Nature
By Odhiambo Jerameel Kevins Owuor
Worth Noting:
- Richard Norgard of University of California at Berkeley argues that: ‘Rethinking Sustainability moves the debate from efficiency toward the distribution of power, from free markets toward sharing commons assets, from global generalities toward local specifics, and from expert knowledge toward shared learning.
- This rebalancing is sorely needed.’ It has been noted that Sustainability isn’t just about polar bears and pine trees. It’s about sustaining the human communities that comprise this world.
- The internal health, education, and socio-political harmony of any given community must be addressed alongside its external relationship with the natural world.
In the broadest possible sense sustainability refers to the ability of something to maintain or “sustain” itself over time. The most often quoted definition comes from the UN World Commission on Environment and Development: “sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” One might ask, what is the difference between sustainable development and sustainability? Sustainability is often thought of as a long-term goal (i.e. a more sustainable world), while sustainable development refers to the many processes and pathways to achieve it (sustainable agriculture and forestry, sustainable production and consumption, good government, research and technology transfer, education and training)
In the charter for the UCLA Sustainability Committee, sustainability is defined as: “the integration of environmental health, social equity and economic vitality in order to create thriving, healthy, diverse and resilient communities for this generation and generations to come. The practice of sustainability recognizes how these issues are interconnected and requires a systems approach and an acknowledgement of complexity.”
In business and policy contexts, limits to sustainability are determined by physical and natural resources, environmental degradation, and social resources. Accordingly, sustainable policies place some emphasis on the future effect of any given policy or business practice on humans, the economy, and ecology. The concept often corresponds to the belief that without major changes to the way the planet is run, it will suffer irreparable degradation. Sustainable practices support ecological, human, and economic health and vitality. Sustainability presumes that resources are finite, and should be used conservatively and wisely with a view to long-term priorities and consequences of the ways in which resources are used. In simplest terms, sustainability is about our children and our grandchildren, and the world we will leave them.
The big question is what does corporations, individuals and legal entities fathom of sustainability? In the normal sense people think that sustainability has to do with spending on corporate social responsibility, nominating a sustainability manager and lastly growing trees. What’s the role of a sustainability manager? A Sustainability Manager is an individual that is responsible for ensuring that organizations set and meet environmental goals. They develop green policies and initiatives that emphasize the proper use of environmental resources with a focus on sustaining these resources for future generations. The duties of sustainability manger include include the research, development, and implementation of policies that improve the organization’s environmental impact without detracting from other business goals. They are also responsible for ensuring adherence to all laws and industry regulations.
Planting trees can increase the resilience of ecosystems, help minimize climate change effects, and buy people and governments time to adapt to changing conditions. Planting native seedlings in ecologically appropriate areas can also counteract soil and biodiversity loss and improve human well-being. On the face value it seems a nice move but I think it is time to move from that face value version of sustainability into another realm. So, what should sustainability entail?
Richard Norgard of University of California at Berkeley argues that: ‘Rethinking Sustainability moves the debate from efficiency toward the distribution of power, from free markets toward sharing commons assets, from global generalities toward local specifics, and from expert knowledge toward shared learning. This rebalancing is sorely needed.’ It has been noted that Sustainability isn’t just about polar bears and pine trees. It’s about sustaining the human communities that comprise this world. The internal health, education, and socio-political harmony of any given community must be addressed alongside its external relationship with the natural world.
In rethinking the concept of sustainability some factors need to be taken into consideration. Me thinks that sustainability should entail; driving organizational change, working with supply chain partners to reduce impact, policy, commitment and governance, addressing climate change impact, human rights commitment, corporate social responsibility, biodiversity/ growing trees, reducing scope of emissions, reporting and communication, reducing water and addressing the issue of plastics and empowering employees/ functions to contribute to sustainability.
A balance of the aforementioned need to be taken into context and a deliberate move taken on how to achieve the sustainable goals as advocated for by the United Nations. The various corporation need to realize the impacts of their operations on the environment and to the people around them. For in one way or another their operations have some consequence in this context negative. Mitigating the various problems is key to ensuring sustainability becomes a reality.
Odhiambo Jerameel Kevins Owuor is a law student at University of Nairobi, Parklands Campus. He regularly comments on social, political, contemporary and legal issues.
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