Small Steps for a Sea Change: Mapping the Path to Sustainability for Your Dive Business
According to NASA data, in 1952 — the year I was born — the carbon dioxide content of earth’s atmosphere was 312 part per million (ppm), compared to the 280 ppm at the start of the Industrial Revolution. Today, also according to NASA, it’s 419 ppm. Many scientists contend that coral reefs — what I believe are the basis of the entire diving industry — will be history before the end of this century unless that number is reduced to about 350 ppm. But it’s more than the sheer quantity of CO2 emissions that’s turned concern to crisis, it’s also the rate. Perhaps the most mind-blowing statistic comes from David Wallace-Well’s recent book, The Uninhabitable Earth: More than half of all the carbon dioxide exhaled into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels has been emitted since the premier of Seinfeld! One result of the increased heat from this accelerating CO2 concentration, according to a study just published in the journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, is pace at which the ocean is warming. That study found, for the period between 1987 and 2019, ocean heating accelerated at almost four and half times the rate observed from 1955 to 1987. As one climatologist has put it, the challenge before us in battling climate change is greater than putting a man of the moon, and it must involve the entire world, not just one nation.
As history tells us, once we recognize the seriousness of a problem, humans have a phenomenal capacity to rise to the challenge, regardless of how daunting it may be. Indeed, winning a battle as formidable as climate change may seem impossible, but we should look back at the moon landing again for inspiration. In his famous speech at Rice University on September 12, 1962 challenging our nation to put a man on the lunar surface by the end of the decade JFK said, “We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win.”
Sustainability Means More Than ‘Green’
Unfortunately, in a rush to “do good” for the planet many often fail to understand the full implications and requirements for a truly sustainable business. Precisely what “sustainability” means for a business is well-articulated in the book, Strategy for Sustainability: A Business Manifesto by Adam Werbach. But before addressing Werbach’s insights, let’s first understand why the very term, sustainability, can be confusing. Until recently, from a business perspective, “sustainability” referred to a company’s ability to increase its earnings on a consistent basis. In other words, assurance they’ll continue to be around in the future. But in 1987 things changed with the publication of a seminal document which redefined sustainability, Our Common Future, or more commonly termed the Brundtland Report. It coined the term “sustainable development” and defined it as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” From then on the term, even from a business perspective, changed to what most infer today.
So, for Werbach and many others today, a sustainable business means more than one that can sustain profits; it’s a business that can thrive in a world that’s very much different than just a few decades ago. Critically, it means more than making a profit. As Werbach writes, “Sustainability is bigger than a PR stunt or a green product line, bigger even than a heartfelt but occasional nod to ongoing efforts to save the planet. Imagined and implemented fully, sustainability drives a bottom-line strategy to save costs, a top-line strategy to reach a new consumer base and a talent strategy to get, keep, and develop creative employees.” Today, a truly sustainable business is viewed as one built on a tripod of coequal factors including socio-cultural, economic an environmental. This is often referred to as the “people, planet, profit” business model.
According to Werbach, “Many of the social and environmental trends we face are sad, even tragic, but sustainability isn’t about throwing your business down the drain and embracing your inner saint. That’s one reason for looking beyond the green aspects of sustainability and using its social, economic, and cultural sides as tools for building successful companies.” Green businesses and emerging green economies will be, he contends, a central part of the new world now being born, but importantly he insists, “green alone isn’t a broad enough platform to sustain most businesses for the long haul. Those that take into account broader social issues will be better able to thrive and to lead.”
Central to Werbach’s thesis is what he terms “North Star goals,” which he asserts are essential to any company expecting to achieve true sustainability. He defines such goals as “a strategic direction that embodies a global human challenge larger than any organization.” Importantly, the goal must be consistent with the strengths of the company, have a connection to its core business and elicit the personal contributions and passions of its members. Finally, he cautions, the goal should be optimistic and aspirational but not impossible — achievable, incrementally, within 5 to 15 years. “Like a Christopher Columbus,” says Werbach, “you as the leader must point to a destination, even though at the start of the journey you may have no idea how to reach it. Your people will figure out how to cast off, when to shift sails, and what to do to move the organization forward.”
As a dive operator committed to doing your share of “no harm” to the planet, the task of becoming more sustainable must seem indomitable. After all, what can one single small business do to change earth’s climate system? Individually, perhaps not much, but collectively, a whole lot. As with all massive problems, the solution must be broken into smaller achievable parts. As the Chinese proverb reminds us, “the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
To this end, a “Sustainability Pathway” for dive operators has been proposed by two organizations at the cutting edge of ocean conservation within the diving community, the Blue Ocean Network and The Reef-World Foundation (administrators of Green Fins, a public-private initiative of the United Nations Environment Programme). Chloe Harvey, Director of Reef-World, contends the pathway begins with awareness, which she sees as the most important and challenging step in the entire process. Why is this so difficult? Because, as she says, “This requires a shift in management’s mindset and the awakening to the value and necessity of positioning the environment at the heart of their business’ ‘why’”.
