Sustainability transformation is growing in it’s importance for business decision makers as the climate change crisis and its impacts is forcing change throughout all global and local economies.
One example of government response to the crisis is the recent announcement by the Australian Government having signed a global pledge to reduce methane emissions by 30% by 2030. The non-binding pledge commits the Australian Government to “taking a of actions such as standards for reducing emissions in the energy and waste sectors and seeking abatement opportunities in the agricultural sector through technology and partnerships with farmers.”
The announcement includes up to $3 billion of investment to support low emissions technology and implementation.
This is just the latest example of government actions aimed at reducing the impact of business on society and the future of people and planet. The commitment aims to send a signal to those businesses whose operations emit methane into the atmosphere that change is coming. In response, business in the livestock industry must accelerate in their journey of sustainability transformation by reducing methane emissions of their herds.
Cows and climate change
Considering livestock farming as one example of a business that emits significant methane into the atmosphere. In short, cow’s burb methane. Ruminant livestock creates 10 per cent of Australia’s total greenhouse emissions. By changing the farming and feeding methods, a farmer can meaningfully reduce the proportion of method that a cow produces.
Livestock farmers have an important role to play in their own sustainability transformation towards lowering methane emission across the industry. Between now and 2030, they will be required to adjust their farming methods “to deliver low emission feed supplements to grazing animals and determine their technical viability and commercial potential”.
This means that for any given farm livestock farming business, there must be a transition in their operations, from where they are today, to farming practices in 2030 in which livestock produce a significantly lower volume of lifetime methane emissions. This transition, and the strategies, technology and activities that enable it is a ‘journey of change’.
A matter of perspective
Like it or not, the need to reduce methane emissions is our reality. How an individual business reacts to this change is a matter of perspective.
One response is to deny and reject. A farmer might ask ‘how do you stop cows from farting and burping?’ The change is seen as a threat. The response is political in nature. Much time and effort is spent, not an addressing or solving the core existential issue of methane emissions, but rather protecting the status quo. Lots of time, effort and is spend, but no meaningful change is achieved, and the climate change crisis continues to get worse.
Alternatively, a farmer might ask, ‘how do use this change as an opportunity to improve my business operations and contribute towards a better future for my grandchildren’.
Those businesses that choose to make sustainability transformation a core pillar of their strategy will be the ones who will realise their competitive advantage and capture the value that the inevitable transformation is going to create.
In their 2021 blog, the management consulting firm BCG have said,
“Companies must devise a strategy that takes as its starting point the principle that sustainability is a source of durable competitive advantage. The strategy must clearly connect to the company’s purpose, focus on long-term value creation, and be driven from the top, including the CEO and board.”
In the end, whether an organisation bolsters or undermines our long-term livability on Earth is a choice of shareholders and executive decision makers. As with any decision, the choice over what is right or wrong, is a matter of perspective. It all depends on what you consider important.
Sustainability transformation is a journey of change
Consider this formal definition:
Sustainability transformation is the journey of change in which an organisation will understand, remove, and mitigate the lifetime social and environmental impacts from its purpose, operations, and value chains.
The transition to the zero emissions future is inevitable. It will happen, and there are only two paths on the journey. Either we do nothing, and our global economy and societies collapse under extreme fire, drought and flood, caused by extreme weather events empowered by the climate change crisis. Not fun for anyone.
Alternatively, we choose to change our philosophy in business, and proactively work to change our strategy and operations to:
- Eliminate atmospheric pollution from our production and manufacturing systems, and
- Implement new technologies that help remove the carbon emissions emitted over the past 200 years of industrialization.
Sustainability transformation means making the strategic choice to act in service of a better world for the benefit of future generations and the natural systems that give us life. It means that those who are privileged in role of leadership and ownership in business and government, make a choice to serve the greater good of society and nature. Not, either or but both. It means setting the purpose and strategy of the business to ensure that the business operations do no harm, and then begin the process of transition towards that outcome. This is the essence of sustainability transformation.
Looking beyond the profit margin
If the decision makers of an organisation believe that short term profitability is the primary measure of success, then that will be the philosophy and framework under which all decision will be made. The externality costs to community, environment or future generation will never be considered.
We become what we think about.
Sustainability transformation therefore requires business decision makers to look beyond the short-term profit margins, towards long-term impacts for customers, employees, communities, and the natural ecosystems that are the foundation of all human life.
This begins with placing sustainability outcomes as a core pillar of their purpose and corporate strategy.
The successful navigation of the journey of sustainability transformation means considering the lifetime impacts of the business across the triple bottom line or people, planet, and profit. It’s only when we open our mindset to new possiblit8ies and ways of doing business and creating value can we begin to identify and capture the opportunities of the transition to towards zero emissions world that we must create if we are to adapt and address the driving factors of the climate change crisis.
Begin With A Sustainability Transformation Roadmap
The journey of sustainability transformation begins with a choice to make outcomes of people and planet a core strategic priority of the business. For example, a livestock farmer, chooses to be part of the methane solution and decides to start putting resources in making that happen.
The second step is then to develop at least one key performance indicator that can be used to monitor progr4ess towards that goal. The third step is then to implement the data-driven technology that is necessary to measure and monitor the KPI.
With the basic framework in place, strategic initiatives can be added, cut and managed in the roadmap over time. Not as a special initiative but simple as the way we do business.
Sustainability transformation is a journey of change. Those who consciously make it part of the core purpose and strategy, are the one who will thrive. Those who don’t will forever be battling the winds of social and environmental change.
