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ASHUTOSH SHARMA
SECTION- B (PGDM GENERAL)

ROLL NO- PGFB 1915
BUSINESS ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
‘IMPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY IN BUSINESS’
Nowadays, the idea of sustainability has gained wider recognition by most corporates. And business
operations are conducted mostly under its guidance, i.e. satisfying our needs without diminishing the
chances of future generations. The term “sustainability poses new challenges for business activities. It has
become the buzz word in today’s era.
Any corporates expecting for long term benefits must be responsible for environment and ecosystem. In
this sustainable era more and more corporates have realized the importance of environmental policies
and practices towards sustainability
Business sustainability is a pro-active approach to ensure business long-term viability and integrity by
optimizing resources, reducing environmental impacts while not compromising product quality,
competitiveness and profitability. With the rapid development of business economy, environmental
concerns have become of utmost priority for all corporates, who are responsible a great deal for
environmental problems. We can say that sustainability plays a crucial role in maintaining and creating
the conditions under which the humans and nature can exist in productive harmony in order to fulfil social,
economic and other requirements of present and future generations.
The following industry leaders illustrate what sustainability initiatives look like:
 Nike and Adidas have both stepped up seriously. Nike has focused on reducing waste and
minimizing its footprint, whereas Adidas has created a greener supply chain and targeted specific
issues like dyeing and eliminating plastic bags.
 Unilever and Nestlé have both taken on major commitments; Unilever notably on organic palm oil
and its overall waste and resource footprint, and Nestlé in areas such as product life cycle, climate,
water efficiency and waste.
 Walmart, IKEA and H&M have moved toward more sustainable retailing, largely by leading
collaboration across their supply chains to reduce waste, increase resource productivity and
optimize material usage. It also has taken steps to address local labour conditions with suppliers
from emerging markets.
 Pepsi and Coca-Cola have both developed ambitious agendas, such as increasing focus on water
stewardship and setting targets on water replenishment.
 Car manufacturers like BMW and Toyota have made strides on energy efficiency and pollution
reduction, not to mention Tesla as an outsider really challenging the industry’s overall footprint.
Currently, environmental sustainability is a topical issue that receives plenty of attention from the media
and from different governmental departments. Environmental sustainability involves making decisions
and taking action that are in the interests of protecting the natural world, with particular emphasis on
preserving the capability of the environment to support human life. It is an important topic in the present
time, as people are realising the full impact that businesses and individuals can have on the environment.
It is about making responsible decisions that will reduce your business’ negative impact on the
environment. It is not simply about reducing the amount of waste you produce or using less energy, but
is concerned with developing processes that will lead to businesses becoming completely sustainable in
the future.
Businesses, nowadays are not more conscious of short -term gains. They want to grow in a manner that
helps their stakeholders, including local and global communities.
For much of the past, most businesses have acted with little concern for the negative impact they have
on the environment. Environmental sustainability forces businesses to look beyond making short term
gains and look at the long -term impact they are having on the natural world. You need to consider not
only the immediate impact your actions have on the environment, but the long-term implications as well.
For example, when manufacturing a product, you need to look at the environmental impact of the
products entire lifecycle, from development to disposal before finalizing your designs. The companies,
apart from their annual reports are also sharing their sustainability reports which gives an idea that the
firms have decided to move towards sustainability path.
As a business priority, environmental sustainability is on the rise. They are preparing for a future in which
green regulations are mandatory, green consumers are the majority and green IT is a requirement.
Environmental management can help enable companies to make efficient use of energy and material
resources, as well as help them implement strict controls on greenhouse gas emissions and other
environmental contamination. A very latest example is our government sanctions on use of BS-IV diesel
engine vehicles and switching to BS-VI engine or to E- Vehicle.
There can be few ways to make business sustainable-
 Define a clear sustainability goal

 Assigning people, a leader who can lead a team and advocate for sustainable business practices
 Allocate right resources in terms of people, time, money and tools.
 Encouraging a sustainable supply chain, Source your raw materials from people who practice
sustainability themselves. Track the origin of raw materials and ensure your supply chain is
sustainable as well. Conduct a supply chain audit as it will help in determining the areas you need
to review — these can cover the ethical, environmental and transportation aspects.
 Enhance production process, look for opportunities
 Packaging and distributing smartly with least effect to environment and without compromising
quality.
 Keep improving
 Showcase your green reputation to your clients and customers.
CONCLUSION-
Environmentally sustainable businesses may also have a competitive edge when it comes to attracting
customers and investors. Modern consumers are aware of social and environmental issues and keep
themselves informed about which businesses are acting responsibly in the community. Investors are
equally aware of these issues and there is a trend developing towards investing in environmentally
sustainable companies. to achieve authentic sustainability, companies may need to broaden their view of
resources that are critical to business. Once that shift occurs, it will be natural for companies to anticipate
how decisions may impact both current and future stakeholders—because they recognize that those
decisions will ultimately impact both their current and future business.
Technology will be an important part of the solution. But only partly. The key will be to nurture a culture
that has the discipline, patience, and courage to look beyond short-term solutions and opt for business
practices that can offer the greatest positive impact.

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ASHUTOSH SHARMA

SECTION- B (PGDM GENERAL)

BUSINESS ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

‘IMPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY IN BUSINESS’

There can be few ways to make business sustainable-

 Define a clear sustainability goal

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