MIT Sloan Sustainable Business

© 2005 MIT Sloan School of Management

April 8, 2023

MIT Sloan Sustainable Business & Society Initiative

Presentation to Sloan Senior StaffProf. John Sterman


Changing the Discourse on Sustainability

• Away from constraint, scolding, and despair. – Loggers vs. Tree Huggers– Drilling in ANWR vs. Polar Bears– Growth vs. green

• To challenge, opportunity, empowerment, fun– Fundamental alignment between a healthy environment and healthy

businesses and economy to serve human needs– Reducing our ecological footprint can boost profits, save money– Building a sustainable society is exciting & fulfilling


MIT Sloan collaborates productively with other schools & programs at MIT

• Building a sustainable world requires – INVENTION: Creating new opportunities

• Advances in basic science; new technologies• MIT schools of Engineering, Science, Architecture, etc.

– IMPLEMENTATION: Getting it done • Entrepreneurship and commercialization• The dynamics of organizational and social change• Process Improvement, organizational learning and adaptation• Interactions of markets, firms & organizations• Sloan School, Dept. of Economics, Pol. Science, etc.


Promise of Sustainability

• Key to addressing sustainability is re-defining it:

“Up until now, we have considered aspects of sustainability – climate,energy, water, food, poverty, and social development – in isolation.

“The Sloan Sustainability Initiative is developing an integrated framework to consider the system-wide dynamics of human society along with the tools and methodologies for measuring and monitoring sustainability efforts and their applications.”

– Prof. Richard Locke, 2007


Initiative Objectives

• Develop cutting-edge sustainability management tools• Build deeper understanding, through research, of how firms can:

– Operate in sustainable ways AND– Play a positive role in environmental regeneration and support of

human welfare• Prepare students with skills to lead in a resource-sensitive world• Create community that includes, engages, motivates and

organizes stakeholders towards integrative solutions:– MIT/Sloan faculty, students, staff, alumni– Partners in business, government, etc.


What is the Initiative?

A constellation of related activities encompassing key stakeholders throughout the School and beyond

Research center

Academic programs

Speakers & conferences

Outreach & engagement

Campus activities

Activities

Primary driver(s): Faculty Faculty Students

Faculty

Students

Staff (various depts.)

Faculty

Students

Staff (various depts.)

Faculty


Initial areas of focus:

• Global climate change and energy systems – How can we change human systems and activities to reduce global

warming?– How can existing businesses be redesigned? New ones built?

• Global justice and economic development: – How do we direct economic development to distribute benefits more

equitably and avoid damaging social/political/environmental systems? – What opportunities can profit-oriented companies pursue here? – What evidence do we have that this works?

• Business practices and sustainability:– Can companies do well and do good?– How do we identify and disseminate best practices that

• Decrease all forms of “waste” and• Increase economic/social/environmental benefits?


Initiative in 2006-2007

• 2006-2007: – Support and seed funding from Dean– Launch of major new course: Sustainable Business Lab (S-Lab)– Sustainability Speaker series– SIP courses on socially responsible investing and fair trade– Sustainability @ Sloan group: faculty, students & staff

• Huge student interest:– Large, active Net Impact chapter– Participation by Sloan in S*, Generator, WTT & other committees


S-Lab: Philosophy & pedagogy

• Systems view

– Sustainable ecologically, economically, socially, politically, and personally

– Problems and crises in each of these domains are symptoms of the same underlying system.

• Active learning

– Project-based learning, working with companies and organizations on semester-long projects

– Simulations, “buzz groups”, cases, presentations, and guest speakers.• Methodologies and Tools

– Working to develop, test, and aid implementation of systematic approaches backed by empirical data


S-Lab Spring 2007

STUDENTS: • New course in S07• No prior advertising• 12 units (heavy workload)• About 60 students registered; highly

diverse– Sloan– ESD– DUSP– Architecture– Other MIT– Harvard (e.g. KSG)

FACULTY• Co-taught by 8 faculty

• Rebecca Henderson• Simon Johnson*• Rick Locke• Nelson Repenning• Anjali Sastry• Jeff Shames• Sarah Slaughter• John Sterman

• *Now chief economist of the IMF


S-Lab topics• Setting the stage: Sustainability dilemmas

– Climate Change– Energy– Population, health, development and poverty

• Management for Sustainability – Sustainable infrastructure and the built environment– Globalization and labor standards– Extractive industries

• Putting the pieces together: Limits to growth, technology, and happiness– Interactions of population, technology, resources– No purely technical solutions for the most important challenges– Can firms do well by doing good?– Catalyzing change in organizations – Sustainability and professional obligations & opportunities

• Project presentations


S-Lab Spring 2007 projects• Large established firms:

– Disney Imagineers: Alternative energy sources for Orlando region

– Intel: Defining and designing sustainable global supply chain

– Nike: CSR issues• Startups and small firms

– GoLoCo: Business strategy for social network facilitating ride sharing

– Good Energies: Strategy for $3.5 billion fund investing in renewables/solar

– Greenfuel Technologies: business/– marketing model for CO2 to biofuel

technology– Merida: Business strategy for maker of

natural fiber floor coverings– Mibanco: Business strategy for Latin

American micro-credit organization– Spark Group: strategy for startup in

Chennai investing in schools via microfinance

• NGOs/Gov’t– Friends of Petit-Anse: Haitian

community group empowering poorest of the poor

– Health Care Without Harm: Improving health by improving bldg environ quality

– UFM: Universidad Francisco Marroquín, Guatemala; microfinance business model

– World Bank: Consulting to WB Development Marketplace Competition finalists

• MIT– Sloan: Lessons learned from successful

green building design process (E62)– WTT task force: Carbon emissions

inventory


S-Lab media coverage

• Mainstream outlets:

– Financial Times

– Newsweek

– CNN International

– Boston Globe

– LA Times

– Boston.com

– BizEd

• Alternative outlets:

– GreenBiz.com

– Treehugger.com

– EcoTalk radio

– Grist


Current Initiative status

• Launching: – MIT Sloan Sustainable Business & Society Initiative

• Proposing: – Establishment of research center

• Continuing: – Successful past activities under new Initiative umbrella

• Expanding:– Building new relationships, organizing new activities



• Research: – Establishing the MIT Sloan Center for Sustainable Business &

Society• Academic programs:

– Continuing S-Lab in Spring 2008– New Sustainability SIPs

• Speakers & conferences: Currently planned– 2007-2008: Sustainability Speakers series– December 07: Sustainable Business Conference– January 08: Coordinating with Alliance for Global Sustainability for

their biannual conference



• Campus activities:– MBA clubs:

• Net Impact• Energy & Environment• Sloan Entrepreneurs for International Development

– Sloan Fellows Social Impact Club– Linking with MIT activities e.g. Walk the Talk Task Force,

Environmental Education Committee



• Communication: – August 2007:

• Launching Sustainability at Sloan website– Will continue to update, including new podcasts

• Incorporating sustainability into MBA Orientation– September 2007:

• Rollout of media campaign to begin– Additional possibilities under consideration:

• Alumni magazine, e-newsletter• Big Idea campaign• Your ideas?



• Career development:– Internships:

• At least 17 MBA students (08s) returning from sustainability-related summer internships

– Engagement: • CDO signaling student interest in sustainability to recruiters

– Future opportunities: • CDO actively compiling information on career opportunities for

MIT Sloan MBAs


Thanks!

Questions and suggestions?

[email protected]

Documents

MIT Sloan Sustainable Business