Paul Altaffer05.01.05
The LOHAS (lifestyles of health and sustainability) industries and the LOHAS consumer have been, for the most part, ahead of the general population in understanding issues related to sustainability. Sustainability means many things to many people, but one common theme is underlying to all definitions: the world has limited resources that are being spent rapidly; sustainability deals with the responsible and future-minded stewardship of the limited resources available.
There are few topics today that are more important than sustainability. The recently published United Nations report, "Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA)," states that the planet has undergone a tremendous amount of change over the past 50 years, more so than at any equal amount of time in history. And, as much of this change is not sustainable, there is tremendous pressure being placed on precious resources.
The urgency of the topic has led people to explore several possibilities One popular line of thought is known as the Triple Bottom Line. The concept of Triple Bottom Line is that everything is interconnected-society depends on the economy, and the economy depends on the global ecosystem, whose health represents the ultimate bottom line. The challenge is for companies, governments and peoples to redefine success as it relates to sustainability. This movement is taking shape in many ways and in many places, including South America.
As home to the largest remaining rainforest and much of the biodiversity of the world, many people feel South America has a crucial role to play in the sustainable development of these precious resources. And it does. The frame of the conversation has shifted in recent years, from blame exchange to dialog and cooperation.
South Americans take great pride in being guardians of such incredible biological wealth and are among the key holders of sustainable development. There is a tremendous amount of debate on the importance of sustainability and the best routes to achieving such without adversely affecting individual countries' capacity to develop and prosper.
There are many questions facing South Americans as they relate to natural products development.
Is natural products development sustainable to begin with, or is the demand being generated for natural products of all types adding more pressure on sensitive resources?
There is no doubt that the demand for natural products, such as medicinal and nutritive plants, natural colors, food, energy and other natural resources, places a burden on limited resources. However, the debate is whether the pressure can be mitigated through proper management of the resources and investment into renewable techniques and technologies. The current belief is that higher value products and services trade will promote sustainable extraction and trade practices compared to trade of resources for the lowest value. Should a value structure be created that promotes sustainability, the indication is that sustainable practices will prevail.
Or otherwise, which is more sustainable? This is another important question. Wild harvesting is often times not compatible with sustainable programs since pickers often over-pick the product and can cause other environmental damage and profiteering. However, for many indigenous and native peoples, wild harvesting is a way of life, protected and preserved by generations of knowledge and understanding. Cultivation offers many benefits and solutions, but often, plants either have difficulties adjusting to plantation or they are cultivated in means that are hardly sustainable. Cultivation is a goal for many, especially if it can promote development in sensitive areas. Some companies, in conjunction with local officials and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), are building social and economic programs to develop healthy and sustainable wild harvesting techniques and to promote permanent agriculture and cultivation as an evolution.
Sustainability has a different meaning for native and indigenous people compared toother people. People who live off the land, either from agriculture or extractivism, tend to have different views of sustainability than those who live in more urban areas. South America is working on developing laws and institutions that will help to preserve the rights of indigenous and native peoples and their way of life, even when it is at odds with other industrial and business interests. The problem with this is that many of the laws are too difficult to enforce and many conflicts have arisen over land and resource rights.
Organics are often synonymous with sustainable. By its nature, organic cultivation promotes sustainability in many different ways. As a result, there is increasing movement in South America toward the development of organic products as part of a total plan of sustainability.
The sustainable consumer is just about everyone, from the poorest migrant worker to the most affluent citizen. Children in school learn about conservation and the importance of protecting the environment. At every level of society and throughout South America a new generation is being raised with a much greater sense for the importance of sustainability.
Governments create and pass laws that are intended to promote conservation. But other important roles for government are in education and in partnering. This is especially true for partnering programs that involved corporate citizens (local companies and multinational companies alike) and multilateral organizations (governmental and non-governmental).
