Here are some benefits to making your co-op
more sustainable:

• Save money over  the short-and long-term by making your co-op more energy-efficient
• Increase the value of your co-op, which in turn improves your ability to obtain financing when you need it, and to maintain your co-op well into the future
• Help make co-operative living a leader in sustainable living
• Become more comfortable in your co-op as you create a healthier, more energy ef­ficient space
• Contribute to the preservation of natu­ral landscapes and natural resources by minimizing your impact on them
• Help reduce the effects of climate change

You hear the word “sustainability” thrown around all the time and it seems to be related to a number of different topics. Sustainability is “meeting the needs of the present generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.”** While the word “sustainability” is associated with a variety of topics, they are in fact, all part of the same story, much of which is about supply and demand.

We have increasing:

• Water consumption • Population growth • Demand for housing

And decreasing:

• Available freshwater • Air quality • Affordable housing

Growth in population and human industry increases de­mand on natural resources and the services that natural systems provide us (such as water filtration, flood control, climate regulation and soil stabilization). Our industrial system as it currently operates is leading to less pure water, farmland, air forests and natural diversity.

** World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987

If we draw the current situation, it looks
like a funnel

Declining

natural resources

Increasing

demand for natural resources

We need to look at the demands we make on nature and natural systems and ensure that people’s needs – both this generation and future ones - can still be met. Thinking about the long term means we have to consider how our actions affect not just ourselves, but our co-op, our children and grandchildren, our neighbours, our economy and our environment.

But it doesn’t have to be difficult. With a thoughtful approach to how and why we make our household decisions we can do it. If we look at how our co-op’s household decisions can promote sustainability, we need to first look at the big picture.

To be sustainable, we have to make sure that future generations can meet their needs. A group of international scientists have come up with four root causes of how we (humans) are working against the earth’s ability to sustain human society and the ability of future generations to meet their needs. By thinking about these four root causes of “un-sustainability” we can make strategic decisions toward sustainability – decisions that enrich our quality of life, reduce financial risk and support smart changes.

Imagine what will happen if these two trends converge

So, we need to look at the demands we make on nature and natural systems and ensure that people’s needs – both this generation and future ones - can still be met. Thinking about the long term means we have to consider how our actions affect not just ourselves, but our co-op, our children and grandchildren, our neighbours, our economy and our environment.

But it doesn’t have to be diffi cult. We can start this process right here at home with a thoughtful approach to how and why we make our household decisions. To look at how our co-op’s household decisions can promote sustainability, fi rst we have to take a look at the big picture.

If we want to be sustainable, we have to ensure that future generations can meet their needs. A group of international scientists have determined the four root causes of how we negatively impact the earth’s ability to sustain human society and the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Hundreds of leading corporations and organizations around the world are using these same four root causes of “unsustainability” to help them make strategic decisions toward sustainability – decisions that enrich our quality of life, reduce fi nancial risk and support smart changes.