| As the field of sustainability takes off, we believe we can do more good in the world by teaching others how to use our methods (rather than hoarding them and just working with our own clients). That way, others can profit from our tools and sustainable practices can spread even faster. |
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SPaRK™, the Sustainability Planning and Reporting Kit is a process for helping organizations quickly develop a sustainability plan and report format, with electronic files that help support that effort. The electronic files include and Excel worksbook with many of the common analyses and metrics an organization would use. This is linked to a Word template for an internal sustainability plan and report so that the charts and graphs from the Excel file automatically show up in the right places. We use SPaRK with clients and train others how to use it. Click here to download a flier on SPaRK™. Click here to be added to a notification list when we are offering training in sustainability planning and SPaRK. See also the companion guide, The Step by Step Guide to Sustainability Planning, under Published Work.
SCORE™ is a sustainability assessment that measures the degree to which you've embedded sustainable practices into your organization. It's a powerful educational tool. Click here for more information about SCORE—what it is, how to find a licensed assessor and how to become trained as a licensed assessor.
“Even though we have been pursuing sustainability for several years and have a robust infrastructure to support our efforts, the SCORE process uncovered new directions and helped us refocus our energies and actions."
—Clark Brockman, SERA Architects
"I recently conducted my first assessment. It was great. From a business standpoint, I more than made up for the training in the assessment fees to just one client alone, and I'm currently working on a proposal to help them follow through that could bring in thousands of dollars. The results I got back from Darcy were super fast and the report was insightful and very useful in helping me frame the "next steps" part of my future contract.
Besides the cash side, I'm really excited about SCORE. Because of how it is structured it is easy to understand, and you get to "trick" clients into having a meaningful internal conversation about sustainability that probably wouldn't have happened on their own. The hard data results are one thing (great metric to improve upon), but the energy and commitment that folks get from the process is the real value of SCORE.
I would highly recommend SCORE to anyone who is serious about helping clients advance their sustainability goals. Not only does it provide a benchmark of where they're at today, it is the catalyst for meaningful discussion about where they want to go tomorrow."
—Brad Baso, licensed SCORE assessor
Training Materials
Marsha and Darcy have a background in instructional design and are known for creating effective and creative learning activities. We make these available to others. Versions of some of these are also published in Teaching Business Sustainability.
The Natural Step Card Game—This is a set of cards with questions (and answers) about the science behind The Natural Step and the system conditions. You can use this as an exercise where people in groups read the questions to one another and see if they can answer them. (Articulating your understanding out loud is a powerful teaching tool.) You can also use them to create a Jeopardy-like game. We'll send you instructions and the Word document so you can print the cards or modify the questions.
Business Simulation—This is a rich exercise that helps people understand how to implement sustainability. It involves four companies in an industrial park (high-tech manufacturing, light manufacturing, food processing and medical center.) There are three phases of the exercise.
- Basic: You can just do the basic simulation, which focuses on sustainability strategies (with opportunities for industrial ecology/waste exchanges)
- Basic + reporting: Adds the element of creating sustainability reports
- All 3: The above plus an exercise using life cycle assessment.
Smart Growth Simulation—This simulation presents the participants with an existing urban area that is to be redeveloped. Their task is to decide how best to redevelop the area, optimizing social and economic benefits.
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