Sustainable development is serious stuff for industries

'Sector projects, a new WBCSD brochure, outlines the groundbreaking work carried out by six industry sectors toward sustainable development. It was launched in Bali during the fourth and final Preparation Committee for the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development.

Bali, May 30, 2002 · Sustainable development is too big for companies to handle individually, regardless of their size. By working together in sector projects, companies can achieve more than they would alone, shows a new report released today by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).

The WBCSDs six sector projects, led by member companies, look at the sustainability performance and challenges for the whole value-chain of an industry sector. They harness independent research, stakeholder consultations and partnerships into how a particular industry can contribute to sustainable development. The ultimate purpose is to change industry practices and policies to make them more sustainable.

These projects are not trying to develop industry positions. Each goes well beyond the normal confines of industry," said WBCSD president Björn Stigson. We deliberately seek external inputs, including substantive funds from industry and non-business sources, to ensure that proposals developed are not 'industry solutions only.

The project philosophy is based on the participatory concept, bringing together stakeholders with widely differing views, and seeking to build partnerships between industry, government and other institutions to identify ways forward. The purpose is to make the findings and conclusions supported and relevant to the broadest possible spectrum of companies, from all regions, at all stages of economic development.

The six WBCSD sector projects are:
·   Forestry
·   Sustainable Mobility
·   Cement Sustainability Initiative
·   Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development
·   Electricity Utilities
·   Financial Sector

The progress these sector initiatives demonstrate is valuable for the upcoming World Summit in Johannesburg because it shows that companies can come together to tackle long-standing, difficult dilemmas.

Copies available in print or online at www.wbcsd.org