have the answers to resolve the root cause of sustainabilty issues, believe it or not.

I have submitted my paper to a journal, but yet to be accepted for publication. For this reason, I am not saying much more but the abstract of my paper should give you an idea:

Starting from a clean slate to redesign workflows with radical rethinking is a concept that avoids getting entangled with incumbent workflows to introduce paradigm shifts. This concept was the key for Business Process Reengineering to replace manual labor workflows with that of automation workflows in organisation successfully. In a market, this concept develops new business models, or replaces declining or disrupts incumbent models. As the economy also has issues and errors, much like those in organisation and market, this paper expanded this concept to the economy. This expansion is crucial because, unlike organisations and markets, the one and only economy cannot come and go, which means the issues and errors are not a matter of adverse impacts on outputs, but that of self-destruction with sustainability issues and man-made calamities. Fortunately, the empirical evidence of both success and benefits of the clean slate concept in both organisation and market should convince the world to accept the expansion to change course from self-destruction to sustainability. To this end, this paper has substantiated the potential benefits and success of the expansion, and laid the foundation for further research to redesign the workflows to be congruent with the systemic perspective.

Thus, you have done a great job, but you have yet to work on the root cause.

I have an LA&S degree in geography – one of those ‘other fields’. I am concerned about the co-opting of LA&S faculty and students and the steering of normative views for occupational associations.

Get the Columbia Climate School Newsletter

Information

• Author Services

Initiatives

You are accessing a machine-readable page. In order to be human-readable, please install an RSS reader.

All articles published by MDPI are made immediately available worldwide under an open access license. No special permission is required to reuse all or part of the article published by MDPI, including figures and tables. For articles published under an open access Creative Common CC BY license, any part of the article may be reused without permission provided that the original article is clearly cited. For more information, please refer to https://www.mdpi.com/openaccess .

Feature papers represent the most advanced research with significant potential for high impact in the field. A Feature Paper should be a substantial original Article that involves several techniques or approaches, provides an outlook for future research directions and describes possible research applications.

Feature papers are submitted upon individual invitation or recommendation by the scientific editors and must receive positive feedback from the reviewers.

Editor’s Choice articles are based on recommendations by the scientific editors of MDPI journals from around the world. Editors select a small number of articles recently published in the journal that they believe will be particularly interesting to readers, or important in the respective research area. The aim is to provide a snapshot of some of the most exciting work published in the various research areas of the journal.

Original Submission Date Received: .

• Active Journals
• Find a Journal
• Proceedings Series
• For Authors
• For Reviewers
• For Editors
• For Librarians
• For Publishers
• For Societies
• For Conference Organizers
• Open Access Policy
• Institutional Open Access Program
• Special Issues Guidelines
• Editorial Process
• Research and Publication Ethics
• Article Processing Charges
• Testimonials
• Preprints.org
• SciProfiles
• Encyclopedia

Journal Menu

• Sustainability Home
• Aims & Scope

Editorial Board

• Reviewer Board

Topical Advisory Panel

• Instructions for Authors

Special Issues

• Sections & Collections
• Article Processing Charge
• Indexing & Archiving
• Editor’s Choice Articles
• Most Cited & Viewed
• Journal Statistics
• Journal History
• Journal Awards
• Society Collaborations
• Conferences
• Editorial Office

Journal Browser

• arrow_forward_ios Forthcoming issue arrow_forward_ios Current issue
• Vol. 16 (2024)
• Vol. 15 (2023)
• Vol. 14 (2022)
• Vol. 13 (2021)
• Vol. 12 (2020)
• Vol. 11 (2019)
• Vol. 10 (2018)
• Vol. 9 (2017)
• Vol. 8 (2016)
• Vol. 7 (2015)
• Vol. 6 (2014)
• Vol. 5 (2013)
• Vol. 4 (2012)
• Vol. 3 (2011)
• Vol. 2 (2010)
• Vol. 1 (2009)

Find support for a specific problem in the support section of our website.

Please let us know what you think of our products and services.

Visit our dedicated information section to learn more about MDPI.

Sustainable Management

A section of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).

Section Information

Sustainable management begins from the concept of sustainable development and combines it with the concept of management. There are three aspects relative to sustainable development: the environment, the needs of present and future generations, and the economy. In using these branches, the ability of a system to thrive by maintaining economic viability and by limiting resource consumption to meet the needs of present and future generations is created. According to this definition, sustainable management is defined as the application of sustainable practices in commerce, agriculture, environment, production, and other fields by management in a manner that is beneficial to present and future generations.

Sustainable management is necessary because it is an important part of the ability to successfully maintain the quality of life on our planet. Sustainable management can be applied to all aspects of our lives. For example, the community needs sustainable management because if the community is to prosper, then management must be sustainable. Forests and natural resources require sustainable management if they can continue to be used by our generation and future generations. Our personal lives also require sustainable management. This can be conducted by making decisions that help maintain our current environment and environment or by managing our emotional and physical health. Sustainable management can be applied to many dimenstions because it can be applied as a literal and abstract concept. The meaning depends on the meaning in which they are applied and it can be changed.

Topics include but not limit to the following dimensions:

• Business/Marketing/Brand Management;
• Sustainable Consumption;
• Supply Chain Management;
• Purchase/Distribution Management;
• Environmental Management;
• (Natural) Resources Management;
• Waste Management;
• Water/Energy/Project Management;
• Quality Management;
• Production/Manufacturing Management;
• Lean Production;
• Operations Management;
• Cost and Profit Management;
• Industry Management;
• Life-cycle Assessment;
• Entrepreneurship;
• Corporate Social Responsibility;
• Innovation Management;
• Hospitality and Tourism Management;
• Management Strategy and Policy;
• Role of emerging technologies in sustainable management;
• Impact of emerging technologies on management styles for improving sustainability;
• Emerging technologies integration into management systems.

Following special issues within this section are currently open for submissions:

• Effective Risk Management and Performance Evaluation for Manufacturing Sustainability (Deadline: 19 August 2024 )
• Digital Supply Chain and Sustainable SME Management (Deadline: 23 August 2024 )
• Sustainable Supply Chain Management in Industry 4.0 (Deadline: 24 August 2024 )
• Sustainable Corporate Governance and Firm Performance (Deadline: 31 August 2024 )
• Innovation Management and Organizational Performance for Sustainable Future (Deadline: 31 August 2024 )
• E-commerce Engineering and Sustainable Management (Deadline: 31 August 2024 )
• Analytical Research on Consumer Behavior and Digital Marketing Connection for Facilitating Sustainable Marketing Effectiveness (Deadline: 31 August 2024 )
• Sustainability Management Strategies and Practices—2nd Edition (Deadline: 1 September 2024 )
• Total Quality Management and Sustainability: Digital Quality Management and Quality Ecosystem (Deadline: 1 September 2024 )
• Decision Making in Sustainable Supply Chain Management: Recent Research Advances in the Context of Industry 4.0 (Deadline: 15 September 2024 )
• Digital Transformation for a Sustainable World: Trends and Challenges (Deadline: 15 September 2024 )
• Sustainability in Supply Chains, Technology Management, and Performance Evaluation (Deadline: 23 September 2024 )
• Sustainable Innovation in Logistics and Supply Chain Management, 2nd Edition (Deadline: 30 September 2024 )
• Digital Ecosystem and Smart Manufacturing for Sustainable Development in Industry 4.0 (Deadline: 30 September 2024 )
• Low-Carbon Logistics and Supply Chain Management (Deadline: 30 September 2024 )
• Logistics and Supply Chain Management Challenges and Opportunities in the COVID-19 World – Smart, Agile and Sustainable Trends, Methods and Practices (Deadline: 30 September 2024 )
• Sustainable Supply Chain Management within the Context of Industry 4.0 and Circular Economy (Deadline: 1 October 2024 )
• Sustainable Operations: Advancing Industry Practices for a Greener Future (Deadline: 11 October 2024 )
• Sustainable Development: Consumer Behavior and Circular Economy (Deadline: 15 October 2024 )
• Sustainable Supply Chain Optimization and Risk Management (Deadline: 19 October 2024 )
• Integrating Sustainability Management into Operations Management Strategies (Deadline: 21 October 2024 )
• Advances in Supply Chain Resilience and Extended Issues of Operations Management (Deadline: 31 October 2024 )
• Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Regional and Firm Sustainable Development (Deadline: 5 November 2024 )
• Digital Transformation and Sustainable Supply Chain Management (2nd Edition) (Deadline: 10 November 2024 )
• Work and Organizational Psychology and Well-Being Promotion for Sustainable and Healthy Organizations (Deadline: 20 November 2024 )
• Pro-environmental Practice for Green and Sustainable Development (Deadline: 20 November 2024 )
• Pro-environmental and Sustainable Consumer Behavior (Deadline: 29 November 2024 )
• Logistics Optimization and Sustainable Operations Management (Deadline: 30 November 2024 )
• Upscaling Sustainable Technology (Deadline: 30 November 2024 )
• Sustainable Supply Chain from the Perspective of International Strategy (Deadline: 1 December 2024 )
• Ecosystem Services, Green Innovation and Sustainable Development (Deadline: 5 December 2024 )
• Consumption Innovation and Consumer Behavior in Sustainable Marketing (Deadline: 18 December 2024 )
• Digital Transformation and Sustainable Business Management in Tourism (Deadline: 18 December 2024 )
• Digital Marketing for Sustainability (Deadline: 31 December 2024 )
• Green Supply Chain and Sustainable Operation Management (Deadline: 31 December 2024 )
• Sustainable Consumption and Circular Economy (Deadline: 31 December 2024 )
• Digital Economy and Sustainable Development (Deadline: 31 December 2024 )
• Integrating Sustainability Management in the Social Economy Sector—Challenges and Opportunities (Deadline: 4 January 2025 )
• Transition to Net Zero Supply Chains through Digitalization, Renewable Energy, Circular Economy and Green Finance (Deadline: 10 January 2025 )
• Sustainable, Resilient and Smart Manufacturing Systems (Deadline: 31 January 2025 )
• Managing Sustainable Development: Technology, Modelling & Applications (Deadline: 31 January 2025 )
• Green Supply Chain Management for Sustainable Development (Deadline: 31 January 2025 )
• Sustainable Risk Management (Deadline: 16 February 2025 )
• Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Sustainable Economic Development (Deadline: 25 February 2025 )
• Inclusive and Sustainable Marketing and Business Performance (Deadline: 27 February 2025 )
• Digital Technologies for Business Sustainability (Deadline: 28 February 2025 )
• Sustainability by Design: Strategies and Solutions for Organizational Innovation (Deadline: 28 February 2025 )
• Sustainable Coordination in Supply Chain Management—Risk Factors in Ensuring Coordination and Cooperation in Supply Chains and Actively Strengthening the Reliability of Supply Chains—2nd Edition (Deadline: 28 February 2025 )
• Trust and Sustainable Management in Construction Projects (Deadline: 28 February 2025 )
• Sustainable Supply Chains: Innovations in Closed-Loop Systems and Circular Economy Practices (Deadline: 15 March 2025 )
• Optimizing Logistics and Supply Chain Management towards Industry 5.0 (Deadline: 20 March 2025 )
• Innovations and Sustainable Practices to Ensure Project Safety and Improve Risk Management Capabilities (Deadline: 31 March 2025 )
• Innovative Approaches to Sustainable Production Systems and Supply Chain Management (Deadline: 31 March 2025 )
• Application of Artificial Intelligence in Sustainable Manufacturing (Deadline: 30 April 2025 )
• Industrial Digital Transformation and Sustainable Innovation Development (Deadline: 30 April 2025 )
• Sustainable Strategies for the Circular Economy and Digitalization (Deadline: 15 May 2025 )
• Sustainable Safety Culture in Manufacturing Enterprises (Deadline: 31 May 2025 )
• Open Innovation and Sustainable Operations Management in Industrial Engineering (Deadline: 31 May 2025 )
• Sustainable Supply Chain Management and Green Product Development (Deadline: 31 May 2025 )
• Social Responsibility of the Manager in the Smart City Concept - Science 2 Business—2nd Edition (Deadline: 1 June 2025 )
• Sustainable Logistics Operations and Management (Deadline: 5 June 2025 )
• Sustainable Innovation and Digital Governance (Deadline: 30 June 2025 )
• Digitalization and Innovative Business Strategy (Deadline: 30 June 2025 )
• Emerging Technologies Implementation in Sustainable Management (Deadline: 15 August 2025 )
• The Triple Nexus: Sustainable Management, Responsible Practices and Digital Transformation (Deadline: 30 September 2025 )
• Sustainability in Sensory and Consumer Science (Deadline: 31 October 2025 )
• Impact of Management Innovation on Sustainable Development (Deadline: 31 March 2026 )

