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perceiving that the customer does not have time for such “rural” activities.
Although such a person will not readily perceive this, compared to commu-
nity gardeners, this whole approach is actually quite isolating, even alienat-
ing, not only from one another but also from the feeling of true community,
which is based on mutual caring.
As a final note, the reader would be justified in complaining that these
examples seem to be “straw men” or “Trojan horses” set up not to repre-
sent actual choices, but to allow us to make a predetermined case for cer-
tain activities or for the use of the three pillars of sustainability. Our first
response is “guilty as charged.” We do wish to use clear-cut examples to
demonstrate how anyone can use the framework in testing the effectiveness
of a proposed allocation of resources. And perhaps the best examples at the
outset are clear-cut situations.
However, we set out to make an important point. Anything a person, a
business, a community, or a nation is doing now or sets out to do can be
assessed effectively using this system. Although it is admittedly the case
that the resulting evidence, and therefore the judgment rendered, will not
always be as clear-cut as in these examples, the results of the analytical effort
are guaranteed to enlighten. Our purpose here is not to recommend that
you, the reader, buy solar collectors and garden (though we think you would
enjoy them), but rather that you experiment with using the triple bottom-line
framework, individually and collectively, in assessing projects and activities
that affect all of our lives. In fact, the use of the process makes an excellent
community-building activity. We cannot imagine a more constructive event
than a community workshop employing the three pillars (ecological integ-
rity, social equity, and economic stability) to assess the proposal of a real
project of interest to the entire community.
With practice comes clarity about where we are headed as a culture and
about what we may need to do to insure a fulfilling life for our loved ones
and ourselves, and to insure that future generations enjoy the same oppor-
tunities with which we have been so abundantly blessed. It is all about liv-
ing in long-term harmony with our planetary home. We think the triple
bottom-line framework can assist the achievement of such a goal, and that
is a powerful contribution to social-environmental sustainability for all
generations.
Sustainability in Practice—The Track Record
The idea of the triple bottom-line has been around for some time now. Many
individuals, groups, and organizations have—to their credit—attempted to
employ the concepts in actual practices and projects. We are compelled to ask:
How is it going? What have been the results, the successes, the shortcomings?
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