GREEN PRACTICES: FROM CSR TO CER

Let’s Move from Corporate Social Responsibility to Corporate Environment Ready

For the sustainable development of any organization whether small houses or big corporate,
there should be a harmony in the give and take policy. The give and take policy should be
understood in a broader sense. The organizations are totally dependent on the external
environment for any kind of required resources. Whether it is raw material, land, labour or any
factors for business processes. The entrepreneurs get all these resources in a manner in which
he or she requires. By the integration of above resources and a defined process, the end result
is required tangible goods. These goods, at the time of production go through various
processes. These processes have two kinds of output, one that is required product and the
other part is, so called by product of the above process in the form of smoke, residues,
packaged material that are left behind and many more that are so called non usable or a kind
of wastage. The point is that the organizations which produces these anti- environmental by
products, justify their moves by submitting a report comprising of the steps undertaken for
CSR(Corporate Social Responsibility).The steps taken by these organizations can be termed as
just for the sake of or because of legal restrictions.

My father says a line that there is nothing in this world which should be termed as wastage.
Here comes the term Green Practices. This term was coined in year 1992 by Ken Peattie in his
book Green Marketing in UK. Later on Jacquelyn Ottman of USA used this word in his book
Green Marketing Challenges & Opportunities of the new marketing age. Green Practices
means to pursue knowledge and practices that can lead to more environmentally, friendly and
ecologically responsible decisions and lifestyle, which can help to protect our environment and
sustain its natural resources for current and future generations. Green practice is defined as
making more environmentally friendly decisions such as to "reduce, reuse and recycle."
Green Practice means being aware of our interconnectedness with the world and reflecting on
the unintended damage we cause to nature in the daily course of our lives. Green Practices can
be initiated by Thinking Green which leads to Acting Green –that leads to taking corrective
action to make environmental responsibility a reality.

Why? Now the question arises why there is a need for such a practice? The answer we all know
in a very well manner but just ignoring it. The reason behind such ignorance, which I think is it
will impact in a long run, but in a very deadly manner. At that time we will have no time to
respond. Now the question arises

How? Let’s go through some examples: There’s a factory in Asia that uses only a single litre of
water to make a pair of jeans. Thus a lesser cost of production. That’s 346 litres less than Levi-
Strauss estimated it took to make a pair of its jeans in 2015. Wouldn’t you love to buy your
jeans from this amazingly innovative factory? A UK based organic groceries market has been
expanding steadily for the past eight years. The result is healthier soil, and an 18% harvest
increase per hectare, with a significantly reduced environmental footprint. So you would expect
any food or drink manufacturer renouncing pesticides and artificial fertilizers in favour of
organic production methods. A Bangladesh based research firm had developed an organic
based bio degradable bio plastic alternative to plastic bags, particularly polythene bags made of
jute fabric. The basic thing which was common in the above examples was, using an eco
process to get an eco product. Now a day we are more focused on the end result (cost effective
product) rather than process. Which is necessary and can be achieved by improving the
processes? And the fact is, if management uses a process which is environmentally, socially and
ecologically favourable we can be cost effective, more efficient, enhanced reputation (Strong
Brand Identity), increased productivity and many good things. This stage can be gained if we
evaluate the environmental impact of our product before launching(New Product
Development) it in the market rather than only evaluating the commercial and usage aspect of
the upcoming product.

Which Sector? As far as I know almost every sector is less or more responsible for the current
situation. Talking about the secondary sector the goods which are being produced have least
concern about its impact on human health e.g. we first manufactured refrigerator and after
certain period of time we realized that the CFC emission from refrigerator have a major impact
on environment and human beings. If we start counting the number of organizations
responsible, the figure will be in many digits. The tertiary sector is also impacting a lot more on
the environment. The hotels using air conditioner are also impacting the environment. The
building should be designed in such a way that its proper light and temperature should be
maintained (ITC Maurya, Delhi). The material used like cement should be replaced by Pozzolana
like fly ash or GGBFS.These material when added with cement not only increases the durability
of the building but helps in maintaining the temperature in the building also.

The strategies of Green Practices comprises of Green Design, Green Positioning, Green
Promotion, Green Alliance and less Marketing Waste

In short if the process of making any goods or services is checked or analyzed from the
environment point of view also along with its commercial, technical and usage feasibility
(TQM). This will not only increase the life cycle of the product but also create a strong brand
identity among its customers which is an important factor in the current scenario. It also gives
clear competitive advantage to the organizations. Then only we will be in position to convey
that yes we have achieved sustainable development with a handsome profit then only the
concept of Green Practices will be achieved. Then only the true vision of customer satisfaction
with environment sensible will be achieved. “The hardest thing to change is your mental model
– your belief about how the world works,” It seems tackling some of the biggest environmental
problems in industry is not as hard as getting people to change their minds.

Written By: CHANDAN VEER

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