The Sustainability Handbook: The Complete Management Guide to Achieving Social, Economic and Environmental Responsibility » (New Edition)

William R. Blackburn is a lawyer and leading sustainability consultant with three decades of experience. Among his positions, Blackburn is a member of the management team of the Stakeholder Council, Global Reporting Initiative and expert delegate of the Working Group on the Guidance on Social Responsibility of ISO 26000. He was former vice-president and chief counsel of Corporate Environment, Health and Safety at Baxter International Inc.

The Sustainability Handbook covers all the challenges, complexities and benefits of sustainability for businesses, governments and organizations. It provides a blueprint for how organizations can reach or exceed economic, social and environmental excellence. It offers a host of practical approaches and tools including a model sustainability policy for organizations, summaries, tips on selecting sustainability codes, an extensive collection of metrics and a wealth of supplementary reference material. Truly the only reference needed for every organization.

Acknowledgments     ix
About the Author     xi
Introduction and Executive Summary     xiii
Addressing the Confusion About Sustainability: The Typical Executive View     1
Determining Scope: An Operational Definition of Sustainability     17
The Value of Sustainability: Why Bother?     33
Building an SOS: The Key Elements and Basic Structure     123
SOS Standards: The Roadmap for Change     163
Strategic Planning for Focused Sustainability Improvement     189
Selecting Goals and Indicators     225
Bringing Sustainability to the Front Line: Deployment, Integration, and Alignment     257
Data Systems, Auditing, and Other Monitoring and Accountability Mechanisms     281
Transparent Sustainability Reporting     309
Stakeholder Engagement; The Role of NGOs     373
Approach to Sustainability for Small and Struggling Companies     419
Approach to Sustainability for NGOs     431
Approach to Sustainability for Governmental Organizations     441
Approach to Sustainability for Colleges and Universities     477
Keeping the Initiative Alive: Making the SOS Sustainable     543
Appendices
Summary of Sustainability Trends     551
Sustainability-RelatedCodes of Organizational Behavior     647
Sustainability-Related Management System Standards     687
Planning Forms for Assessing and Prioritizing Sustainability Risks and Opportunities     703
Method for Calculating Savings and Cost Avoidance for Baxter's Environmental Financial Statement     709
Examples of Sustainability Issues for Various Functional Groups     713
Examples of Sustainability Metrics     725
Sustainability Resources for Universities     751
Acronyms     779
Index     789