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sUSTAINABILITY Copyrights CU Green.com July 2014
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Mission of CU Green is to serve individuals and organizations interested in sustainable development of any work and product of livelihood needs by responsibly utilizing natural resources.
Markets and business cannot be saved by economics alone leaving the ecology and humanity. Click to add caption
Sustainability is a business standard. Here are the reasons why organizations in market need a standard for claims of sustainability, need of disclosures and treat this as an ingredient of reliable forecasts of profit and growth.
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Markets that have no credible and self evident approach of sustainability are seen with skepticism, loss of faith and threat.
Even goodness is doubted and unfair practices delude consumers. Disclosure of sustainability by an organization is a necessary step to protect faith of customers in the market.
An informed choice is a customers’ right.
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High cost risen due to increasing liability and damages are not a solution. Buyers and consumers started to feel the heat already and, market uncertainty in recent years is a symptom of losing faith in economic exchanges and, depression.
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It is no surprise that alarmed consumer and buyers started asking an explanation how is an organization socially and environmentally responsible, and products it produced are safe for the humanity and preserved natural resources. This trend is going to increase and be more precise. A relevant and realistic standard is an answer to these questions either needed or asked by stakeholders, and organization is ready with it, and its business relationship is never at risk.
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From the point of view of managing sustainability, ‘proof of concept’ in a particular scope of work is identified which can manage or lead this change from unstable and risk situation to relatively safe and sustainable way of living. Work and products in market which are thus evaluated would have a promise of long term and undisturbed growth.
These would be ‘as natural’ or ‘zero liability products (with informed risk)’. Click to add caption
On this promise, investment to initiate changes in market for a long term benefits are safe. It facilitates a roadmap as to how can these possibilities become a process with validation of its results, acceptance and understanding.
CU Green in this program of work aims to establish a framework for interested individuals and organizations Click to add caption
- to self-asses this claim to sustainability, validate processes by bench marking results, - learn and collaborate among them and with other resources, - and economic changes in design of market for the sustainable development.
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sUSTAINABILITY FUNDAMENTALS Copyrights CU Green.com July 2014
sustainability
Everything that we need for our survival and well-being depends, either directly or indirectly, on our natural environment. Sustainability creates and maintains the conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony, that permit fulfilling the social, economic and other requirements of present and future generations. Sustainability is important to making sure that we have and will continue to have, the water, materials, and resources to protect human health and our environment. http://www.epa.gov/sustainability/basicinfo.htm United States Environmental Protection Agency
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By the nature of products, food, energy, health, housing, transport and social and psychological needs ought to be natural, and needed compulsorily by all. If these arrangements which are essential are not sustainably developed, it is a threat to humanity.
Sustainability FUNDAMENTALS
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1. Emission reduction … which cause climate changes 2. Conservation of natural resources … self realized natural laws 3. Waste management …controlled handling, recycling, and safe disposal 4. Human health and safety 5. Ethics, social responsibility, public system and respect for laws
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By the nature of products, food, energy, health, housing, transport and social and psychological needs ought to be natural, and needed compulsorily by all. If these arrangements which are essential are not sustainably developed, it is a threat to humanity.
Reward is divided but Risk is undivided. Risk to survival is global, and any action needed for survival of humanity and sustainable development has three options. Need of development - GREEN BUSINESS [Resource Economics] Need of management – YET TO BE GREEN [Market Economics] Regulatory restriction – CANNOT BE GREEN [Weapon, Drugs]
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sUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT Copyrights CU Green.com July 2014
According to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), green-house gas (GHG) emissions from the industrialized agricultural sector account for 10–12% or 5.1–6.1 Gt of the total anthropogenic annual emissions of CO2-equivalent. Organic agriculture is a recognized proof of concept for sustainable development. This way of agriculture can offer reduction in emission, food safety, and savings of energy and water, and increase income by sustained soil health and productivity.
By use of the standard, organizations involved in organic agriculture (in short OA) can voluntarily demonstrate their commitment to increasing sustainability upon following aspects • Emission reduction by carbon fixation in soil and biomass and avoiding use of chemical fertilizer • Reduced water consumption by soil content and surface improvement, efficient use of rain, ground and underground water resources • Reduced energy consumption by minimized tillage and other operation and of fossil fuel
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Improved Soil health
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Waste recycling and its reutilization by preventing uncontrolled decomposition
• Cropping intensity and Yield per unit of land • Increased Income and profits by reduced input costs
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Health benefits and reduced risk of diseases from organically produced food
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Risk free, fair, safe and natural environment of work
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Increased demand of product and price premium in markets
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sUSTAINABILITY REPORT & DISCLOSURES Copyrights CU Green.com July 2014
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SELF EVIDENCED CLAIM Sustainability report made by the organization shall include its performance on five fundamental criteria and particular ten aspects with respect to scope of the work and product. Use of this standard is in public interest by facilitating a path to sustainability self realized. .
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respect to claim of sustainability, actual field data, relevant scientific laws/ formulae, technical references/historical data and provision of laws are to be used. Standard templates are developed for sustainability statement as well as working documents, guidelines and checklists. By use of these, organizations find it simple to present their findings and arrive at a valid conclusion.
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COMMUNITY & PEER REVIEW Any stake holder or interested party shall have, to the extent possible, an access to it and can verify the claims made in it, and provide feedback /comments in good faith. This feedback is not an act of complaint, seeking liability or damages or a legal dispute.
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CERTIFICATION Certification is a statement of a third party auditor who can confirm the claim of the organization in good faith. Organization by agreeing to this assessment program benefits by continual improvement through self realization, and utilize it for a periodic audit and certification usually at an interval of least once in 12 months.
Organizational change by stages of maturity in sustainable development CU Green OA grade 1 ‌ [entry level] for the sustainability policy, identifying areas of concern and plan of work, provide awareness, understanding and plan of the sustainability measurement CU Green grade 2 ‌ [practicing] for establishing a measurement as a bench mark, for the first time CU Green OA Grade 3 ‌ [performing] for improving the result when compared to its own benchmark in grade 2
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PUBLICITY & COLLOBORATION Copyrights CU Green.com July 2014
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-CONFIDENCE
This sustainability report by organization shall be appended by an audit report. Both of these reports shall be made available also to all member organizations by email for peer review in the community, and self evidenced reference.
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Purpose of this collaborative work of data gathering is to create a knowledge base and identify opportunity of improvement and facilitate servicing those requirements.
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This sustainability report is a claim covering all 10 sustainability parameters with required data. It can be used by participating organizations for publicity of their organization, engaging with stakeholders, and promotion of product and business networking.
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CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT Certified organizations shall have a right to use a certification logo provided by the audit agency with applicable terms and conditions. Sustainability report and its location at website is traceable with the Logo. This can be utilized for labeling of products and the organization, for uses in publicity material to state this credit.
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NAMASTE