Sustainability ,Ethics and organisation

Ethics in an organisation determines practices,attitudes,protocols and policies on a wide ranging field of involvements and interactions.It is almost like the interwoven fabric or building blocks of a company or organisations/staffs/employees beliefs and actions /interactions in the world.

It is these building blocks that need to always be reviewed and understood for what they are clearly.Ethics illustrate some of the ideals and ways of acting that are promoted consciously and unconsciously by many means in organisations.

Some interesting links focussing on Ethics formation;

"General ethics-related organisations

In our Ethics Links you will find a wide variety of websites which we feel may be of interest or use to our site vistors.

AAPAE: Australian Association for Professional and Applied Ethics. This site includes links to professional and applied ethics resources on the web.

Business in the Community: a unique movement of 700 member companies committed to continually improving their positive impact on society. It is an independent charity with 20 years experience of achieving our charitable purpose “to create a public benefit by working with companies to improve the positive impact of business in society' .

Carnegie Council on Ethics and International Affairs: the Council was established by Andrew Carnegie in 1914 to work toward the ideal of world peace. Today it is a forum for research and education in ethics and international policy.

Center for Business Ethics and Social Responsibility: the website of the Jerusalem based Center for Business Ethics and Social Responsibility, includes a comprehensive library of articles and The Jewish Ethicist, a weekly column that provides advice on everyday business and work dilemmas.

Corporate Responsibility Index (Australia): a strategic management tool to enhance the capacity of Australian business to develop, measure and communicate best practice in the field of corporate social responsibility. St James Ethics Centre is trustee of the Corporate Responsibility Index.

COVE (Centre on Values and Ethics): COVE is based in Carlton University, Canada. The organisation sets for itself three goals with respect to values and ethics: research, dissemination of research, and education and training.

Ethical Business Network: based in Melbourne, Australia. This site features details of a number of ethics-related events in Australia.

Ethical Trading Initiative: based in the UK, ETI is an alliance of companies, non-governmental organisations and trade unions. It exists to identify and promote good practice in the implementation of codes of labour practice.

Ethics Resource Center: The Ethics Resource Center (ERC) is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organisations whose vision is a world where individuals and organisations act with integrity.

ethicsweb.ca: a Canadian site providing links to other Canadian sites dealing with diverse areas such as stem cells, pharmaco ethics, feminist ethics, non-profit ethics, environmental ethics, legal ethics, medical ethics, nursing ethics, etc.

Forum for the Future: Forum for the Future's mission is to accelerate the building of a sustainable way of life, taking a positive, solutions-oriented approach.

Institute for Business Ethics: Based in the UK, IBE was established in 1986 to encourage high standards of corporate and business behaviour and the sharing of best practice. Its vision is to be the leader in knowledge and practice of corporate business ethics.

Institute for Global Ethics: Seeks to promote ethical behaviour in individuals, institutions and nations through research, public discourse and practical action.

International Business Ethics Institute: With offices in the US and Europe the institute seeks to foster global business practices which promote equitable economic development, resource sustainability and just forms of government.

International Center for Information Ethics: Information ethics deals with ethical questions particularly in the mass media, in computer science, in the biological sciences, in the library and information science field, in the business field and in the Internet. This is an academic website on information ethics. It is a platform for exchanging information about worldwide teaching and research in this field.

Jewish Association of Business Ethics: Encouraging high standards of integrity in business and professional conduct by promoting and teaching the Jewish ethical approach to business and contributing to the debate in wider society.

The Kenan Institute for Ethics: a university-wide initiative at Duke University that supports the study and teaching of ethics and promotes moral reflection and commitment in personal, professional, community, and civic life.

Practical Ethics Center: seeks to promote high quality teaching and research in all areas of applied and professional ethics and to promote sophisticated discussions concerning matters of ethics in public life among professionals, leaders and citizens.

St James Ethics Centre: a fully independent not-for-profit organisation which provides a non-judgemental forum for the promotion and exploration of ethics and ethical decision-making.

Sustainable Development: seeks to educate a global audience by providing information and knowledge on all aspects of sustainable development and environmental issues through cross-media platforms.

SustainAbility: Based in the UK, SustainAbility focuses on how the sustainable development (SD) agenda fits within business strategy in environmental, social and economic terms - the 'triple bottom line'.

United Nations Global Compact: an international initiative intended to bring companies together with UN agencies, labour, non-governmental organisations and other civil-society actors to foster action and partnerships in the pursuit of good corporate citizenship.

World Business Council for Sustainable Development: WBCSD is a coalition of 160 international companies united by a shared commitment to sustainable development via the three pillars of economic growth, ecological balance and social progress. "

The changing face of sustainability

This is an interesting collaborative site that focuses on evolving practices in a broad range of fields and seems to bring together a range of thought on a number of different topics.
Here is a sample on sustainability definitions that have been contributed.

