Practical Sustainability Strategies: How to Gain a Competitive Advantage

Description

Strategies that enable organizations to succeed as businesses and as responsible corporate citizensBased on the authors' many years of research and hands-on experience, this book provides tested and proven practical strategies that make it possible for organizations to develop, maintain, or extend their competitive advantage without causing harm to the environment and society. Moreover, it explains how to set goals and objectives and then monitor, measure, and report on progress towards achieving corporate social responsibility and environmental sustainability. Most importantly, readers will discover that this can all be accomplished while, at the same time, improving bottom-line profitability.Practical Sustainability Strategies: How to Gain a Competitive Advantage is divided into four parts:Part 1, Introduction to Sustainability, underscores the urgency for organizations to adopt and develop sustainable practicesPart 2, Sustainable Strategies, details numerous strategies that have been proven to work, including environmental innovation through biomimicry, green buildings, and green chemistryPart 3, Tools and Metrics, offers practical information on implementing strategies and measuring sustainability and reporting, including global standards and guidelines for managing sustainability, life-cycle analysis, carbon and water footprints such as GRI, GHG Protocol, UN Global CompactPart 4, Conclusion, provides an expert forecast of the future of sustainabilityCase studies based on the authors' research and fieldwork illustrate how leading companies have implemented each of the sustainability strategies discussed in the book. There's also an appendix with additional case studies exploring various aspects of business practices and sustainability.Practical Sustainability Strategies is ideal as a graduate textbook as well as a reference for business managers. All readers will not only gain a greater appreciation for sustainable development, but also the skills needed to integrate sustainability into all aspects of their organization's business practices.Content: Chapter 1 Urgency to Adopt Sustainability (pages 1–15): Chapter 2 Development of the Sustainability Concept and CSR (pages 17–23): Chapter 3 The CERES and Other Principles (pages 25–37): Chapter 4 The Natural Step (pages 39–54): Chapter 5 Eco‐effective Versus Eco‐efficient (pages 55–64): Chapter 6 Extended Product Responsibility and “Servicizing” (pages 65–77): Chapter 7 Systems Thinking Leads to “Tunneling Through the Cost Barrier” (pages 79–87): Chapter 8 Environmental Innovation Through Biomimicry (pages 89–106): Chapter 9 Base of the Pyramid (pages 107–117): Chapter 10 Sustaining Fisheries (pages 119–129): Chapter 11 Environmentally Effective Buildings (pages 131–143): Chapter 12 Green Chemistry, Nanotechnology, and “Big Hairy Audacious Goal” (pages 145–157): Chapter 13 Sustainable Strategies and Beyond (pages 159–160): Chapter 14 Standards and Guidelines for Managing Corporate Social Responsibility towards Sustainability (pages 161–175): Chapter 15 The Corporation and Its Stakeholders (pages 177–187): Chapter 16 Sustainability Reporting (pages 189–197): Chapter 17 Metrics for Sustainability (pages 199–216): Chapter 18 Life Cycle Analysis and Carbon Footprint (pages 217–226): Chapter 19 Water Footprint (pages 227–234): Chapter 20 Green Marketing, Communication, and Greenwashing (pages 235–245): Chapter 21 Epilogue (pages 247–251):