Dr. Jacob Park, assistant professor of business and public policy at Green Mountain College, specializes in the teaching and research of global environment and business strategy, corporate social responsibility, business ethics, and community-based entrepreneurship and innovation. Dr. Park brings a wealth of international experience, including working on the United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, to Vermont. VSJF recently spoke with Dr. Park about sustainable business practices in Vermont, how Vermont compares to the rest of the world, and challenges facing businesses that attempt to become more sustainable.

VSJF: The definition of sustainable development put forward by the Brundtland Commission is now nearly 20 years old. What has changed in the intervening years?

Jacob Park: I think that what has changed dramatically is the importance of globalization. In other words, when the Brundtland Commission put the definition statement together it was hard enough to agree on a definition, but one thing that we're only now beginning to understand is how insurmountably more difficult or complicated sustainable development has become as a result of globalization.

20 years ago we all naively thought that what we need to do is create the right set of mechanisms—institutions, laws, regulations—for the public good. And these institutions, laws, and regulations would simply create a sustainable society. Now, nobody thought it’d be that easy, but nobody thought, 20 years later, that it would be this hard.

What are we supposed to do about China, for example? Now, you can argue that sustainability demands that poverty is reduced. The problem is, what happens if China, which is a country with 1.3 billion people, decides that they want to live like us. Well, do we deny them the right to live the standard of living that all human beings should be accorded? Probably not. You know, we’re fond of statistics that say that 1/3 of the people on the planet live on less than a dollar a day. Well, that’s true, but what happens if we change that? In China, you have massive inequity in terms of resources between rural areas and urban areas. You also have seven of the top ten biggest shopping malls in the world now in China. Wal-Mart, all of the things that we cringe about when we’re talking about sustainability at the local level are all happening in China on a massive scale.

So, whatever we do on a local level, whatever we do to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will be negated, to a certain degree, by the natural human aspirations of Chinese consumers. Basically, what you see are the same aspirations in China as you see in America, and Americans are in no position to lecture anybody about consumerism. But how do we get them not to be like us? It’s a huge challenge. I don’t think anybody believed the changes in India and China would happen so quickly.

VSJF: You’ve said that we rarely discuss what kind of business would actually deliver the kind of triple bottom line value we all say we want. And there are many people who would say that capitalism is unsustainable by its very nature. What does a sustainable enterprise mean to you?

JP: The way I would frame it is in terms of companies who operate according to the triple bottom line. It’s much more explicit as a purpose. What I mean by that is that there are companies that kind of fall into sustainability. They test the wind and decide ‘Oh! We should do this thing called triple bottom line reporting because more of our customers are expecting us to do it.’ And they put out nice, glossy reports. They retain consulting firms to do outreach to consumers and the media.

Look at what Wal-Mart is doing. I guarantee you that within 10 years there’s going to be a controversy as to whether Wal-Mart is the most sustainable company in the world...

Few organizations would count their demise as a measure of success, but that is precisely what the founders of Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR) set as their ultimate goal. With nearly 650 members, representing over 30,000 employees and over $4.5 billion in annual sales, VBSR is the largest business trade organization of its kind in the United States. According to Executive Director Spencer Putnam, VBSR was created by business owners who wanted to “amplify the social mission collectively.” Through public policy advocacy, education, and networking opportunities for its members, VBSR has advocated for livable wages, sound energy policy, family leave, health care reform and other causes for the past 16 years. In the view of Don Mayer, owner of Small Dog Electronics and chair of VBSR’s board of directors, “What we espouse as socially responsible business practices should be the norm. There shouldn’t be a need for an organization like ours because it should be the natural thing that businesses do.”

Putnam frequently uses the term ‘counterintuitive’ when he talks about the positions that VBSR takes on public policy that apparently many other business organizations feel are not in their best interest. In particular, Mayer explains, VBSR is devoted to advocating for multiple bottom lines: “One of the bottom lines, in most cases, the most important bottom line for most businesses, is making a profit. We see making a cash profit as being only one of many measures of success for a company. When you incorporate as a company, you’re creating a body in your community. And that body’s impact on a community is greater than any individual. They have a bigger environmental footprint, they have a bigger impact on employees and their families in terms of wages and benefits. They have an impact on the customers they serve and they have an impact on vendors that they buy from. Taking a look at what exactly is the bottom line for your company and how you measure success is a key element of how you define socially responsible business practices.”