Topical Collections

Following topical collections within this section are currently open for submissions:

• Advances in Construction Safety Management Practices
• Blockchain Technology
• Smart Production Operations Management and Industry 4.0
• Sustainable Hospitality Management and Marketing: From Theory to Survival Reality (Closed)
• Sustainable Innovation in Organizations for Improving Decisions
• Sustainable Public Administration

Essays on Sustainability and Management: Emerging Perspectives

• January 2017
• ISBN: 978-981-10-3122-9
• This person is not on ResearchGate, or hasn't claimed this research yet.

Discover the world's research

• 25+ million members
• 160+ million publication pages
• 2.3+ billion citations

Chapters (11)

• Essays on Sustainability and Management
• ESSAYS ON SUSTAINABILITY AND MANAGEMENT
• 2 Recommendations

• Jerke W. De Vries

• Recruit researchers
• Join for free
• Login Email Tip: Most researchers use their institutional email address as their ResearchGate login Password Forgot password? Keep me logged in Log in or Continue with Google Welcome back! Please log in. Email · Hint Tip: Most researchers use their institutional email address as their ResearchGate login Password Forgot password? Keep me logged in Log in or Continue with Google No account? Sign up

Schneider Electric Blog

Home > Sustainability > An introduction to sustainability management: Objective, principles, advantages

Sustainability

An introduction to sustainability management: Objective, principles, advantages

June 27, 2022

4 min read |  Atin Chhabra

JavaScript is required to use the TTS Player.

This audio was created using Microsoft Azure Speech Services

The protection of the environment and sustainability has moved to the forefront of economic and political discourse in recent times. Overpopulation is adding excessive stress to the planet’s natural resources and increasing the total waste generated. The waste management plans are incurring high costs for both public and private organizations.

Sustainability management focuses on the preservation of the environment and ensuring the optimal functioning of our ecosystem. The private and government sectors are adopting sustainable practices to expedite the global transition. This article gives you a complete look at what sustainability management is, its objectives, principles, and benefits.

What is a sustainability management system?

A sustainability management system (SMS) is a structured approach to integrating environmental, social, and economic considerations into decision-making and operations to achieve long-term viability and ethical responsibility.

Sustainability management combines the concept of sustainability with management. The primary aim of sustainability is to meet the needs of the current generation in a way that does not compromise the potential of the future generations to do the same.

Sustainability management comprises the organizational practices that ultimately lead to sustainable development . It involves economic production and consumption that eases environmental impact and facilitates the conservation of resources.

The constant stress on our natural resources has incurred heavy production costs for enterprises across the globe. Sustainability managers extend their focus on preserving the natural resources and the ecosystem.

The objectives of sustainable management

Effective sustainability management can help attain the following objectives:

• Management of the global economy: Sustainability management allows organizations to cut fuel costs and ease the health impacts of water and air pollution.
• Securing a sustainable future: Sustainability management facilitates sustainable development and is a constructive approach to securing a sustainable future. That being said, widespread adoption in the private and public sectors is paramount to success.
• Ensuring long-term growth: Sustainability has become a priority across different sectors. Businesses have acknowledged the importance of adopting sustainable means to survive in the future. Organizations across the globe can get a first mover’s advantage and ascertain linear growth in the long haul through sustainability management.

The importance of sustainable management

• It mitigates environmental impacts, promotes social responsibility, and supports economic growth.
• Businesses can reduce costs, enhance brand reputation, and meet regulatory requirements by adopting sustainable practices.
• It prepares organizations to adapt to environmental changes and resource scarcity effectively.

Principles of sustainable management

From being an add-on to playing a vital part in business decisions, sustainability has occupied the center stage in business management. Here is a look at the principles of sustainability management in the modern world.

• The success of sustainability management is aimed at the productive analysis and implementation of the most effective policies and strategies. The mounting production costs for businesses due to the effective depletion of natural resources have made it exceedingly important to invest in sustainable technologies , policies, and strategies that would assure maximum ROI
• Sustainability management amalgamates the art and science of management with environmental policies [1] . In some ways, it seeks to correct the dynamics of modern management, moving it away from mere financial manipulation and bringing it close to allocating resources and alleviating concerns. The foundation of sustainability management rests on comprehending human dependence on nature and using it to ensure the collective well-being of all.
• Sustainability management ensures the use of natural resources without putting them at the risk of exhaustion and allowing them to recover for further requirements.

The advantages of sustainability management

• Adopting sustainable management can help organizations to improve their public image significantly. It improves trust and enables business owners to enhance their client base.
• Sustainable technology is well-reputed for saving costs and speeding up productivity. Better productivity means improved output and reduced costs show an efficient use of resources and equipment.
• Climate change and the urgency of response have pushed government agencies across the globe to tighten regulations. Businesses can seamlessly comply with all such regulations with the help of sustainability management.
• Waste reduction is another significant benefit of sustainability. Any business adopting sustainability management would reduce its waste footprint by switching to sustainable products in production and consumption.
• Sustainability management leads to lower costs, improved efficiency, and better productivity. Another crucial aspect that sustainability impacts is profits. It leads to better revenue for the company and ensures the utmost satisfaction of consumers, stakeholders, and the workforce.
• Talking about the workforce, sustainability management helps companies to attract employees and investors to the forefront. Enterprises that have adopted sustainability are well-reputed and have a healthy financial record. Employees can foresee growth and freedom to operate coherently with available technology.
• Implementing sustainable strategies requires teamwork and fosters a collaborative culture in the organization. This leads to innovation and supports healthy growth on an enterprise level.

Sustainability management with Schneider Electric

Schneider Electric empowers businesses to inculcate sustainable means into their routine operations. Our team can further facilitate the curation of a strong energy management strategy.

Our solutions have helped organizations integrate sustainable means that have helped them with benefits like financial stability, improved efficiency, and a considerable improvement to the global sustainable operations. The Schneider Sustainability Impact (SSI) program 2021-2025 focuses on accelerating sustainability efforts while providing more people with access to clean energy and equal opportunities. Moreover, the SSI contributes to every United Nations Sustainable Development Goal.

