Are you in the green?

Monday, 23 December 2013 00:24 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Find out why green is the new black

In a world that sees many a colour, if there is one that demands so much attention and absorption at work as much as at home, that is the undisputed ‘green’. It embodies an all encompassing ‘survival’ for all living beings, things too for that matter, making the entire ‘greening phenomena’ a pronounced one. In corporate vocabulary the hip term is ‘sustainable development’.

What is ‘sustainability’? Among diverse definitions present, sustainability means endurance, the ability to sustain for the long haul. Maintenance, well-being are synonyms. The whole process of sustainable development lies in the centre of developing the entire sustainability effort, so much so as it continues to gain steam and continues to improve, sharpening and making the entire effort even better. Sustainability is volatile, in that lies the instability of living beings, both human and animal. In a world that is constantly challenged by rapid climate change, environmental and natural devastation beyond any control, all concepts and actions in the name of sustainability become indispensable on a planet made helpless by rapidly depleting resources shared by seven trillion (and counting) inhabitants. Memorable sustainability failures/grisly disasters which directly impacted on the planet: Union Carbide in Bhopal, BP Disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster, Perishing of the Dinosaur, Fukushima nuclear reactor meltdown, Halifax ship explosion, Twin atom bomb devastations in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Exxon Valdez oil spill… the list is endless. Whilst causes for failure remain multi-dimensional, their debilitating impact runs into several years. Today, for a business to qualify and claim for responsible corporate citizenship, it must meet the 3Ps: People, Planet, Profit. Why?

These 3Ps are redefining business conduct and purpose. The Planet which is in the centre is in fact sitting in the crux of things, accompanied by People and Profit; which will obviously be present with the survival of the planet. As we speak all indications are our planet is ailing, it may die prematurely because we are making its atmosphere toxic. During Kofi Annan’s time at the helm of the United Nations, the concept of Global Compact for sustainability was introduced in 1999. Today, it is the largest collection of sustainability initiatives on Earth. It addresses the issue of the Planet under ‘Environment’ in a pervasive manner. It asks companies to embrace, support and

enact, within their sphere of influence, a set of core values in the areas of human rights, labour standards, the environment and anti-corruption. The ‘Environment’ among the Ten Commandments of the Global Compact have been extracted below as relevant to this conversation. Environment

Principle 7: Businesses should support a precautionary approach to environmental challenges;
Principle 8: undertake initiatives to promote greater environmental responsibility; and
Principle 9: encourage the development and diffusion of environmentally friendly technologies.

(Read more: http://www.ungloba-lcompact.org/AboutTheGC/TheTenPrinciples/index.html) A large number of members and non-members of the Global Compact today follow ‘sustainability reporting’. As per the World Bank, Sri Lanka’s carbon emissions stand at 0.6 metric tons per capita per year Vs a staggering 17.6 by the USA. India is at a 1.7 with China accounting for 6.2 metric tons per capita. Enormous amounts of work is needed to neutralise these numbers. After all, none of us will want to be carrying our own oxygen cylinder with us everywhere we go, because the pollution due to emissions have gone up so much there isn’t enough oxygen naturally available to breathe! So how profitable is the so called ‘green’ movement?

To way too many people the ‘greening’ process still remains a corporate hype, embraced not entirely for reasons of conviction. I often get responses from my postgraduate students (at masters level) where most are holding senior managerial positions that going green is costly. This is correct. But what they are not seeing is not going green is costlier than they could imagine. For sure there will be one-time costs involved in a green initiative and/or transformation, but the returns bypass the short-term costs incurred. A Sri Lankan multinational three quarters back saved Rs. 1 million a month on energy saved by going green. I quote: “The percentage of companies reporting profits from their sustainability effort saw a 23% rise in the last year, to a total of 37% of all companies involved” – New Global Study by MIT Sloan Management Review and the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) 2013. Unquote The rule of thumb is that anything that is sustainable is profitable. Obviously the ‘perishables’ go in the red. We name them ‘losses’. The sustained lines in Green go on to see the light of another day. Let’s consider some facts. Newsweek’s Top 4 Green rankings for 2012 are as follows:

