What about sustainability marketing?

Posted by in Sustainability Marketing

“We are living in 1.3 planets but we only have one” said Jason Clay on his TED Talk called How Big Brands can help save biodiversity. Like Jason Clay, many people and movements have tried to generate awareness of environmental and social problems since the 1950’s. This awareness has increased drastically due to social media and has inspired people to take part on this concern. The last video I have seen about sustainability is “Dear Future Generations: Sorry” by Stand for Trees. I believe that they really transmit what sustainability is about and how important it is for all of us to cooperate.

As mentioned on the previous video, “an error does not become a mistake until you choose not to correct it.” This is why governments, companies, NGO’s and consumers should all implement more sustainable decisions because it is not too late for us to make a change. A sustainable decision is defined as a decision that satisfies your present needs without compromissing the ability of future generations to meet their own. A good example is how animals in danger of extinction are victims of a non-sustainable decision. People buy their fur for a short term benefit, without thinking of the future generations that will not have the privilege to see these animals alive.

Furthermore, this concept is integrating three different aspects: social, environmental and economical aspects. They are all equally important to have a better future. This is the reason why I chose to call my blog “People, Planet and Prosperity” inspired by the “2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” by the United Nations.

Integrating people, planet and prosperity into any decision will allow us to control and, perhaps, fix this situation. However, would it be fixed on time? Could it be fixed at all? Nobody knows the answer. No matter who you are, everyone should start implementing sustainability as a lifestyle. I personally believe that businesses should be more concerned about this problem because their decisions are the ones that affect this planet the most.

Finally, a concept that really attracted my attention was sustainability marketing. Although it is a common belief that sustainability and marketing are completely opposite concepts, there are some researchers that are starting to merge both ideas. It is possible for them to coexist. Companies should stop selling just aspirational products and start selling sustainability, just like Steve Howard recommends in the following Ted Talk.

Thank you for reading!

MHC

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