Our SSI program is backed by 11 global targets and a host of accompanying targets to support action from our partners, business customers, and the local communities. Our combined efforts resonate with sustainability at the forefront and empower everyone to bridge the gap between sustainability and progress.

Tags: sustainable development , sustainable technology

The sources of sustainable electricity

Maximize Profits with an ESG Sustainability Approach

A BEMS Benefit: HVAC and Electrical Cooperation

Industrial automation system: What is it? Types, and benefits

45,000+ students realised their study abroad dream with us. Take the first step today

Here’s your new year gift, one app for all your, study abroad needs, start your journey, track your progress, grow with the community and so much more.

Verification Code

An OTP has been sent to your registered mobile no. Please verify

Thanks for your comment !

Our team will review it before it's shown to our readers.

Essay on Sustainable Development: Samples in 250, 300 and 500 Words

• Updated on  
• Nov 18, 2023

On 3rd August 2023, the Indian Government released its Net zero emissions target policy to reduce its carbon footprints. To achieve the sustainable development goals (SDG) , as specified by the UN, India is determined for its long-term low-carbon development strategy. Selfishly pursuing modernization, humans have frequently compromised with the requirements of a more sustainable environment.

As a result, the increased environmental depletion is evident with the prevalence of deforestation, pollution, greenhouse gases, climate change etc. To combat these challenges, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change launched the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) in 2019. The objective was to improve air quality in 131 cities in 24 States/UTs by engaging multiple stakeholders.

‘Development is not real until and unless it is sustainable development.’ – Ban Ki-Moon

Sustainable Development Goals, also known as SGDs, are a list of 17 goals to build a sustained and better tomorrow. These 17 SDGs are known as the ‘World’s Best Plan’ to eradicate property, tackle climate change, and empower people for global welfare.

This Blog Includes:

What is sustainable development, essay on sustainable development in 250 words, 300 words essay on sustainable development, 500 words essay on sustainable development, what are sdgs, introduction, conclusion of sustainable development essay, importance of sustainable development, examples of sustainable development.

As the term simply explains, Sustainable Development aims to bring a balance between meeting the requirements of what the present demands while not overlooking the needs of future generations. It acknowledges nature’s requirements along with the human’s aim to work towards the development of different aspects of the world. It aims to efficiently utilise resources while also meticulously planning the accomplishment of immediate as well as long-term goals for human beings, the planet as well and future generations. In the present time, the need for Sustainable Development is not only for the survival of mankind but also for its future protection. 

To give you an idea of the way to deliver a well-written essay, we have curated a sample on sustainable development below, with 250 words:

To give you an idea of the way to deliver a well-written essay, we have curated a sample on sustainable development below, with 300+ words:

We all remember the historical @BTS_twt speech supporting #Youth2030 initiative to empower young people to use their voices for change. Tomorrow, #BTSARMY 💜 will be in NYC🗽again for the #SDGmoment at #UNGA76 Live 8AM EST welcome back #BTSARMY 👏🏾 pic.twitter.com/pUnBni48bq — The Sustainable Development Goals #SDG🫶 (@ConnectSDGs) September 19, 2021

To give you an idea of the way to deliver a well-written essay, we have curated a sample on sustainable development below, with 500 + words:

Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs are a list of 17 goals to build a better world for everyone. These goals are developed by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations. Let’s have a look at these sustainable development goals.

• Eradicate Poverty
• Zero Hunger
• Good Health and Well-being
• Quality Education
• Gender Equality
• Clean Water and Sanitation
• Affordable and Clean Energy
• Decent Work and Economic Growth
• Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
• Reduced Inequalities
• Sustainable Cities and Communities
• Responsible Consumption and Production
• Climate Action
• Life Below Water
• Life on Land
• Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
• Partnership for the Goals

Essay Format

Before drafting an essay on Sustainable Development, students need to get familiarised with the format of essay writing, to know how to structure the essay on a given topic. Take a look at the following pointers which elaborate upon the format of a 300-350 word essay.

Introduction (50-60 words) In the introduction, students must introduce or provide an overview of the given topic, i.e. highlighting and adding recent instances and questions related to sustainable development. Body of Content (100-150 words) The area of the content after the introduction can be explained in detail about why sustainable development is important, its objectives and highlighting the efforts made by the government and various institutions towards it.  Conclusion (30-40 words) In the essay on Sustainable Development, you must add a conclusion wrapping up the content in about 2-3 lines, either with an optimistic touch to it or just summarizing what has been talked about above.

How to write the introduction of a sustainable development essay? To begin with your essay on sustainable development, you must mention the following points:

• What is sustainable development?
• What does sustainable development focus on?
• Why is it useful for the environment?

How to write the conclusion of a sustainable development essay? To conclude your essay on sustainable development, mention why it has become the need of the hour. Wrap up all the key points you have mentioned in your essay and provide some important suggestions to implement sustainable development.

The importance of sustainable development is that it meets the needs of the present generations without compromising on the needs of the coming future generations. Sustainable development teaches us to use our resources correctly. Listed below are some points which tell us the importance of sustainable development.

• Focuses on Sustainable Agricultural Methods – Sustainable development is important because it takes care of the needs of future generations and makes sure that the increasing population does not put a burden on Mother Earth. It promotes agricultural techniques such as crop rotation and effective seeding techniques.
• Manages Stabilizing the Climate – We are facing the problem of climate change due to the excessive use of fossil fuels and the killing of the natural habitat of animals. Sustainable development plays a major role in preventing climate change by developing practices that are sustainable. It promotes reducing the use of fossil fuels which release greenhouse gases that destroy the atmosphere.
• Provides Important Human Needs – Sustainable development promotes the idea of saving for future generations and making sure that resources are allocated to everybody. It is based on the principle of developing an infrastructure that is can be sustained for a long period of time.
• Sustain Biodiversity – If the process of sustainable development is followed, the home and habitat of all other living animals will not be depleted. As sustainable development focuses on preserving the ecosystem it automatically helps in sustaining and preserving biodiversity.
• Financial Stability – As sustainable development promises steady development the economies of countries can become stronger by using renewable sources of energy as compared to using fossil fuels, of which there is only a particular amount on our planet.

Mentioned below are some important examples of sustainable development. Have a look:

• Wind Energy – Wind energy is an easily available resource. It is also a free resource. It is a renewable source of energy and the energy which can be produced by harnessing the power of wind will be beneficial for everyone. Windmills can produce energy which can be used to our benefit. It can be a helpful source of reducing the cost of grid power and is a fine example of sustainable development. 
• Solar Energy – Solar energy is also a source of energy which is readily available and there is no limit to it. Solar energy is being used to replace and do many things which were first being done by using non-renewable sources of energy. Solar water heaters are a good example. It is cost-effective and sustainable at the same time.
• Crop Rotation – To increase the potential of growth of gardening land, crop rotation is an ideal and sustainable way. It is rid of any chemicals and reduces the chances of disease in the soil. This form of sustainable development is beneficial to both commercial farmers and home gardeners.
• Efficient Water Fixtures – The installation of hand and head showers in our toilets which are efficient and do not waste or leak water is a method of conserving water. Water is essential for us and conserving every drop is important. Spending less time under the shower is also a way of sustainable development and conserving water.
• Sustainable Forestry – This is an amazing way of sustainable development where the timber trees that are cut by factories are replaced by another tree. A new tree is planted in place of the one which was cut down. This way, soil erosion is prevented and we have hope of having a better, greener future.

Related Articles

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a set of 17 global goals established by the United Nations in 2015. These include: No Poverty Zero Hunger Good Health and Well-being Quality Education Gender Equality Clean Water and Sanitation Affordable and Clean Energy Decent Work and Economic Growth Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure Reduced Inequality Sustainable Cities and Communities Responsible Consumption and Production Climate Action Life Below Water Life on Land Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions Partnerships for the Goals

The SDGs are designed to address a wide range of global challenges, such as eradicating extreme poverty globally, achieving food security, focusing on promoting good health and well-being, inclusive and equitable quality education, etc.

India is ranked #111 in the Sustainable Development Goal Index 2023 with a score of 63.45.

Hence, we hope that this blog helped you understand the key features of an essay on sustainable development. If you are interested in Environmental studies and planning to pursue sustainable tourism courses , take the assistance of Leverage Edu ’s AI-based tool to browse through a plethora of programs available in this specialised field across the globe and find the best course and university combination that fits your interests, preferences and aspirations. Call us immediately at 1800 57 2000 for a free 30-minute counselling session

Team Leverage Edu

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Contact no. *

Thanks a lot for this important essay.

NICELY AND WRITTEN WITH CLARITY TO CONCEIVE THE CONCEPTS BEHIND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY.

Thankyou so much!

Leaving already?

8 Universities with higher ROI than IITs and IIMs

Grab this one-time opportunity to download this ebook

Connect With Us

45,000+ students realised their study abroad dream with us. take the first step today..

Resend OTP in

Need help with?

Study abroad.

UK, Canada, US & More

IELTS, GRE, GMAT & More

Scholarship, Loans & Forex

Country Preference

New Zealand

Which English test are you planning to take?

Which academic test are you planning to take.

Not Sure yet

When are you planning to take the exam?

Already booked my exam slot

Within 2 Months

Want to learn about the test

Which Degree do you wish to pursue?

