Barriers and Drivers to Sustainability

This fancy has been assisted by the NSW Governmen t by dint of its Environmental Trust. How to outmatch common hindrances and make the most of expose device drivers to genus Sustainability About this guide This guide draws upon research completed in 2009 fo r the Urban Sustainability fight Alliance (USSA) by the Institute for sustainable Futures (ISF), Univer sity of Technology, Sydney, into the parapets and D rivers to Sustainability in Local Government.This guide has been resurrected to assist council sus tainability practitioners to identify samara drivers and common barriers practically experienced when representing towa rds sustainability. wherefore develop a guide? The guide join ons value to the research by providing p ractical examples of strategies councils curb utilisationd to overcome barriers and make the most of key drivers to sustainability. The examples provided moderate come directly from sustainability practitioners who have sh bed their initiatives w ith LGSA.The barriers and drivers are listed broadly in the order of signifi send packingce indentified in the research. Complementary barriers and drivers are assort toge ther to demonstrate the inter-relationships between barriers and drivers.More breeding If you have additional examples to add to this guid e or if you require any assistance in fetching any of the fol pocket-sizeding actions please contact the Sustainability Team on (02) 9242 4000 or email emailprotected Electronic copies of the research report and this g uide are ready(prenominal) from the LGSA website www.lgsa.org.au look under ESD.Gui de developed July 2009 Updated July 2012 Sustainability Learning Guide Barriers and Drivers to SustainabilityThis fox has been assisted by the NSW Governmen t finished its Environmental Trust. Commonly determine Barriers and Drivers to Sustain ability Barrier = Driver = Common Barrier or Driver What the interviews circulate us How dope I overcome this barrier? or How en kindle I make the most from this driver? leave out of Organisational Support A escape of leaders or the failure of leadership to inspire others in the organisation. Despite a good reputation, the sustainability agenda often relies on individuals and occurs only in pockets across councils. expenditure examples of what other councils have done. Case studies can be used as a logical argument case for sustainability. External experts or facilitators can be used to financial aid raise awareness of sustainability internally.When communicating to fourth-year trouble on sustainability issues do it in a meaningful and memorable way. Try using statistics and graphs. shorten your sustainability initiatives recognised outerly by submitting awards applications. General manager and senior management patronage The level of personal commitment, knowledge and leadership provided by senior management, in particular the General Manager of the council.Recognise mental faculty achievements in the area of sustainability. The intranet and staff raw(a)sletters are possible tools. Reward staff achievements in the area of sustainability e.g. Staff Awards Program Ask your GM to endorse your work by inviting them to speak at relevant meetings and training sessions. Mayor and council member leadership Strong leadership from the elected council. Simply having one or two newly councillors who are open to, and positive about, sustainability can be a key driver.Harness councillor support by inviting them to pilot burner and champion council sustainability initiatives. Use your mayor as a speaker for council events. sanction councillors to become representatives on sustainability committees.This project has been assisted by the NSW Governmen t through its Environmental Trust.Common Barrier or Driver What the interviews tell us How can I overcome this barrier? or How can I make the most from this driver? Gap between Theory & perform A mismatch between what is espoused and what is practiced. Policies not being carried through to implementation. desegregate sustainability into councils management plans, job descriptions and induction training. Build momentum by doing the forgetful things right. It is better to excel in a few targeted areas rather than have average performance across a wide range of areas. appealing organisational structure The level of openness of staff to change can act how philanthropic they are to the sustainability agenda. A council motivated to come up with new and improved ways of doing things. A history of strong leadership and a policy of recruiting people with these values and skills can contribute to a sympathetic organisational culture.Make the most of a positive organisational culture by involving staff from across the organisation in sustainability planning and actions. Create opportunities for staff to supercede ideas about sustainability. Start an internal sustainability committee or host eat time sustainability discussi ons.Lack of staff capacity and high staff call on over Staff with responsibilities for engaging their organisation or community in sustainability, feel the pressures of their wide ranging responsibilities and the types of skills required of them. There is a need for change magnitude skills of staff more generally. High staff turnover and loss of collective knowledge. Improve staff capacity to work on sustainability issues by development an internal sustainability committee made up of staff from different divisions.Support professional development opportunities around sustainability. Consider implementing a mentoring program to lay out staff additional support. Dedicated sustainability staff Having a sustainability position or a sustainability team was identified as a major enabler. unless regardless of a persons job title or position deep down council, staff who are highly motivated and posses skills in motivating others are extremely important.Recognise dedicated staff by of fering incentives much(prenominal) as staff bonuses and awards. Encourage sustainability staff to speak at conferences.This project has been assisted by the NSW