Putnam believes that advocates have made significant progress over the last 16 years in making people aware of the need to strive for sustainability, with the growth of VBSR as one tangible expression of that increased awareness. VBSR has a spring and fall conference each year, as well as eight or nine get-togethers that are hosted by member businesses. These gatherings serve as opportunities to learn about the host business while at the same time getting together and networking with other individuals at those events.

For Mayer and Small Dog Electronics, the best—and most significant benefit—of joining VBSR has been networking with likeminded members: “I have a great network of business leaders in the state of Vermont that I can call upon for ideas and advice on problems that I might be facing at my business. You just don’t get that by being out there by yourself.”

The fourth annual Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) conference will take place June 8-10 in Burlington this year. BALLE is a network of 30 business networks from across the United States that are committed to the communities and natural environments of their regions. Each of the business networks—VBSR is Vermont’s BALLE network—are composed of locally owned businesses concerned about the removal of power, control, and ownership from their communities due to globalization.

As an articulation of sustainable development and an antidote to globalization, BALLE has advanced the idea of ‘local living economies’. Local living economies produce and exchange as many products as they reasonably can locally, while reaching out to other communities to trade for products they cannot reasonably produce at home.

According to Merrian Fuller, Managing Director of BALLE, “Locally owned businesses that have a consciousness about their community are key change makers in the local economy to move it toward a more sustainable way of functioning. They do that in a basic way through their products and services and also through how they interact with the community: what donations they give, how they treat their employees, how they choose to use their leverage, how they influence policy, and how they work together to encourage new entrepreneurs to start up.”

BALLE’s main activities consist of monthly round-up calls where the leaders of all the networks explore a topic that is of interest to everyone (e.g., food related activities). Through these round-ups, members learn about new opportunities for enhancing their network's initiatives. BALLE has an online database with resources such as marketing materials for members and their staff is available to talk networks through either getting started in the early stages, developing new programs or thinking through strategies on the ground.

BALLE chose to hold their conference in Burlington this year because “we’re really impressed by what Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility has done.” “Because Vermont is a relatively small state,” Fuller observes, “it seems like it’s been much easier to get consensus on a lot of issues. It also seems like there’s an ethic in Vermont that just lends itself to local living economies, no matter if you’re a Republican or Democrat or whatever. The view seems to be that ‘this is our state and we want to take care of it. We need our local businesses to be successful and to be cognizant of community values and environmental values.’ That just makes sense. And that’s not the case in a lot of other places.”

The goal of the conference is for people to learn about innovations that are going on in Vermont as well as to connect with others who are doing similar activities and have similar values across North America (people from 34 states and five Canadian provinces are signed up to attend so far). Scheduled speakers include Judy Wicks, Hunter Lovins, John Abrams, and Vermont stalwarts Ben Cohen, Will Raap and Jeffrey Hollender. Breakout sessions will be conducted on such topics as “Localized Energy Systems” and “Rethinking Economic Development.”

The Vermont Small Business Development Center and the Environmental Assistance Office of the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) have partnered together to create the Vermont Business Environmental Partnership (VBEP). The purpose of VBEP is to encourage Vermont businesses to transition beyond compliance toward sustainable business practices. VBEP coordinators Peter Crawford (SBDC) and Chad Cliburn (DEC) provide interested businesses with an on-site environmental opportunities assessment that looks for energy efficiency, waste reduction, and green purchasing opportunities.

Businesses choosing to join VBEP must meet a set of eight criteria to be considered an “Environmental Partner”:

• Adopt, post and circulate an Environmental Policy Statement to all employees.
• Designate an Environmental Team or Representative to ensure the standards are met.
• Conduct an environmental opportunity assessment using the technical assistance services of Crawford or Cliburn.
• Employ a prevention strategy to eliminate or reduce one form of hazardous or solid waste, a wastewater discharge, or an air emission.
• Implement measures to increase energy efficiency.
• Employ a reuse or recycling option for three (3) solid or hazardous wastes generated and purchase, or offer for sale, at least three (3) products which contain recycled resins or fibers (preferably post-consumer) or which substantially reduce packaging waste, or that are non-toxic or less toxic alternatives to supplies previously purchased.
• Promote the Vermont Business Environmental Partnership by either enrolling another company in the partnership or making yourself available to other businesses for technical assistance and information on environmental initiatives instituted at your facility.
• Implement a Best Management Practice such as converting from a non-renewable (uranium and fossil fuels) to a renewable energy source (solar, wind, wood, hydro, etc.) for at least a portion of the total energy load of the business.

