Karen Seeh is a young environmental professional and consultant in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, with over ten years of experience at the intersection of business and environmental sustainability. In other words, Karen has been doing this since before it was the cool thing to do! Karen exercises her passion for launching mission-based ventures as Principal of Jihi Consulting, offering business and non-profit development services, as well as by serving as an advisory board member for the Strategic Business Intelligence Group (SBIG), an informal group of professionals who promote social enterprise to the Dallas/Ft. Worth region. Karen has been involved in Net Impact, an environmental and social sustainability organization for young professionals that spans the globe, and she has spoken with me by phone before to share some great thoughts on succeeding in the sustainability niche. Here today you will learn more about the career path she has blazed for herself, and about developing trends in corporate sustainability and social enterprise.

You describe yourself as a Corporate Sustainability Strategist and a Social Enterprise Creation and Ideation consultant, which sounds very interesting! So, in layman’s terms, what do you do?

Well, as this field barely existed when I started my career 12 years ago and is still in the process of formation — I’ve done a lot of things to get to where I am today. Currently, I operate as an independent consultant providing business and non-profit development services (marketing/communications, fundraising/sales, multi-stakeholder partnerships, and strategy) to corporate social responsibility (CSR) ventures and social enterprises. I really enjoy laying the groundwork, connecting people, integrating ideas and data, and publicizing to get these ventures launched and/or scaled. And I most enjoy it when I can draw upon my experience in information technology/technology innovation, the environment, and small business and entrepreneurial development.

What does “business sustainability” mean to you?

Figuring out how to avoid the risks and take advantage of the opportunities presented to a business while still balancing economic, environmental (and human health!), and social considerations. All too often businesses focus on taking advantage of economic opportunities and only pursuing a risk management approach in terms of environmental and social considerations. This is probably not the best long-term strategy (but then how many businesses think long-term?). On the flip side, I think there is real value to be created when businesses start to think creatively about how to turn environmental and social challenges into a business opportunity.

When I say “social enterprise” in this context, I mean that the enterprise is “mission driven” — the founders have a passion for addressing a societal or environmental problem with a particular approach, service, or product. And then they just form the most appropriate vehicle around that solution (non-profit, for-profit, etc.) to accomplish the mission. Money is still important, but secondary to the mission. Especially in the case of the non-profit structure, they are often just seeking enough money to keep themselves self-financed.

Your most recent position was consulting for Envirofit International. Walk us through what a typical project like this looks like.

Envirofit is a growing clean tech non-profit in need of “expansion stage” funding. I developed a fundraising strategy and kickstarted it building relationships with government agencies, international development organizations and banks, social venture capital firms and foundations, as well as pursuing additional opportunities such as competitions, strategic partnerships, and low-cost publicity. Developing a fundraising strategy is a lot like developing a sales and marketing plan — you identify your prospects and determine your approach with each group. It’s just that non-profit fundraising is probably a lot more regimented than private sector sales and marketing; there are certain prescribed formats for letters and proposals.

You’ve worked in non-profit, government, and private business. Describe what that experience has been like, and how you got to be where you are now.

I never realized how unusual that was until I lived outside of Washington, D.C. as a professional. I formed my career in Washington, where it’s very commonplace for people to be “multi-sectoral.” It’s my sense that, at least within the space of CSR and social enterprise, the lines between these groups are increasingly becoming blurred. It was already clear to me 12 years ago when I started my career that there is no “us against them,” and the wave of the future was multi-stakeholder partnerships. Unfortunately, despite the popularity of such partnerships, they are often not as successful as they can be without mutual understanding. I think that my background enables me to provide this unique perspective.

What got you interested in sustainable development and sustainable growth?

I think it was a combination of things: many summers trips to Alaska during my high school years — was there the summer before and the summer after Exxon Valdez; saw the dried up Midwest from a plane during the summer drought of 1988. My father also worked for a large energy company, so growing up I was very aware of where my power came from — I was taught to conserve energy at a young age. Many people in my family, too, have been Peace Corps volunteers, so at a young age I was exposed to their stories about life in developing countries. I latched onto environmental issues and became a vegetarian somewhere around the age of 15…and it all evolved from there.

Do you feel like you make a positive impact with your career?

