Writing Your Sustainability Plan: Process and Framework
September 19, 2012
Wednesday, 8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
UO in Portland, White Stag Block 152
Presenter:
Marsha Willard
A one-day workshop addressing comprehensive approaches to writing and implementing a sustainability plan.
Course Description
As with any organizational initiative, successful implementation of sustainability is more readily achieved when efforts are based on a coherent and thoughtful plan. A good plan enables you to clarify your sustainability values, coordinate efforts, track progress and focus energies on the highest priority activities.
A sustainability plan is both a guidance document as well as the foundation for a reporting system. This workshop will walk you through the steps of creating a plan as well as share tips and stories for implementing that plan most effectively. During the workshop you will:
- Determine the rationale for pursuing sustainability in your own organization.
- Identify the priority issues for your organization and use them to select an appropriate framework, target and metrics.
- Assess the impacts of your organization and determine where it is out of compliance with your framework and vision for sustainability.
- Create a draft plan that identifies priorities, measures and milestones for moving your organization toward a sustainable future.
- Identify data gathering needs and explore strategies for fulfilling them.
- Explore implementation strategies and identify the hurdles you might encounter.
The course will make use of a an Excel file containing a set of worksheets and templates that will facilitate the creation of a plan tailored to your organization. In addition you will receive samples of plans and policy statements from other organizations. You will also have the opportunity to explore and problem solve around anticipated implementation hurdles and learn from the experience of other successful implementation efforts.
Participants are encouraged, but not required, to bring their own laptops in order to experience the Excel-based tool and be better prepared to utilize it in the workplace.
