On December 13, 2012, Ned Tillman spoke with a number of small businesses from the BASE Business Initiative (BBI) about their Sustainability role and responsibility.
Ned Tillman, managing partner of Sustainable Growth, LLC , is an environmental sustainability leader assisting communities with developing tools to manage our new economy, an economy where increase efficiency is highly recommended and necessary in order to maintain current quality of life standards.
During BBI's Brown Bag program, Mr. Tillman introduce a tool that is designed to push and inspire the small business community to include innovative sustainability activities into their every day procedures and practices, no matter if they are a janitorial company or an information technology firm. It is the goal of Sustainable Growth, LLC to inspire efforts that communicate Sustainability globally and empowers individual businesses to take responsible steps to consider the environmental, community and economy.
The Brown Bag discussion started out with a power point presentation that walked attendees through a few Sustainability elements:
- Energy Transitions. The connection between efficient energy usage, the practice of smart grid management, and alternative energy solutions.
- Environment and Human Health. The connection between our air and water quality requirements, food chain demands, and health care needs.
- Job Access and Readiness. The connection between creating innovative business solutions focused on Sustainability and a trained workforce.
Given the elements of sustainability are interdependent, Sustainability is designed to serve as a management tool that can overlay any sector operation, allowing small businesses to fully participate in the management of a new economy that yields cost savings, efficient processes, and environmental stewardship. Small businesses were encourages to view Sustainability a more than a concept, but as a physical process used to run their business in a manner that balances beyond the financial bottom line, but the triple bottom line (economics - environment - business community).
Mr. Tillman also talked about the "business community" and how that community is defined to include the client, the supplier, and internal business team. Encouraging the small business owner to serve as a catalyst for change:
- Educating the client about design solutions solutions that promote stewardship;
- Requiring suppliers to work towards net-zero waste generation practices;
- Education the internal business team to identify pollution prevention/sustainability opportunities.
The small businesses were encouraged to benchmark Fortune 100 Corporations currently implementing sustainability as a way to be more successful while practicing stewardship. Also, the Federal Government as they use sustainability as a performance enhancement tool under the directives of various executive orders, such as 13148 (Greening the Government Through Leadership in Environmental Management); 13423 (Strengthening Federal Environmental, Energy, and Transportation Management); and 13514 (Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance).
Sustainable Growth, LLC supports businesses and governments with using sustainability as a option for managing problems, assisting with the integration of prevention, redundancy avoidance, resiliency, and adaptation. Their team assist all with a phased Sustainability Process that assesses impacts, sets goals, and creates an action plan.
On this day, the BBI community learned how they can run their businesses more effectively; attract clients using a Sustainability marketing strategy; and become champion for the environment - economy - community. Mr. Tillman's message:
Sustainability: Live It, Embed It, Advocate For It, Demand It...
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