tools & learning
Utah-based sustainable business offerings
Our Utah Resources pages provides details about the wonderful products and services from USBN member organizations that can help you to advance your sustainable business goals.
USBN event materials
Below are links to recordings, handouts and slides from past USBN events that can help you to learn more about sustainable business practices here in Utah.
Event handouts and slides
- Sustainability Strategy 101 handout with dozens of sustainable business tools and resources
- Waste and Recycling 101 slides which provide an overview of recycling in Utah and how the SLC Airport is advancing recycling locally
Event recordings
- Supply Chain Webinar featuring Emily Vesling from Trane Technologies, Donald Cherry from USANA Health Sciences, Lexi Passmore from Swire Coca-Cola, USA and Jeff Sokol from Nu Skin.
- Strategic Sustainability Employee Initiatives: Research-Backed Insights featuring management consultant and PhD research fellow Jane Day
- Managing Risk Amid a Changing Climate panel discussion with Nick Wenker from Young Living, Karlee Siepierski from Swire Coca-Cola, Laura Schaffer from POWDR and Trish Kenlon from Sustainable Career Pathways
- Overview of air quality issues and what Utah is doing to advance air quality with Rep Suzanne Harrison, WRA’s Nick Schou and Giv Group’s Matt Abbott
- 2021 Q1 USBC meeting with Utah Clean Energy’s Jeff Bousson and Josh Craft, NuSkin’s Alyssa Sheehan, Viridescent’s Chance Thompson, Giv Group’s Matt Abbott, and Trish Kenlon from Sustainable Career Pathways
- 2020 Earth Day panel with an incredible lineup of panelists including Utah Lieutenant Governor Spencer Cox, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, Intermountain Healthcare Office of Sustainability Director Steve Bergstrom Director, Salt Lake City Director of Sustainability Vicki Bennett, Michael Shea from Salt Lake County, Jen Lopez from Clever Octopus, Derek Dyer from Dreamscapes, Adam Whitaker from the American Red Cross, Will Adams from Qualtrics, Jeff Bousson from Utah Clean Energy, Deven Patten from Young Living, Chance Thompson from The Salt Palace and Ruth Todd from NuSkin
National and global sustainable business nonprofits
Below are some helpful tools from nonprofit organizations working to advance sustainable business practices around the world.
Strategy & goal setting
- B impact assessment: materiality and risk identification
- SASB industry materiality finder: provides a list of common material risks for many different industries
- GRI materiality standards: guidance from GRI for conducting a materiality assessment
- B Corp certification: look at this list for inspiration when setting your own KPIs, regardless of whether you plan to pursue certification or not
Reporting
- Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) reporting standards
- Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) reporting standards
- Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) reporting framework
- Integrated Reporting <IR> reporting framework
- CDP (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project) disclosure system
Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions management
- The World Resource Institute (WRI)’s GHG Protocol: free training on the most widely used GHG accounting standards in the world
- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s GHG Inventory Guidance for Low Emitters: instructions for measuring and managing the GHG emissions of small and medium sized businesses
- The Science Based Targets initiative: guidance for setting a science-based emissions reduction target or net zero goal
Building energy management
- US Green Building Council LEED and LEED Zero standards: green building standards from one of the world’s leading nonprofits in sustainability for the built environment
- EPA ENERGY STAR: energy efficient products & guidance
- New Buildings Institute: tools & guides
- Building Electrification Institute
Water management
- EPA’s WaterSense program: water efficient products & guidance
- WRI’s Corporate Water Stewardship program: a framework for effective corporate water stewardship
- WWF’s Water Risk Filter: data on location-based water risk around the world
- Alliance for Water Stewardship: global water stewardship standards
- UN Global Compact’s CEO Water Mandate: a water management mandate signed by CEOs of UNGC member companies
Waste, recycling & circular economy
- US Green Building Council’s True Zero Waste certification for zero-waste events & facilities
- Ellen MacArthur Foundation: the world’s premier circular economy nonprofit
Sustainable business management support
- SME Climate Hub: climate resources and support for small and medium enterprises
- EPA’s Center for Corporate Climate Leadership: climate resources and support from the EPA
- The UN Global Compact USA: resources and support for advancing the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals
- B Lab: sustainable business resource hub, you do not need to pursue B Corp certification in order to access their amazing resources
- BSR: a sustainable business focused nonprofit providing consulting services to members