I think just about every career can be seen to have a positive impact, and some of us are more driven by impact than other motivators. I am definitely strongly driven by impact, and I do think that my career makes a positive impact at least in the short term. I cannot predict the impacts that I’ll have in the long-term. The impact that I value has changed over the years. I think it’s easy to get caught up in pursuing impact that is of national or international significance. However, all too often, such impacts lack a human connection. You may begin to wonder who did you really help. Because of this, I now gravitate toward opportunities where I can have a large impact on a small group of people or on one enterprise. Not that one way is better than the other, but you have to know what really gives you satisfaction.

When the job gets tough, what keeps you going?

I don’t know if I even think about work being “tough.” If there’s a problem that needs to be solved, it’s all I can think about to get to the bottom of it and move on. Work needs to be viewed in perspective: Think how lucky we are to even be given the opportunity of having work that also brings us great personal satisfaction. My parents and grandparents certainly did not have this. So, what on Earth do I have to complain about?

What do you recommend to students who want to get into your line of work?

I’m not quite sure if I know what “my line of work” is! I personally think it’s important to be a multi-sectoral professional and to be able to think “integratively” and creatively about business opportunities — to be able to flip an environmental challenge into a business opportunity by tapping into the resources of government agency X. But I’m not sure if a multi-sectoral career path is possible for all people, and I’m not sure if creativity is teachable.

International experience is always valuable even if you don’t intend to work internationally because it will test and change your ways of thinking about the world if you allow it to. An MBA degree helps to open doors, and these days is in demand by government, non-profit, and the private sector alike.

There are also many ways to have an impact — you don’t have to be a CSR or social enterprise professional. You can be a marketing manager who works for a green products company. You can make a bundle of money on Wall Street and then start your own foundation. There are many paths, and it’s not my place to value one over the other.

Karen, again, thank you so much for your willingness to share your incredible professional experience in corporate social responsibility and sustainability with us. For consulting inquiries, you can contact Karen at karen@jihiconsulting.com.

Read the original article on Thrilling Heroics here: An Interview with Karen Seeh, Corporate Sustainability Strategist

According to the Urban Monk, the blogosphere is coming to an end. If I had just one last post, what would it be? What would I say…to you guys…my audience…

I was thinking about what’s most important to me yesterday–what I’m most passionate about–”why do I spend so much time researching and writing about this stuff?” I thought to myself. I don’t get paid to write this blog. I’ve made about 54 cents, whereas it costs me about $90/year to keep ThrillingHeroics.com running.

Why do I do it, then? I spent my Earth Day describing to my dad how some of my generation feels like it’s inheriting this huge problem from those who came before us. Al Gore’s movie opened a lot of eyes to global warming this past year (including mine), and the damage it could potentially do to our world. And my personal life goal is to have a hand in changing the world for the better!

Now some people are still skeptical—my father for instance says that he has lived through far too many environmental panics that didn’t turn out the way scientists and environmentalists said they would. But I’m not interested in conjecturing or worrying about who’s to blame—that’s all a waste of time, and talk like that is designed to mislead you from the real challenges at hand. And yeah, we might avert the problem altogether…if we’re really lucky (in my opinion). My concerns don’t depend on the verity of global warming so much though—my issue is with the simple fact that our species is expanding very rapidly—exponentially—developing nations are fast becoming as industrialized and affluent as the United States, and we are burning through natural resources like there’s no tomorrow.

Well, there IS a tomorrow. At least, I want to ensure there is a tomorrow. These things only replenish so fast.

So my concern is more with the long-term sustainability of our society. I’m looking at consumption and growth trends. I want to have kids one day—but I don’t want them to be born into a post-apocalyptic industrial wasteland, and I don’t want them to starve because China takes all our resources, for instance. The problem is a simple problem of economics.

I’m an environmentalist at heart—because my dad used to take me camping and hiking and all that jazz every summer. I enjoy the “outdoors.” Now I approach my environmentalism from a business standpoint—because sustainability really poses a challenge to business and economic growth! Most companies look one year into the future to try to improve upon their past performance, but they need to look further into the future if they want to sustain over the long haul.