To date, VBEP has 25 businesses that have become Environmental Partners, ranging from auto services and printers to some of Vermont’s most well-know progressive companies like Green Mountain Coffee Roasters and Green Mountain Power. Partners can then decide to become “Environmental Leaders” by implementing an environmental management plan. This task is more difficult, but EHV Weidmann, the Partnership’s first Environmental Leader, was able to accomplish Leader designation after becoming ISO-14001 registered. Environmental Partners receive recognition from joining and are encouraged to share their stories with customers and other businesses.

Entrepreneurs and businesses looking for assistance on permitting, compliance and other issues can also contact the related Vermont Environmental Assistance Program. Additionally, hotels, bed and breakfasts, and lodging facilities looking to become more sustainable can contact Green Hotels in the Green Mountain State for assistance. The 1st annual Vermont Greening Up Your Bottom Line – A Conference for & by VT Businesses will be held September 19, 2006.

For Paul Lipke, Director of Programs and Training for Sustainable Step New England (SSNE), helping businesses transition toward sustainability is “not just a matter of understanding that we need to take less materials out of the Earth at a slower rate if a business is going to be viable or competitive. It’s about how we frame the conversation in a way that people are able to hear and move forward.” Formed in 1998, Sustainable Step New England offers training courses, facilitation of roundtable dialogues, and ongoing support to build the capacity of businesses to tackle the sustainability challenge.

Beyond teaching principles of sustainability, SSNE engages clients in “strategic questioning” and emphasizes the creation of highly effective team work to accomplish sustainability endeavors. Strategic questions are open, engaging and invite further learning: “They are questions that leverage the asker and the hearer into a conversation at a different level, for example, ‘When we’ve undertaken successful change before, what did it take to make it happen? Are those same critical components in place to enable our current effort?’”

SSNE relies on an extensive body of research that has been conducted on what it takes to create a highly effective work group. Unfortunately, Lipke explains, “A lot of the things that socially responsible businesses or government try to do run counter to that science. For example, in general, people think that we need to be inclusive. Everybody who wants to be or is effective needs to be part of the work team. Science tells us that highly effective work groups are no bigger than they need to be to do the task at hand, and participation is based on competency. That doesn’t mean that you don’t get input from everybody, but that doesn’t mean they’re necessarily part of the work.”

With activities ranging from helping to completely redesign Massachusetts’s state guidelines for designing buildings to presenting at the Building an Ecological Conference held in Vermont several years ago, Lipke believes that SSNE is ideally suited to frame conversations on sustainability in an understandable manner. According to Lipke, SSNE staff are “neutral educators who can define in quantifiable, politically viable terms, what sustainable practices are and what a sustainable society could look like.”

Growing up in the Netherlands, where a third of the country lies below sea level, Professor Karel Samsom learned very early on that “There’s no separating economics from social and environmental reality. If you couldn’t rely on your community the whole polder would flood.” Samsom is bringing that sensibility to a five-day intensive Sustainable Business Seminar at the University of Vermont, co-taught with Professor Matthew Wilson and Margaret Ann Viets, on June 7-11.

The objective of the seminar is to engage students and practitioners in an environment where the possibilities—and necessity—of running a sustainable company will be clearly outlined. Students will learn about principles of sustainable business practices, the importance of infusing organizational culture with sustainable objectives (with representatives from Green Mountain Coffee Roasters), and the value of sound environmental accounting practices. Students will be tasked with working on case studies involving two projects—organic ice cream and compostable packaging—at Ben & Jerry’s.

• On a per capita basis, Vermonters emit about 11 tons of carbon dioxide per year, the main culprit in global climate change. If you or your business are interested in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, join the 10% Challenge. The 10% Challenge is a voluntary program that helps businesses to calculate their greenhouse gas emissions and identify opportunities for reduction.

