Caring for Creation: Environmental Management Systems for BAM Companies

The findings of the BAM and Creation Care Consultation indicate a profound shift in the attitude of BAM practitioners to environmental stewardship and creation care in the last decade. This was particularly notable in the second report in this series, ‘How are We Doing?: An Environmental Stewardship Survey of BAM Practitioners’. Environmental stewardship was important to survey respondents both personally and in their business. While this is an encouraging development, an outstanding challenge identified from that study was the effective implementation of Environmental Management Systems (EMS).

Earlier in our consultation process, we interviewed Christian scientists and environmental leaders and asked them the one thing they would tell a God-honouring business to do to be a good creation care steward, see Part 1. More recently, we asked Christian business men and women their suggestions to fellow BAM practitioners on how to get started with an EMS, see Part 2.

As we have already seen from previous reports in this series, there is much to motivate us in the task of environmental stewardship; there are many ways we can respond to both the biblical mandate to care for creation and the pressing environmental challenges faced by the world today.

However, business as mission practitioners face challenges, they are often doing business in underserved places, amongst employees, customers or communities that are neglected by others. Historically they have lacked capacity and resources to care for creation as they would hope to. The desire to develop and implement fruitful environmental management practices has been expressed by BAM practitioners, but the practical know-how has been lacking. This paper is a response to this finding and provides guidance in establishing an EMS.

This report establishes some foundational ideas and shares helpful materials to assist BAM practitioners towards becoming better environmental stewards through their companies. It points to further resources that should significantly aid the BAM community to mature in its ability to develop effective Environmental Management Systems.

The recommendations and action plan that follow provide tangible steps for BAM practitioners and the wider BAM community to pursue.

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See also:
BAM and Creation Care Part 1

BAM and Creation Care Part 2

BAM and Creation Care Part 3

How Are We Doing? An Environmental Stewardship Survey of BAM Practitioners

Environmental stewardship is a critical outcome, or ‘bottom line’, of business. However, organisations and companies face challenges in managing their environmental systems and creating a positive environmental impact. This report aims to understand the challenges, both technical and institutional, faced by business as mission (BAM) entities in particular. It explores the implications for environmental stewardship practices and the successful implementation of Environmental Management Systems.

The BAM Global Creation Care Consultation Group is mandated to serve the Kingdom-minded business community with practical guidance on environmental stewardship. In this report, we discuss the challenges and successes experienced by BAM organisations in this area. In turn, we propose realistic, measurable and attainable goals for increasing the level of environmental stewardship—both in individual BAM companies and the BAM movement as a whole—and identify some critical resources and support mechanisms required to do so.

BAM practitioners were polled about their environmental practices and the challenges they face through two separate survey processes. Respondents came from a wide geographical area and a wide variety of business sectors. The results from both surveys provided the raw materials for this report and will help drive the ongoing work of developing environmental management resources for the BAM community.

The survey findings indicate a profound shift in the attitude of BAM practitioners to environmental stewardship and creation care in the last decade. They revealed that environmental stewardship was important to respondents both personally and in their business, with a median score of 8 out of 10 for both aspects. While this is encouraging, an outstanding challenge is the effective implementation of Environmental Management Systems (EMS). While many BAM practitioners desired to initiate an EMS, there was a reported lack of knowledge on how to begin.

A SWOT analysis of survey responses was completed to give a clearer picture of the state of engagement on environmental stewardship within the BAM community. From that work, a TOWS analysis was developed to explore potential solutions and responses.

Recommendations and action plans for consideration by the BAM community are proposed. These include practical suggestions for BAM practitioners aiming to become better environmental managers and stewards through their companies. There are also recommendations for further resource and network development within the broader business as mission ecosystem.

We reconfirm that a successful Environmental Management System, and the resulting positive environmental impact, is best achieved when one interconnects all four bottom lines of BAM. Consideration of the environmental bottom line cannot be divorced from the financial, social, or spiritual bottom lines.

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See also:
BAM and Creation Care Part 1

BAM and Creation Care Part 3

BAM and Creation Care Part 4