What is the definition of Environmental Excellence?
There is no “official definition.” That may seem surprising, since the phrase is so widely used (e.g., 573,000 hits on an internet search!). There are even institutes for environmental excellence, but no widely accepted definition. Around a decade ago, the term was very much in vogue, similar to popularity of sustainable development today. These terms share similarities: (1) no universally accepted definition (the 1987 Brundtland commission offers the most commonly accepted definition for sustainable development, but the “Triple Bottom Line” is vying for first place); and (2) business management is all for them (although they are not always certain what they really mean in actionable terms). Public relations pieces are filled with both terms, but when they involve substantial resource investments, knees get all wobbly. When environmental excellence rose to prominence, EHS departments were still trying to get their houses in order and build the systems that are so very well defined and
