Apply as Nessecary to the Effected Area

The question is: How can the criteria in Gibson's Sustainability Assessment be applied to the work we are doing for Sabre Holdings? The book is mostly about sustainability criteria at the level of government and national businesses, how can it be applied to a company that's all website traffic, offices and electronic plane tickets?

Let's explore the criteria:

1. Build human-ecological relations to establish and maintain the long-term integrity of socio-biophysical systems and protect the irreplaceable life support functions upon which human as well as ecological well-being depends.

This seems like a tall order to expect out of Travelocity. However I'm quickly thinking of their Travel for Good and Change Ambassador V0luntourism travel products. The experience of travel can be very effective at "building human-ecological relations." However, when the trip is over, in many ways the relationship ends. There is no longer an incentive to maintain the ecological system unless there is an eco-tourism infrastructure in place year round catering to a steady stream of travelers who's vacation dollars support the "irreplaceable life support functions." Care must be taken to insure that the travel infrastructure really does support the eco-system, and greenwashing must be weeded out of the system. And all the eco-tourism options are useless if the travelers don't care about the environment and just want some beaches to drink margaritas on. So Vegas is kind of out.

2. Ensure that everyone and every community has enough for a decent life and that everyone has opportunities to seek improvements in ways that do not compromise future generations' possibilities for sufficiency and opportunity.

Operational Control is really the sticky wicket here. Sabre is merely a broker, if you want to buy a ticket to the developing world and pour money into the human trafficking sex prisoner industry there's not a lot they can do about it. So we might need to narrow the scope of 'everyone' and consider the employees and the communities that Sabre can affect. Paying a living wage, and hiring vendors that pay a living wage, is the primary way Sabre could meet this criteria. Beyond that, a company culture that promotes the opportunity for a decent life, 40 hour work weeks, maternity leave, can build this chance for opportunity. Beyond the company opportunities could be expanded in traveled-to communities through charitable donations and more voluntourism options to bring first world dollars to create opportunity to the developing world. How to ensure these opportunities can continue beyond the current generation? Human's have had a way of passing information and techniques for survival from generation to generation, it's called culture. And changing a culture is something that takes leadership.

3. Ensure that sufficiency and effective choices for all are pursued in ways that reduce dangerous gaps in sufficiency and opportunity (and health, security, social recognition, political influence, etc.) between the rich and the poor.

Again this is an issue bigger than one company, I could be flip and say "Vote Democrat" but I don't really believe that is a great strategy anymore. Marxist Revolutionary Vacations, anyone? Alright it's late I'll address this with more seriousness in the next post.