When do you want to start studying abroad.

September 2024

January 2025

What is your budget to study abroad?

How would you describe this article ?

Please rate this article

We would like to hear more.

• Name This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
• Climate Change
• Policy & Economics
• Biodiversity
• Conservation

Get focused newsletters especially designed to be concise and easy to digest

• ESSENTIAL BRIEFING 3 times weekly
• TOP STORY ROUNDUP Once a week
• MONTHLY OVERVIEW Once a month
• Enter your email *

Explainer: What Is Sustainability and Why Is It Important?

It seems like nowadays, the term ‘sustainable’ is used all around us – from food packaging to clothing companies and even tourism. In fact, ‘sustainability’ was one of the most-searched terms in fashion in 2019, and Google searches for the term have been on the rise, illustrating the public’s growing interest in the topic. But what is sustainability exactly and why is it so important?

What Is Sustainability

The go-to definition when discussing sustainability is “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. And though you may have heard this before, many people do not know the origins of this definition in particular. In 1987, the United Nations Brundtland Commission published this particular definition of sustainability in the Brundtland report , which called for a strategy that united development and the environment. Over the years, alternative definitions have emerged, but the Brundtland report’s 1980s take on the explanation is still commonly used. 

The ‘ Three Pillars of Sustainability’ is another popular framework used to describe what sustainable development is. This tool conveys that sustainability consists of environmental, social, and economic factors that are vital when discussing the topic:

• Environmental sustainability is perhaps the most obvious of the three pillars, as it symbolises the importance of things like natural resources and biodiversity to support life on Earth. 
• Social sustainability places importance on social structures, well-being, and harmony; all factors that poverty, wars, and injustices can affect.
• Economic sustainability describes the ability of an economy to grow. This is especially important in today’s societies, at a time when many sustainable initiatives require financing and a strong economic rationale. 

In order to find solutions to ongoing sustainability issues, it is imperative that we consider all three pillars.

You might also like: We Need Sustainable Food Packaging Now. Here’s Why.

What Are the Planetary Boundaries And How Do They Relate to Sustainability?

The concept of planetary boundaries (PB) is focussed on nine aspects that humanity needs in order to thrive in the future. This idea was developed in 2009 by the Stockholm Resilience Centre and other groups: “ We propose a new approach to global sustainability in which we define planetary boundaries within which we expect that humanity can operate safely. Transgressing one or more […] may be deleterious or even catastrophic due to the risk of crossing .”

At the time when this new concept was introduced, scientists believed that humanity had already transgressed three boundaries, and was rapidly approaching several others. In 2022, a re-assessment of the PBs by fourteen scientists concluded that humanity had transgressed additional boundaries, relating to freshwater and environmental pollutants in particular.

The PBs have been widely cited in sustainability literature over the last decade, and provide an illustrative tool to track and evaluate how we are depleting the Earth’s valuable ecosystem services and precious systems. Though the tool is mainly environmentally focused, it has informed various policies and practices, including the World Business Council on Sustainable Development’s Action 2020 Strategy. In turn, this has had a knock-on effect on social and economic aspects of global policy and governance, including “financial investment, food, textiles, building, technology and household goods sectors”. 

You might also like: Sustainable Alternatives to Fast Fashion

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 

In 2015, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted by the UN Member States. One of the most well-known elements of this were the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which set out various goals that the international community must work together to achieve – ranging from environmental and social to economic issues. 

We cannot discuss the SDGs without first acknowledging their predecessor – the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) – set out in September 2000. These goals ranged from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS. By the end of the 15-year cycle of the MDGs in 2015, the UN established an even more ambitious set of goals – the SDGs – to enter into force on 1 January 2016. While not all of the MDGs were met globally, significant progress was made in several areas.

The SDGs have been continually monitored and provide key benchmarks for us to understand how sustainability is being achieved worldwide. Overview reports are regularly published and comment on the nuances that significant events bring to achieving the SDGs (like the COVID-19 pandemic, for example). You can read the 2022 SDG Report here . 

You might also like: Why the Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 Are More Important Than Ever

Why Is Sustainability Important?

So far, we’ve discussed the different ways that sustainability is defined and the tools and metrics we have developed on a global scale to measure our impact on the environment, societies, and economies worldwide. But why is sustainability important? 

Here are a few reasons, although the list could go on for a lot longer: 

• Sustainability joins social, environmental, and economic issues together throughout global discussions, ensuring that key elements do not get left behind. Focusing on aspects other than the environment alone ensures a fairer, more equitable discussion (as long as a diverse range of players is at the table). 
• Sustainability opens up new conversations between a range of people with diverse skills and thought processes – for example scientists, sociologists, and economists all have key skills to enable humanity to thrive and sustain the Earth. 
• The SDGs are an impactful way to evaluate our progress and have encouraged key ideas and strategies to flourish while remaining realistic about the next steps and improvements.

This story is funded by readers like you

Our non-profit newsroom provides climate coverage free of charge and advertising. Your one-off or monthly donations play a crucial role in supporting our operations, expanding our reach, and maintaining our editorial independence.

About EO | Mission Statement | Impact & Reach | Write for us

Top 7 Smart Cities in the World in 2024

The Green Dilemma: Can AI Fulfil Its Potential Without Harming the Environment?

How Does Overpopulation Affect Sustainability? Challenges and Solutions

Hand-picked stories weekly or monthly. We promise, no spam!

Boost this article By donating us $100, $50 or subscribe to Boosting $10/month – we can get this article and others in front of tens of thousands of specially targeted readers. This targeted Boosting – helps us to reach wider audiences – aiming to convince the unconvinced, to inform the uninformed, to enlighten the dogmatic.

Sustainability and resilience: What do they mean, and how do they matter for policy?

Distinguished Professor, Arthur J. Gosnell Professor of Economics, & Interim Head, Department of Sustainability, Rochester Institute of Technology

Disclosure statement

Amitrajeet A. Batabyal does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Rochester Institute of Technology provides funding as a member of The Conversation US.

View all partners

“Sustainability” and “resilience” have become buzzwords in recent years, but many people don’t know what either term really means. As an economist who studies environmental issues , I believe an important first step to solving any problem is to define your terms clearly.

Although laypeople often use them interchangeably, sustainability and resilience aren’t the same thing. In fact, resilience isn’t even a single concept. Two influential ecologists have defined “resilience” in two completely different ways.

This might seem like an academic debate over words – and indeed, not all environmental policymakers even know that this conflict exists. But they should. That’s because how we define problems, and come up with solutions, matters.

A short history of sustainability and resilience

While the word “sustainable” dates back to at least the 17th century , the concept got a big boost in 1987. That’s when the United Nations’ World Commission on Environment and Development defined sustainable development as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” in its high-profile report “Our Common Future” .

This was a big deal. In the post-World War II era, environmental concerns had been expressed prominently and vividly by people such as conservationist Rachel Carson in her book “ Silent Spring ,” but until the U.N.’s 1987 report, no appropriate world body had officially recognized the relevance of these concerns. Since then, sustainable development and sustainability have become popular concepts in academic and policy circles.

So that’s sustainability. What about resilience?

In 1973, ecologist C.S. “Buzz” Holling defined resilience in an influential article . He contended that the resilience of an ecosystem – since called ecological resilience – can be thought of as “the magnitude of disturbance that can be absorbed before the system changes its structure by changing the variables and processes that control behavior.”

In other words, it’s how much stress a system can take before it changes its state. For simplicity’s sake, I’ll call this the “Holling definition” of resilience.

To make matters more complex, in a 1984 article in Nature , ecologist Stuart Pimm came up with a second definition of ecosystem resilience, since called engineering resilience . According to Pimm, resilience refers to “how fast a variable that has been displaced from equilibrium returns to it.” “Equilibrium” means a state of balance.

Put differently, according to this definition, a resilient system will return to its state of balance after being disturbed. Let’s call this the “Pimm notion” of resilience.

How the two types of resilience are different, and why it matters

My research on resilience has led me to two key conclusions. First, the Holling and Pimm notions of resilience are very different. And second, from a policy perspective, the approach you take should depend on the state – or states – of the system whose behavior you’re trying to influence.

In other words, if you think a system has only one equilibrium state, then Pimm, or engineering resilience, is the correct concept to use. This is because no matter how badly this system gets shocked, when the shock is removed, this system will always return to its unique state of balance.

However, if you think that the underlying system doesn’t have a single equilibrium state but can exist in multiple states, then Holling, or ecological resilience, is the relevant concept for policy.

Research shows that most natural and socioeconomic systems exist in multiple states. That suggests policymakers should focus on resilience in the sense of Holling.

One lake, three states

That’s all pretty abstract. To see how it looks in practice, consider a lake.

Research shows that many lakes can exist in one of two stable states, depending on how much of a chemical called phosphorus is in them.

For humans, the oligotrophic state – in which the water has submerged vegetation and allows swimming and water sports – is the good state.

The eutrophic state – in which nutrients in the water lead to cloudiness and toxic algal blooms – is the bad one. But that’s just from a human perspective. From the perspective of algae, the eutrophic state is good – and it’s stable.

There’s also a brief transitional state between those two. Evidence shows that many other ecosystems also can be described using this three-state classification.

The goal of policy should be to keep the lake in the oligotrophic state for as long as possible or, alternately, to keep this lake in the eutrophic state for as little time as possible.