I’m not trying to scare you with doom and gloom. I’m trying to seek out individuals who are making a DIFFERENCE! Proactive people who are creating innovative solutions to these environmental and social problems—to hold them up as an example for future leaders…the best of my generation who will need to tackle things like poverty, hunger, the availability of clean water, natural resources, land to build our cities on, and so forth.

I think the best way to solve as many problems efficiently is to reduce the amount of work involved in the things we already know how to do well. That means using fewer resources and reusing what we can, increasing our energy efficiency, decreasing the distance we have to move food and raw materials, and so on.

There are a lot of people on this planet. And so far, it’s the only home we have. So I ask everybody to think critically about your use of energy and resources. Try to live more sustainably. Think about replenishable power sources. Buy local food, or grow your own. Do it for your kids, and your grandkids, and so on.

Also, if the blogosphere were coming to an end I’d have to ask you to look for me in print! Yup, that’s right–look for the THRILLING heroics book! One day…I’d like to publish the stories of dozens of cutting edge social entrepreneurs and “ecopreneurs” as I like to call them. People who are doing well for themselves AND doing good for the planet/for society at the same time. It’s not impossible…

Thanks to Nia for tagging me for this meme on her Leave America blog. Nia also has a neat blog where she looks at sustainable living in Portugal, among other things. If you want to participate in the Blog Apocalypse meme—Urban Monk will give $500 to charity!! Anyone who wants to participate is welcome—just link to my post here, and link to this page that tells you all about the Blog Apocalypse.

I’ll tag Adam, Ryan, James Van, James Britton, Steve, Patrick, Robyn, and Ron.

Read the original article on Thrilling Heroics here: The Last Thrill

This is the final installment in the Slow Cooker Earth series. We’ve looked at what global warming means in terms of extreme weather and rising sea levels, and its effect on animals and the land. Today we look at its effect on human society.

“Global warming” and “climate change” are obviously becoming the new buzzwords in our lexicon, and a big way we see them manifest in our daily lives is in public policy and legislation, though you may not realize how much has changed simply because of the weather! But obviously on an international level the Kyoto Protocol has been big in the news for years, and federal, state, city, and local governments are all working hard to keep up with new challenges. The rules associated with how we do business, how we travel, how we build, and how we live are all evolving because of climate changes. (That is one reason why so many large multinational companies are now calling for definitive carbon laws—so they can eliminate some of the uncertainty.) Below I illustrate four such cases of climate-induced public policy issues. If there are other issues you know of, tell us about them in the comments!

Taxing Carbon - Sweden installed the world’s first carbon tax in 1991. While the idea has been bounced around several times here in the States, it is more common to find mandated carbon cap systems where corporations buy and sell the right to pollute in carbon markets—also known as “cap-and-trade” systems. In 2005, the European Union set up the largest and first international emissions trading market, the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, and we are now seeing them develop in the Northeast United States (the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative) and in California. This creates a new form of income for clean, efficient companies, but it also taxes those who can’t keep up.
US States plan to cut emissions [BBC News]

Air travel – Airline flight accounts for about 3.5% of our greenhouse gas emissions. And each flight we take puts out MUCH more carbon into the atmosphere than even our biggest gas-guzzlers do per-person per-mile. Some airlines already offer voluntary carbon offset purchase programs, but fliers will most likely be required to pay mandatory offset fees on international flights in the near future.
Airline introduces carbon offset program [GreenBiz.com]
UK May be the first country to implement binding carbon targets [BBC News]

Rail travel – Trains are the cleanest mainstream form of travel per passenger-mile, so carbon tax incentives for shipping companies and short-range domestic travel will increasingly favor rail systems that decrease our carbon output and increase energy independence. Citizen groups like Energize America are petitioning Congress with their own legislative proposals to build an American high-speed passenger railway system much like France’s TGV.
Energize America: The High Speed Passenger Rail Act, Draft 1 [Daily Kos]

Coastal infrastructure – Low-lying developments in hurricane areas (such as Florida and Louisiana coasts) are at high risk with the increased rate and intensity of hurricanes and the possibility of rising sea levels. Therefore, there is increased public spending on coastal engineering (things like levees, water walls, and dikes) and higher insurance premium costs (which are also subsidized by federal money). And as National Geographic reports, all this infrastructure might actually be “making the shores more vulnerable by destroying wetlands, sandbars, and other natural barriers that mitigate storm damage.”
Global warming seen pushing up insurance costs [Reuters]

