Sustainable Development and its overall impact - Assignment Example

?Sustainable Development and its Overall Impact Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Introduction 3 Task 4 Analysis of Principles of Sustainable Development 4 Task 2 6 Biodiversity 6 Task 3 8 Evaluation of Corporate Citizenship for Sustainable Development 8 Individual Responsibility in Sustainable Development 9 Long Term Benefits of Engaging in Community Projects 10 Task 4 11 Task 5 13 Impact of Changes towards Sustainability 13 Conclusion 16 References 17 Introduction Sustainability is related with responsible consumption of natural resources in such a way so that it does not compromise the requirement of future generation. In order to manage sustainability, organisations and people should make optimal utilisation of power and resources so that they can diminish the related environmental impact. The report will describe certain cases concerning sustainable practices in organisations and places to increase the awareness of people and respect the worth of environment. The report will analyse the principles of sustainable development and organisational practices to maintain them. Further, the report will also describe the idea of corporate citizenship within organisations and how they can ensure sustainability. Task 1 Analysis of Principles of Sustainable Development Sustainable development is a kind of development which satisfies the requisites of present times without sacrificing the aptitudes of upcoming generations to satisfy their own requirements (Harris, 2000). In relation to the case there are five major aspects of sustainable development principles which are: Establishing Vision: The first principle of sustainable development is establishing a strong vision and describing the purposes of it. Without clear vision an organisation will be unable to pursue sustainability. A vision can recognise the requirement for environment protection and successful improvement. Universal Perception: A sustainable development should include review of complete organisational system as well as their components. Organisations need to consider the welfare of social, environmental and economic aspects along with the positive and the adverse significances of human activities. Needs and Rights: Sustainable development should consider the fairness and the inconsistency in population and should also concern present and future generations. It is related with the utilisation of resources, excess consumption of resources, insufficiency, human rights and availability of facilities. Therefore, evaluation of sustainable development should accept a time limit which can capture both human and environment and react with the requirement of future and present generation. Proper anticipation of future needs should be done on the basis of historic circumstances. The sustainable framework of an organisation should link with the chosen vision and objectives of organisation. A number of measurement amalgamations are effective to provide vibrant indication of progress towards sustainability. By associating the measurement value with the target, organisations can comprehend the ways and the tendencies towards sustainable development (Hardi & Zdan, 1997). Values and Beliefs: Values and beliefs are vital for management of sustainability. Therefore, organisations ought to ensure a level of openness in their operations which can ensure trust and faith. There is need for applying considerable level of transparency in business performances which also includes measurement of sustainable progress. In order to add value, organisations can maintain close interaction with the government and the public. The involvement of people such as professionals, social groups comprising youths and ethnic people can help to ensure acknowledgement of miscellaneous and fluctuating values. Participations of communities can also help to secure an organisation by connecting implemented policies with consequential actions (International Energy Agency, 2006). Evaluation of Sustainable Development: Organisations need to be iterative, adaptive and reactive to any kind of uncertainties because environmental system is complex and can vary from time to time. Continuous assessment needs to be done so that organisations can know how they are progressing towards the vision and the objectives and if there are deficiencies; organisations can reconsider strategies considering the variation of environmental system (International Energy Agency, 2006). The major omission on the sustainable development principles was the development of environmental law within organisation about liability towards pollution as well as environment damage. Organisations whose actions impact on environment should accept the penalty of it; and in this way, the environmental law can help to control the activities of the organisation for maintaining sustainability. Besides, in order to accomplish true sustainable development, the environmental protection must institute an essential portion of growth procedure. Organisations should minimise and remove unsustainable arrays of production and consumption, and encourage suitable demographic strategies (United Nations Environment Programme, 2002). Task 2 Biodiversity In order to enhance the biodiversity, several projects have been undertaken as a part of sustainable development. One such project is development of “Bird Flapper” where a disk is linked with the power lines. Bird Flapper is aimed for making the electricity line noticeable and it acts as a cost-effective way of reducing the risk of birds’ deaths. Eskom, a South African electricity providing organisation had identified the threats of biodiversity as well as prospects to reduce