In other words, policymakers should want the lake to be maximally Holling resilient in the “good” oligotrophic state, and minimally Holling resilient in the “bad” eutrophic state.

Lessons for system management

Here are three key takeaways:

First, the concept of resilience – since it’s integrally tied to the state of a system – can be good or bad . It all depends on the state of the system that a policymaker is seeking to affect.

Second, talking about the Pimm or engineering resilience of the lake is unhelpful because the lake – and many other systems – can exist in more than one stable state . Relatedly, the question of how quickly a shocked system returns to its equilibrium state can’t be answered meaningfully because once the shock is removed, the system may not return to its pre-shocked state.

And finally, keeping our lake in the human-friendly oligotrophic state for as long as possible directly brings time into the management problem. Since sustainable development and sustainability are both about dynamics or phenomena happening over time, there’s a definite connection between resilience and sustainability.

Specifically, the sustainability of a system requires that this system be resilient in the sense of Holling. We could also say that a necessary condition for sustaining a system is that it be resilient. This is also what the researcher Charles Perrings has in mind when he says that a development strategy isn’t sustainable if it isn’t resilient.

Environmental policymakers like to talk about sustainability and resilience. But in my experience, not enough of them know what these words mean. To get better results, they can start by defining their terms.

• Sustainability
• Eutrophication
• Sustainable development
• Environmental economics
• Water sustainability

Communications and Change Manager – Research Strategy

Head of School: Engineering, Computer and Mathematical Sciences

Educational Designer

Organizational Behaviour – Assistant / Associate Professor (Tenure-Track)

Apply for State Library of Queensland's next round of research opportunities

Nasslackieren und pulverbeschichten

Der Kongress am  15. / 16. Oktober 2024 in Heidelberg  informiert umfassend über neue lack-, anlagen- und verfahrens­technische Entwicklungen und deren Umsetzung in die Praxis.

Springer Professional

2017 | Buch

Essays on Sustainability and Management

Emerging perspectives.

herausgegeben von: Runa Sarkar, Annapurna Shaw

Verlag: Springer Singapore

Buchreihe : India Studies in Business and Economics

Enthalten in: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Technik" , Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

Über dieses Buch

This book offers a comprehensive overview of sustainability and management in India and through its insightful essays highlights the complex and multifaceted nature of sustainability as a concept. It also demonstrates the debates surrounding the concept of sustainability and its ramifications for ground-level practice in managing organisations and for public policy. The contributions from sustainability enthusiasts, practitioners from disparate fields and academics working at the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, have been divided into five themes: (1) sustainability as a normative concept; (2) sustainability concept at the global level, (3) sustainability practices in Indian organisations and consumer behaviour; (4) sustainability, corporate governance and corporate social responsibility and (5) sustainability: a critique of organisational practice and government regulation. The themes reflect both new and continuing issues confronting management in the country today. Examples and in-depth studies make it relevant to the grounded reality in India. The expertise and experience of the contributors ensure that readers are left with a grasp of our current understanding of how sustainability is related to society and business, the direction this understanding will take in the future.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Frontmatter, sustainability as a normative concept, chapter 1. sustainable development and the concept of a good life, chapter 2. sustainable development and the agenda of global social justice, chapter 3. role of religion in conflict prevention for social and environmental sustainability: experiential insights from india, sustainability concept at the global level, chapter 4. sustainable development concept in the wto jurisprudence: contradictions and connivance, sustainability practices in indian organisations and consumer behaviour, chapter 5. sustainable supply chain management: an empirical study of a global automaker’s indian operations, chapter 6. green marketing in india: a perspective, chapter 7. have green, pay more: an empirical investigation of consumer’s attitude towards green packaging in an emerging economy, sustainability, corporate governance and corporate social responsibility, chapter 8. corporate governance and corporate social responsibility, chapter 9. demystifying csr and corporate sustainability, and its impact on the bottom of the pyramid, sustainability: a critique of organisational practice and government regulation, chapter 10. embedding sustainability in organisational action and thought, chapter 11. there now…gone now…sustainability in csr regulation in india, premium partner.

• Webinare Technik
• Webinare Wirtschaft
• Veranstaltungskalender
• MyNewsletter
• Automobil + Motoren
• Bauwesen + Immobilien
• Business IT + Informatik
• Elektrotechnik + Elektronik
• Energie + Nachhaltigkeit
• Finance + Banking
• Management + Führung
• Marketing + Vertrieb
• Maschinenbau + Werkstoffe
• Versicherung + Risiko
• Organisationspsychologie
• Projektmanagement
• Smart Manufacturing
• Zeitschriften
• Jetzt Einzelzugang starten
• Zugang für Unternehmen
• Referenzkunden
• Lackier- und Pulvertreff 2024

Sustainability and Waste Management Essay

• To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
• As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
• As a template for you assignment

Introduction

The challenges associated with landfills, the benefits of waste-to-energy technologies.

The rapid economic development of Australia has underlined the necessity to minimize the impact of human activities on the environment. Scientists and public administrators pay close attention to waste management. One can say that the increasing dependence on landfills is one of the problems that should be addressed by policy-makers.

This paper is aimed at showing that people recover energy from waste, rather than deposit it in landfills. This is the main thesis that should be elaborated. Overall, this strategy has several important advantages that can be of great value to Australian community.

In particular, it can reduce water, air and soil pollution caused by disposing of refuse in landfills. Secondly, this approach can decrease the cost of energy, and this opportunity is important for the economic sustainability of the country. Finally, in the future, this approach can improve the use of land in various urban areas. These are the main aspects that can be singled out.

In order to examine this topic, one should first illustrate the problems that are associated with landfills in Australia. It should be mentioned that during the period between 2001 and 2007, the amount of waste, which was deposited in landfills, grew by approximately 12 percent (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2013). In 2001, there were 19 million tons, while in 2007 there were 21.3 million tons (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2013).

Overall, one can speak about commercial, industrial, and municipal waste that is not recycled in any away (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2013). This trend is likely to continue in the future. It should be noted that the dependence on landfills can increase in the future due to the rapid demographic growth of the Australian society.

This argument is particularly relevant, if one speaks about large urban areas such as Sydney or Melbourne that attract people from different parts of the world. There are several challenges that are associated with the growth of landfills, for example, leachates or emissions to water, visual disamenities, or the release of greenhouse gases (BDA Group 2009, p. 4).

Moreover, one should bear in mind that approximately 30 percent of Australian landfills do not have the technologies that can enable them to capture methane and other chemicals that can produce an adverse on the environment (Lancaster 2012, p. 133). Thus, the increasing reliance on landfills can contribute to greenhouse effect (BDA Group 2009).

Furthermore, one should not forget that the decomposition of waste is a very time-consuming process (Lancaster 2012, p. 133). In some cases, the decomposition can take from 50 to 450 years (Lancaster 2012, p. 133).

This is why this trend should not be overlooked by policy-makers who must ensure the environmental sustainability of the country. In particular, they need to find some viable alternatives to landfills that cannot remain the only approach to waste management.

There are several solutions to this problem, and one of them is the recovery of energy from waste. The most widespread method of achieving this goal is the incineration of refuse. In the past, policy-makers did not favor this approach because the incineration of waste could result in the emissions of various toxic materials such as dioxins and fly ash that can pose a threat to the health of a person (Afgan & Carvalho 2002).

However, in the course of the last two decades, waste-to-energy (WtE) technologies have considerably evolved and their negative impacts have been minimized (Worrell & Vesilind 2011). For example, modern incineration facilities emit a smaller amount of CO 2 in comparison with landfills (Letcher 2008, p. 151).

This is one of issues that should be considered by public administrators. Additionally, there are other methods of deriving energy from waste. For example, one can mention pyrolysis, thermal depolymerization, or plasma arc classification (Letcher 2008, p. 151).

These processes can produce fuel-cell hydrogen, biodiesel, bioethanal, or crude oil that are necessary for the generation of energy (Letcher 2008, p. 151). These techniques can be useful for processing different types of waste. Furthermore, such processes can minimize the emission of toxic substances into air.

Thus, one should not suppose that incineration is the only technique that can be used. To a great extent, these examples suggest that technological developments can help people generate from waste. This is one of the points that can be made.

There are several examples that can illustrate the usefulness of WtE technologies. For instance, this approach minimizes the release of various greenhouse gases as carbon dioxide, methane, or nitrogen oxides (Afgan & Carvalho 2002, p. 445). These substances can be used for the generation of energy.

More importantly, this approach can be a valuable tool for decreasing the greenhouse effect which is caused by methane or carbon dioxide (Worrell & Vesilind 2011). This is the main environmental benefits of transforming refuse into a source of energy. Furthermore, these technologies can decrease the overall quantity of waste by more than 80 percent (Worrell & Vesilind 2011).

This benefit should not be overlooked by public administrators because in the future, the increasing amount of refuse can prevent the community from making an effective use of land in various urban areas of Australia which become much more populated (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2013). Furthermore, the growth of landfills can be attributed to intensifying economic activities.

Thus, one should find ways of addressing this problem in the following years. To a great extent, the adoption of WtE technologies can be important for improving the environmental sustainability of the country and overall quality of life. These are some of the main examples that can be distinguished.

Additionally, this strategy can help the national economy overcome its dependence on natural resources such as oil, natural gas, or coal that may eventually become depleted (Afgan & Carvalho 2002, p. 445). It should be kept in mind, waste can be used to generate approximately 20 percent of electric power that urban areas need (Worrell & Vesilind 2011, p. 23).