Part I: How Weather Patterns Are Changing Worldwide
Part II: The Threat Posed By Rising Sea Levels
Part III: What You Should Know About Species Extinction
Part IV: How Global Warming is Changing the Face of Our Icons
Part V: The Unforseen Effect on Public Policy

Read the original article on Thrilling Heroics here: Slow Cooker Earth Part V: The Unforseen Effect on Public Policy

Today I finally return to an old series about the impact of global warming on our earth. If you’re new, I invite you to catch up on Parts 1, 2, and 3. This “Slow Cooker Earth” series is meant to give you some hard evidence of the harmful trends occurring in ecosystems and climate around the world and how it might begin to affect human life, to encourage you to make some conscious decisions to help turn the problem around. (It is NOT meant as a gloom and doom series at all!)

The following are just a few examples of iconic landmarks and travel destinations that are being given a drastic new face with the effects of climate change. Whether you believe global warming is a side-effect of human activities or a natural occurrence, the fact remains that it IS happening. And unless we want to lose our natural habitat, we should work together to adapt.

Amazon - Rainfall in the rainforest is much less predictable. “There’s less rain. The streams used to be pretty consistent. Now they’re ranging from neck-high flooding to completely dry,” said Peter English, an Ecuador tour guide. According to some projections, temperatures could rise 5° Celsius (9° Fahrenheit) in the tropics–plenty enough to wipe out the rainforests.
Amazon Rainforest Could Become a Desert [The Independent]

Glacier National Park - “Glacier National Park might soon need a new name,” says LiveScience staff writer Bjorn Carey, of the Montana Rockies’ landmark. Since 1850, about 125 out of 150 glaciers there have completely disappeared, and the rest are suspected to melt in the next twenty-five years.
Glaciers Melting in Montana Park [CBS News]

Great Barrier Reef - Pollution, disease, and overfishing were already doing a number on the world’s famous coral reef. Add to that much warmer water, and the coral polyps that bring barrier reefs around the world to colorful life are turned to hard white fossils. Caribbean reef ecosystems have already declined by about 30%, and the Great Barrier may be the last snorkeling spot to go.
Great Barrier Reef Dying [BBC News]

Kilimanjaro - The world’s tallest free-standing mountain, in Tanzania, attract about 30,000 climbers a year and many more onlookers, but the beloved “snows of Kilimanjaro” will disappear by 2020. Its glacier is quickly receding, and the massive ice blocks there are collapsing. Three American climbers were crushed in 2006 when the melting mountain sent huge rocks tumbling down on their campsite.
Mount Kilimanjaro’s Glacier is Crumbling [National Geographic]

Many of these famous landmarks already no longer resemble what our grandparents once recognized. As the habitats disappear, so will many of the species we love to see on the Nature Channel. And as more and more species become extinct, our relationship with the climate and with agriculture will be further jeopardized. Check back soon to see the next installment on how this will affect public policy, at which point you will no longer be able to ignore it.

Read the original article on Thrilling Heroics here: Slow Cooker Earth Part IV: How Global Warming is Changing the Face of Our Icons

Many believe that in order to conquer global warming, we need to see a full transformation in human living spaces and transportation. Which is a LOT of work!

Well, there are a few communities that are working hard to create drastically innovative living centers that change land use and transportation needs for the better. These “eco-cities” are something I’ve been meaning to share for some time—there’s one in development right here in California’s Bay Area! Califia is a proposed economically- and ecologically-sustainable community in the works for the next ten to fifteen years which will support a population of 10,000 in the San Francisco metro area. In conjunction with a worldwide network of similar development projects, the Green Century Institute is leading what it calls “network-facilitated community development”–through online wikis and forums, as well as offline salons and community design summits–with leading urban design advisors Paolo Soleri and Jon Jerde.

“…We envision Califia as a leading edge eco-development joining next generation green architectural design principles and information systems into integral human living environments for the 21st century. Key to the design will be the innovative social meshwork underlying it, which will be implemented in a flexible mixed-use project combining traditional and cohousing-style residential development–a full suite of community, commercial, and social spaces to maximize human potential and group interactions.”