• From 2000 to 2004, nationally renowned Efficiency Vermont has helped Vermont businesses to save 121,560,000 kWh of electricity- a savings of over $100 million! Click here to help your business realize energy savings.

• The Northeast Recycling Council has a detailed directory of green products and services in the New England area, as well as recycling information for Vermont.

• The Vermont Business Materials Exchange is a useful resource for finding reusable commercial materials.

• The Vermont Earth Institute offers discussion courses for businesses on topics such as voluntary simplicity, sustainable living, and globalization.

• The Vermont Environmental Consortium is an alliance of environmental businesses, educational institutions, public agencies, and other nonprofits that are pushing the envelope of sustainable business practices in Vermont. Click here to read a compelling interview with VEC’s Executive Director, Daniel Hecht.

By Edward Delhagen

Five weeks ago, as the last chilly winds of Vermont’s winter tumbled in from the north, I got a call from a colleague with whom I had worked years ago. He asked me if I had any interest in helping a set of citizens’ groups organize a coalition to protect the rivers in Mongolia from harmful impacts of mining activities that were disrupting that arid, sparsely populated country.

Sandwiched between Russia and China, modern Mongolia faces a host of challenges as it progresses through its transition as a former Soviet bloc nation. With about 2.7 million people, many of whom are nomadic herders, and a per capita income of about $500, Mongolia is still emerging from the long shadow of Soviet rule. After the fall of the USSR in the early 1990s, the country emerged as a free nation with a democratically elected government. Fifteen tumultuous years later, Mongolia is caught somewhere between the planned economy of its past and the raging free market of the Asian tigers. Nonetheless, Mongolians are determined to move forward.

Earlier in my career, I organized several citizens groups on a variety of community and environmental issues. Gradually I shifted my emphasis from stopping bad things from happening to building economic activities that meet human needs in ways that don’t harm landscapes or people. When the call came to work on the other side of the globe, I puzzled over the fit between my current “sustainable development” work and my former organizing efforts. When my colleague and I discussed the sustainable development models I helped create in Vermont in addition to my organizing work, I began to see a fit. Apparently, there was interest in Mongolia for designing a system that would curb poor mining practices and build a market for products that come from well managed mines. This sounded a lot like the Cornerstone Project that I manage here in Vermont. I booked my flight.

Lust for Gold

With two weeks of unpaid leave, I landed in the capital city, Ulaanbataar, on May 9th to begin my task of helping an emergent river coalition form strategies to improve mining practices and reduce harmful impacts such as river diversion. Since the early 1990s, numerous international mining interests have set up shop under the nation’s relatively lax regulatory environment to harvest Mongolia’s vast mineral and metal wealth. With gold nearing $700 oz., there is no shortage of demand.

The result has been an increase in the number of mining operations that generate not only profits but increases in harmful human health impacts and damaged watersheds. Rapid rises in the value of copper and gold have sparked a major debate over economic returns for the country and its tax structure. To complicate matters, the waste from commercial gold mining operations not only pollutes rivers but also creates job and income opportunities for thousands of individual miners. These small scale operators—called “ninjas” because they carry their mining pans like turtle shells on their backs—face serious health risks due to exposure to harmful chemicals used to extract gold.

A True Test of Sustainable Development: Good Gold

Should Mongolia, like other developing nations, have to compromise the health of its people and ecological integrity of its landscapes in the name of progress? Or are there creative options where mining—clearly not a low impact activity—can help meet current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs? This is the true test of “sustainable development.” As the global economy demands ever more materials to produce the goods purchased around the world, it is places like Mongolia and other resource rich developing nations that find themselves on the front lines of the debate about how to meet human needs on a finite planet.

All of the concern about mining inside the country takes place against a backdrop of growing international awareness about the negative impacts of gold mining. A recent series of articles in the New York Times about the true price of gold is stirring up debate among gold buyers fearing the tag of “dirty gold.” The challenge is finding gold that meets a set of social and environmental criteria. Models for purchase of sustainable wood and clean diamonds now exist, but markets for “good” gold are hard to come by. In fact, some would argue that the very quest for gold is antithetical to sustainable development: mining by its nature is unsustainable.