Overall, the investment in these technologies can enable the country to save the cost of generating energy and use it for other purposes such as healthcare or education. Yet, this opportunity is often lost nowadays. For example, a signification fraction of municipal waste combustible; furthermore, it can be used for the generation of energy (Worrell & Vesilind 2011, p. 23).

However, in many cases, it is not processed at all because there are not many facilities that can recover energy from this type of waste. The need to find alternative sources of energy can become even more urgent at the time when the price of fossil fuels increases.

This is why the community should consider the benefits of WtE technologies because they can make Australia more self-sufficient. This is one of the issues that should be singled out because it is important for understanding the economic aspects of waste management.

Admittedly, the recovery of energy from waste is not the only approach that policy-makers can consider. In particular, one should not forget about such a strategy as recycling which can also be viewed as a good alternative to landfills. In many cases, it can be a valid solution to environmental and economic problems.

Nevertheless, this method is not always sufficient for reducing the volume of refuse. The problem is that some materials such as polymers cannot be effectively recycled. However, they can be used for the generation of energy. Therefore, one should not disregard the use of WtE technologies since these tools can decrease the amount of waste produced by various human activities.

Overall, this discussion shows that by recovering energy from waste, one can derive considerable environmental and economic benefits. At present, the Australian community should find some alternative to landfills because the volume of refuse increases significantly due to demographic growth and intensifying economic activities.

The use of various WtE technologies is helpful for reducing the volume of waste that can originate from households or commercial enterprises. Secondly, this type of processing minimizes the emissions of substances that contribute to greenhouse effects. Apart from that, this approach is critical for reducing the dependence on fossil fuels that can eventually become depleted. These are the main issues that can be identified.

Afgan, N & Carvalho, M 2002, New and Renewable Technologies for Sustainable Development , Springer, New York.

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2013, Waste Disposed to Landfills . Web.

BDA Group 2009, The full cost of landfill disposal in Australia . Web.

Lancaster, S 2012, Green Australia , Wakefield Press, Melbourne.

Letcher, T 2008, Future Energy: Improved, Sustainable and Clean Options for our Planet , Elsevier, Boston.

Worrell, W, & Vesilind, P 2011, Solid Waste Engineering, SI Edition, Cengage Learning, New York.

• We Should Recover Energy from Waste Rather Than Dispose of To Landfill
• Waste Management in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi
• King Fahad Medical City
• Improper Trash Disposal and Its Impact on Human Health
• Environmental Health and Safety
• Management of E-Waste
• Life Cycle for a plastic bottle
• Recycling in Campus
• Environmental Impact of Medical Wastes
• Problems of Household Waste Disposal
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2019, April 23). Sustainability and Waste Management. https://ivypanda.com/essays/sustainability-and-waste-management-essay/

"Sustainability and Waste Management." IvyPanda , 23 Apr. 2019, ivypanda.com/essays/sustainability-and-waste-management-essay/.

IvyPanda . (2019) 'Sustainability and Waste Management'. 23 April.

IvyPanda . 2019. "Sustainability and Waste Management." April 23, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/sustainability-and-waste-management-essay/.

1. IvyPanda . "Sustainability and Waste Management." April 23, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/sustainability-and-waste-management-essay/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Sustainability and Waste Management." April 23, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/sustainability-and-waste-management-essay/.

Essay on Environmental Sustainability

Students are often asked to write an essay on Environmental Sustainability in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Environmental Sustainability

Understanding environmental sustainability.

Environmental sustainability is about making decisions that do not harm the environment. It’s about preserving nature for future generations.

Importance of Environmental Sustainability

Our survival depends on the environment. If we don’t sustain it, we risk losing resources like water and air. It’s crucial for our health and economy.

Ways to Achieve Sustainability

We can achieve sustainability by reducing waste, recycling, and using renewable energy. It’s about changing our lifestyles to protect the environment.

Environmental sustainability is crucial for our future. We all need to play our part to ensure our planet remains healthy.

250 Words Essay on Environmental Sustainability

Introduction to environmental sustainability.

Environmental sustainability is an integral aspect of our existence, intertwined with the notion of preserving the natural world for future generations. It encapsulates the concept of stewardship, wherein we are responsible for managing the Earth’s resources responsibly and efficiently.

The Imperative of Sustainable Practices

The current environmental crisis, characterized by climate change, deforestation, and biodiversity loss, underscores the urgency of sustainable practices. These practices aim to minimize the environmental footprint by reducing waste, conserving energy, and promoting recycling. They are not merely an ethical obligation, but a necessity for human survival.

Role of Innovation in Sustainability

Innovation plays a pivotal role in environmental sustainability. Technological advancements like renewable energy, green architecture, and waste management systems pave the way for a sustainable future. They provide practical solutions to environmental problems, enabling us to balance economic growth with ecological preservation.

Individual Responsibility and Collective Action

Environmental sustainability demands individual responsibility and collective action. Each of us can contribute by adopting sustainable lifestyles, such as minimizing waste, conserving water, and reducing energy consumption. Collective action, on the other hand, involves policy changes, corporate responsibility, and international cooperation.

In conclusion, environmental sustainability is a multidimensional concept, involving the careful management of natural resources, innovative technologies, and concerted human effort. As stewards of the Earth, we must strive to ensure the sustainability of our planet for future generations.

500 Words Essay on Environmental Sustainability

Environmental sustainability is a concept that has grown in prominence as the world grapples with the effects of climate change. It refers to the practice of using resources in a way that preserves the environment for future generations. This includes reducing waste, promoting renewable energy, and maintaining biodiversity.

The Importance of Environmental Sustainability

The significance of environmental sustainability cannot be overstated. As the world’s population continues to grow, so does the demand for resources. This increased demand, coupled with unsustainable practices, has led to environmental degradation, loss of biodiversity, and climate change. By practicing environmental sustainability, we can help ensure that future generations inherit a planet that is as rich and diverse as the one we enjoy today.

Principles of Environmental Sustainability

Environmental sustainability is underpinned by several key principles. First, we must recognize the finite nature of our planet’s resources and strive to use them sparingly. Second, we must work towards reducing waste and promoting recycling. Third, we must strive to reduce our carbon footprint and promote renewable energy. Lastly, we must value and protect our biodiversity, recognizing the intrinsic worth of all living things.

Challenges to Environmental Sustainability

Role of individuals and institutions in promoting environmental sustainability.

Individuals and institutions have a crucial role to play in promoting environmental sustainability. Individuals can make a difference by making sustainable choices in their daily lives, such as reducing waste, recycling, and choosing renewable energy. Institutions, on the other hand, can implement sustainable practices in their operations and advocate for environmental sustainability at the policy level.

In conclusion, environmental sustainability is not just a buzzword; it is a necessity for our survival and the survival of future generations. It requires a collective effort from individuals, institutions, and governments alike. By understanding the importance of environmental sustainability and the principles that underpin it, we can all play a part in preserving our planet for future generations.

If you’re looking for more, here are essays on other interesting topics:

Happy studying!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

• DOI: 10.17770/etr2024vol1.7995
• Corpus ID: 271370035

A NEW APPROACH TO SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT – THE CONCEPT OF SOCIAL FARMING

• Vihra Dimitrova , Plamen Pavlov
• Published in ENVIRONMENT. TECHNOLOGIES… 22 June 2024
• Environmental Science, Agricultural and Food Sciences, Business
• ENVIRONMENT. TECHNOLOGIES. RESOURCES. Proceedings of the International Scientific and Practical Conference

29 References

Social farming in the promotion of social-ecological sustainability in rural and periurban areas, new approaches to sustainable rural development: social farming as an opportunity in europe, social farming in italy. analysis of an «inclusive model», agriculture and the social farm: expression of the multifunctional model of agriculture as a solution to the economic crisis in rural areas, the role of social farming in the socio-economic development of highly marginal regions: an investigation in calabria, investigating the limits of multifunctional agriculture as the dominant frame for green care in agriculture in flanders and the netherlands, toward a theory of sustainability management, rural marginalisation and the role of social innovation; a turn towards nexogenous development and rural reconnection, word count : 13743 systems thinking : a review of sustainability management research, understanding the complexity of economic, ecological, and social systems, related papers.

Showing 1 through 3 of 0 Related Papers

Effects of Sustainable Business Networks on the Environmentally Sound Management of Chemicals in Zimbabwe

• Muzamwese, Tawanda Collins

Despite the formulation of policy frameworks and awareness on hazardous chemical management, practical implementation at organisational level remains a challenge in Zimbabwe. Participation in inter-organisational networks has been shown to have a catalytic role in some contexts. Sustainable business networks such as the Business Council for Sustainable Development Zimbabwe (BCSDZ) have undertaken programmes to promote safe chemical management and chemical leasing. This research paper assesses the effects of sustainable business networks on circular economy (CE) through implementation of safe chemical management and chemical leasing programmes in Zimbabwe. The research paper is based on forty (40) companies drawn from the industrial, manufacturing and mining sectors in Zimbabwe. A total of 50% of the companies assessed were selected because they participated in the safe chemical management programme called responsible production toolkit training and chemical leasing training during the period of 2018 to 2023, whilst the other 50% selected were not participants in any chemical management initiative to provide a comparison group to enable causal inferences. The study employed direct observation of chemical management practices, interviews with key informants and content analysis. Barriers and challenges identified included high chemical intensity, higher proportion of chemical accidents, inadequate provision of personal protective equipment (PPE), lack of clear policies on chemical management, lack of adequate technical capacity on chemical management, use of foreign languages in some material safety data sheets (MSDS), incompatible chemical storage practices, lack of proper labelling of chemicals, inadequate implementation of chemical compatibility charts and inadequate documentation of successful case studies. Implementation of chemical risk assessment increased from 20 to 70% due to network participation. Chemical inventorying implementation increased from 15 to 50% amongst firms that participated in safe chemical management programmes. Chemical labelling practices increased from 55 to 85% due to increased participation in network-induced chemical management programmes. Chemical leasing implementation remained largely unchanged even with access to training. We conclude that network participation enhanced chemical management practices due to the implementation of the responsible production toolkit. However, the impact of network participation on adoption of chemical leasing is low in Zimbabwe due to external contextual factors such as policy, perception, legal and financial barriers.

