Sustainability Pledge

Hey Brian,

I think this is a great concept.

on point 1)

To me sustainability means no particular institution. The notion of sustainability, to me, lean more towards local business, local community driven by personal relationships with people, not as much with institutions. I do think that institutional relationships are necessary in some cases, but I think they tend to function in a less agile and sustainable way then larger organizations, imo.

on point 4)

I might also add that some credit could/should be given to people/groups who work to tug on the ear of larger institutions for the sake of sustainable change. I recently worked (perhaps even made a nuisance of myself) to put the notion of flywheel UPS generators in the minds of people who are planning the new facilities at work. This would be in place of the old skool, power hungry, wasteful battery based ups systems. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flywheelenergystorage I'm not sure how much a difference I actually made, but it made me feel good in the end.

...which then points to another question. How could/would you measure simple small acts of individuals? How would these kinds of things be recognized? For this, I might just form a kind of self-celebratory affinity group. Where people interested in this get together and talk about their work. Do I hear an event idea?

-Cere

OSS could be seen as more sticking it to the man than being sustainable...but it does have its merits. OSS software is often developed in a decentralized model which reduces the environmental impact of offices, commuting, etc. Furthermore most OSS is downloadable, so no boxes, no shipping, etc.

I think however a larger impact on the tech side is power consumption, general greenness of the computer maker, and longevity.

That reminds me of a great William Rockwood quote: "A revolution without dancing isn't a revolution worth having." Here here!

my ears are perked. ill be watching for that event and what comes out of it, being a designer who is committed to offering green and sustainable options for her clients :)

Brian, this is a fantastic idea.

Some thoughts:

1. Profit motivator: The key to this is when each of us commits to be "sustainable" we are committing to patronize if possible biznik businesses that have made that same commitment.

2. Defining commitment: Clicking the "Sustainability" tag could take you to a commitment page that details what that person is doing to carry out there commitment. Members could post templates of this that would give other members ideas on how to create their own Sustainability commitment.

3. Biznik Power: As Biznik gains a national/international reach it would be a great platform to promote member projects like this.

It amazes me how technology empowers someone with a good idea.

It is interesting to me the idea of greening a small business. The typical ways that large corporations green (e.g. energy reduction/conservation, waste reduction etc.) are somewhat lost to a small business that has limited resource needs (especially when we do much of our work on line).
I think the idea of a pledge or some way of connecting our daily lives to the ideas of sustainability that expands beyond these energy/waste concepts is really needed. Clearly not driving to work or making sure that you purchase from local businesses is an important start and should be obvious. But really delving into the concept of sustainability as a part of your integrity can help build a greener society.

I like the way you're thinking Bryce. I agree. Sustainability tends to mean a high degree of interdependency and complexity and tends to lend itself no not being terribly flashy by it's very nature.

That said, I think there are big and small ways that organizations and people can contribute to sustainability as we re-educate each other about what this word really means.

Thank you for working on this.

I am doing a lot of self study about sustainability right now and am in the process of working to develop a line of sustainable home products. I am an artist/designer, and am approaching this in a small scale way as opposed to the kinds of things that it looks like you are addressing in your work. But this has been a very revealing process. I am not currently plugged into a larger group working on these issues, but I would like to be.

Sustainability to me means living/working in a way that can be sustained over an ongoing period of time. The goal being to utilize renewable resources or reusing those that are not renewable for both our needs and desires.

I am holding onto the belief that eventually the sustainable solutions will be the most economical as well, but this is not the case right now.

It appears that as a society we are embracing taking some interim steps on some sustainability issues in place of doing nothing because the solutions aren’t perfect, but I think it can still be confusing which steps will make the most difference and that guidelines are useful if they come from a trusted source.

Perhaps (biznik) people would need to understand the suggestions, costs and benefits before committing a % amount of their income that they would be willing to donate to sustainablity?

Totally personal opinion, but carbon offsets have gotten a lot of press as a method for very wealthy people (and companies) to assuage their guilt about their lifestyle (and manufacturing style), so I am not sure how desirable this is right now?

Also, thought I would pass on that I have no idea what you are talking about regarding the software issues, I’m thinking that if this is the case for me, there are probably others.

Oddly enough this topic is pretty rampant at all levels of business. My friend Lynn Brewer goes around speaking on corporate ethics and whistleblowing... and one of the key contributors to her experience at Enron was that certain sustainable business practices didn't exist there.

There has also been an upward trend in start-up companies that are pitching to the investment groups here around the northwest. A lot of brain-power and money is being tossed down this lane of thought.

One of the reasons I shifted over to local-net based community tactics is to help people utilize technology and online communication within a local area. It is amazing to me to see how many people shop with companies around the world... when someone with the same product and services is in the next apartment.

I am wondering if it is something that we can have in Biznik as both a pledge and as an identifier. The identifier might be a symbol on profiles and a certificate earned (via 1-2 workshops, perhaps) for those who have gone through the course(s) and completed a checklist of criteria to meet certain sustainability-oriented / whole systems actions in their business, which would be different than just agreeing to things in principle.

There should be some flexibility around what criteria would be included, and how many (i.e. what percentage as a minimum) of them should be met in order to earn the certificate or status of being a pro-sustainability business (note my language is chosen intentionally; I do not think it's possible to be completely sustainable, just moving toward that....) and I'd be happy to help with the development of this.

