It's Only Eco-logical: Applying Environmental Intelligence to Corporate Social Responsibility

By the year 2050, according to some estimates, the demand for food and energy will jump 50 percent and the demand for fresh water will rise 40 percent.

In his 2010 book The Coming Famine: The Global Food Crisis and What We Can Do to Avoid It, Professor Julian Cribb wrote, "The world has ignored the ominous constellation of factors that now make feeding humanity sustainably our most pressing task -- even in times of economic and climatic crisis."

Considering the current state of the planet and the growing list of frightening mid-century predictions -- as well as the proliferation of environmental regulations around the world -- the private sector cannot afford to ignore its impact on the planet's ecosystems. It makes more sense than ever for corporate social responsibility policies to be devised using a high "environmental intelligence quotient." Soon, business models that do not consider this will be left on the cutting room floor.

NON-COMPLIANCE IS NOT AN OPTION

Whether or not a company engages in environmental impact assessments before breaking new ground, non-compliance with environmental regulations can lead to lawsuits and fines, not to mention public relations disasters that can arise from being bad stewards of the ecosystems in which they work.

Just consider Cargill's reputation as a rainforest killer, or Chevron's troubles in Ecuador, where a judge ordered the energy company to pay $9 billion in damages in one of the world's largest court-ordered environmental fines ever, or the call for ConocoPhllips to withdraw from the Peruvian Amazon to prevent the spread of Western diseases against which uncontacted tribes have no immunity.

Online tools like EIATRACK, which is meant for "quickly and cost-effectively navigating the maze of environmental regulations and legislation in every country," offer ways for companies to improve not only their "environmental credentials" but their bottom line. The smart money is on businesses that increase their environmental intelligence as part of developing their corporate social responsibility philosophy. But what exactly is environmental intelligence?

IF YOU MAKE DECISIONS USING EI, YOU'RE BEING "ECO-LOGICAL"

The Forum on Earth Observations, organized by the Alliance for Earth Observations and the Institute for Global Environment Strategies (IGES), defines environmental intelligence as "the most accurate and timely information available about our planet that enables governments, communities, companies and individuals to make sound decisions -- decisions that save lives; protect and grow the economy; strengthen national security; and improve quality of life."

The group is calling upon government and business leaders to develop "a national strategy for environmental intelligence" because of "credible environmental data" that amounts to "the actionable information necessary to respond and adapt to environmental change." (They are hosting a conference on the topic in Washington, D.C. in June.)

They add that environmental intelligence is "a result of a critical supply chain that begins with science and observations -- ground sensors, ocean buoys, stream gauges, satellites, etc. -- and ends with actionable information that allows decision-makers to better respond and adapt to a changing planet."

GREEN SUPPLY CHAINS = BETTER INVESTOR RETURNS

The non-profit World Resources Institute (WRI) has established a program called ENVEST, which "ensures that the financial implications of environmental opportunities and risk are properly understood by financial institutions, investors and issuers and are appropriately reflected in the world's capital markets."

According to WRI, "Financial markets that are attuned to environmental issues will create permanent and powerful incentives for companies to improve their environmental performance, while also ensuring better returns for investors."

The institute promotes the adoption of sustainable supply chains as good business, citing "efficiency gains, waste reduction, risk avoidance, staying ahead of the curve with respect to regulations, new product opportunities that capitalize on consumer demand for eco-friendly products, and cost control" as "drivers of business value."

HIGH EIQ = SMOOTHER SAILING FOR SPACESHIP EARTH

We don't live in individual bubbles. As Adlai Stevenson said in a 1965 speech to the United Nations, "We travel together, passengers on a little spaceship, dependent on its vulnerable reserves of air and soil."

Our survival -- and indeed the survival of all living things -- depends first and foremost on the survival of our (astronomically speaking) tiny vehicle. And when it comes to corporate social responsibility, Spaceship Earth is necessarily the most important stakeholder, especially considering that we are the only species to have affected the entire global environment, and certainly the only one to have created enough weaponry to destroy the planet as we know it several times over.

Homo sapiens is Latin for "wise man." As we (hopefully) evolve, environmental intelligence will play an increasing role in making the kinds of wise decisions required to ensure that Spaceship Earth is running smoothly for generations to come.

image: Reynard Loki