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Corporate sustainability is a business approach that creates long-term shareholder value by embracing opportunities and managing risks deriving from economic, environmental and social developments.

Corporate sustainability is an evolution on more traditional phrases describing ethical corporate practice. Phrases such as corporate social responsibility (CSR) or corporate citizenship continue to be used but are increasingly superseded by the broader term, corporate sustainability. Unlike the other phrases that focus on “added-on” policies, corporate sustainability describes business practices built around social and environmental considerations.

The phrase is derived from two keys sources. The Brundtland Commission’s Report – Our Common Future which described sustainable development as, “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. This desire to grow without damaging future generations’ prospects is becoming more and more central to business philosophies.

Within more academic management circles Elkington (1999) developed the concept of the Triple Bottom Line which proposed that business goals were inseparable from the societies and environments within which they operate. Whilst short-term economic gain could be chased, a failure to account for social and environmental impacts would make those business practices unsustainable.

It is the inclusivity of the term that makes it so attractive to business looking to fundamentally change the way they deal with social and environmental issues.

More frequently, companies focused on sustainability are appointing a Chief Sustainability Officer leading a department with a mandate to proactively develop and implement a corporate sustainability strategy.

[edit] General References

• [1]"Measuring corporate sustainability", by G Atkinson, Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 2000.

• [2] "Beyond the business case for corporate sustainability", by T Dyllick, K Hockerts, in Business Strategy and the Environment, 2002.

• [3]"Concepts and definitions of CSR and corporate sustainability", M Van Marrewijk - Journal of Business Ethics, 2003.

• [4]"Organizational change for corporate sustainability", by DC Dunphy, A Griffiths, S Benn, London: Routledge Publishing, 2003.

[edit] External links

• International Society of Sustainability Professionals - Non-profit association supporting sustainability professionals
• SustainAbility - UK based sustainability think tank
• Phronesis Consulting - A consultancy that assists firms with the design, implementation and reporting of sustainability initiatives.
• Environmental Performance Group - A US based consulting firm that helps organizations develop environmentally and socially responsible business practices.
• Sustainable Value - Approach that allows to measure and manage corporate sustainability.
• open-sustainability - Developing an open sustainability standard for organizations based on information management principles.
• EHS Data - Example of a structured approach to managing corporate sustainability data