• Hazardous chemicals;
• Chemical leasing;
• Sustainable business networks

Encyclopedia of Sustainable Management

• Reference work
• © 2023
• 1st edition
• View latest edition
• Samuel O. Idowu 0 ,
• René Schmidpeter 1 ,
• Nicholas Capaldi 2 ,
• Liangrong Zu 3 ,
• Mara Del Baldo 4 ,
• Rute Abreu 5

Guildhall Faculty of Business and Law London Metropolitan University, London Metropolitan University, London, UK

You can also search for this editor in PubMed   Google Scholar

BFH - Bern, Bern, Switzerland

College of business, loyola university new orleans, new orleans, usa, international training centre of the il, international labor organization, turin, italy, department of economics, society and politics, university of urbino carlo bo, urbino, italy, instituto politécnico da guarda, guarda, portugal.

• Presents the most comprehensive and up-to-date reference work on sustainability in business and management
• Includes definitions and established knowledge on more than 700 entries
• Covers all aspects of management including operations, marketing, HR and strategy

791k Accesses

38 Citations

2 Altmetric

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this book

Subscribe and save.

• Get 10 units per month
• Download Article/Chapter or eBook
• 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
• Cancel anytime
• Durable hardcover edition
• Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
• Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access

Licence this eBook for your library

Institutional subscriptions

About this book

• corporate governance
• environmental management
• sustainable human resource management
• sustainability marketing
• sustainable production
• responsible management
• diversity management
• corporate social responsibility
• sustainable development

Table of contents (2776 entries)

Front matter, 2018 united nations climate change conference, a general contingency theory of management, a self-assessment survey, aa1000 series of standards, the.

• Marek Ćwiklicki

Abidjan Convention Secretariats

Able leadership, abundance (csr).

• Mislav Ante Omazić, Mirjana Matešić, Patricia Uroić

Abuse of Non-human Rights

• Salvatore Principale

Acceptability of Activities

Acceptability of operations.

• Mirja Mikkilä, Katariina Koistinen, Anna Kuokkanen, Lassi Linnanen, Jarkko Levänen

Acceptability of Processes

Access economy, access economy (ethics).

• Mislav Ante Omazić, Davor Labaš, Patricia Uroić

Access-Based Consumption

Access-based service, accord de paris, editors and affiliations.

Samuel O. Idowu

René Schmidpeter

Nicholas Capaldi

Liangrong Zu

Mara Del Baldo

About the editors

Samuel O Idowu is a senior lecturer in Accounting and Corporate Social Responsibility at the Guildhall School of Business and Law, London Metropolitan University where he is currently the course leader for the MSc Corporate Social Responsibility & Sustainability and Advanced Diploma in Professional Development (ADPD) Corporate Social Responsibility & Sustainability. Samuel is a Professor of CSR and Sustainability at Nanjing University of Finance & Economics, China. He is a fellow member of the Chartered Governance Institute, a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Chartered Governance Institute and a named freeman of the City of London.  He is the President and Deputy CEO of the Global Corporate Governance Institute an international network of CSR scholars. Samuel has published over fifty articles in both professional and academic journals and contributed chapters in several edited books and is the Editor-in-Chief of three major global reference books by Springer – the Encyclopedia of Corporate Social Responsibility (ECSR), the Dictionary of Corporate Social Responsibility (DCSR) and the Encyclopaedia of Sustainable Management (ESM) and he is a Series Editor for Springer’s CSR, Sustainability, Ethics and Governance books. Samuel is an Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Corporate Social Responsibility and the American Journal of Economics and Business Administration. Samuel has been in academia for more than 30 years winning one of the Highly Commended Awards of Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence in 2008 and 2014. In 2010, one of his edited books was placed in 18th position out of forty top Sustainability books by Cambridge University Programme for Sustainability Leadership and in 2016 one of his books won the outstanding Business Reference Book of the year of the American Library Association. In 2018 he won a CSR Leadership Award in Cologne, Germany and in 2019 he won the 101 Most Impactful CSR Leaders Award in Mumbai, India. Samuel is on the Editorial Advisory Boards of the International Journal of Business Administration and Amfiteatru Economic Journal. He has been researching in the field of CSR since 1983 and has attended and presented papers at several national and international conferences and workshops on CSR. Samuel has made a number of keynote speeches at international conferences and workshops and written the foreword to a number of leading books in the field of CSR and Sustainable Development. And he has examined on a few PhD theses in the UK, Australia, South Africa, the Netherlands and New Zealand.

René Schmidpeter is Professor at BFH Bern (Switzerland) and research scientist at the  interdisciplinary academic faculty of the Parmenides Foundation in Munich. He is guest professor/lecturer in Germany, Austria, China, USA, India, Australia and England as well as series editor for Springer’s CSR, Sustainability, Ethics & Governancebook series, editor of the Encyclopedia of Sustainable Management (ESM) and editor of the Dictionary of Corporate Social Responsibility (DCSR). His research and teaching activities focus on sustainable business transformation, international perspectives on sustainability, social innovation and sustainable entrepreneurship with special focus on the relationship between business and society. René serves as an expert and keynote speaker in many academic, economic and political steering committees as well as sustainability advisory boards. He is Vice President of the Global Corporate Governance Institute (GCGI) and Founder of M3TRIX / TETRANOMICS in Cologne and Munich, Germany.

Bibliographic Information

Book Title : Encyclopedia of Sustainable Management

Editors : Samuel O. Idowu, René Schmidpeter, Nicholas Capaldi, Liangrong Zu, Mara Del Baldo, Rute Abreu

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-25984-5

Publisher : Springer Cham

eBook Packages : Business and Management , Reference Module Humanities and Social Sciences , Reference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

Copyright Information : Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023

Hardcover ISBN : 978-3-031-25983-8 Published: 31 October 2023

eBook ISBN : 978-3-031-25984-5 Published: 21 November 2023

Edition Number : 1

Number of Pages : LIX, 4003

Number of Illustrations : 113 b/w illustrations, 305 illustrations in colour

Topics : Sustainability Management , Environmental Management , Corporate Environmental Management , Corporate Governance , Marketing , Business Strategy/Leadership

• Publish with us

Policies and ethics

• Find a journal
• Track your research

Rachel Chang received the FEDS Spotlight award in 2023 for going "above and beyond" her daily responsibilities to improve NOAA's data reporting on energy and water usage.

Rachel Chang might consider herself behind-the-scenes at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), but thanks to the  FEDS Spotlight Recognition Program , she's been given a moment to take a bow.

The Federal Energy Management Program's (FEMP's) FEDS Spotlight honors federal employees going above and beyond typical day-to-day responsibilities to help the federal government achieve its  clean energy goals . 

Chang is an environmental engineer at the NOAA, and, as someone who is "relatively new to the federal sector," she was pleasantly surprised to be among the FEDS Spotlight honorees in 2023. 

Chang was recognized for stepping beyond her daily responsibilities to elevate data accuracy and reporting of energy, water, and sustainability metrics for hundreds of NOAA facilities—key information for the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Energy, and the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Her adeptness at uniting and coordinating key stakeholders has supported sustainability and energy ventures to align with  Executive Order 14057 targets for a net-zero emissions economy.

She appreciates that FEDS Spotlight recognizes different types of achievers, including "people like me who have touched many different, small aspects of processes and are maybe not tied to specific projects but have that passion to achieve our mission and address climate change," she said.

But it's not beginner's luck. Chang's three years at NOAA are preceded by nearly 30 years working as a consultant and project manager for one of the largest engineering consulting firms in the United States. "My experience in the private sector really set me up well to come over to the federal sector," Chang said. "I developed my 'chops' working on a wide range of projects, and now I can use the skill set I developed seamlessly in helping to achieve NOAA's mission."

In this interview with FEMP, Chang explains why she took on additional energy and sustainability management responsibilities, and what keeps her motivated to find opportunities to improve.

What does your work as an environmental engineer at NOAA look like?

NOAA has between 200 and 300 facilities, and I help ensure those facilities­ comply with environmental regulations and energy and sustainability requirements that come out of executive orders. That facility portfolio includes renovations of existing buildings and occasionally construction of new buildings too.

The FEDS Spotlight recognizes federal employees who "go above and beyond their typical responsibilities." When did you spot an opportunity to go above and beyond, and what did that involve?

