During Earth Day 2009 (4.22.09) the U.S. Capitol will be buzzing green all over. And during this historic year, corporate responsibility and sustainability awareness is at an all time high. Therefore, leading up to Earth Day and beyond, Congress will be closely listening to presentations regarding the Seal of Sustainability™ to learn about the subject of sustainable business guidelines.
On Earth Day itself, even more attention will be given to this issue than on any other day. Congress will be recognizing sustainable companies during a special Seal of Sustainability Awards Ceremony, which will take place in the U.S. Capitol. In addition, as part of the federal government’s Earth Day events, the Sustainable Business Institute (SBI) will be briefing the U.S. Congress, as they do each year, regarding their advances in the area of sustainable business practices and guidelines.
The Sustainable Business Institute (SBI) has provided Instituto Conexiones the opportunity to add the international perspective to the sustainable business conversation happening in the chambers and halls of the U.S. Capitol on this upcoming historic day.
SBI is most likely the oldest sustainable business organization in the United States and the world. U.S. government leaders and CEO's of the largest corporations in the world turn to SBI for thought-leadership and applied best practices in the area of triple bottom line sustainable business practices. Working with the Pollution Prevention Roundtable (P2) as their third party review committee, they have created standards and guidelines known as the 'Seal of Sustainability' - a Seal that the U.S. government is looking at utilizing as they standardize their sustainable business "certification" - an optional certification businesses will be able to receive.
Where Instituto Conexiones fits into the conversation is through education related to making sure that the Seal of Sustainability standards, as it is adopted by the U.S. government, include rigorous evaluation of the overseas operations of companies receiving any seal or certificate identifying them as being a “sustainable business.”
We know that what U.S. companies do affect the rest of the world and the U.S. is looked to as a business leader. This is a great opportunity for the U.S. to think globally while acting locally and lead the world towards a truly sustainable future. We feel a critical component to true sustainability is making sure ethical and sustainable business practices include considerations of the impact U.S. business activities have on non-U.S. citizens and on ecosystems outside of U.S. territory.
U.S. Consumers will be looking for this "seal" when making their conscious purchases and we believe they will want to know that a logo certifying a product or company as "sustainable" means that those companies are meeting or exceeding sustainable business practices in all three pillars - environment, economic and social sustainability, when operating in other countries.
We have accepted the invitation extended to us by the Sustainable Business Institute (SBI) to join their delegation briefing the U.S. Congress next month. We recognize that this is a critical moment to bring the "international perspective" into the conversation as U.S. government and corporate leadership debate and decide on the new sustainable business standards.
We obviously speak for Latin America more than any other part of the world, but all countries doing business with U.S. based companies and investment groups will be affected by this, so we ask for your support so we can go to the Capitol in DC on Earth Day and advocate for the "International Perspective on Sustainability!”
All individuals reading this, and especially those who represent relevant stakeholder groups are encouraged to send in your opinion letters so we may include them in our position statement and educational materials. We have also posted a poll question on our blog - take a moment to voice your opinion!
We must raise $2,500 to pay for airline tickets, lodging for two nights and creation of special related educational/marketing materials.
Every dollar counts.
Pledge your support today by emailing us at: contact@connectionsinstitute.net or simply donate through the Pay Pal button on our blog: www.institutoconexiones.org.
Sponsors can join the Instituto Conexiones delegation and will have logo placement on our marketing and educational materials. Monetary contributions are best, but pro-bono printing, airline tickets, graphic design, hotel rooms, etc. gladly welcomed.
Thanks!
Kimberly Newton de Klootwyk
Principal
Instituto Conexiones