For a look at some similar development projects, take a look at Arizona’s Arcosanti and Auroville in Southern India. For more on Califia, here’s the Green Century Institute’s proposed plan.

Read the original article on Thrilling Heroics here: Drastic Evolutions in Sustainable Development

Sources tell me that the House of Representatives voted in favor of H.R. 6 today, the “Creating Long-Term Energy Alternatives for the Nation Act of 2007,” or “CLEAN Energy Act of 2007.” Representatives Jerry McNerney (CA), Charles Rangel (NY), and Nick Rahall (WV) introduced the Act on Tuesday for the House’s first 100-Hour Agenda, a bill that will repeal approximately $13 billion in tax incentives and subsidies extended to big oil companies and re-allocate those funds toward alternative renewable energy sources and energy efficiency measures.

The Apollo Alliance for Good Jobs and Clean Energy said in a recent study that major investment in alternative energy sectors has the potential to create 3.3 million jobs and stimulate $1.4 trillion in new GDP. In their press release, Apollo Alliance President Jerome Ringo says:

“Passage of the CLEAN Act is a signal of change and the sign of a Congress that is ready to meet the challenge to end our nation’s dependence on foreign oil. But this is only the first step. Our nation needs to undertake a crash program to make America the leader in clean energy technology, create jobs of the future for the next generation of American workers, rebalance our nation’s relationship with the global environment and prepare us to meet the challenges of climate change.”

Journalists are saying President Bush’s annual speech to Congress next week will most likely encourage increased ethanol usage and changes in environmental policy, but not go so far as to call for mandatory caps on emissions. Hopefully someone will hasten that research into more sustainable methods of producing ethanol.

Read the original article on Thrilling Heroics here: Are You CLEAN Or Dirty??

This is the third post in a series that I was inspired to write by what I learned from a recent National Geographic Traveler feature. In today’s post, I give some concrete examples of animal species that are suffering due to global warming.

Many people tend to think that “global warming = everything getting hotter,” so when there are unusually cold winters like the one here in Sacramento, they think that disproves global warming. Unfortunately that’s not the case. Global warming means more extreme weather patterns, both hot and cold, which puts stress on whole ecosystems. Ecosystems are made up of thousands of interdependent living things, and when one member of the food chain disappears, the rest of the system suffers, and it can create a domino effect.

These are just a few of the species that are endangered or already extinct because of human-generated carbon emissions:

Antarctic Peninsula – Emperor and Adélie penguins have long been an attraction for Arctic cruise ships. But they are quickly disappearing along with the floe ice.
Penguin Decline in Antarctica Linked With Climate Change [National Geographic News]

British Columbia – Cold winters used to kill off the beetles that eat the pine forests of Jasper and Banff parks, but now warmer winters allow the beetles to thrive, and the dead, dry pines are left susceptible to raging forest fires.
Forest Was Easy Prey For Raging Tripod Fire [Seattle Times]

Caribbean – Scientists believe dust fallout from unusually hot, dry Saharan wind storms in Africa is carrying a fungus that kills sea-fan coral in Florida and the Caribbean.
African Dust Killing Caribbean Coral [BBC]

Chesapeake – The Chesapeake and Delaware Bays attract the largest amount of migratory shorebirds on the Atlantic–but populations have declined by over 90% due to deepening water, which eats up the birds’ marsh habitat.
The Case of the Vanishing Islands [National Geographic]

Costa Rica – Extreme rain and cold have diminished the food supply for Corcovado howler monkeys, while about 20 frog species in Monteverde are already lost to climate change.
Rain Forest Gets Too Much Rain, and Animals Pay the Price [NYT]
Why The Frogs Are Dying [Newsweek]

Manitoba – Polar bears’ food source in the pack ice is disappearing, and so are the bears! Populations have shrunk by a quarter since 1987 in this bear-watching haven.
Global Warming Could Starve Polar Bears [BBC]

It is no longer debated whether global warming is real; the question is how long will we be idle before we change the ways we live and do business, so that our lifestyle no longer affects our environment so negatively? Take a look back next week for Part IV on how global warming is transforming the faces of iconic landmarks like Mount Kilimanjaro.

