Page 398 - Design for Environment A Guide to Sustainable Product Development

Summary 373

Part 4 Conclusion: The Road Ahead

Chapter 20: Sustainability and Resilience. Despite the efforts
of industry leaders, carbon emissions and resource consump-
tion continue to rise with economic growth. It is not enough
to reduce unsustainability; we must change the fundamental
systems that give rise to these environmental impacts. Systems
thinking is difficult because industrial and ecological systems
are highly interconnected and exhibit nonlinear behavior. Enter-
prises will be increasingly challenged by the complexity and
turbulence of the global business landscape. Traditional risk
management must be supplemented by enterprise resilience—
the ability to anticipate surprises, recover from disruptions,
and adapt to changing conditions. The journey to global sus-
tainability will require development of new tools, as well as part-
nerships among industry, government, and nongovernmental
organizations.