Witnessing the excesses from mining practices in my home state of Pennsylvania left me skeptical. But extraction of metals and minerals to feed our global appetite continues, and consumers appear to have no shortage of desire for gold. Since minerals and metals form one of the largest assets that Mongolia has for economic development, it is clear that mining will play a major role in the country. With the knowledge of present harmful practices in mind, consumers have the opportunity to ask, “How was that gold mined?” The question is, will they?

Along with helping a group of citizens to have a voice in the national debate over mining practices, I also found myself framing options for mining. The picture that emerged is one where buyers who don’t want dirty gold connect to suppliers through a market where companies in Mongolia, and perhaps elsewhere, are held accountable against verifiable environmental, worker, community and economic standards. The concept is starting to work with forest products, it’s starting to work with seafood, it’s starting to work with diamonds, it’s even starting to work with investments. Why not gold? It is one of the dirtiest industries. Despite it’s reputation as an object of desire or commodity to be hoarded, perhaps the quest for clean gold could propel a new kind of “gold” standard that could apply to how other materials are extracted as well. With its history, building a conscious international market for gold seems like a bit of a stretch. But in the emerging global market place and the age of the Internet, it is not too farfetched to consider.

During my two weeks in Mongolia, we succeeded in bringing isolated river protection movements from around the nation together as one voice. The leaders represented a well of hope for the country. I had the pleasure to work with some of the most inspiring individuals I have met in a long time. The ideas that came to life during this visit nurtured my willingness to forge ahead in my own seemingly quixotic quests to reshape economies. For me, the trip offered a glimpse through a window into a global economy in which citizens, governments and businesses have a chance to reshape how we make our way in the world. As the poet Antonio Machado once penned, we make the path by walking. I am glad to have walked a new path with fellow Mongolian travelers looking toward a better future.

• Fourth Annual Vermont Employee Ownership Center Conference

The theme of this year’s conference, “Growing Employee Ownership in Vermont,” reflects the belief that employee ownership is both spreading and putting down deeper roots in our state. With the examples of such prominent employee-owned companies as King Arthur Flour, Gardener’s Supply Company, Vermont Systems, Carris Reels, DuBois & King, The Trust Company of Vermont and Chroma Technology, business owners and employees are coming to realize that employee ownership is good for business and good for Vermont.

Where: Wyndham Hotel, Burlington

When: June 6, 2006. 8:30 am to 5:00 pm

Click here for more information.

• Vermont Biofuels Association's Second Annual Biodiesel Workshop: "Meeting the Energy Challenge."

Learn from interactive workshops in three concurrent tracks: one for "Fuel Users" one for "Fuel Dealers and Distributors" and, new in 2006, a learning track especially for "Farmers and Biodiesel Producers." This will be a great opportunity to meet exhibitors and biodiesel suppliers from around the state and network with others interested in this emerging sector of Vermont's energy economy.

Where: Vermont Law School, South Royalton

When: June 8, 2006. 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Click here for more information.

• 3rd Annual Vermont Fine Furniture & Wood Products Design Competition Exhibit

Come see the best designs in wood from Vermont’s premier woodworkers, artisans who preserve a heritage of painstaking craftsmanship and attention to detail that dates back more than two centuries.

Where: Vermont Law School, South Royalton

When: June 17, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; June 18, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Click here to vote for BEST IN SHOW or in person at the exhibit.

• VCRD Sponsors Energy Summit

The Vermont Council on Rural Development will convene a one-day Summit, “Local Power: Energy and Economic Development in Rural Vermont”. The event will provide opportunities to explore existing and potential initiatives that will advance fuel development and power generation in Vermont.

Where: Lyndon State College, Lyndonville

When: August 22, 2006. 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The Summit will feature breakout discussion groups in specific areas of interest, presentations by leaders of diverse energy fields, and invited speakers Senator Patrick Leahy and Governor Douglas. To receive an invitation, or more information about VCRD’s Energy Summit, please contact Bonnie Smoren at vcrd2@sover.net or (802) 828-6022.

• The 1st Vermont Greening Up Your Bottom Line – A Conference for & by VT Businesses

This conference is designed to show what Vermont businesses are doing to green up their operations and their bottom lines.

Where: Sheraton Hotel, Burlington

When: September 19, 2006. 9:00 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Click here for more information.

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