"Walking the Talk" by Holliday, Schmidheiny and Watts (Greenleaf 2002)

This is an important book on important issues. After some 40 years (since Rachel Carson's "Silent Spring) and endless debate about sustainability, we now have a serious attempt to summarise the arguments and enter a convincing case for action.

"Walking the Talk" is written by business leaders and is presented as a business proposition in terms which are meaningful to other wealth creators. Its focus on "eco-efficiency" is intended to move the debate from propaganda to measurable outcomes. It recognises the fact that business needs a licence to operate from society, and society needs the benefits created by manufacture, services and trade. Government should be the facilitator and regulator of the process - an umpire, not a player.

"Walking the Talk" is timely as it is published at a time when business is coming under increasing pressure to improve its governance (and has been punished by markets for short term profit manipulation), whereas the aggressive activities of some NGOs (Greenpeace, animal rights) are becoming counter productive. Modesty is often the handmaiden of co-operation, which alone makes progress possible.

The authors see four key strategies for eco-efficiency (Page 83/4):-

• Dematerialisation. This involves companies developing ways of substituting knowledge flows for material flows. Another route to dematerialisation is product customisation: less waste is created when resources a consumer does not want are not produced.

• Production loop closure. The biological designs of nature provide a role model for sustainability. The goal is to work continuously toward closed-loop production systems and zero-waste factories wherein every output is returned to natural systems as a nutrient or becomes an input in the manufacture of another product.

• Service extension. We are moving from a supply-driven economy to a demand-driven economy. Companies are rethinking how they can satisfy demand and are developing customized responses to client needs. Consumers are increasingly gaining access to product services by leasing goods, particularly durable goods, rather than buying them outright.

• Functional extension. Companies are manufacturing 'smarter' products with new and enhanced functionality and are selling services to enhance the products' functional value.

They also provide a frame-work for measuring and reporting progress in a consistent manner, and develop it through the use of case studies. One of the issues which emerges from this exploration of measurement is how to identify, segment and respond to different audiences. One man's measure is another's irrelevance. Measures need also to be robust over time - eco-effectiveness does not respond to quarterly reporting.

"Walking the Talk" also explores the area of corporate social responsibility, recognising the danger of faddishness, but deciding that there are three key benefits - strengthening brand values, improving human capital (people want to work for you) and increasing revenue. The danger of lip service is clearly recognised and underlined by the title of the book.

A number of case studies underline the value of involvement by companies in community work at two levels - financial support and the time and effort contributed by sponsors' employees. This is, of course, the model pioneered by Business in the Community, which strangely is not mentioned in "Walking the Talk".

The text and case studies explore in depth the interplay between sponsors and the communities they support. This is not rocket science but comes down to a simple model for change:-

• Define purpose and results targetted (?why and ?what)

• Look at principles and processes (?how)

• Identify and empower leadership (?who)

There is great concern that 20% of world population enjoys 80% of its consumption, and that the other 80% wish to emulate that consumption. The need for the First World to change its habits and demonstrate commitment to sustainable consumption is seen as a prerequisite for the Third World to moderate its ambitions. The area of intellectual property rights is high-lighted as a "cause célèbre" between the developed and developing worlds.

One golden rule emerges - we do not protect what we do not value. People usually value most things needed for survival. It may be that the Third World will need to prioritise its needs so that action is focussed on key areas first. It may be sensible for instance to achieve full cost pricing of water, and drive water conservation, moving through energy into other less tangible areas of concern. Prioritisation can also focus on actions which generate wealth; the provision of telephones to villages in Bangladesh opens up trade links and wider communications with the outside world.

Progress will depend on dialogue and joint commitment to action. In the words of Reuel Khoze, Chairman of Eskom in South Africa; "Companies must be willing to listen and to speak and they must be willing to consult, for the poor have opinions. We must behave as guests with a good contribution to make". Above all, everyone must "walk the talk"

Adrian Davies - 1 April 2003