Just the Beginning...

Before I came into the MBA program at UTA and into REAE 5304, I had no idea what exactly sustainability entailed. Amari Roskeli, our first speaker of the day and Sustainability Coordinator for Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. introduced this concept to the class. Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. is one of the world’s largest providers of professional technical services and offers full-spectrum support to industrial, commercial and government clients across markets such as Aerospace and Defense, Technology, Buildings, Energy, Environmental Programs and many others. Amari is in the area of Aerospace and Defense where she mainly deals with sustainable projects for hangers and air traffic control towers.
Sustainability was introduced to me as:

"Building today so we do not harm the future. This is done, environmentally, socially and economically." 

These were the words of Amari Roskeli, which intrigued my interest in finding out what else surrounds the word sustainability. I became aware of the Green Building Rating System - LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), which was developed in 2000 by the U.S. Green Building Council along with its Certification Levels: Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum. This Rating System is the used primarily in the U.S and Canada and other various countries. Within the categories of Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources and Indoor Environmental Quality are many of the LEED Credits that can be taken on by an Industry/Company/Business/Home to reach their desired level of sustainability. Most importantly, as mentioned above, there are 3 Spheres of Sustainability: Social, Economic and Environmental. Sustainability is achieved when an integrated approach to social, economic and environmental impact issues lead to sustainable profit growth.