If there is not agreement around earning the identifying status or certificate within Biznik, then perhaps we can form a BizPod and just meet regularly on this topic for a while to see what gels. From a long while back, there was the idea of having shared value/shared goals groups that could focus on their support of each other's businesses and not have the meetings or events they hold be public. Are there a number of you who would be interested to try that? [Joe Shirley initiated the topic of BizPods here in Seattle; Lara, Dan, myself, and a couple of other people felt drawn to the concept but I never saw it take off. I would like to recontact some of those people who were in on the discussion at that time to get their thoughts on this thread.]

It may be good to assess different levels of sustainable practice, as in a 1-5 star rating. That way, businesses can contribute in pragmatic ways, to a level which is comfortable (and sustainable!) for them.

For example, many of the entertainment festivals I'm interested in are powered by alternative energy and recycle materials on-site - most produce a 'sustainability report' after the event. Luckily, there really is increased demand for businesses which have sustainable practices - these businesses should be identifyable to green-minded customers. Hopefully these 'sustainable' businesses will also be rated, to avoid 'biodiesel' which is .05% bio and the rest regular diesel and such scams.

For an example, see: http://www.planithardware.com (I have no affiliation here!)

Hmmm.

Some more thoughts about this.

It almost seems like we have two conversations going at once here:

One conversation is about what it means to be sustainable within the overall US marketplace framework. And the other, a kind of sustainability that can function in a way that is less dependent on the current economic frame work. I can see merits and reasons for either approach, dependent on the circumstance, but my feeling is that they are (more of less) fundamentally different in terms of their underlying strategy, motivation, and approach.

I love that we are having this conversation and would love to see an event to discuss this more.

-Cere

Hey Brian, I'm very interested in this idea. Is it possible for someone to post a summary of this meeting on here. I live in San Diego and obviously can't attend. Thanks brian

Below find a possible 1-5 level system, as pertains to Biznik:

1) Takes the pledge, is willing to try! 2) Agrees to read Biznik contributor 'sustainability notes' in decision-making 3) Compiles own 'sustainability notes' for view 4) Completes sustainabilty 'makeover,' attends event courses or eco-audit! 5) Reinvests a % of profit into changed business infrastructure or donations

...of course this reads like a wish list, but perhaps could serve as a first draft of levels of participation?

Hi everyone,

I am a bit late to the converstaion, but below are my ideas.

The idea of a sustainability pledge is great; it makes people aware and gives businesses what ever the size a goal, or awakening to move toward a positive goal.
To answer the questions

1) I personally think the definition of sustainability varies from one person’s perspective to the next. For me as a consultant helping businesses become more sustainable or socially responsible it means shifting the focus to a more holistic approach to include environment, community and the society while still recognizing cost efficiencies, which is becoming more and more possible each day.

2) Me…I personally am really trying to walk the talk and as I build my consulting business will implement any socially responsible mechanism which makes sense after weighing all aspects i.e. costs, environment, community etc.

3--4) I think that having some kind of metric to strive for is great. My only concern is it may take a while for a small business to achieve all the values prescribed in the metric. Therefore, I am all for a check the box system, if you will. As the business achieves a measure they can check the box. So lets say there are 10 boxes, one business may have 4 checked the other 7 – just a thought. Some others have used levels such as silver, gold, platinum etc.

Thanks and have a great day Esther

I totally agree Esther, that giving people something to make incremental progress on is far better than setting the bar high and only a few making it over the top. The whole point is to raise awareness and get people taking steps in the right direction, as well as encouraging continued progress and rewarding achievement.

I think that it’s important to remember the functions of the biznik network when deciding how to implement a biznik sustainability pledge. To me, the network is useful and different because it puts a face on the people behind businesses; it allows for the open sharing of ideas; it encourages local small businesses.

I think the network gives a great opportunity to form a study group (for lack of a more exciting word) to address ideas for making small businesses greener/socially responsible in a meaningful way. Many of us don’t have the budget or support staff to attend sustainability conferences and trainings, plus conferences and trainings are often geared toward larger companies – this would be a chance to address the topics that are closer to us – for example, like Dinah mentioned, are carbon offsets the best choice for small businesses/independent entrepreneurs, and what are the alternatives?

I think it’d be great to be able to search out sustainable businesses on biznik, or a way to get official “points” or something to display on your profile for steps you take toward sustainability. But the criteria would have to be appropriate and attainable, while still being defined. I’m thinking about dividing criteria along several lines: Energy/Utilities (what kind of power do you use, how much energy does your office use, do you have the opportunity to make changes like paying extra for windpower from your utility co. (though, as Sightline suggests in an article, is that worth it?) or even installing solar panels on your office, what’s your water use like, do you purchase carbon offsets, etc.) Transportation (do you commute, do you regularly ship or receive products, do you use a car for business purposes, could you use a bike, public transport or flexcar, do you purchase carbon offsets) and so on.

Awesome points, Julia. What I'm thinking is: a badge of some kind (like the gold star that supporting members have) that might be a green leaf or something, to visually indicate that a member has taken the pledge. On the member's profile somewhere would be their answers to the specific questions, so that everyone could see exactly what they're doing. We'd have to depend on the community to police this, and we already have a flagging system in place that could be applied. I think we'll find that a big percentage of members will qualify to display this badge, because I suspect that many local, indie businesses are by default quite green. For example, indie biz is more likely to be home-based (which in many cases means they aren't out clogging the highways and burning gas to and from work). Even if they do have an office, my hunch is that indie biz is more likely than large biz to be located near the home of the owner, if for no other reason than the fact that, if you can choose a location, why would you choose one that you have to commute to? But what I'd really like to do with this is create a system that rewards progress in the way you described.

We've got a lot of brainpower in this group and I think together we can come up with a pledge that not only rewards sustainable behavior but also encourages continued improvement. Thanks to all of you for jumping in with your observations.