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While
the ZWA can provide support in many capacities, its most effective role is
in assisting businesses and organizations through a process of change in
pathways and systems.
Businesses that engage in new strategies typically follow the
process outlined in Figure 1.
Figure 1. The process by which
businesses develop and implement new strategies.
This
change process usually takes an organization 12 to 24 months. The Zero
Waste Alliance provides the following four categories of support to
business as they move through the process and develop and implement
strategies that improve their competitiveness, morale and environmental
performance:
- Awareness
Education
- Assessment
and Strategy Development
- Implementation,
Setting and Reaching Goals
- Reviewing
and Reporting
Zero
Waste Alliance personnel and alliance members provide assistance to
organizations as they go through this process of change.
The specific tools of industrial ecology selected for each
individually unique case are used in the appropriate steps. In addition,
funding support such as low cost loans, research grants, and tax and
regulatory incentives are identified as needed.
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Awareness
Education
Zero
Waste Alliance personnel provide education to businesses, government
agencies and other organizations about current pathways and systems and
opportunities of developing business and environmental strategies that
work toward the elimination of waste in those systems and pathways. The
goal of this training and support is to move an organization through
awareness to a point where it feels able to make a decision to take action
and enter the assessment and strategy development phase. Training sessions
will be provided in various locations as required. ZWA personnel will draw
from the following:
- The
Natural Step - providing background understanding and a shared mental
model
- Drivers/Influences
- discussion of the forces that favor movement toward sustainability
- Case
Studies of related businesses and industries that identify possible
opportunities
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Assessment
and Strategy Development
Once
a business has expressed a serious interest in developing competitiveness
strategies based on the Zero Waste concept, the next step is to perform
assessments and develop strategy leading to the identification of specific
opportunities. In order to fully understand the environmental impacts of
products, processes and services, and to help account for their full cost
with respect to energy use and material flows, ZWA personnel will offer
training and application support as needed on the following assessment
tools:
- Life
Cycle Analysis (LCA)
- Material
Flow Analysis
- Full
Cost Accounting
This
information will be used to identify an appropriate strategy for achieving
the available benefits.
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Implementation,
Setting and Reaching Goals
It
is a business axiom that what gets measured gets done. Appropriate
indicators of progress will be determined. Metrics for these indicators
will be established and records will be kept in order to determine actual
benefits of the projects. These benefits will include cost savings,
improved efficiencies and reduced environmental impacts. It is important
to record and report progress. Corporate environmental reports are
encouraged.
Examples
of the tools and management systems that ZWA personnel will use to
integrate business activities are highlighted below:
- Backcasting
as developed in The Natural Step - leading to long term vision and
goals
- Green
Chemistry - for guidance toward improved materials design
- Design
for the Environment (DfE) - to minimize product environmental impact
and cost
- Environmental
Management Systems (i.e. ISO 14001) - strong structure framework
- Employee
Involvement - tapping the potential of all
- Supply
Chain Environmental Management - to address the entire life cycle of
products
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Reviewing
and Reporting
Once
improvements have been made, the indicators and metrics are reevaluated in
order to confirm progress. Progress can be expressed both in terms of cost
savings, greater competitiveness, and reduced environmental impact. At
this point, the information can be used advantageously to inform
employees, and potentially shareholders, financial institutions, insurance
companies and the public. In addition, the organization can receive
excellent public recognition by publishing an annual formal environmental
report. Zero Waste Alliance personnel will assist in this process as
needed.
- Environmental
Accounting - identification of true costs
- Global
Reporting Initiative - example of top of the line report
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