Santander Brasil (Brasil) is #1 globally, #1 in Financials, and has a 85.7 green score
Wipro (India) is #2 globally, #1 in IT & Services, and has a 85.4 green score
Bradesco (Brazil) is #3 globally, #2 in Financials, and has a 83.7 green score
IBM (US) #4 globally, #2 in IT & Services, and has a 89.5 green score

There is some hope, after all. One time largest carbon emitter the USA had managed to improve her performance by coming down 3.7% in 2012 on its previously held poor record. The Europe followed with a 1.8% lowering. On the other hand, China under-performed pumping 5.9% more carbon emissions last year. Despite all the effort, why are we as inhabitants of this planet still causing to pump unprecedented carbon emits? The year 2013 will go down as the worst year in the history of mankind for carbon emissions estimated at a staggering 36 b metric tons, as forecasted by the Global Carbon Project, with developed countries among biggest culprits. Carbon emissions cause the earth to warm up with rising temperatures being in the root of climate change and leading to adverse climatic conditions, catastrophes of gigantic proportion that leave all kinds of life on earth utterly helpless. For companies who make a mark in greening their business, see considerable cost savings and soaring reputation, with customers choosing them against their competition or substitution. More intangible returns rest on improved employee morale and satisfaction, resulting in them being more productive. How? Employees’ levels of satisfaction in a Green environment will be very high. They will want to belong to a place that is serious about the planet and the environment. They will know the employer will be committed to them too the same way. On the other hand, prospective employees too prefer to work for such companies, making one a ‘preferred employer’. Sustainability win-win all round. How to get in the green? A green transformation needs a lot of conviction and sponsorship from the top. Some tips include:

Energy saving lighting and equipment - a considerable investment will be required to replace what are used currently with high-on energy saving products e.g.: replacing an old ceiling fan could potentially return value on its investment as early as in six months
Get as natural light as possible – this will enable you to save energy used due to the lighting of bulbs
Recycled energy (renewable energy)

This will alleviate non bio-degradable energy waste. It is commonly defined as ‘energy generated from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable (naturally replenished)’. Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority has put together a national energy policy and strategies; a noteworthy approach and a dire need to a very critical problem. Shifting from first generation (based on grains and other agricultural commodities) to second generation bio fuels (produced from agricultural and forestry residues including domestic refuse such as garbage), solar energy, hydro power, wind energy and coal power are renewable sources of energy, with varying time lines (until renewal could take place) and profitability. In a country that enjoys relatively high rainfall, ‘rainwater harvesting’ could possibly make a useful source of energy in making hydro power allied products. The ground breaking investment by privately held Senok Group to open Sri Lanka’s first commercial wind energy park at Puttalam (30 megawatt, Rs. 3 b project) in 2010 was a praiseworthy concept.

Waste recycling – this could bring additional profit as well as become a source of energy for business operations, saving and earning!
Recycle material – either you recycle material or opt to use recycled material Central power off – when you leave office this will be an effective mechanism to power off centrally
Encourage employees to use energy saving and/or efficient modes of transportation (eg: cycling) and do the same for goods transportation
Use purified tap water for consumption than expensive and environmentally unfriendly bottled water
Encourage and introduce automation where possible. Use paper less and make less printouts and photocopies.
Work with an electronic and hazardous recycling expert when disposing your used items. Get paid too.
Make your own products using baking soda, vinegar, lime, etc. instead of purchasing toxic cleaning products

As you know measuring the results of the initiative is an important part of the process. You will be encouraged when the numbers speak. Well known corporates like Brandix, MAS, Hirdaramani, John Keells, Aitken Spence are some big names that have come up with exemplary strategies, installations and constructions; even drawing international attention and recognition for their green efforts. You can too. (The author is Founder Director of Target Resource (Pvt) Ltd., a business consulting, training, head-hunting, recruitment and research firm. She is a lead consultant, trainer, head-hunter, speaker and an international researcher. She was the Course Director of the MBA in Human Resource Management of the Open University of Sri Lanka. She is also a consultant for the Ministry of Public Management Reforms of Sri Lanka. Deepanie could be reached at [email protected].)