Features of Business in Ecological Context - Essay Example

Business in context Introduction and Background Since origination, humans have been involved in various activities, utilizing the physical as well asthe mental part. The activities only transformed our globe from a primitive one to developed one. But, one can see that these activities not only resulted in development, but have also have caused destructions to our earth. That is, in his/her quest to achieve advancement, humans have invented or inventing many tools and are also developing rapidly in particular fields. But, unfortunately, the same tools and the developing fields are damaging human lives and the earth’s environment, which sustain the lives. One of the ‘developing fields’, which contributes to damages is the construction field or industry. In the construction and property development industries, the contemporary climate is against using eco-damaging products. So, due to that climate, the industry has adjusted to the demand of the people and the government agencies, by using of eco-friendly products in the construction of buildings and various other structures. So, particular parts of the property development and construction industries have changed and are catering to the demands, by introducing eco-friendly products and services. The fact is, “the construction industry are generating close to one third of all the waste in Britain while 20% of new building materials on the average building site are simply thrown away at the end of the job” (Seager). Also the important parts of construction industry, lighting and heating of buildings have lead to the generation of 50% of Britains carbon dioxide emissions. So, to change this negative image, the construction industry has transformed a lot and also altered their strategies by going for eco-friendly products. Most of the firms of the construction industry are following the plan, “three zeros - zero carbon, zero water and zero waste," with the changes made by the industry itself, as government legislation would take too long (Seager). Analysis The use of eco-damaging products and faulty coordination by the construction industry has bringing in host of problems to the people mainly in the form of global warming. “The Stern Report, by Sir Nicholas Stern, the World Bank’s former chief economist, says the lack of co-ordination between elements of the industry creates poor quality, energy-inefficient buildings… With no action, each tonne of carbon dioxide we emit will cause at least £45 of damage” (Miller). That is, carbon dioxide released by construction industry and also various other industries in the form of smokes causes global warming, air pollution and importantly damages many things. It is a common fact that humans normally exhale carbon dioxide, as build up of it in the human body will kill the person. But, Carbon dioxide exiting from the construction industry will affect the human’s various organs causing cancers, lung diseases etc. The eco-damaging products and the resultant global warming is also increasing the hotness of the earth, making summer months hotter and even extending its durations. This is causing heat related deaths in large numbers. With the increase in temperature and the related discomforts, the people’s stress increases to peak levels causing heart attacks, particularly among old persons. Also, the extreme weather conditions caused by the global warming have enhanced the hydrological cycle of our earth leading to evaporations on a larger scale, resulting in droughts. The droughts could be seen occurring in many countries with agriculture being the worst affected field. The extreme weather conditions have also lead to the initiation and transmission of various diseases. Due to global warming and raise in temperatures, glaciers in various parts of the world have disappeared due to the excessive melting, depleting the flow of fresh water. With these problems, the construction industry has set into motion various initiatives, altering their existing practices. “The construction sector, which accounts for close to 10% of the British economy, has become the latest industry to embark on a dash for an environmentally sustainable future” (Seager). So, a group of 36 leading construction and property development companies, including British Land, Hanson, Arup, MacAlpine and Barratt Homes have established the UK Green Building Council. The role of this council is the introduction of measures to reduce the damaging emissions to minimum levels. And among the 36 companies, the construction major British Land has taken a lot of initiatives to reduce the Carbon dioxide emissions to bare minimum. “As part of our commitment to responsible business leadership, we will become carbon neutral by 2008/2009” (British Land.com). So, British Land has altered many of its strategies to achieve this distinction and have been successfully implementing it. As a first step, British Land is reducing CO2 emissions in its operations by constructing buildings incorporating sustainable designs. These sustainable designs are mainly incorporated in waste and water management plans. “Sustainability has been at the heart of our operational principles for a number of years. We aim to lead the market in developing and managing buildings in a sustainable manner” (British Land.com).Also, the energy sources for their constructions are made eco-friendly by going for renewable and safe energies. That is, British Land has installed renewable energy sources like turbines and solar panels to generate energy. “Since 2005 100% of electricity supplied to the common areas at Meadowhall, Eastgate and Peacocks Shopping Centres, as well as the multi-let properties we manage at Broadgate, has come from renewable sources” (British Land.com). Also, British Land has been working with the Carbon Trust to improve understanding of energy usage and thereby achieve their set standards of CO2 emissions. Carbon management guidance is included in many of their policies and documents, such as the British Land Sustainability Brief for Developments, which has been applied to all of their projects. Because of these initiatives, “in the 2005/6 financial year we reduced water use in the landlord-controlled areas of our portfolio by 16% and energy use by 4%. This reduction in energy use reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 626 tonnes and saved an estimated £70,000” (British Land.com). With these initiatives, British Land plan to become Carbon neutral in the near future, so it does not contribute towards global warming and their destructive effects. Even though, British Land will need to input a lot of resources from financial to technological to achieve that distinction, it is taking every step to actualize that vision or distinction for a better future for the organisation, stakeholders and importantly the customers. “This will help future-proof our properties, enhance our brand and relationships with customers and stakeholders and so increase the long-term value of the business”. Conclusion In the present scenario, for a construction and property company to sail into the territory of success without raising any environmental and ethical problems, it has to offer eco-friendly products and services. This is because with the increased awareness about environmental issues, organisations in every field or sector are going for environment friendly initiatives to maintain a positive presence in the market. “We all live in an increasingly complex and dynamic world in which organisations feature significantly. We work for organisations, we shop at them, we spend our leisure time in them and use them to improve the quality of our life” (Capron). Environmental issues have become the key because in a quest to reach an ‘exalted’ (or a dubious status) humans are putting their home of earth under severe damage, strain, pressure etc through the phenomenon of Global warming. This constant damage by global warming caused by the human manufactured or construction industry emitting greenhouse gases will stay for a longer time with repercussions affecting every form of life. So, to eradicate global warming and its bad effects, positive steps should be taken by every section of the society and industries, including construction and property development industry. If global warming and its extensive but preventable damages are eradicated or even minimized, the world of tomorrow will be a better and safer place to live. So, construction industries should play their part in saving the earth and its people. Every organisation and its worker’s survival and success hinges on the safe products and services, it provides. For that to actualize, the manager of the construction and property development should play a prominent role. The manager will be mainly judged by the success he/she achieves. Judged in the sense, he/she will be appreciated, feted, discouraged, hated etc, etc… by the success or the lack of success (failure), he/she gets in their working environment. In today’s world, success is mostly correlated with the manager’s ability to maximize the profits for the organisation. Even though this perspective is not at all wrong, the bone of contention is, how the manager was able to maximize the profits. That is, whether, he/she is able to achieves it through ethical and eco-friendly means. “Environmental risks are a serious and growing issue for the construction industry… To succeed in todays litigious environment, forward-looking contractors are incorporating sound environmental risk management practices throughout their business operations” (Aon.com). This is important because if the manager and the company in the construction industry follow a eco-friendly process, their achieved success will be counted and appreciated even more. Reference Aon.com. Environmental Risk Management for Construction Industry. Retrieved December 23, 2007 http://www.aon.com/us/busi/industry_specialties/construction/environmental.jsp British Land.com. Environmental initiatives. Retrieved December 23, 2007 from http://www.britishland.com/environment_initiatives.htm Capron, C. (2004), Understanding Organisational Context, Prentice Hall, Harlow Essex Miller, Vikki. Construction industry under fire over global warming. December 23, 2007 from http://www.building.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=29&storycode=3076590&c=2 Seager, Ashley. Construction sector rises to challenge of building eco-friendly homes of the future. The Guardian. February 28 2007 Read More