Here is the joke:” When I see the name of the lovers engraved on a tree, I don’t find it cute or romantic. I find it weird how many people take knives with them on dates.”
Now what this joke got to do with sustainability you might ask. A lot. The intention of the lovers is noble. They want to express their love but it is the poor tree who is paying the price.
Now adays we hear how businesses can prosper while pursuing a greener and more socially responsible agenda. And companies are now going at it all guns blazing ( or at least it seems like it). There is a frenzy trend to churn out all types of reporting on how the company’s activities are socially responsible. While reporting is not a bad thing per se, it is a bit oversold.
According to Harvard Business Review most companies have complete discretion over what standard-setting body to follow and what information to include in their sustainability reports. In addition, although 90% of the world’s largest companies now produce CSR reports, a minority of them are validated by third parties.
To cut a long story short these reports are all about intentions and expected results and not the realities on the ground.
Now contrary to general belief one industry that has always been conscious about environment and acted upon it is printing. Some might argue that printing inherently is not an environmentally friendly industry because it involves ink and paper. I beg to differ. Printers have always sent their waste material including paper and plates to recycling centers. Their intention might not be purely environmental but rather commercial but the result of their action was and is beneficial for the environment.
So before labeling printing as a pariah industry that generates loads of waste check your facts.
