President Obama recently signed executive order 13514 requiring government agencies to install a Sustainability Officer and to prepare a Green program for every agency. The challenge is to have the knowledge and skill to fill that role properly.
Admittedly, the concepts of a Green workplace or a Sustainable operation are easily misunderstood. These are complex subjects that cannot be resolved with a singular answer like CO2 reductions. The challenges is to find a standard of performance that covers all critical areas in a fair manner.
What we see today in EO13514 is going to eventually flow through to every business in America. The issues are too large to ignore, and the underlying demand is that we must all participate in the program or face consequences that are both governmental and environmental that we all hope to avoid.
BUILDING OWNERSHIP is not crucial. Most businesses do not own their own building, so a Green certified building may not be practical. Think in terms of Green Practices meaning how to change the daily operation rather than a costly remodeling project. Going Green is about people, not just buildings.
THE SCOPE is the next critical items. Do not get focused on one or two elements. Sustainable and Green efforts are meant to be holistic, not a few good ideas. Executive order 131514 demonstrates a broad scope rather than a few narrow ideas.
THE PLAN need to have national credentials rather than a local twist. Every Green program needs to be recognized beyond the walls of their operation. Every Green program needs to have a clear pattern of achievement and a national standard of recognition
TRAINING is the first fundamental. Too often we have given the task to the willing but ill-equipped to push out a Green program that is more good intention than fully developed. Every Sustainability Officer should take a training course that offers a clear path to operational certification.
CERTIFICATION shows that an independent, third party has reviewed and approved of the Green accomplishments of your business. In an age of rampant greenwashing, only audited certification will set you apart from the Green pretender that present boast of their Green values.
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