Deck 24: Managing for Sustainability

Question 1

Which of the following is not an area related to sustainability in which an organisation could set a goal or target?

A) Resource-efficient supply-chain transport systems
B) Eliminating, reducing or recycling materials
C) Renewable energy use
D) Employee productivity
E) Waste and harmful emission reduction

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Strategic, business and operational plans establish broad goals, whereas policies specifically outline what needs to be done to achieve them.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

A sustainable production process that starts with nothing and adds material until the desired shape is reached is known as:

A) upcycling.
B) cradle-to-grave.
C) cradle-to-cradle.
D) 3-D printing.
E) traditional manufacturing.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Habitually examining new investments for their long-term carbon ramifications and materials use and reuse is an example of:

A) a sustainability goal.
B) an organisation building sustainability into its decision-making and planning processes.
C) recycling.
D) an organisation building sustainability into its risk management processes.
E) an organisation building sustainability into its consultation processes.

Question 5

Eliminating or reducing the waste and pollution created in the production of goods and services is an example of:

A) eco-proficiency.
B) eco-efficiency.
C) eco-effectiveness.
D) eco-effusion.
E) eco-tourism.

Question 6

Which of the following may adversely affect an organisation's profits if it fails to carry out its operations in a sustainable manner?

A) Customers abandoning the organisation's products or services
B) Litigation from lobby groups and/or regulatory authorities
C) Investment funds and institutional investors withdrawing funding
D) Not-for-profit organisations running negative marketing campaigns about the organisation
E) All of these responses are correct.

Question 7

Life cycle analysis can help an organisation manage its sustainability:

A) from the outside in.
B) from the inside out.
C) from both the outside in and the inside out.
D) from neither the outside in nor the inside out.
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 8

To be environmentally responsible but also support the needs of an organisation, a sustainability policy and/or strategy should:

A) seek to reduce or eliminate any environmentally harmful effects of operational activities.
B) support the organisation's mission.
C) support the organisation's business strategies.
D) reflect the expectations of its stakeholders.
E) All of these responses are correct.

Question 9

Which of the following may result due to an organisation adopting sustainable practices that enhance its brand, image and employer value?

A) Workforce attraction and retention
B) Increased sales
C) Customer loyalty
D) More supportive stakeholders
E) All of these responses are correct.

Question 10

Which of the following is the correct resource-wise hierarchy in terms of promoting optimal sustainability?

A) Reduce → upcycle → avoid → reuse → recycle
B) Reduce → reuse → avoid → upcycle → recycle
C) Avoid → upcycle → reduce → reuse → recycle
D) Upcycle → recycle → reuse → reduce → avoid
E) Avoid → reduce → upcycle → recycle → reuse

Question 11

While life cycle analysis measures the energy and other resources associated with materials extraction, and the production of goods, it does not take into account the impact of these on the environment.

Question 12

The background or reason for a policy, the person responsible for developing it and what it covers is likely to be found in a(n):

A) policy scope statement.
B) policy review document.
C) performance monitoring tool.
D) risk management plan.
E) operational procedure.

Question 13

If an organisation took steps to become more travel-wise, it might:

A) increase the use of telecommuting and staggering of shifts to avoid peak traffic periods.
B) examine its entire supply chain to find ways to reduce its negative impact on the planet.
C) fix leaks and install water-efficient fixtures and fittings.
D) use mushroom packaging instead of Styrofoam packaging.
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 14

If an organisation found that it lost six per cent of its customers over the last year because it failed to reduce its carbon emissions, it would be an example of:

A) an outside-in effect of the issue of climate change.
B) an inside-out effect of the issue of climate change.
C) an upside-down effect of the issue of climate change.
D) a downside-up effect of the issue of climate change.
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 15

Value chain indices (VCI):

A) provide information at brand, factory and individual product levels.
B) can be used to compare businesses within a sector to track business performance over time.
C) help designers to select materials and suppliers with the lowest environmental impact.
D) help investment funds to select sustainable companies.
E) All of these responses are correct.

Question 16

Which of the following aims of an organisation's sustainability policy would be likely to provide the greatest benefit to the environment?

A) To become carbon neutral
B) To become carbon positive
C) To become carbon negative
D) To have higher carbon emissions than last year
E) To have lower carbon emissions than last year

Question 17

Because of the GHG emissions from oil used in the manufacturing and distribution processes to make plastic bottles, and the fact that 36 per cent of plastic bottles end up as landfill and take 1000 years to break down, a case can be mounted that bottled water costs as much energy as driving a car.

Question 18

In a traditional cradle-to-grave production process:

A) products made from raw materials end up being recycled.
B) products made from raw materials end up as waste.
C) products made from raw materials are used until the materials from which they are made naturally break down.
D) services create greater waste than products.
E) services and products produce almost the same amount of waste.

Question 19

Which of the following is an example of a sustainability approach in which the focus is on avoiding using resources?

A) Refilling and reusing ink cartridges
B) Purchasing recycled paper
C) Reducing the amount of paper used by changing to double-sided photocopying and printing
D) Using e-files whenever possible to save using paper
E) Retaining cardboard boxes that have contained deliveries and using these as storage for files

Question 20

Using energy-efficient lightbulbs and natural light are examples of an organisation being:

A) build-wise.
B) buy-wise.
C) energy-wise.
D) office-wise.
E) pack-wise.

Question 21

Continually updating stakeholders and providing them with information about sustainability initiatives, policies and programs can be an effective way to market an organisation and increase consumer loyalty.

Question 22

Choose the best answer. When redesigning products using eco-design principles, the ultimate goal is to design products that can be:

A) recycled.
B) upcycled.
C) recycled, ensuring that any materials that cannot be recycled can be cost-effectively upcycled.
D) upcycled, ensuring that any materials that cannot be upcycled can be cost-effectively recycled.
E) neither recycled nor upcycled.

Question 23

Choose the best answer. When a product's valuable materials are extracted and, through an energy-intensive and often water-intensive process, made into a lower-quality product, it is an example of:

A) upcycling.
B) recycling.
C) downcycling.
D) recycling and upcycling.
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 24

Because of its focus on assessing every material used in a product to determine whether it is safe for the ecosystem, and how it can be reused in a way that retains its value, upcycling is a far better alternative to destroying, downcycling or dumping products.

Question 25

Following monitoring and a review of the results of a sustainability policy and/or program, it may be necessary or appropriate to make changes due to:

A) legislative changes.
B) public demand.
C) improved best practice.
D) new or emerging technologies.
E) All of these responses are correct

Question 26

When Coca-Cola teamed up with its arch-rival, PepsiCo, to find substitutes for hydrofluorocarbons (the dangerous greenhouse gas used in refrigeration), this was an example of:

A) building platforms.
B) collaboration.
C) consultation.
D) re-engineering.
E) All of these responses are correct.

Question 27

Which process only uses a fraction of the energy needed to produce new metal, and can therefore reuse up to 75 per cent of steel and more than 50 per cent of aluminium from existing products?

A) Recycling
B) Upcycling
C) Downcycling
D) Placing in landfill
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 28

Choose the best answer. Establishing sustainable platforms can multiply cost savings and drive up profitability for organisations due to:

A) economies of scope.
B) economies of scale.
C) economies of scope and economies of scale.
D) lower capital outlays (i.e. redesigning the production process).
E) None of these responses are correct.