International Educational Services Providers

Programs that help develop professional skills in sustainability are beginning to emerge at the international level.

Some national professional and industry bodies, and in particular some international industry peak bodies (WBCSD and the World Resources Institute), provide excellent educational, training and professional development resources for companies and sustainability professionals in Australia.

These bodies are usually funded by companies (and often collaboratively with international donor organisations such as the United Nations or national governments) and provide portals for industry and business, government and the international donor organisations to share information and case studies on best practice, commission and publish focussed research including data or information reports. These international education service providers may also directly or indirectly provide training courses, seminars and conferences.

Some examples of international business education initiatives are detailed in the following examples.

Leadership for Environment and Development (LEAD) International is a global network of individuals and non-governmental organizations, committed to sustainable development. LEAD is an independent, not-for-profit organization, established in 1991 by The Rockefeller Foundation. LEAD carries out its mission through capacity development and strategic, outcome-oriented activities consisting of policy, research, action-on-the-ground, communications, and training. Capacity development includes training programmes in sustainable development and leadership skills for a variety of publics. Today, there are more than 1400 LEAD Fellows from the worlds of business, media, public sector, universities and non-governmental organizations in over 80 countries.

MHCi is a research and consulting company that offers advice and research on corporate social responsibility issues. MHCi runs a CSR masterclass. Their format is highly interactive, ensuring that participants and contributing specialists are tested to the full. The mastercalsses are aimed at CSR professionals and HR specialists and cover issues such as CSR and Labour dealing with the main issues that confront managers in dealing with their employees and suppliers. Experts in the field share their views in an interactive workshop setting.

Surveys conducted by GKV of some large, medium and small Australian companies indicated that many sustainability professionals185 seek and gain a great deal of their (informal) professional development from accessing educational materials provided by the WBCSD, World Resources Institute as well as the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). These organisations have been at the vanguard of developing and disseminating business cases for sustainable development which have been used by companies and sustainability professions to drive education about and for sustainability into and through their organisations and for those companies to achieve sustainability outcomes.

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One organisation that has made significant progress in providing a forum to educate business is the UNEP Finance Initiative. UNEP FI’s aim is to identify, promote, and realise the adoption of best environmental and sustainability practice at all levels of financial institution operations. UNEP FI comprises members from the global financial institutions such as banks, insurers, re-insurers, pension funds and asset management companies. UNEP FI provides members with practical research; capacity building; and information exchange services. The products provided range from professional development programmes and action-oriented reports to major international conferences that bring together professionals from around the globe.

International Finance Corporation has conducted a series of workshops since 1996 entitled Competitive Environmental Advantage: Managing Environmental Risk in the Emerging Markets. The workshops, which are held on a quarterly basis, examine techniques for banks, funds, leasing companies, venture capital firms and other financial organizations to transform the increasing risk posed by environmental and social issues into commercial opportunity.

As companies recognize environmental and social stewardship as a competitive advantage, increasing numbers of Business Schools are emphasizing education in environmental issues. A biannual comprehensive study by the World Resources Institute on business education and sustainability highlights the most innovative MBA programs and faculty infusing environmental and social impact management into the Business School curriculum. Although complimentary of Business Schools that have developed their curricula in this area, the report identifies that there is little information on specific outcomes of the results, and graduate successes, of broadening the scope and reach of business education in this area186. There has been no similar comprehensive study undertaken on non-university providers of education about and for sustainability.

In contrast to graduate Business School programs, there are very few training programs for company directors. As the requirements for sustainability have evolved, the skills and knowledge of directors and diversity of boards have not kept up. Most directors, particularly non-executive directors (NED’s) are selected for their independence and particular experience and knowledge in corporate areas such as financial performance, cash flow analysis and projections. However, the roles, duties, accountabilities and responsibilities of modern company directors have moved well beyond the traditional areas of finance and legal issues management. A KPMG survey of FTSE 350 NED’s shows that 40 per cent didn’t feel they had sufficient knowledge of non-financial indicators, such as market, environmental, political and employment issues that could have a material impact on the future business performance of a company187.

Several renowned international programs such as the Sustainable Enterprise Academy188 and Cambridge Program for Industry189 assist business in the transformation to corporate sustainability by providing senior executives in business, government and civil society with the vision, education, tools and support necessary to champion sustainable development in their organizations. Although these programs have a significant input from the business sector, they are still programs that are linked directly to universities.

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See http://www.beyondgreypinstripes.org 187

See http://www.kpmg.co.uk/aci/docs/NEDsurveyUSwebversion.pdf

188 _{The Sustainable Enterprise Academy is North America's premier executive education program on sustainable development. The} role of capital markets and sustainability is a discussed on a number of occasions in the Academy’s flagship four day program 189

The Cambridge Program for Industry works with prestigious partners in the delivery of its learning programmes. It draws on the rich expertise and scholarship of the University of Cambridge, and mobilises thought from the best minds and institutions globally. CPI operates beyond the boundaries of any particular department or course area, allowing it to respond flexibly to its clients’ needs. Programmes typically have a strong interdisciplinary component. They focus on ‘pre-competitive’ business themes and appeal to fast-moving and innovative enterprises. Current topics include sustainable development, intercultural management, social inclusion, health leadership, partnership brokerage and future technology.