Recently I have received many requests for more information about ecoPortal – our cloud based sustainability management system which enables companies to integrate their environmental, health & safety and quality management systems. Last month I was interviewed on Florian Kaefer’s Sustainable Futures blog in relation to the status of sustainable business and the uptake of environmental management systems in New Zealand. I spoke about my concerns on the lack of companies with ISO 14001 certification in New Zealand. There is also a need for companies who do decide to implement environmental management systems, to not just ‘tick the boxes’ of the requirements of the standard, rather, to embed the system into their culture and day-to-day activities.

This is precisely why we started ecoPortal - ecoPortal was developed as a tool to help organisations to implement an effective sustainability strategy. It is based on the ecoWheel framework which I created during my PhD to help companies develop and implement a shared vision for sustainability. ecoPortal gives a single view of all that is going on in an organisation in terms of managing sustainability, health & safety, quality and overall business risks. It provides companies with the tools to measure and mitigate those risks. The principle behind ecoPortal is to effectively communicate and engage internal (staff) and external (e.g. auditors, customers, regulatory bodies, consultants etc.) stakeholders in the organisation’s sustainability initiatives.

The system was originally built with SMEs in mind. However we have found that larger organisations like Autex and Unitec experience the same benefits. We have built up a network of ecoPortal advisors in New Zealand and around the world who are using the system to help their clients develop effective sustainability strategies.

My colleague Logan Wait was interviewed a few days ago by Pure Advantage. Logan spoke about the need for staff within organisations to engage and collaborate on sustainability issues. I fundamentally agree with these comments – so often we find that sustainability and environmental management is the responsibility of one person within the organisation. Sustainable business crosses many disciplines and requires staff to break out of their traditional silos and work together to solve the inefficiencies and create sustainable value for their companies.