With my supervisor's encouragement, I jumped at the chance to fill the energy and sustainability manager role on a temporary basis, because I felt I had the bandwidth to learn new things and develop my existing skills. Although I had had some exposure to energy and sustainability management in my previous position as a consultant, the work in the beginning kind of felt like drinking from a fire hose. Luckily, my predecessor left a pretty good paper trail, so I was able to figure out what we needed and how to take it one step further. Things constantly evolve, so there's always something that could be done better.

So, did you focus on improving existing processes, or setting up new ones, or perhaps a little bit of both?

Both. Under the National Energy Conservation Policy Act and Executive Order 14057 (Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability), each agency has to deliver the annual sustainability and energy management data report.  The annual report requires us to report the agency's energy and water usage using EPA's ENERGY STAR ® Portfolio Manager.  Delivering the data report was one of the first things that I jumped to improve. Our reporting process is particularly difficult because NOAA has over 200 facilities that qualify for reporting, and there are many people with varying levels of understanding and involvement in gathering information throughout the year.  Over time, the quality of data can deteriorate due to staff turnover and changes in facility operations. With support and guidance from Michael Young at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Sarah Yardley at the Department of Commerce's Office of Sustainability Energy and Environmental Programs, I helped to streamline and improve the reporting process and moved toward more accurate data reporting.  A special shout out to Michael and Sarah for tirelessly answering questions, troubleshooting, making suggestions, and providing ad hoc training sessions. In addition, a new opportunity arose for NOAA to engage in the Department of Energy's  50001 Ready Navigator [a process for organizations to implement and maintain energy management business practices in conformance with the International Organization for Standardization 50001 global standard]. My supervisor [Jennifer Melton] and I were the first from our organization to participate in the 50001 program and also get one of our larger facilities to be involved.

How did receiving the FEDS Spotlight award impact you? 

When I attended the awards ceremony and listened to the keynote speakers, I felt really inspired, seeing the variety of things that people are working on through their different roles—what they're doing is pretty impressive. Sometimes we get so focused on our piece of the puzzle, so being able to see the larger picture was very inspiring and makes me more hopeful for the future.

Are you still working on energy and sustainability management in addition to your environmental compliance duties?

I've stepped back a little bit since we have a full-time energy and sustainability manager now.  But I work closely with them, and we talk on a weekly basis to share our knowledge.

What motivates you to continue your work at NOAA? 

Our society is facing climate challenges on a daily basis, so I think that definitely keeps me motivated. I feel fortunate that I'm in a position where I can have an impact—however small—in terms of doing our project planning in a more sustainable way. I definitely appreciate being recognized with the FEDS Spotlight and I think that will spur me on to do more.

Do you know someone who deserves to be in the 2024 FEDS Spotlight? Learn how you can nominate someone for the  FEDS Spotlight Recognition Program.

• Latin America News
• Art and Culture
• Science and Tech
• Classifieds

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

La Romería in Costa Rica: From 1635 to Now

Costa rica grapples with rising human trafficking cases, costa rica’s ley jaguar: a referendum on democracy or populist ploy, costa rica’s constitutional chamber rules jaguar law unconstitutional, costa rica awaits feasibility study for urban electric train, maya biosphere reserve: a model for sustainable land management.

In the lush jungle of northern Guatemala — in the largest protected area in Central America — 30 leaders from Colombia’s Amazon basin region are swapping strategies with local ethnic Maya farmers on how to live off this dense forest without destroying it.

Under the soaring, leafy mahogany and cedar trees in the Maya Biosphere Reserve, the visiting group discusses ways to ensure the rain forest remains healthy, while studying the reserve-type model Guatemala has been developing since 1994.

Guatemala’s vast sustainability project aims to achieve a balance in which communities reforest, cut down trees for timber in a controlled way, grow grains and vegetables, collect ornamental plants, and even develop low-impact tourism.

“That ensures that our communities are getting the economic resources that are also invested here for conservation,” said Sergio Balan, regional director of the National Council of Protected Areas ( CONAP ), in the village of Melchor de Mencos, near the border with Belize.

The Maya Biosphere Reserve sprawls over 2.1 million hectares (5.2 million acres) and borders Mexico and Belize.  Every year, its flora and fauna are threatened by fires, deforestation for agricultural and livestock purposes, and even drug traffickers.

Hundreds of archaeological sites are located in this territory, such as the ancient Mayan city of Tikal, one of the main tourist sites in Guatemala and the site hosting the visitors from the Forest Development and Biodiversity Centers of the Colombian Amazon.

In the reserve and near Tikal, there is also the pre-Hispanic park of Uaxactun, where both groups participated in a Mayan ceremony with a fire stoked with candles and tree resin. 

The Colombian leaders, whose visit lasted a week, highlighted the achievements in reducing deforestation in the Colombian Amazon between 2021 and 2023, by 61 percent, according to data from Colombia’s environment ministry.

Farmer to farmer

There are currently 16 active concessions that help conserve nearly 619,000 hectares of forest, CONAP says. Controlled logging permits, meanwhile, let private companies work for 25- or 30-year periods.

Concessions and reserves “not only provide employment, but also training for different jobs,” says Erwin Maas, a Guatemalan tourist guide who is also familiar with forestry. CONAP estimates that the concessions, a kind of activity grant, create about 150,000 direct and indirect jobs in the reserve.

Along one part of the path, visitors find a row of cut logs that are stacked to be taken to the sawmill. The wood comes from trees selected for felling in a controlled process that will allow the forest to regenerate.

Nearby, the sound of birds and monkeys fluttering through the branches, mixes with group’s chatter.  “One of the great ideas we took away is the form of organization they have had (in Guatemala) to really last over time,” says Aristides Oime, president of a Colombian farm group, Asojuntas de Cartagena del Chaira.

“From farmer to farmer, we see how we can really improve,” he said. “We want to show how we truly believe that deforestation is not the way, the real route is environmental conservation.”

The coordinator of the Colombia-based NGO Heart of the Amazon, Luz Rodriguez, believes that though there are differences with the Guatemalan communities, they learned lessons about how other people control land sustainably.

Weekly Recap

Costa rica weekly recap news recap for july 28, 2024.

Latest Articles

The intriguing world of camera trap footage in costa rican wildlife, new initiative empowers women in costa rica’s sport fishing industry, first direct trade ship arrives in nicaragua as china relations strengthen, is costa rica’s romeria a ‘congregation of iniquity’, costa rica recognizes opposition victory in venezuelan elections, brisa hennessy advances to olympic surfing semifinals, making costa rican history.

• Editorial Standards
• Reprints & Permissions

Join The Conversation

One Community. Many Voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts. 

Forbes Community Guidelines

Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas and facts in a safe space.

In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site's  Terms of Service.   We've summarized some of those key rules below. Simply put, keep it civil.

Your post will be rejected if we notice that it seems to contain:

• False or intentionally out-of-context or misleading information
• Insults, profanity, incoherent, obscene or inflammatory language or threats of any kind
• Attacks on the identity of other commenters or the article's author
• Content that otherwise violates our site's  terms.

User accounts will be blocked if we notice or believe that users are engaged in:

• Continuous attempts to re-post comments that have been previously moderated/rejected
• Racist, sexist, homophobic or other discriminatory comments
• Attempts or tactics that put the site security at risk
• Actions that otherwise violate our site's  terms.

So, how can you be a power user?

• Stay on topic and share your insights
• Feel free to be clear and thoughtful to get your point across
• ‘Like’ or ‘Dislike’ to show your point of view.
• Protect your community.
• Use the report tool to alert us when someone breaks the rules.

Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Please read the full list of posting rules found in our site's  Terms of Service.

Ilim Group Presents its New KLB Mill to Industry Players

Presentation of the largest kraftliner production site in Russia took place at the 27th International Exhibition of the Packaging Industry RosUpack

The presentation of the Big Ust-Ilimsk Project, involving the construction of Russia’s one-of-a-kind pulp and board (KLB) mill in the Irkutsk Oblast, was one of the key events at RosUpack 2023. When speaking at the plenary session on corrugated board packaging market development, Alexey Chenyaev, Ilim’s Senior Vice President, Sales, Supply Chain Management and Packaging, focused on the advanced manufacturing and environmental solutions implemented at the new KLB Mill and prospects for sales market expansion it will secure.

After KLB Mill ramp-up (600,000 tons of kraftliner per year), the total annual output of Ilim Group will amount to 4.3 million tons. The Company will be one of the world’s largest producers of unbleached packaging materials and will strengthen its leadership in the Chinese market of wood-free corrugated materials with a share of approximately 50 to 60%.

The Big Ust-Ilimsk project was met by exhibitors with great interest. This year the event was attended by more than 740 companies from 19 countries. Ilim’s booth with an area of 140 m2 was one of the largest one at the site and was operated by about 50 experts from Sales and Corrugated Box Business Management Departments. The booth was attended by over 60 key accounts and more than 120 representatives of various companies, including such major ones as Heinz, MARS and KDV-Group.

Reference information:

Ilim Group is the leader of the Russian pulp and paper industry and one of the industry leaders globally. Ilim Group has three pulp and paper mills in the Arkhangelsk (Koryazhma) and Irkutsk (Bratsk and Ust-Ilimsk) Oblasts, two modern corrugated box plants in the Leningrad and Moscow Oblasts (Kommunar and Dmitrov, respectively), and Sibgiprobum engineering and design institute (Irkutsk).

Share on social networks