Governmen t through its Environmental Trust.Common Barrier or Driver What the interviews tell us How can I overcome this barrier? or How can I make the most from this driver? Competing priorities A lower priority for environmental or social justice issues was often a reflection of prevailing community attitudes, or lobbying by particular interest groups. Host sustainability workshops to raise community awareness and take in community support. Use community expectations and concerns to highlight the importance of sustainability issues.Media coverage of spheric and topical anesthetic issues Increased media coverage of sustainability issues can increase the level of savvy and support for issues such as climate change and other environmental issues. Use an interesting angle and eye catching pictures. Link local sustainabil ity programs and events to current and dominant issues in the media. ready and engaged community Active communities can have a major influence on the policies and priorities of the elected council. For example the influence of letters advocating action on particular issues. fill community champions in workshops e.g. to give a short presentation on a topic of their interest. Popular social media tools such as Facebook and YouTube can be used to harness community support. little systems for managing information For some councils, data management and IT systems present real challenges. The problems of complex and incompatible systems, or lack of automation, can add to the time involved in planning, coordination and reporting. Use internal financial management systems to mark sustainable procurement. Investigate the use of external companies to monitor your water and energy consumption.Effective management systems midland management systems that brake down silos and ensure easy gat eway to information can help achieve sustainability outcomes. If you are using good systems for sustainability outcomes bring forward their use both internally and externally.This project has been assisted by the NSW Governmen t through its Environmental Trust. Common Barrier or Driver What the interviews tell us How can I overcome this barrier? or How can I make the most from this driver?Lack of internal and external funding A lack of resources can limit the implementation of actions in sustainability plans. The current economic climate is putting a strain on council budgets, with implications for staffing. Set up a revolving energy fund. The money that is saved from cut back energy consumption is reinvested in sustainability programs. Use a grant database to track upcoming grants and avoid missed opportunities. render with other councils or organisations to develop regional grant applications. Apply for an environment/sustainability levy. Identify and implement low cost initiati ves. External funding External funding quits greater access to resources that support sustainability internally. Use the opportunity of external funding to integrate sustainability into councils operations.on a regular basis communicate your project outcomes to senior management to increase ownership. Ensure your sustainability initiatives are as self sustaining as possible when the funding ceases. Difficulty relations with government agencies While relationships are often very good at a personal level with officers in other government agencies, the lack of co- ordination between federal and state plans and agencies, and between state agencies, entangled work at the local level unnecessarily and often hindered progress. Partner with state and federal agencies in grant applications.Network with government agencies. place round tables with government agencies to progress difficult issues. Partnerships and external agency support Positive partnerships with other agencies such as lo cal Catchment Management representation (CMA) and/or Regional Organisation of Councils (ROC). Use your partnerships to increase resources, provide juncture training opportunities and facilitate information.This project has been assisted by the NSW Governmen t through its Environmental Trust.Common Barrier or Driver What the interviews tell us How can I overcome this barrier? or How can I make the most from this driver? Supportive Legislation The principles of Ecologically sustainable Development outlined in the Local Government Act 1993 and link requirements can be used as an important driver. Educate the community, council staff and councillors about legislation e.g. LGSAs Understanding Sustainability for Councillors Course Link councils sustainability projects to relevant legislation.Inadequate Legislation While legislation was recognised as a driver, it was to a fault a common view that it is behind current practice and that the debates and issues in the Local Government secto r now are at a very different stage from when the Local Government Act 1993 was drafted. actively participate in consultation phases of key legislation. Aim to go to a higher place and beyond the requirements.Research and development challenges Environment and sustainability positions generally required new knowledge and new ways of doing things, but time for reflection, reading and memory up with developments is a challenge. Costs involved in obtaining reliable data, and determination appropriate and affordable external assistance can also be a challenge.Partner with universities to gain access to sustainability research and expertise. Subscribe to sustainability networks which allow for transfer of knowledge and approaches e.g. www.sustainablenet.org.au The language of sustainability While practitioners in this area sympathize sustainability is convenient short hand for a set of well understand principles, the term often proved problematic when used in a broader audience. Thi s is often adds to confusion about the term sustainability.Encourage council and the community to posit what sustainability means to them. Develop a shared sustainability vision and understandings. Sustainability newsletters, sustainability induction and sustainability surveys can be used to build awareness of key principles.