Smart Growth Could Spur Economic Prosperity, Environmental Sustainability

Sustainability is not just a business management paradigm for Patrick Doherty, Director of Smart Strategy at the New America Foundation: It’s the strategic lens that should shape how we build our communities, structure our tax code and prioritize investments.

Speaking at NAEM’s Corporate Sustainability Management Conference in Washington, DC today, Mr. Doherty explained that the United States needs a new ‘grand strategy’ to poise the country for long-term growth.

“The domestic economy and the global economy that we designed for the purposes of defeating the Soviets during the Cold War is no longer appropriate for the new global project,” he said.  ”The trick is taking down the old Cold War system and putting up a new system that prioritizes that. Capital plus demand–an incredible opportunity for the United States.”

At the heart of the new grand strategy Mr. Doherty envisions are significant  investments in walkable, transit-friendly communities. Doing so, he said, would have the systemic benefits of fueling economic prosperity and mitigating resource depletion, while meeting the demands of a rapidly expanding global middle class.

NAEM Executive Director Carol Singer Neuvelt said thinking about sustainability in grand strategy terms could help member companies identify new opportunities for innovation.

“The economy of the future will be defined by resource scarcity,” she said. “By creating new processes that will dramatically lower the resource intensity of products, companies will be able to gain a competitive advantage.”

Celia Spence, who leads sustainability efforts for Westinghouse Electric Co., said the scope of the conversation helped her think about her role in a new way.

“It was really very gratifying to hear that there’s a conversation happening about what we do that extends beyond what we talk about every day,” she said.  ”Hearing that we can be part of a transformation that is absolutely essential to our societal well-being is very heartening.”

Mr. Doherty’s address was the first among a full day of presentations and conversations about how companies are managing their sustainability programs. The other speakers included:

• Maribeth Malloy, Director of Environmental Sustainability & Employee Engagement; Lockheed Martin Co.
• James Voyles, Director of Environmental Affairs; The Mosiac Co.
• Jennifer Verrine, Director of Retail EHS; CRedit360
• Mark Serwinowski, President and Founder; MetaVu Inc.
• Mark Stephan, Principal Program Manager, Office of Sustainability; EMC Corp.
• Marjella Alma, Manager of External Relations; GRI Focal Point USA
• Katie Schmitz Eulitt, Associate Director, Stakeholder Engagement; Sustainability Accounting Standards Board
• Mark Tulay, Program Manager; Global Initiative for Sustainability Ratings
• Maureen McGeehan, Marketing Manager; DuPont
• Travis Kline, Senior Toxicologist; AlterEcho

For more insights from the conference, please follow NAEM’s tweets via @thegreentie or #NAEM.