What is: Environmental?

So now that we all understand a basic level of what social sustainability is, let's move onto the environmental stool leg. Most people feel this is the most obvious, the one concentrated on the most, or the only one that really matters when becoming sustainable or switching a business to a sustainable busienss. It seems correct, to make the Earth better we have to do better to the environment. But like I said earlier, each stool leg is just as important and the environmental leg cannot support the seat alone.

The environment...

So pretty, and just outside your door!

That's how most people think of the environment - trees, water, grass - probably some birds chillin' up in the tree branches singing their little hearts out. It's pretty, relaxing, and most importantly:

Is it still pretty?

Most people don't care what happens to it. The environment, nature, the WILDS, are for stories and camping. It doesn't have a place in our ways of life where we need everything instantly.

Environmental sustainability has it's priorities set in making picture 2 more like picture 1 - where it is clean, prosperous for every living thing and it's ecosystem, and only has positives to offer.

Of course the results in mind look more like a hybrid of the two, something called biomimicry: a science of looking to nature for answers in solving the problems we caused by a whole spew of bad choices. (Well, that's what it is in a simplified nutshell)

What is: Social?

Previously I talked about how sustainable busienss is a trinity including the business (really, it's financial side), environment, and social aspects. The first two are self explanatory for the most part, making money and doing right by the environment. But what about the social piece? What does that mean?

Well, it terms of a sustainable business being social, or socially aware, means looking out for anyone, anywhere, by whatever your product or service touches or does. And not just the final product either. Social includes the whole lifespan of the product or service.

For example:

You sell... plastic pens.

 

 

 

ALL the colors!

Awesome choice of a business. Pens are used by anyone and everyone and come in tons of colors. But how does a pen company be aware of it's social impact?

In the beginning the ingredients had to be harvested - the plastic pellets or whatnot needed to be purchased which therefore had to be melted down from oil (since, you are aware traditional plastic is made from oil.... right?) and the oil had to be mined and pumped and all that nasty messy stuff that comes from getting oil from the Earth's crust. Same goes for rubber (since, you have a plastic based rubber), but this also might include some actual rubber from the rubber tree.

It's a real tree. See?

Rubber trees produce a natural latex - it's their sap. Just like we humans make maple syrup from maple sap we make rubber latex from rubber tree sap. But how is it harvested? Taking a generic approach for the sake of quickness, generally the trees are cared for and harvested by indigenous peoples, such as groups in Brazil. 

How does this tie into to the social aspect of the pen company?

Well, knowing that farmers and family units who both take care of,and farm this material are treated well, receive a living wage, and are not forced into rubber-tree-farming-slavery is important. The better relationship you have with your suppliers often results in a better quality product, as well as an easier time negotiating future wants and needs.

The people who work on the rubber tree farms then live better lives, feel more connected to the process as a whole, and can be proud of the work they do.

It's win-win for everyone.

There are tons of companies who look out for and promote the well being of their supply chains/ingredient sources. Coffee companies are a prime example of social well being. Same with wood harvesting and cotton. So next time you are looking to see how well a company goes about practicing sustainability, look into how they treat their suppliers. Didn't Mom always say to look at how your significant other treats their parents as a sign to how they might treat you? Same idea. A business who treats their suppliers right will treat their customers right.

Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Business [The Three Legged Stool]

So as I said yesterday, I am very close to achieving my Bachelor degree in SB. Unless you visited the Aquinas Website you probably still have no idea what this degree is. Don't worry, I get this question a lot.

What does it mean?

Easy, it's a business degree that incorporates not only the success of the business, but also benefits the environmental and social aspects of who/what/where/etc the business effects.


Overall the classes I take involve many environmental science and biology classes, basic intro to business and management, a year of accounting, a total of 3 Capstone classes (otherwise known as the highest class level in that string of classes: 2 for sustainability and 1 for business), as well as many newly designed courses for sustainability, energy, and sustainable business itself. My favorite has been a course called Sustainable Energy Systems. We went though traditional energy sources then migrated towards renewable and sustainable energy (yes, there is a difference. Perhaps I'll spend a whole week talking about that topic)

In fact, perhaps I'll spend quite a few posts discussing just what I've done in each non-basic, not-an-intro-course-or-traditional-if-I-say-"accounting"-you-know-what-I-mean course.

Does the degree of sustainable business make more sense now? At least a little? A business degree with social and environmental segments added in and made just as important. The image of a three legged stool is used commonly by my Professors and fellow students when we try to describe and clarify how the three fit in.

Wooden three-legged-stool - of SCIENCE

There are three stool legs, all of equal length, thickness, and hopefully of weight support. If you were to take off one of those stool legs the chair would fail to be a chair. It would be a pile of wood, plastic, metal, cardboard, whatever the chair is made of. Each leg is just as important than the other. Without the set everything falls apart.

Therefore the business aspect is just as important as the environmental aspect which cannot be complete without the social aspect. A = B = C, or should we say B = E = S?

What is Sustainable Business?

Hello reader, and welcome.

You have probably stumbled across here due to a variety of things: you searched "sustainability", "green", or perhaps you simply were bored and decided to blog-hop.

Whatever the cause, I'm glad you are here. My hopes for you are to learn something new every day about topics ranging from sustainable business, 'clean' renewable energy, composting, recycling, going 'green', current sustainability topics, or even be opened to a new perspective - mine.

Snazzy, GO GREEN picture.

Believe me, it's a great perspective, really. Just stick with me, alright? Especially on topics about sustainable busienss.

But wait, what is sustainable business? And why should you consider my opinion?

Let me tell you.

First sustainable busienss. What is that? Think a second - I know you can. If not, open dictionary.com and search "sustainable". Did you do that? What did it say? I bet it was something like this:

sus·tain·a·bil·i·ty

[suh-stey-nuh-bil-i-tee] -noun-

1. The ability to be sustained,  supported, upheld, or confirmed.

2. Environmental Science . the quality of not being harmful to the environment or depleting natural resources, and thereby supporting long-term ecological balance: The committee is developing sustainability standards for products that use energy.

Now that was directly taken from the site, no getting up in arms about it. Those are not my words. What are my words is this:

Sustainability is simply the way of having an item, thing, process, whatever, being so awesome it keeps going on without the help of anything else. Seems easy, right? "Why hadn't I thought of that before?"  you're thinking. Because that is not how we as humans are traditionally taught. We are taught to use what is around us at no cost. I'm sure there are exceptions, there always are. But let's continue.

So what when that term is applied to busienss? Let's here again from an official source: (No, this isn't from the wiki page)

"Sustainable business practices restore environmental quality, promote stable and healthy communities, and increase long-term profitability."

 That is right from the Aquinas College sustainable business webpage. Check them out. They were the first undergraduate school in Michigan to host such a degree. Cool huh?

So - sustainable business boils down to having a business run in ways that are positive (as well as no way negative) for the business itself, the environment, and the social units the business effects. Nifty, isn't it! Imaging if every bushiness was truly sustainable the world we would live in.

And why should you take notice of my opinion? I soon will have the degree from Aquinas College (fully, it's called a Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Business, but that's a mouthful). I'm a mere 8 credits away from having the degree, and half of those are general education credits since I attend a liberal arts school. I have a decent grasp on these topics and have debated segments of sustainable business for 3 years now. Sure I'm no Master, but hear me out.

Ready for an adventure in learning?

Science Rules

Bill Nye would be proud.