Many companies have become involved in promoting sustainability, because at the end of the day, sustainability is beginning to make better business sense. Companies practice conservation because the cost of energy and resources has become too high. Others are involved in educational and charitable programs because it improves their social image. Others are trading in environmental credits, provided by foreign organizations.
Centroflora Group, based 250 kilometers west of the city of So Paulo, in Botucatu (meaning "clean air" in the indigenous Tupi-Guarani language), represents a case study of a company committed to sustainable practices. Located on 100 acres of woods, much of which has been conserved as typical local forests and conserved areas, the company has developed more than 10 social and environmental programs bundled into a separately managed non-profit foundation called Floravida. These include educational and environmental programs, nutritional programs, health clinics, an organic garden, recycling programs, a forest recovery program, a rescued animal refuge and myriad other programs aimed at its employees, at-risk and poor youth and the communities in which the company operates.
In addition to the many social, educational and environmental programs CentroFlora offers to the community, it also offers some interesting programs for its customers, including one known as Partnerships for a Better World. This program engages expertise CentroFlora has acquired in developing organic farming practices to promote organic farming. Plants are selected based on their economic potential and then grown on the company's experimental organic farm. Once there is a client partnership for a product/plant, the cultivation know-how is passed on to an organic farmer, who is contracted to grow the plant for the company and client. The full cycle of control permits the company and its clients to achieve true vertical integration in product development. This program is becoming a huge success commercially and is further proof that sustainability makes good economic sense.
The results of these programs have been spectacular for the company, which has been voted by its employees as one of the top 100 companies to work for in Brazil. Employee moral is high, turnover is low. Profits and sales are increasing and future prospects are excellent. The image the company maintains with its employees, the community, government and especially with its customers is a tremendous motivating factor for Centroflora.
The Triple Bottom Line approach in South America is one of the most practical approaches to business. The Centroflora Group is one example of a natural products company leading the way toward sustainability, but there are many more throughout the Americas. Companies have many opportunities to create more success stories by leveraging the interdependencies of society, economy and environment.NW
There are few topics today that are more important than sustainability. The recently published United Nations report, "Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA)," states that the planet has undergone a tremendous amount of change over the past 50 years, more so than at any equal amount of time in history. And, as much of this change is not sustainable, there is tremendous pressure being placed on precious resources.
The urgency of the topic has led people to explore several possibilities One popular line of thought is known as the Triple Bottom Line. The concept of Triple Bottom Line is that everything is interconnected-society depends on the economy, and the economy depends on the global ecosystem, whose health represents the ultimate bottom line. The challenge is for companies, governments and peoples to redefine success as it relates to sustainability. This movement is taking shape in many ways and in many places, including South America.
As home to the largest remaining rainforest and much of the biodiversity of the world, many people feel South America has a crucial role to play in the sustainable development of these precious resources. And it does. The frame of the conversation has shifted in recent years, from blame exchange to dialog and cooperation.
South Americans take great pride in being guardians of such incredible biological wealth and are among the key holders of sustainable development. There is a tremendous amount of debate on the importance of sustainability and the best routes to achieving such without adversely affecting individual countries' capacity to develop and prosper.
There are many questions facing South Americans as they relate to natural products development.
Is natural products development sustainable to begin with, or is the demand being generated for natural products of all types adding more pressure on sensitive resources?
There is no doubt that the demand for natural products, such as medicinal and nutritive plants, natural colors, food, energy and other natural resources, places a burden on limited resources. However, the debate is whether the pressure can be mitigated through proper management of the resources and investment into renewable techniques and technologies. The current belief is that higher value products and services trade will promote sustainable extraction and trade practices compared to trade of resources for the lowest value. Should a value structure be created that promotes sustainability, the indication is that sustainable practices will prevail.
Wild harvesting vs. cultivation: Is Either Method Sustainable?