it. By joint partnership with several private organisations, Eskom had implemented this project which can significantly reduce the mortality rate of birds due to electric lines hence, ensuring biodiversity (International Energy Agency, 2006). The other project concerning biodiversity was ‘establishment of biodiversity balance policy and preservation plan’. The project was initiated between the years of 1995–1997 by development of new area in the Ravensworth State Forest. The forest is a mining area which encompasses several endangered environmental species. The objective of the project was creation of new area with remote mature trees, and plantation of several new intrinsic trees to shrub environmental species into the forest. As a result of the replantation project, it had provided habitation for wildlife and stimulated the movement of intrinsic animals in that area (International Energy Agency, 2006). In addition to the replantation project, the other project which was undertaken on that area for biodiversity was re-vegetation and wildlife management plan. This project was administered by Mt Owen Flora and Fauna Advisory Committee in 2004. This project recompenses for commotion of vegetation through preservation of forest areas. It provided safety for larger area of forest (International Energy Agency, 2006). The other project in the field of biodiversity was undertaken for maintaining the wildlife such as creation of “artificial nesting and roosting boxes”. It was a major step towards biodiversity. The advantages of artificial nest encompass biodiversity improvement and better understanding of urban environment (International Energy Agency, 2006). These projects were successful as they had positively affected the biodiversity on those areas where they were implemented. As a result of execution of those projects, it not only restored the balance of wild animals and endangered species but also helped to maintain plantation and vegetation. From those projects, it can be learnt that satisfying human requirements of consumption should not be achieved by compromising the lives and the welfare of other species, or else it can impact on the ecology and the future generation. Therefore, organisations should undertake projects and operations by considering the biodiversity which can benefit both business and environment (International Energy Agency, 2006). Task 3 For undertaking any developmental project, organisations and companies need to realise that they are the part of community. The reason is that community input is vital for any social influence in a country. From the case 38, it can be observed that E.ON UK had undertaken several community related activities such as providing education, employment and funding. The activities do not impact directly on any company but can indirectly impact by having better employee retention. By recognising as a part of community, organisations can provide education regarding environment so that public can join and support developmental projects. It stimulates self-dependence among poor as well as unprivileged people in the community. Self-dependence and motivation can allow the people of the communities to apply environment friendly activities and plans which are significant for maintaining sustainability (International Energy Agency, 2006). Evaluation of Corporate Citizenship for Sustainable Development Community involvement is vital for organisations towards enhancing corporate citizenship. Corporate citizenship is considered as gratitude that an organisation has social, educational and environmental accountabilities towards the community. It is an assortment of socio-economic undertakings that organisation commences to satisfy obligations as a part of community. An effective corporate citizenship has five principles which include acting within environmental boundaries, certifying robust, vigorous and impartial society, accomplishing a sustainable economy, using sensible comprehensive discipline, and encouraging the use of good corporate governance (NHS Sustainable Development Unit, 2010). For ensuring corporate citizenship organisations need to take active responsibility for the employees even if it costs money and effort. Corporate citizenship can help to foster employees’ effort and ensure stability and sustainability for future. From the analysis of case 39, it can be observed that the community plan had resulted in improved employee relations and continuity in organisation. It had also reduced the rate of conflict within employees (International Energy Agency, 2006). Community development plan includes money, time, amenities, guidance, and other assets of organisation. These resources can satisfy the social and the financial requirements of public and fortify the relationship between business goals and life of community people. The priority advantages pursued by good corporate citizenship can augment the reputation of company, improve public relationship; and as a result it can impact on the self-esteem of employees in the organisation. In every industrial segment, organisations regard themselves as a part of community, because it a significant symbol especially for employees and their philosophy. The benefits of corporate citizenship are reliable and can assist in improvement of organisation’s business (Commonwealth of Australia, 2006). Individual Responsibility in Sustainable Development Individual persons are vital for promoting sustainable development. People live in a society where they can behave like a responsible citizen, encourage social attachment, stimulate financial transparency, promote eco-diversity, and also pay respect towards environment within their regular life. Individual commitment is a major