Define "Sustainability." Please.

The Greenwash Brigade

I heard my voice on Marketplace this morning. Odd. I heard Heidi, too, for the first time ever. Nice to put a voice to a name, a face, and a personality. I also learned that Heidi and I have differing opinions about the desirability of crafting a definition of "sustainability."

Sustainability is a simple concept. In 1987, the UN Brundtland Commission defined sustainable development as "meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." (Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development.)

Sounds simple enough.

But what does that include? This evening I explored a (currently) well-written Wikipedia article on sustainability. While the discussion is interesting if you want to read for 20 minutes, I came away with principles and no specifics on how to tell if something is "sustainable" or not.

Jim and I recently discussed LEED -- we agreed that LEED has its faults, and that it doesn't accommodate what's different about each project. It's a definition with faults. But, Jim highlighted that having "an agreed upon, understandable way to ask for a green building" has been transformative. Now, it's possible. Thanks to a definition of green building. (I've had an identical experience in promoting sustainable building as an affordable housing priority. Once affordable housing-appropriate Green Communities Criteria were developed, getting them implemented has been relatively easy.)

Heidi said that sustainability means different things in different contexts - I agree. But, I also think many underlying principles can be agreed upon. Product toxicity isn't OK. Massive energy consumption doesn't pass. Child labor is out. There are more (see the Wikipedia article for ideas).

I like a definition that sets forth and defines specific principles. For example, what makes a product toxic, and what levels of toxicity are acceptable (if any)? That approach gives companies, manufacturers, individuals, governments, etc. a goal to aim for. Not every principle will apply to every entity, but if it's irrelevant, no worries!

With that definition, advertising a Sustainable Product will have a clear-cut meaning. A Sustainable Product will meet all of the relevant sustainability principles. Then, sustainability claims can be verified, and something can be done about greenwashing.

Until then, it's the Jannes and Heidis of the world who become the arbiters. Sure, we'll have a great time discussing what passes and what doesn't. But we're not available everywhere to everyone at all times. Nor do we have the information to evaluate everything, and we might even disagree on basic principles of sustainability.

Until then, sustainability is a term anyone can use anytime they think about using organic cotton in a product.

Until then, consumers will struggle to know just what they're getting, unless they are willing and able to spend lots of time digging before every purchase AND retailers/manufacturers are more forthcoming with their practices.

Would a definition be useful?

January 9, 2008 by Janne K. Flisrand
3 comments

tags: definitions LEED sustainability

Comments (3)

dave | Respond
January 10, 2008 1:17 PM PT

'Sustainability' is a big concept, a term that is complex - broad - far reaching. It should not be 'dummied down' to a product level. We shouldn't be trying to say a refrigerator or a TV or a hemp shopping bag is sustainable. There may be multiple green features in a product. Societies, communities, organizations, neighborhoods strive to become sustainable. 3E's - economic, ecologic, & equity (social) need to be better balanced. If preferred - use 3 P's - profit, place, & people.

Illana Burk | Respond
May 21, 2009 6:11 PM PT

It seems important to point out that we continue to define sustainability not to the people who are totally lost, but to the people who already understand it (at least intuitively). How would you explain sustainability to a child? Better yet, how do you explain sustainability to the millions of voting adults who think that recycling is all they have to do to save the planet?

Larry Furman | Respond
August 16, 2009 6:23 PM PT

Sustainability is harnessing a Process not consuming a Resource. In terms of energy generation, that's wind, solar, geothermal, and biodiesel; not nuclear and fossil fuels.

The sun shines, the winds blow, the earth below the surface of the earth is hot. The sun shines, regardless of the presence or absence of photovoltaic solar modules or photothermal systems. The winds blow regardless of the presence or absence of wind turbines. And we can use the heat below the surface of the earth to heat and cool buildings. Tapping these technologies gives us energy without greenhouse gases, radioactive wastes, mercury, arsenic, nitrides, suplhides. No fuel; no waste.

Johnny Appleseed would Approve.

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Meet the Greenwash Brigade

Our hand-picked environmental professionals, each part of the Public Insight Network, are on the hunt for "greenwash" as they examine eco-friendly claims by companies, governments and other groups. They ask tough questions about the mainstreaming of green, from the perspectives of people in the trenches who are focused on these issues 24/7.

Jim Nicolow is a nationally recognized expert on sustainable design and leads the sustainability initiative for Lord, Aeck & Sargent, overseeing the incorporation of sustainable design strategies and features into the firm’s design projects. He is a LEED® Accredited Professional with extensive knowledge of the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) LEED rating system.

Janne K. Flisrand has worked as an affordable housing and urban planning research consultant for five years, primarily supporting local non-profits. Her focus is on transit, transit-oriented design, affordable housing, and sustainability. Currently, she’s the program coordinator for Minnesota Green Communities, a program promoting affordable, healthy, sustainably built housing throughout Minnesota.

Dennis Markatos-Soriano recently completed a Master's in Public Affairs at Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School. He is now launching Sustainable Energy Transition (SET) to help individuals and institutions move from dependence on oil and gas to an efficient use of renewables. Previously, he co-founded SURGE (Students United for a Responsible Global Environment), which aims to bring young progressives together across issues of environmental and social justice throughout North Carolina and beyond. In the summer of 2006, he helped to start a small green company, Greenway Pedicabs, to provide a greenhouse gas-free transportation option for people in the Triangle of North Carolina.

Heidi Siegelbaum is a principal with Calyx Sustainable Tourism and works primarily on advancing sustainable tourism practices. She also specializes in science translation, cross-border indicators with Canada, cross-disciplinary planning and environmental technical assistance to businesses. Previously, she was in-house legal counsel for EPA for industrial chemicals and biotechnology and the senior performance measure analyst with the Washington State Department of Ecology. She is on the technical advisory committee of the Seattle Culinary Academy and a long standing member of the Chefs Collaborative.

NOTE: The opinions expressed by the Greenwash Brigade bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of American Public Media or its employees. American Public Media is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information supplied by the Greenwash Brigade bloggers.

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