The Green movement is all around us and on a regular basis we hear the words “green” and “sustainable” used interchangeably. Green evokes visions of recycling, natural products, energy efficiency and carbon footprint calculations. But my guess is that “sustainable” paints a more nebulous picture in your mind’s eye. So I saw this great diagram - thanks to Teachers: California Academy of Sciences - that provides a visual for sustainability. Basically this diagram shows what is being called the TBL – or triple bottom line. Instead of considering profit only, business sustainability also considers the human element and the planet. The diagram also included this definition of sustainability: “to meet the current needs of our global population without compromising those of future generations.”
Wow, that’s a lot to think about…having what we need now without compromising the future. It provides us with a challenge and call to action. Yup, it’s about change. The challenge and change aspects could be enough of a reason just to back-burner it all given everything else that’s already on our plates. So here’s what I’m going to do to work towards sustainability, and maybe it’s an approach that will work for you too.
Unless you have a mind that already thinks from the middle of this diagram, it could certainly be overwhelming to try to leap from the outer three areas directly into the middle. (And certainly even the profitability factor frequently needs much attention in the horse industry.) So I’m going to take it one baby step at a time and look at each element individually. I’m going to write down steps that I’ve taken already and other steps to consider. For example, I use fly predators on my property instead of insecticide systems, and also use a solar fence charger. This approach is helping me to see how I can shift my resources – not necessarily spend more – but spend what I would have in a different way. The more steps I take like this, the more it opens my awareness to other steps and to a more holistic approach. So what do you think? About sustainability, about what you’ve done working towards this. I’d love to hear about your efforts towards sustainability and other ways to approach it – please share with us here.
Wow, that’s a lot to think about…having what we need now without compromising the future. It provides us with a challenge and call to action. Yup, it’s about change. The challenge and change aspects could be enough of a reason just to back-burner it all given everything else that’s already on our plates. So here’s what I’m going to do to work towards sustainability, and maybe it’s an approach that will work for you too.
Unless you have a mind that already thinks from the middle of this diagram, it could certainly be overwhelming to try to leap from the outer three areas directly into the middle. (And certainly even the profitability factor frequently needs much attention in the horse industry.) So I’m going to take it one baby step at a time and look at each element individually. I’m going to write down steps that I’ve taken already and other steps to consider. For example, I use fly predators on my property instead of insecticide systems, and also use a solar fence charger. This approach is helping me to see how I can shift my resources – not necessarily spend more – but spend what I would have in a different way. The more steps I take like this, the more it opens my awareness to other steps and to a more holistic approach. So what do you think? About sustainability, about what you’ve done working towards this. I’d love to hear about your efforts towards sustainability and other ways to approach it – please share with us here.
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