definitions of sustainability - Sustainability as an emergent concept reveals deep concerns about fundamental values and our own continued existence. While each person's definition of sustainability is seen to be the most relevant, the question is a universal one and common to all. Whether our definition of sustainability is anthropocentric, biocentric, egocentric, ecocentric, econocentric, sociocentric, worldcentric or perhaps simply personally eccentric, they are all valid. Collected here is an emerging list of the thousands of definitions of sustainability reflecting different conceptualizations and applications of this emergent concept. Sustainability is … "Sustainability - n. the property of being sustainable" - Princeton University "Sustainable development seeks to meet the needs and aspirations of the present without compromising the ability to meet those of the future" - World Commission on Environment and Development (page 40: 1987) "Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It contains two key concepts: the concept of 'needs', in particular the essential needs of the world's poor, to which overriding priority should be given; and the idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organisation on the environment's ability to meet present and future needs." - World Commission on Environment and Development (page 43: 1987) "Ecological sustainable development is using, conserving and enhancing the community's resources so that ecological processes, on which life depends, are maintained, and the total quality of life, now and in the future, can be increased." National Strategy for Ecological Sustainable Development (Australia) "I have used the word perennial rather than sustainable because I want to imply more than just holding the line, more than just preventing further degradation. Living systems are not static, they are continually unfolding into new forms. This means the consequences of our effects on the biosphere don't die away, they will continue to resonate into the indefinite future. If we are to thrive in perpetuity, we and our economic systems must consciously rejoin the jostling, creative melée that is the adventure of life on Earth." Geoff Davies - Economia “…the right to development must be fulfilled so as to equitably meet developmental and environmental needs of present and future generations." - 1992 Rio Earth Summit “…meeting the needs of current and future generations through simultaneous environmental, social and economic improvement.” - State Sustainability Strategy (Western Australia) “The principle of ensuring that our actions today do not limit the range of, social, environmental and economic options open to future generations." - Maroochy Shire “…economic and social changes that promote human prosperity and quality of life without causing ecological or social damage.” - City of Seattle "Output Rule: Waste emissions should be within the assimilative capacity of the environment to absorb without unacceptable degradation of its future waste-absorptive capacity or other important services. Input Rules: a) Renewables: harvest rates of renewable resources should be within the regenerative capacity of the ecosystem. b) Non-renewables: depletion rates should be equal to the rate at which renewable substitutes can be developed and deployed." - Daly, in Photiades, 1998 "Sustainability is a means of configuring civilization and human activity so that society and its members are able to meet their needs and express their greatest potential in the present, while preserving biodiversity and natural ecosystems, and planning and acting for the ability to maintain these ideals indefinitely."- World IQ "Sustainability means using, developing and protecting resources at a rate and in a manner that enables people to meet their current needs and also provides that future generations can meet their own needs, ... simultaneously meeting environmental, economic and community needs." - State of Oregon "Sustainability means living within the resources of the planet without damaging the environment now or within the future. It also means having an economic system that provides a genuine quality of life, rather than depending on increased consumption." - West London Friends of the Earth "Sustainability is a relationship between dynamic cultural, economic, and biophysical systems associated across the landscape such that quality of life for humans continues -- both for individuals and cultures. It is a relationship in which the effects of human activities do not threaten the integrity of the self-organizing systems that provide the context for these activities. An ecosystem has integrity if it retains its complexity and capacity for self-organization (arguably its health) and sufficient diversity, within its structures and functions, to maintain the ecosystem's self-organizing complexity through time." - Eco-Watch (Iverson, Cornett) "Living on the earth's income rather than eroding its capital. It means keeping the consumption of renewable natural resources within the limits of their replenishment. It means handing down to successive generations not only man-made wealth, but also natural wealth, such as clean and adequate water supplies, good arable land, a wealth of wildlife, and ample forests"- The United Kingdom's Sustainable Development Strategy "But in its fullest sense, sustainability involves a balance of economic, environmental, and social concerns considered over the long term." - Columbia University Biosphere 2 "Each generation is entitled to the interest on the natural capital, but the principal should be handed on unimpaired." - Canada's Commission on Conservation (in 1915) "The ability of a community or society to develop a strategy of economic growth and development that continues to function indefinitely within the limits set by ecology and is beneficial to all stakeholders and the environment." - Non-Profit Good Practice Guide "Sustainable development- one of the slipperiest pieces of soap you are ever likely to find in the shower" - Peter Woodward , Shell Workshop "Sustainable development is the lightest footprint possible on the biosphere and, most importantly, a consciousness that can sustain it." - Ken Wilber (Author, philosopher, founder of The Integral Institute) "Development without destruction" - Maurice Strong, Secretary General of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit "The ability to sustain the things that are essential to a meaningful and happy existence, now and forever, for ourselves and for those for whom we care." - Stephen Forsyth (Author and Philosopher) "Sustainability is acting, with good grace, like we plan to stay." ... and many others courtesy of the Sustainability Reporting Program (Canada). and MIT If you have a sustainability definition for emrgnc, post it here.

Re cycling by design

'This article from treehugger cites some interesting approaches to recycling use via this website.Though in many ways the concept isnt a new one ,it informs and connects in a contemporary in more popular way some of the diverse areas that recycling can happen and exist in ,rather than just getthoising in the arts or purely industrial realms.A good compendium and broadbased ideas website.A good starting point.'

Superuse: Where Recycling Meets Design

by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 04. 5.07

Design & Architecture (designers)

I am so in love with Superuse, "where recycling meets design". It is yet another social networking site where you comment and vote on your choices, set up by "2012 Architects and Suite75" and so new that their about page has no content. This is a Digg or Hugg type site that I can get into: great ideas for recycling billboards into birdhouses, subway cars into architects offices, pallets into houses, and my favourite, DC3 wings into desks. (shown below the fold)

2012 Architects are a dutch group of architects who use a lot of recycled materials. From Archis we learn that the firm "views reuse as an integrated design strategy, and is busy creating a network organization for more widespread and efficient reuse in the construction industry. However, ecological considerations were not their prime motivation. More important, in their view, is the creative inspiration they draw from the potentialities of recovered objects. The 'history' that is inherent in used products and materials – and which is absent in unused new materials – offers potential added-value when incorporated in new products and compositions: the ready-made principle of art applied to architecture." Much, much more at ::Superuse via ::core77