instrument to build up a sustainable world. In this regard, the human resource division plays significant part for spreading the culture of the organisation to the individuals and for increasing the awareness (Koninklijke Philips Electronics, 2011). Long Term Benefits of Engaging in Community Projects Involvement in community projects and helping people of society can build a reputation for a company. This reputation can help to maintain good relationships with stakeholders who respect responsible policies of a company. Strong reputation can make it simple for organisations to recruit talented workers and to retain their stay for long run which consecutively minimises the cost of recruitment and retention. Apart from that, the community projects can also help to motivate employees and generate a sense of socially responsible culture in organisation. The community development activities make an organisation more competitive and lessen the risks of unexpected loss of reputation in future. Thus, the investors will be more enthusiastic to provide financial support to the organisations which engage in community involving projects. Presently, community involvement projects have become a vital part for corporate social responsibility which can develop a long-term value for a company. Every aspect of engaging in community projects is concerned with increasing the status of a company in the market, and it is a way to boost clients and stakeholders to stay for long-term. Good corporate social responsibility can automatically differentiate a company from other competitors. The long-term effect of community project involvement can reflect on the worth of an organisation and it can help to make a powerful brand name (Commonwealth of Australia, 2006). Task 4 This task is concerned with one of the most significant aspects of sustainable development i.e. water management in southern African region. Water is a significant environmental concern and it is a vital aspect for electricity creation. The case 25 is concerned with reduction of water consumption for generating electricity. Production of electricity costs huge amount of water supply. Though water is a freely available natural resource, in southern Africa the accessibility of water is one of the major issues in ensuring sustainable development. Therefore, Eskom, a South African electricity corporation had introduced innovative technology which can save maximum water while producing power. Eskom had tackled the issue of reducing the usage of water for sustainable development in four ways, which are dry cooling, desalination, improvement of water infrastructure, and metering and monitoring technique (Eskom Holdings, 2011). Dry Cooling: In dry cooling technology, cooling takes place by vaporisation process. This system does not depend on the ‘open evaporative cooling’ which in turn reduces the usage of water by almost 15 times compared to traditional wet refrigerated power system. Hence, Eskom had employed dry cooling system on those power stations where it was viable to be used. Though this technology is less competent than wet refrigerated technology and the capital requirement is also high, this effort had resulted in saving of water by 70 million Cubic Meters in a year (Eskom Holdings, 2011). Desalination: While producing electricity the water is flowed from good to poor quality till all impurities are filtered in residue drams and extreme quantity of salts are detached in the least possible capacity of water. The objective of the desalination practice is to remove maximum amount of salts without compromising the capability of compressing salt load. This practice had permitted the company to introduce unhygienic mine water from secured mines for reusing it in power station. As a result, it supported the prevention of adverse environmental effect on the shallow of ground water (Eskom Holdings, 2011). Water Infrastructure: For almost 40 years, Eskom had subsidised the improvement of pipeline and wedges in the Mpumalanga Highveld at South African region. It is accomplished by enhancing the infrastructure of water by appropriate investments and execution of several developmental projects. These projects chiefly are intended for providing a safe water supply to power stations and the related mines. It has substantial influence on the feasibility of providing water for both industrial purposes and domestic purposes (Eskom Holdings, 2011). Water Metering and Monitoring: As a part of sustainable development with respect to water usage, Eskom had implemented a metering technique which use ‘level of accuracy’ mechanism. This technique is useful for evaluating the water stabilities and salt constancies. This technique is useful to indicate any kind of critical leaks in the water supply system so that repairing could be completed as quickly as possible. This system is capable of signifying any leakages through calculating the water levels in the terminal water tanks at the power stations (Eskom Holdings, 2011). The impact of those methods is productive for business operations and sustainable development. The techniques implemented by Eskom had successfully reduced the amount of water usage and saved huge amount of water. For example, in the year 1980, the amount of water consumption of Eskom was almost 2.85 litres for producing one kilowatt power which had reduced to 1.26 litres in 2004. As the demand of electricity will increase naturally in future, these techniques will undoubtedly help to save maximum amount of water and maintain sustainability (Eskom Holdings, 2011). Task 5 Impact of Changes towards Sustainability Visioning is one of the major mechanisms for sustainability and it is a critical beginning point for any change towards