Formation
The Lighthouse Experts Bureau was created by Integrating Sustainability, an environmental business formed by Dr Harry Blutstein in 2002. It was created in response to a demand from clients for easily-digestible information and advice on the latest trends and developments in triple bottom line sustainability and stakeholder engagement.
The Bureau does not provide conventional consultancy services, in that it does not address specific problems. It adds value by "illuminating and stimulating strategic thinking".
While many organisations know that the sustainability agenda is out there, too many have chosen to remain in the dark. This is a perilous course.
The name - the Lighthouse Bureau - was inspired by the idea that we assist clients to shed light on unseen risks and new opportunities.
An Insider's View
It is almost impossible to be up-to-date with current trends and issues that could affect your business or operations.
The Lighthouse Bureau provides clients with an insider's guide to sustainable development and stakeholder engagement.
We realise that executives are busy people, and need to understand the terrain with a sufficient level of detail to determine how they should respond, or whether more detailed exploration is required.
The Lighthouse Bureau helps clients expose risks, understand best practices and identify opportunities.
Exposing Risks
Risks to organisation and corporations can come from operating in unfamiliar waters - and the new sustainability agenda is unfamiliar to many organisations.
These risks can affect the operations of business, municipalities, resource managers, not-for-profits and government agencies.
Rating agencies like Reputex and Sustainable Asset Management produce public reports on triple bottom line performance that address economic, environmental and social sustainability. These ratings are being used increasingly to guide lenders and investors.
Stakeholders, whether they be NGOs or government agencies, are placing companies under increased scrutiny that goes beyond their ability to comply with existing regulations. Such attacks can reduce valuable brands, that have taken decades to build up, in a matter of days. One needs to only think of how activists have successfully targeted Monsanto, Nike and James Hardie over ethical or environmental issues. The bottom line is loss of shareholder value.
Shareholder activism is also increasing, as witnessed by rowdy AGMs.
The Internet provides an effective medium for spreading the word around the world about good and bad corporate citizens. Thus campaigns such as the boycott of Shell products over its disposal of the Brent Spar in the North Sea cost that cost the company millions of pounds in terms of lost revenues via the resultant consumer boycott, while Australian wool producers are currently facing an international boycott of wool products after People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) accused it of using cruel methods of "mulesing" to prevent flystrike.
Municipalities, resource managers and government agencies ignore their stakeholders at their peril. Often community groups are in the forefront, agitating for better environmental performance. Their support can strengthen an organisation while their opposition can cripple its operations. Tuning into the community is often the key.
Large corporations are greening their supply chains. For example, Motorola and Ford give preference to suppliers that have an ISO 14000 environmental management system in place.
Customers are asking whether goods have been produced in Third World sweatshops. In response, garment retailers, like Rip Curl and King Gee now market their products under the "No Sweat Shop" label.
Companies that fail to appreciate and consider the growing environmental agenda could find themselves aground on the shoals, threatening its reputation and shareholder value.
Cashing in on Opportunities
There is growing awareness in the mainstream that organisations can reduce costs and increase profits through effective use of resources (energy, water, materials). In Australia the carpet company Interface has conducted a concerted campaign since 1996, resulting in a 90% reduction in process and materials waste.
The City of Melbourne is building a new office building (Council House 2 or CH2) which is expected to slash their electricity and water bills, and provide a more productive environment for their employees.
Close-the Loop® have created a new business out of recycling inkjet and toner cartridges, while Quantum Energy are exporting Australian-designed heat pumps that can produce hot water more efficiently than solar energy.
A new Trade Waste Treatment Plant based on a biological technology, called The Living Machine™, has been installed by Masterfoods at Wyong.
Customers have developed an appetite for environmentally-sound products, which has been used by companies like The Body Shop to market their products, while the success of Sydney's bid for the 2000 Olympic Games could be attributed to its green credentials.