Or otherwise, which is more sustainable? This is another important question. Wild harvesting is often times not compatible with sustainable programs since pickers often over-pick the product and can cause other environmental damage and profiteering. However, for many indigenous and native peoples, wild harvesting is a way of life, protected and preserved by generations of knowledge and understanding. Cultivation offers many benefits and solutions, but often, plants either have difficulties adjusting to plantation or they are cultivated in means that are hardly sustainable. Cultivation is a goal for many, especially if it can promote development in sensitive areas. Some companies, in conjunction with local officials and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), are building social and economic programs to develop healthy and sustainable wild harvesting techniques and to promote permanent agriculture and cultivation as an evolution.
What is sustainability for indigenous and native peoples compared to other parts of the populace?
Sustainability has a different meaning for native and indigenous people compared toother people. People who live off the land, either from agriculture or extractivism, tend to have different views of sustainability than those who live in more urban areas. South America is working on developing laws and institutions that will help to preserve the rights of indigenous and native peoples and their way of life, even when it is at odds with other industrial and business interests. The problem with this is that many of the laws are too difficult to enforce and many conflicts have arisen over land and resource rights.
Can organic farming be a path for sustainability?
Organics are often synonymous with sustainable. By its nature, organic cultivation promotes sustainability in many different ways. As a result, there is increasing movement in South America toward the development of organic products as part of a total plan of sustainability.
Who is the sustainable consumer in South America and what is their motivating factor?
The sustainable consumer is just about everyone, from the poorest migrant worker to the most affluent citizen. Children in school learn about conservation and the importance of protecting the environment. At every level of society and throughout South America a new generation is being raised with a much greater sense for the importance of sustainability.
What is government's role in promoting or enforcing sustainable practices?
Governments create and pass laws that are intended to promote conservation. But other important roles for government are in education and in partnering. This is especially true for partnering programs that involved corporate citizens (local companies and multinational companies alike) and multilateral organizations (governmental and non-governmental).
What is the role of businesses in promoting sustainability?
Many companies have become involved in promoting sustainability, because at the end of the day, sustainability is beginning to make better business sense. Companies practice conservation because the cost of energy and resources has become too high. Others are involved in educational and charitable programs because it improves their social image. Others are trading in environmental credits, provided by foreign organizations.
One Company's Approach to Sustainability
Centroflora Group, based 250 kilometers west of the city of So Paulo, in Botucatu (meaning "clean air" in the indigenous Tupi-Guarani language), represents a case study of a company committed to sustainable practices. Located on 100 acres of woods, much of which has been conserved as typical local forests and conserved areas, the company has developed more than 10 social and environmental programs bundled into a separately managed non-profit foundation called Floravida. These include educational and environmental programs, nutritional programs, health clinics, an organic garden, recycling programs, a forest recovery program, a rescued animal refuge and myriad other programs aimed at its employees, at-risk and poor youth and the communities in which the company operates.
In addition to the many social, educational and environmental programs CentroFlora offers to the community, it also offers some interesting programs for its customers, including one known as Partnerships for a Better World. This program engages expertise CentroFlora has acquired in developing organic farming practices to promote organic farming. Plants are selected based on their economic potential and then grown on the company's experimental organic farm. Once there is a client partnership for a product/plant, the cultivation know-how is passed on to an organic farmer, who is contracted to grow the plant for the company and client. The full cycle of control permits the company and its clients to achieve true vertical integration in product development. This program is becoming a huge success commercially and is further proof that sustainability makes good economic sense.
The results of these programs have been spectacular for the company, which has been voted by its employees as one of the top 100 companies to work for in Brazil. Employee moral is high, turnover is low. Profits and sales are increasing and future prospects are excellent. The image the company maintains with its employees, the community, government and especially with its customers is a tremendous motivating factor for Centroflora.
The Triple Bottom Line approach in South America is one of the most practical approaches to business. The Centroflora Group is one example of a natural products company leading the way toward sustainability, but there are many more throughout the Americas. Companies have many opportunities to create more success stories by leveraging the interdependencies of society, economy and environment.NW