The business of sustainability is booming.

• Author: Six, Janna
• Position: GUEST - Guest commentary

Sustainability is booming in Colorado! Community leaders across all sectors and regions of Colorado are incorporating sustainability concepts and practices in planning and shaping economically viable., vibrant and quality places to live in Colorado. That's the analysis from the authors of a report on a series of Sustainability Roundtable meetings in 2009 involving more than 350 business, nonprofit, government and education community leaders.

Staff for the Alliance for Sustainable Colorado collected a comprehensive list of successful sustainability initiatives that benefit the triple bottom line - people, planet and profit. Based on the experiences of roundtable participants, successful projects seem to share these common factors:

* They are generally built by collaborations among organizations from multiple sectors.

* Strong leadership at both the organizational and individual levels drives momentum.

* They are based on comprehensive plans with written, tangible goals, often bound and guided by a town's comprehensive plan.

Participants resoundingly agreed that the economic viability and resiliency of a community is dependent on nurturing locally owned and operated businesses. Some communities have set up "buy local" campaigns that offer discounts or coupon books for local products and services. Business networks have been established to link local, sustainable businesses. Local networks support businesses by providing green consulting services for best sustainable practices, networking opportunities, marketing, incentives and awards.

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE

One example of success that people are familiar with is farmer's markets, which are well-attended all across Colorado. They not only offer fresh fruits and vegetables from local farmers, organic meat and daily products, but live entertainment and local art. They have become true community events. The Colorado Farmer's Market Association maintains a comprehensive list of Colorado farmer's markets on its website: www.Coloradofarmers.org.

Farmer's markets are just one aspect of sustainable projects in the food and agriculture sector. The types of food initiatives and community efforts already in place are as diverse as the geography of each region in Colorado. These projects include goat dairy farms producing cheese; community supported agriculture (CSAs) that connect consumers with farmers to purchase produce year round, community gardens., beginning fanner programs and many others.

BUSINESS...