Finding Common Ground

Background: California’s Sierra Nevada region hosts a wide range of businesses, natural resources, tourism, and environmental groups. There is potential for great conflict among the diverse interests.

Challenge: The Sierra Business Council (SBC) explicitly rejects the notion that Sierra communities must choose between economic and environmental health. On the contrary, members view environmental quality as key to the Sierra Nevada’s economic prosperity, and natural resource conservation as essential to building regional wealth.

Strategies: The SBC provides an excellent example of diverse interests working together toward a common goal. The SBC is a nonprofit association of more than five hundred businesses, agencies, and individuals working to secure the economic and environmental health of the Sierra Nevada region for this and future generations. The council represents a new approach. Its tactics are proactive and collaborative. It operates on the belief that creative solutions rarely emerge without effective leadership.

Specifics: "Our approach is long-term and inclusive," SBC President Lucy Blake said. "Nothing else will ensure our region’s lasting prosperity." She told an audience at the 2001 Unified Wine and Grape Symposium about the council’s "Sierra Nevada Wealth Index," a periodic assessment of the social, natural and financial capital that sustains the region. The index provides a benchmark of measurable progress toward sustainability, increasing awareness of issues and targeting areas for attention and investment.

Take-Home Message for the Wine and Winegrape Community:

• Learn from people in your industry who are taking the lead in sustainability.
• Take advantage of organizations like The Natural Step in San Francisco, which offers hands-on assistance and a roadmap for companies to achieve sustainability.
• Get your overall company going in the right direction. Strive for small, sustained progress, not overnight metamorphosis.
• Find or form a peer group of people who share your goals and can benefit from each other’s expertise and experience.
  
  

"You’ll be surprised how much your neighbors, customers and employees will appreciate your efforts," Blake said.