Having worked with nearly a dozen governments and more than 300 dive operators around the world implementing Green Fins to manage the environmental impacts of diving, Harvey has seen too many times enthusiastic dive operators jump the gun and skip this vital first step, opting instead for Step Two–tackling low hanging fruit. This includes simple steps such as eliminating plastic straws and plastic bags, providing reef-safe sunscreen or beefing-up environmental content in pre-dive briefings as company policy. “While this of course will reduce environmental impact to some extent,” Harvey insists, “it will not likely lead to achieving the mission of a sustainable business.”
Just as Werbach cautions, Harvey emphasizes that change and drive must come from the top — the operation’s decision makers. “Awareness can’t be merely a bi-product of building a strong and successful business,” says Harvey, “it must be why the business exists.”
The Next Steps
Once the awareness issue is in the rearview mirror, it’s time to roll up your sleeves and move on. But there’s still no need to feel overwhelmed or even alone on your quest. In general, when it comes to sustainability all dive operators deal with the same suite of issues. So, as others have gone before you, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel. First, if you don’t have targets you’ll wonder aimlessly and probably give up, so begin by setting goals. But it’s best to avoid being too ambitious, as this is often a receipt for failure. Adopt goals that are both achievable but measurable so you can assess your progress. Here are some examples:
· A 20 percent reduction in water (or energy) usage by….
· Elimination of all single-use plastic by….
· By year’s end, at least 30 percent of my suppliers must show some serious efforts to use recyclable packaging.
· By year’s end all paper product in the company will be 100% recycled, postconsumer material.
· Our next vehicle purchase will be hybrid/electric or one with the greatest fuel efficiency in its class.
· I will provide incentives [to be determined] for my employees to carpool or use public transport.
· By year’s end we will do what’s necessary to switch from regular to bio-diesel fuel.
The sustainability pathway for dive resorts can be especially challenging, according to Chloe Harvey, particularly those located in remote and sensitive coral reef regions, and in developing countries where many of the services taken for granted by operators in developed nations simply don’t exist. So, a huge asset for the resort community is the Green Fins program. As Harvey explains, low hanging fruit can be addressed through their environmental business performance assessment. Here, trained Green Fins Assessors spend days observing business operations to determine what practices are posing the greatest environmental risk. This may include anything from anchor use to cleaning products to poor garbage management. Once high-risk activities are identified, practical, low cost and locally relevant solutions are recommended. Managers can then select which solutions they feel are realistic to address. Tools to help ameliorate unsustainable practice include tools such things as Green Fins’ “Alternative Anchoring Guidelines” or their “Clean and Green Recipes,” designed to replace damaging chemical cleaning products. They’re often able to assist in finding local recycling or waste management sources.
Unfortunately, Green Fins does not yet operate in North America, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of the voluminous information and wealth of sustainability guidelines they’ve developed over the years. For example, the free Green Fins Dive and Snorkel Centre Handbook will point you in the right direction and provide an invaluable aid in helping to prioritize action based on environmental risk.
As some of the low hanging fruit is picked, the benefit of the all-important awareness step starts to kick in, and the underlying business philosophy starts trickling down to the staff and even to the customers. This momentum can be a springboard to the third step which involves bigger investments such as shifting to more efficient engines on dive boats when they need upgrading, setting up systems for catching rainwater or switching in whole or part to alternative energy sources.
At this stage the company’s reputation grows, acting like a magnet for environmental responsibility, and the transition naturally slides onto the next and penultimate step of the pathway. Daily operations now consistently reflect sound environmental practice, and decision-making is based on achieving the lowest environmental footprint. Job seekers who are enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the marine environment seek you out, remain with you longer and provide better customer service. In turn, better employees earn better pay and benefits. Other businesses now want to collaborate with you, and these collaborations add value to your own products and services. And by supporting local environmental initiatives and activities in your area, you not only give back to your community, but also enhance your reputation as both a green business and a good neighbor. This often results in government authorities seeing you as a partner in environmental management, which opens up channels to provide input into, and possibly help direct, local environmental management decision-making. Eventually, this attracts customers who are willing to pay more for a high quality, low environmental impact experience. Plus, many become your most valuable asset — return customers — who post reviews and light up their social networks about your business, thus becoming marketing tools money can’t buy.
“The business has now reached its ultimate and final position on the Sustainability Pathway,” say Harvey. “It is delivering meaningful environmental results in line with a strong and transparent mission for long term environmental, social and financial sustainability. The business has a diverse array of beneficiaries who are loyal to, and share, your values. This is a truly sustainable and resilient business.”
Of course, the ultimate goal of any business is to remain in business. But business in the 21st Century will mean much more than black ink on the bottom line. Successful businesses will be those that are part of the solution to the plethora of social and environmental problems we face, not distinct from them. Yet, as more and more companies are learning, those who operate in a truly sustainable way become more successful for very practical reasons. Their environmental monitoring systems are good indicators of overall good management; and companies with such systems in place tend to be more profitable because a major result of strong corporate environmental awareness is lower cost. As sustainable business expert Jamie Sweeting, President of the Planeterra Foundation, so accurately attests, “Being green doesn’t work because it attracts a ‘green’ market, but because it makes for a better managed business.” And in the final analysis, the best reason to go green is simple…your customers expect it!
NOTE: The author would like to offer a special thanks to Chloe Harvey for her time and contribution to this article.
For more information
Reef-World: https://reef-world.org/
Green Fins: www.greenfins.net
(This article originally appeared in Dive Center Business, Jan/Feb 2020.)
