Sustainability is becoming more common in everyday business practice. Moving up the ranks in priority over the last decade. Driven by a more ethically conscious global population, businesses have been forced to rethink the way they operate. Above all, increasing the demand for sustainable development and transparency throughout.
But, exactly what is a sustainable business?
A sustainable business is defined as doing business without negatively impacting the environment, community, or society as a whole.
How is a sustainable business measured?
Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG), are a popular set of standards/metrics used to analyse company’s operations. Socially conscious investors use it to screen potential investments. Measuring ethical impact and sustainability practices. For instance, Investors analyse factors such as a carbon footprint, water usage, community development efforts, and board diversity.
Climate Change – Negative effects of Business Industries:
Human consumption has been the primary cause of climate change. We live in a throwaway society that has a high demand for material goods. Human consumption comes in many forms, from eating food to warming our houses. Below discusses the worst industries producing these products. All of which have caused detrimental effects on our environment.
Power Generation:
First and foremost, are you sitting comfortably? Is it warm? The energy used to generate electricity and heat for your home is derived from fossil fuels. A finite resource. Meaning it can only be used once. Now consider the amount of power required to run cities around the world. According to UN-Habitat, ‘cities consume 78% of the world’s energy and produce more than 60% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Manufacturing:
Secondly, another industry that’s heavily reliant on fossil fuels. Industrial factories are leading pollutants, they emit toxic gases every day. Pushing out carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere. As a consequence, the gases absorb radiation. Which in turn, causes our planet’s temperature to rise. A global warming vehicle with a butterfly effect. Temperatures rise, ice caps melt, and sea levels rise. Which all increase the chances of natural disasters. As a result, animal species are at risk of becoming extinct.
Furthermore, polluted air causes worrying health consequences. Particularly worse in developing countries. It can cause heart damage, pancreas damage, lung damage, and even brain damage. Air pollution is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to factory pollution. Producing devastating water and soil pollution too. Toxic waste is generated by factories and discarded irresponsibly into rivers, oceans, and landfill sites. Done plain and simply as a means of cheaper disposal. This results in endangering marine life and reducing soil fertility and causing food contamination.