The leadership experiences we have participated in during 2012 with the Tetepare Descendants Association, and with Frank Ansell and Sue Gregory in Central Australia, have been strong reminders of the role ‘social sustainability’ has played, and continues to play, in indigenous cultures.
Social sustainability can be defined in various ways but the way we look at it is: a commitment to the generations that follow us that they will have a better life on this planet. A better life not in a material sense but in terms of their access to and benefit from the wisdom, insights and knowledge of those who have come before them.
Because of this central intent – creating a better tomorrow – the pursuit of social sustainability is fundamental to the pursuit of any other future-focused initiative, including environmental sustainability.
A good example of social sustainability in action is the way in which Aboriginal culture places such a strong emphasis on the passing of stories and traditions down the generations, its intricate practices around maintaining strong community bonds, and the communal responsibility taken for the environment.
At Tetepare, social sustainability currently manifests in the way funds raised via accommodation fees contribute to scholarships for the children of the descendants, the sourcing of food for guests from local villages and the provision of employment for descendants and their families on the island. All of this ensures that the TDA community and the island itself can be sustained into the future.
If we apply our definition of social sustainability to an organization, it is one where the long-term commitment to a better future is as important as short and medium term strategies and ‘deliverables’. Examples of this are often found within the not-for-profit environment e.g. the Transition Town movement and the vision and mission of the Australian Drug Foundation.
As is so often the case, social sustainability starts with leadership. In a socially sustainable organisation, the leaders act as role models, actively encouraging people to care for and nurture the values and culture that will make the future possible.
Leaders in such organisations also have the emotional health to make decisions about direction in line with what is needed in the interests of long-term social sustainability – even if that is at odds with what their community (including the broader stakeholder group) might be saying they want right now.
With increasing emotional health across a community – whether a single organisation or a broader section of society – comes a greater sense of ‘other’ over ‘self’, and with that a strong connection to mutual accountability and support for those around us.
These are all important reasons to continue to ensure that social sustainability is central and integral to our work with leaders, organisations and communities.
Gayle
