Sustainable Development
Sustainable development is a term many people have heard, but few truly understand. A rather fashionable term nowadays, it is routinely used by governments, businesses, environmental and social organisations and the media. The popularity of the term has led to numerous definitions, such as:
"Sustainability is the ability of humanity to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." - Our Common Future, The World Commission on Environment & Development, 1987.
This widely used definition fails to communicate in simple terms what sustainability is or how we make it happen. Therefore, P&G has embraced the more inspirational definition made by the U.K. government:
"Sustainability is the ability of humanity to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." - Our Common Future, The World Commission on Environment & Development, 1987.
This widely used definition fails to communicate in simple terms what sustainability is or how we make it happen. Therefore, P&G has embraced the more inspirational definition made by the U.K. government:
"Sustainable development is a very simple idea. It is about ensuring a better quality of life for everyone, now and for generations to come." - Opportunities for Change, Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, 1998.
This definition talks about a better quality of life for "everyone," including people in developing countries. This aligns very well with P&G' s philosophy.
Sustainable development is about improving quality of life by integrating three factors:
Economic development
Environmental protection
Social responsibility
This definition talks about a better quality of life for "everyone," including people in developing countries. This aligns very well with P&G' s philosophy.
Sustainable development is about improving quality of life by integrating three factors:
Sustainable Development in Action at P&G
We use a Product Sustainability Assessment Tool (PSAT), which starts off with a series of questions that challenge each project team to evaluate whether a new initiative is consistent with sustainable development. The PSAT generates a visual sustainability profile of the initiative, which is then used to help find ways to build on its sustainability-related strengths and eliminate any weaknesses.
Read our Sustainability Reports for more details on this topic.
Read our Sustainability Reports for more details on this topic.