Golf Highlights Innovation and Voluntary Leadership in Sustainability

The R&A, GEO and USGA line up in Washington DC to open global ISEAL Alliance standards and certification event.Sustainability leaders from around the world are gathered in Washington DC as the annual ISEAL Global Sustainability Standards Conference gets underway, and this year will see the sport of golf stepping forward to underscore the event’s focus on innovation.Representatives from The R&A and USGA, alongside full ISEAL Member GEO (Golf Environment Organization) addressed the Opening Reception on Tuesday evening, alongside Jörg Frieden, Executive Director, Board of the World Bank and Crystal Davis, Director, Global Forest Watch, World Resources Institute.

Golf will be prominent among a diverse cross section of over 350 national and international businesses, government agencies, NGO’s, academia and consultancies - the only sport represented during the three-day event.The opening reception speeches reflected the value and relevance of golf’s presence.ISEAL Executive Director, Karin Kreider said: “Representing a growing community of collaborative partners across the sport, we are delighted to see GEO bring this example of sectoral innovation to the conference. By coming together around a platform of custom built standards, assurance, certification and reporting, golf has established some of the central components of a cohesive and credible strategy – helping define clear expectations, offering a trusted means of recognition, and being able to monitor and report trends and impacts, locally, nationally and globally. And of course, the added value here to the sustainability movement is the role that this enables golf to play as a valued advocate for change across wider business and society; harnessing its visibility and reach.”Steve Isaac, Director – Golf Course Management at The R&A, governing body of the sport outside of the USA and Mexico and significant investor in GEO’s work added: “Sustainability is a key priority for The R&A, and we are fully committed to helping drive evolution and change in and through the sport around the world. Positive practical action across the nature, resources and community agendas is good for golf, for the people we serve and for the environment we share. It’s a big opportunity and responsibility, and we are delighted to be here, participating, listening and learning, amongst this alliance of inspiring examples of proactive leadership”.Read the full article.