Triple bottom line planning

The conscious and deliberate alignment of economic benefits with social and environmental benefits is an important element of achieving sustainable development.

Information on SEED website

• a more detailed article on Triple Bottom Line Planning
• a briefing note on Key Performance Indicators
• Towards Triple Impact (UNEP, 2008) - this document, which uses a 2007 SEED Winner among many examples, introduces a toolbox that helps to answer key questions related to the identification of opportunities, the understanding of the determinants of success and the assessment of costs and benefits.

Useful links

• Triple Bottom Line: Corporate Case Planning Study (currently unavailable) “This case study describes the CoM’s experience in integrating TBL indicators into its corporate plan; outlines how TBL can be factored into other corporate plan generic elements; and highlights the key challenges and lessons. It also draws on and incorporates elements of international standards such as the Global Reporting Initiative.”
• Partnerships Resource Centre. “Partnerships and communities of all types are using indicators to monitor progress toward their goals, evaluate effectiveness of their approaches, and demonstrate successes. This page provides resources to help groups understand and develop monitoring and evaluation approaches using environmental, economic, social, and/or organizational indicators.”
• UN Global Compact: Partnership Assessment Tool. The Partnership Assessment Tool (PAT) developed by the Global Compact, UNDP, UNITAR and UN Office for Partnerships - is a simple interactive tool to improve the impact and sustainability of UN-Business partnerships made available free-of-charge on a CD-ROM.
• Business and Sustainable Development: A Global Guide. (IISD’s Business and Sustainable Development website) “This site explains the strategies and tools that companies can draw on to translate an aspiration of sustainability into practical, effective solutions. Case studies from around the world are provided as an example of each measure.”
• P3 Strategies, Inc. “Transitioning organizations from single to triple bottom line success for people, profit, and the planet (P3).” (check resources tab for futher information regarding triple bottom line planning)
• Global Development Research Centre. GDRC’s website on sustainable development indicators.