Read the original article on Thrilling Heroics here: Slow Cooker Earth Part III: What You Should Know About Species Extinction

This is the second in a series where I examine the effects of global warming on our world—effects which are already visible, and threats that loom on the horizon unless we change the way we live our lives. To read Part I, click here: Slow Cooker Earth Part I: How Weather Patterns Are Changing Worldwide.

Today I examine rising sea levels—caused by melting ice caps and water that expands as the atmosphere warms. The oceans are estimated to rise by a foot or more by 2050, and by three feet by 2100—which doesn’t sound like a lot, but which could have catastrophic outcome for flat, low shorelines, seaside resorts, and low-lying islands. Here are some examples of regions that are already threatened—or wiped off the earth:

Maldive Islands – This favorite European destination in the Indian Ocean has already installed a seawall around its perimeter—a barrier to hold back the invading tides. Many buildings sit on pilings in the shallow (but rising!) water.
Paradise (Soon To Be) Lost [Spiegel Online]

North Carolina – The Outer Banks are the most susceptible of the U.S.’s string of Atlantic barrier islands to tidal invasion. As National Geographic Traveler notes, “…each decade’s two-inch rise in sea level can reach 25 feet farther inland,” threatening local homes. But what will happen when there are another 3 feet of water?
N.C. Lawmakers Address Rising Worry Over Global Warming’s Impact [AP via East Carolina University]

Takuu Islands – These native people in Papua New Guinea are being evacuated from their native atoll islands. After living for 3,000 years on these islands, the water is too high for them to remain.
Locals Face Starvation As Their Island Home Sinks [CNN World News]

Venice – Water levels are rising as the foundations are sinking, causing regular floods in St. Mark’s Square, one out of every six days of the year. Although a system of sea gates is set to be installed, the city has been less and less inhabitable–the population has dropped by well over half in the last 50 years.
Sinking City of Venice: Weighing the Solutions [PBS]

Check back next week for Part III! Thanks for reading.

Read the original article on Thrilling Heroics here: Slow Cooker Earth Part II: The Threat Posed By Rising Sea Levels

National Geographic Traveler magazine recently featured a full exposé on global warming, climate change, and how it will affect travel and tourism. This was a great series, but unfortunately it is not available online. So I will post a series of articles that covers the evidence they’ve gathered, plus some. Today, I present the emerging signs of climate change as they manifest themselves in weather patterns. Below are a few examples of how changing weather conditions are already causing problems around the world, and some possible weather-related threats on the horizon. If you don’t believe global warming is real–if you think it’s just a “trend”–here are some examples of how it is making real problems in our world. If you don’t think finding environmentally sustainable ways of living is an important thing to do, here is why it is:

Arizona – Global warming computer models project rainfall problems. An eight-year drought consistent with global warming has no immediate end in sight, and may cause water shortages for Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada.
State Could Impose Water Restrictions [Associated Press]

Canada – Arctic winters have warmed by 4° Fahrenheit. In 2003, the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf on Ellesmere Island–once 150 feet thick, and 3,000 years old–broke up.
Arctic Ice Shelf Splits [BBC]

Himalayas – Glacial melting in the Himalaya causes flooding downstream and disrupts agriculture and ecosystems throughout India, Tibet, Nepal, and China.
Himalayan Glaciers ‘Melting Fast’ [China Daily]

Holland – Dutch cities like Amsterdam sit on such a sophisticated network of dikes and water gates that increased rainfall on the Rhine River, and glacial runoff from the Alps, pose a serious flood threat.
Global Warming Poses Threat to Dutch [Reuters]

Mediterranean – Tourist-packed beaches are experiencing record numbers of 100°-plus heatwaves. Most recently, hundreds of thousands of jellyfish washed ashore, killed by high temperatures.
Spain’s Beaches, Flora Feel The Heat [CBS News]

Siberia – As arctic lakes dry up and icy tundra melts away, greenhouse gases are released that may intensify global warming even further.
Climate Warning as Siberia Melts [New Scientist]

Read the original article on Thrilling Heroics here: Slow Cooker Earth Part I: How Weather Patterns Are Changing Worldwide