Making Sustainability Standard Practice
Vol. 10       No. 1       January 2016
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From the President's Desk
What Are YOU Doing to Promote the SDGs?
By Marilyn Johnson, ISSP President and Senior Director, Corporate Sustainability at IHS, Seattle WA  

It's 2016 and here at ISSP we are off and running! Congratulations to our first cohort of ISSP Certified Sustainability Associates, and thank you to everyone who was part of making it happen!

We are also celebrating and embracing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that were announced by the United Nations late last year.  As sustainability practitioners, we have the privilege and responsibility to help others understand, implement and act upon these goals - all of which helps in advancing a more sustainable world!

ISSP Sustainability Hall of Famer Alan AtKisson invites you to share your own unique SDG "move" as a way of marking your commitment to the SDGs via the #SDGMove campaign.  Check out and share a great new music video promoting the SDGs produced by Alan and friends from around the world. For more info, you can also check out our curated collection of SDG resources. I look forward to working and learning together with you to bring these important goals to life.

ISSP Certification News
ISSP to Launch Second ISSP-SA BETA
 

When ISSP launched our first ISSP-SA Certification Beta back in August, we were impressed with the high level of interest among our members and the sustainability professional community. Today, we're pleased to announce the first cohort of Certified ISSP Sustainability Associates, a diverse group of more than 130 skilled sustainability professionals representing a variety of industries and nationalities.

But for those ISSP members who weren't able to be a part of the ISSP-SA Beta, we're also announcing another opportunity to be a part of the sustainability field's first internationally recognized professional certification! Between January 18 and March 31, registration will be open for a second round of ISSP-SA beta testing. While the second ISSP-SA Beta will only be available to ISSP members, anyone interested in pursuing ISSP-SA or ISSP-CSP Certification will be able to apply when the programs officially launch later this year.

For more information about ISSP Certification and eligibility, visit our website. To continue to receive updates about the development of our Certification programs, including a registration link for the second ISSP-SA Beta, sign up for our Certification Newsletter.
What a Year it Was!   
ISSP's latest Annual Report is now available. It's packed with facts and figures that highlight our accomplishments in the 2014-2015 fiscal year. The design and testing of the ISSP Sustainability Certification Program. An International Conference attended by hundreds of sustainability practitioners. More Local Chapters forming around the world. Dozens of Online Courses and Webinars.  Check it out.
ISSP Board Member Erik Foley Expands Sustainability Role at Penn State

ISSP Board Member Erik Foley has been named Director of Sustainability of The Penn State Smeal College of Business. Erik will continue efforts to position Smeal as a leader in business education and research in the area of sustainability. Erik was also named the director of learning and development for Penn State Executive Programs, the executive education provider within Smeal. In that role, he will work with partner organizations to integrate sustainability into training on leadership, strategy, and operations. Prior to these new appointments, Erik served as the Managing Director of Penn State's Sustainability Institute which promotes sustainability in teaching, research, operations, and community engagement. Congratulations, Erik!
 
Book Review: Citizen Coke - The Making of Coca-Cola Capitalism  
Book by Bartow J. Elmore
W.W. Norton, 2015
Reviewed for ISSP by Christopher Juniper, 30 December 2015
 
We know that lifecycle thinking is at the heart of sustainability performance. So what a delight that Bartow Elmore, a history professor at the Univ. of Alabama, chose to tell the story of an iconic US company, Coca-Cola Company (1.8 billion servings per day worldwide), through the lens of its historic lifecycle strategies and impacts.

Mr. Elmore shared his findings (focused on packaging) with 25+ ISSP webinar participants on 10 December 2015 (available to ISSP members upon request). 

He notes that the early twentieth century bottle deposit system (replaced with one-way containers in the 1960s), with deposits of about 40% of the product's price, resulted in 96% bottles being typically reused up to 20 times (as many as 50-60). The glass bottles were replaced first by one-way steel cans, and then by energy-efficient plastic bottles without a deposit system (in most US states) but supported by publicly funded curbside recycling systems. But PET bottle recycling reached only 29% by 2011; the lesson seems to be that pollution needs a price, like bottle deposits.

The big finding of Elmore's study: "What made Coke great was its ability to outsource the majority of the costs associated with producing and distributing its product." Coke was a pioneer of the business model of managing global suppliers instead of owning its value chain itself contrary to its peers of the Gilded Age.

           
ISSP Events & Education
ISSP's Upcoming Webinar:
The Future-Fit Business Benchmark 
Thursday, January 21 at 11:00am PT / 2:00pm ET 
 
Climate change, resource scarcity, and social instability have profound impacts on global markets, impacts that businesses need to adapt to in order to stay competitive. But how can we identify a company that's fit for the future? What standard can stakeholders use to measure, report, and rank a business's preparedness for changing global conditions?

ISSP's upcoming webinar, taught by sustainability author and speaker Bob Willard, details the Future-Fit Business Benchmark. A free, open source tool for companies to assess their environmental and social performance, the Future-Fit Business Benchmark can provide ways to gain a competitive advantage in a world where sustainable practice is increasingly essential for success.

February Course: Stakeholder Engagement Strategies
Beginning February 9, 2016
 
ISSP's Stakeholder Engagement Strategies course is designed to provide the sustainability professional, at any level, insights into how to mainstream stakeholder support, identify new relationships and reduce conflict and risk. Explore and understand more effectively how to develop a well-rounded approach to stakeholder engagement by successfully integrating corporate social responsibility into your sustainability programs.

Three subject matter experts - Kathryn Cooper, Wendy Firlotte, and Robb Dods - will cover stakeholder engagement from the Community, Employee, and Sustainable Procurement points of views. You will benefit greatly from the range of effective strategies to help you involve wider stakeholder support.
       

Learn more! 
 
Connect with ISSP's Online Community Through Social Media

Want to start an online conversation among members of the ISSP community? One of the best ways for members to engage with us and each other is via social media.

For updates on ISSP events, Certification, and partnerships, follow @ISSP_Org on Twitter and like International Society of Sustainability Professionals on Facebook. And remember to join our LinkedIn group in order to network with other members and sustainability professionals around the world!

Additionally, we're populating our new YouTube Channel with video interviews of ISSP Hall of Famers. Stay tuned for even more videos and professional resources!
 

Sustainability Events Around the World  
 
The International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP) is the world's leading professional association for sustainability professionals. ISSP is a member-driven association committed to moving the profession of sustainability forward through building strong networks and communities of practice.