Sustainable development is a holistic and integrated concept that recognises the importance of, and interconnectedness between, economic, environmental and social performance.

This means there is increasing recognition that a better quality of life, for everyone, is dependent upon economic progress that is not harmful to the natural environment and the social fabric of society.

Business organisations can contribute to sustainable development by:

	Understanding how they affect the economic, environmental and social fabric of society – what are the issues and impacts?

	Committing to a continuous process of improving economic, environmental and social impacts (the ‘triple bottom line’); and

	Recognising and developing opportunities – new products, services, markets and ways of operating – that contribute to building a better quality of life for generations now and in the future. Business organisations have a number of direct and indirect economic, social and environmental impacts on communities, employees, the natural environment and other stakeholders.