Sustainability and Global Warming
Assignment on Foundations of Management
Student Name: Abcdefgh
Student ID:123456
5/15/2013
Assignment topic:
What is sustainability and why does it matter? Why are some benefits for organizations in adopting sustainable practices? Can you also suggest some negative impacts, if any, of adopting sustainable business systems?
Introduction
It was not before the year 2007, the concept of ‘Sustainability’ was established in the mind of people and businesses in the world. In the year 2009, the UN Climate Change conference held in Copenhagen firmly developed the issue of potential threats of global warming in both the global political and business arenas. Since the industrial revolution in the late 18th century, new factories were built which means more deforestation, more use of electricity, more burning of fossil fuel and resulting in emission of more Carbondioxide into the environment. At the same time with the increasing number of population in the world, people are getting more dependent on motor vehicles and machineries which also releases toxic and harmful gases responsible for global warming.
From a business perspective or an individual, the word ‘Sustainability’ could have different meaning:
According to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development(2005), “It is concerned with meeting the needs of people today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. From a business perspective, sustainability has been defined as company’s ability to achieve its business goals and increase long term shareholder value by integrating economic, environmental and social opportunities into business strategies.
Many renown business organizations around the world such as; Paris based TOTAL, Sweden based VOLVO, Australia based Quantas and many more are concerned about global warming. Contributing towards sustainability and implementing them has now become one of their business strategies. These business firms are
Student Name: Abcdefgh
Student ID:123456
5/15/2013
Assignment topic:
What is sustainability and why does it matter? Why are some benefits for organizations in adopting sustainable practices? Can you also suggest some negative impacts, if any, of adopting sustainable business systems?
Introduction
It was not before the year 2007, the concept of ‘Sustainability’ was established in the mind of people and businesses in the world. In the year 2009, the UN Climate Change conference held in Copenhagen firmly developed the issue of potential threats of global warming in both the global political and business arenas. Since the industrial revolution in the late 18th century, new factories were built which means more deforestation, more use of electricity, more burning of fossil fuel and resulting in emission of more Carbondioxide into the environment. At the same time with the increasing number of population in the world, people are getting more dependent on motor vehicles and machineries which also releases toxic and harmful gases responsible for global warming.
From a business perspective or an individual, the word ‘Sustainability’ could have different meaning:
According to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development(2005), “It is concerned with meeting the needs of people today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. From a business perspective, sustainability has been defined as company’s ability to achieve its business goals and increase long term shareholder value by integrating economic, environmental and social opportunities into business strategies.
Many renown business organizations around the world such as; Paris based TOTAL, Sweden based VOLVO, Australia based Quantas and many more are concerned about global warming. Contributing towards sustainability and implementing them has now become one of their business strategies. These business firms are
References: 1. Quantas sustainability report 2012 2. Dr David Suzuki and Holly Dressel, Good News for a Change: Hope for a Troubled Planet(Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 2001) 3. T, Nicholson, ‘ Companies embracing sustainability often do it to reap financial rewards’, Engineering News- Record, Vol.258, No.6, 12 February 2007, p.24. 4. Symposion on Sustainability- Profiles in Leadership, New York, October 2001. 5. Mather J., ‘Universities find targets tough’, Australian Financial Review, 3 May 2010, p.29