2.5.2010
Over the past several years I have been working on an EHS organizational management model and methodology that provides organizations with a way to bring innovation and fresh thinking to its Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) function. Some of these ideas have been presented in Newsletters and White Papers. These writings have included ways to integrate the EHS function within itself as well as within the organization.
Central to this work has been ways to elevate EHS thinking as a driver in business strategy for competitive advantage, take EHS performance to zero or near zero, and empower EHS professionals as leaders in their organizations. I was very excited when I first learned of and read Green to Gold as it reinforced and validated much of this work. Read More
Posted By Charles Redinger | in Emerging Issues, Innovation, Management Systems, Quantum EHS | Tags: Green to Gold, Quantum EHS | No Comments »
2.2.2010
The issues and challenges presented in Green to Gold and suggested in REACH and the nanotechnology areas raise several issues. The first relates to an organization’s Management of Change structures and functions. The second relates to the EHS function’s capacity to manage and guide the organization in these areas.
Management of Change
The concept of Management of Change (MOC) is central in EHS management systems. The basic idea in MOC is that policies and procedures are established to identify and respond to new issues that can change an organization’s EHS risk profile. Typically changes in processes or production lines are currency of MOC activities. More forward thinking organizations include organizational and regulatory change issues in their MOC activities. Read More
Posted By Charles Redinger | in Corporate Social Responsibility, Quantum EHS, Strategic Thinking & Planning | Tags: Green to Gold, Management of Change, MOC, nanotechnology, Quantum EHS, REACH | No Comments »
1.30.2010
Advances in material science have taken us into the age of nanotechnology. Nanotech issues and ideas metaphorically presented in the movie The Fantastic Voyage in 1963 are here. Nano engineered materials are being incorporated into everyday products such as materials to make them stain or bacteria resistant, tennis rackets to make them stronger and lighter, sunscreens to make them more effective, and drug delivery vehicles for super precise delivery of a drug at a desired site. The promise of nano materials appears to be wide, impacting many industries and products.
With the development of new nano-level technologies, there are significant EHS considerations. Human and environmental health considerations are not well understood for many of these materials. Cutting-edge research is being conducted, but there is a general consensus in the public health field that this research is not keeping pace with materials development. Read More
Posted By Charles Redinger | in Corporate Social Responsibility, Quantum EHS, Strategic Thinking & Planning | Tags: Green to Gold, Quantum EHS, The Fantastic Voyage | No Comments »
1.29.2010
At the time Green to Gold was published in late 2006, the European Union promulgated a far-reaching new regulation that will have a wide impact on companies. The title of the regulation is Registration Evaluation Authroisation of Chemicals, it is referred to as the REACH regulation or program. The REACH program is very complex with many issues to consider. Some highlights are presented here, with a focus on business strategy-related issues, not so much the technical issues of things like risk assessment, exposure scenarios, and toxicology. Read More
Posted By Charles Redinger | in Corporate Social Responsibility, Quantum EHS, Strategic Thinking & Planning | Tags: EU, European Union, Green to Gold, Quantum EHS, REACH | No Comments »
1.26.2010
With issues like global warming, sustainability, small industrial footprint, industrial ecology, and carbon calculus swirling in the press and the minds of many, there is increased attention on how organizations do or don’t incorporate environmental thinking into their business strategy. There have been numerous articles in the Harvard Business Review (most recently a special report titled “Climate Business-Business Climate”) and other business journals. The Wall Street Journal has been sponsoring a prominent conference titled “ECO:NOMICS, Creating Environmental Capital.”
A recent book by Dan Esty at Yale University, titled Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive Advantage, takes these issues to a new level. As a thought-leader in environmental policy and management, Esty has done an excellent job identifying and researching companies who have integrated environmental thinking into to their overall business strategy. Extensive research was conducted of companies that have strong EHS records and ways EHS-related functions have influenced business strategy. The findings of this work yields a valuable set of characteristics that others can use to both strengthen their EHS function as well as use it to influence overall business strategy. Read More
Posted By Charles Redinger | in Corporate Social Responsibility, Innovation, Strategic Thinking & Planning | Tags: Competitive Advantage, Dan Esty, Eco-Advantage, Green to Gold, Harvard Business Review, The Wall Street Journal | No Comments »
Over the past several years I have been working on an EHS organizational management model and methodology that provides organizations with a way to bring innovation and fresh thinking to its Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) function. Some of these ideas have been presented in Newsletters and White Papers. These writings have included ways to integrate the EHS function within itself as well as within the organization.