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 SustainAbility
was set up in the Spring of 1987 by John Elkington and me.
We were in the midst of writing the Green Consumer Guide. It became an umbrella
organisation for both writing books and carrying out
environmental consultancy - advising companies on
sustainability issues. We
started working for blue chip companies such as Procter
& Gamble, ICI, Novo Nordisk and British Airways quite early on. And built up a reputation as a
campaigning consultancy and think tank. Our objectives
were to 'make a difference, make money and have fun'.
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 MILESTONES
Between 1986
and 1999 we co-authored a total of eight books (and John wrote some more on his own too!).
Below are
some of the events we organised from SustainAbility between
1986, when John and I met at Earthlife and 1994 when I left to start working independently from
my home in Somerset. See section on consultancy for information on clients we worked with.
During this
time we carried out a wide range of consultancy projects and
organised a number of events including:
I also became a director of
Out of this World sat on the UK Eco-Labelling Board and
presented a slot entitled Green Matters on ITV's This
Morning Programme, with Richard & Judy, as well as
numerous other radio and television appearances. In
1989 both John and I were awarded the UN Global 500 Rollo of
Honour for outstanding environmental
achievement.
In 1991 I
married Edward Bryant, who was working as a Barrister, with
chambers in the Temple.
In November
2002 I was asked to write an article giving my perspective
on 15 years of SustainAbility. Here it is...
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SUSTAINABILITY
EVENTS 1986-1994
Below are some of
the events or activities that happened between 1986 and 1994:
 The
Holiday Extravaganza 1992
SustainAbility
set up a committee to organise The Holiday Extravaganza in
1992 to co-incide with the launch of Holidays that Don't Cost
the Earth. The event was attended by
about 150 people, including Douglas Adams and Dilly Keene and took
place at the Porchester Baths. Food was prepared by Neil Grossman
(brother of Lloyd) and there was dancing, quizzes, raffles and
even holiday snaps.
 The
Greenest School Competition 1992
The Greenest School Competition was sponsored by Varta
Batteries. Launched in 1990 it was linked to The Young
Green Consumer Guide, encouraging school children to
carry out an environmental audit of their school. Lots of
entries were received and the best ones had not only carried out
and presented an excellent audit of their schools but identified
areas where improvements could be made. One bunch of
children discovered that their school was wasting £20,000 per
annum heating the school at night!
- The
Kitchen that Cooks without Roasting the Planet 1990
Co-organised by SustainAbility and
Friends of the Earth, The Green Kitchen exhibition stand was
the 'first step towards a Green House of the Future exhibit' at
the 1990 Daily Mail Ideal Home Exhibition. Following on from
the successful 'green consumer' campaign, it showed how green
housekeeping can turn your kitchen into a powerhouse for change.
 Brand
New Product Design 1989
Brand New was a product design consultancy owned by the
Michael Peters Group. It produced a successful report
categorising green consumers from dark to light green and joined
forces with SustainAbility, letting us have space in their
offices. Dorothy Mackenzie from Brand New now runs Dragon
Brands which also specialises in new product design.
 UN
Global 500 Awards 1989
In 1989
both John Elkington and I were elected to the United Nations
Global 500 Roll of Honour for outstanding environmental
achievement. In 1992 at the Rio Earth Summit, I joined the Global
500 Committee, which was set up to promote the work of the award
winning laureates from around the world. See Global
500 website for more information.
 Green
Shopping Day 1989
In 1989 we organised Green Shopping Day to coincide
with the launch of The Green Consumer's Supermarket Shopping
Guide. The
idea was to give people an opportunity to become a green consumer.
There were different green consumer activities organised around
the country and a Green Consumer Action list drawn up.
 Green
Consumer Week 1988
Green Consumer Week was organised in September 1988 to
coincide with the publication of The Green Consumer Gude.
We encouraged organisations and
members of the public around the country to promote the idea of
'green consumerism' - to use their consumer power to promote
environmental improvements.
 Earthlife
1986
Through Earthlife's wide range of projects it aimed to promote
the shift to technologies, lifestyles and economies based on the
sustainable use of the planet's resources. It's main
campaign was to raise a large sum of money to underwrite the
conservation of one of Africa's richest rainforests in the
Cameroon. I started working with John Elkington at Earthlife
in 1986 on the publication Green Pages. In 1987 we then
moved to John's house in Barnes, from where we set up
SustainAbility.
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SustainAbility
today is a consultancy and think tank with offices in London,
Washington DC and Zurich. John Elkington is has stood down
as Chair and Chief Entrepreneur but remains a Director. Find out more by looking at John's website: www.johnelkington.com
and SustainAbility's website: www.sustainability.com
John
Elkington - co-founder of SustainAbility
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TODAY
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