sustainability. A proactive and positive approach for changing towards sustainability is to image for better future. In order to ensure the change, there are several policies and legislations which can encourage sustainable development. Complying with Environmental Regulation: Environmental regulation is a basis for protecting the environment and without regulations it will be difficult to ensure sustainability. The regulations provide a disruption on the random business practices of organisation which can harm the atmosphere, water, natural resources, habitats and endangered species. Environmental regulation is the tool by which organisations can manage their regulatory obedience and improve their performance. It is effective for making organisations realise their compliant position and implement remedial or preventive measures rapidly (Baxter, 2005). Promoting Renewable Energy Development: In present days, renewable energy has become one of the significant concerns for sustainability. The present energy generation system is the centre of several financial, strategic and political conflicts along with environmental corrosion. In this context, the promotion of renewable energy can play significant role in sustainable development as well as help in poverty elimination. The developing countries are in quite susceptible situation with respect to energy demand and supply. Higher usage of alternative energy sources such as solar energy, energy from wind, biomass energy, sea water energy and geothermal energy among others can help to tackle the increasing demand of energy. Besides, over dependency on generating energy from fossil fuel, oil and coal can impact on environment and their reserves are also becoming scarce. The increasing usage of renewable energy not only helps to reduce the environment impact but also increases the sustainability of a country (Rahman, 2011). Undertaking Environmental Education and Training: Human beings have substantial influence on the natural environment. As the population grows the demand of natural resources will also raise. The environmental impacts can mostly be recognised by the consumption trend. Therefore, environmental education and training is one of the best methods to stimulate awareness for rising environmental concerns and endorsing environmentally responsible performance. Environmental education helps to recognise several environmental issues which might become challenging for future generations. The main reason for providing environmental education and training is that, people will be able to comprehend the environment efficiently and apply the theories of science, mathematics or technology in resolving real world problems such as higher CO2 emissions or O3 layer depletion among others (Barrett, 2005). Promoting Waste Minimisation: Environmental wastes can impact on every portion of environment and society. Business organisations, government and public at large are responsible for generating and disposing waste. It is significant for everyone to understand the advantages of minimising waste for environmental protection. But there is lack of awareness on this aspect of environment. Several organisations have proved the fact that significant minimisation of waste can be applied in real world and it can be profitable as well. Minimisation of waste can help to save money and also enables organisations to use resources effectively and recycle materials for reprocess. Lesser waste can create a healthier environment and sustainable business practices (Authority of the House of Lords, 2008). Promoting Community Engagement Projects: The community engagement projects have become one of the most vital primacies for organisations. It is a useful mode of communicating the messages about an organisation’s activities regarding environment protection across the community. Promoting community engagement projects not only improves the reputation of a company, but also generates trust among the citizens. It can help to generate new thoughts, develop new strategies and implement new solutions to the social and environmental problems. Collaboration with the communities strengthens networks and improves relationships. Community engagement projects build assurance around several community problems and create impetus to discourse local aspects (Tamarack - An Institute for Community Engagement, 2010). Conclusion Sustainable development is an extensive concept where human and organisational actions can affect the environment and social welfare. Organisations along with individuals have responsibilities to promote sustainable development. From the above analysis of cases, it can be observed that several organisations and bodies implement different measures to protect and to restore the environment and natural resources. In order to accomplish a positive future, above aspects should be considered by organisations and should also implement measures that can reduce the negative environmental impacts. Organisational structure and culture should be changed and adjusted towards better sustainability and the organisations also need to comply with the rules and the regulations of environment. References Authority of the House of Lords, 2008. Waste Reduction. Science and Technology Committee. [Online] Available at: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200708/ldselect/ldsctech/163/163.pdf [Accessed December 30, 2011]. Baxter, M., 2005. Managing Compliance with Environmental Law: A Good Practice Guide. Best Practice Series, 6, pp. 1-140. Barrett, S., 2005. The Importance of Environmental Education in Raising Awareness and Concern. Understanding the Importance of Environmental Education. 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