On behalf of the entire Natural Step community, it is my pleasure to congratulate Dr. Karl-Henrik Robèrt for being inducted into the International Society of Sustainability Professionals’ (ISSP) Sustainability Hall of Fame.  I am personally thrilled that the ISSP recognized Dr. Robèrt’s pioneering work in creating a Framework for Strategic Sustainble Development which has been used by hundreds of organizations internationally, has given rise to a multitude of research projects and continues to be one of the most rigorous, effective methodologies for implementing full sustainability.

Peter Price-Thomas, Interim CEO

Sustainability Hall of Fame To Be Established By the International Society of Sustainability Professionals With Inauguration of Five Founding Industry Pioneers

The International Society of Sustainability Professionals has announced that it will establish the ISSP Sustainability Hall of Fame as a way to formally recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to the field of sustainability and the professionals that serve it.

Earlier this spring, the ISSP Board of Directors selected five industry leaders from a larger group of nominees recommended by ISSP members for the inaugural ISSP Pinnacle Award. Originally designed to honor a single individual each year, the ISSP Board of Directors soon discovered the difficulty in singling out just one of the stellar nominees under consideration for the new award. Because of that conundrum and because it seemed more fitting to honor contributions rather than create a competition, the ISSP board has chosen instead to create the ISSP Sustainability Hall of Fame and honor all five of the nominees as the inaugural members of this distinctive group of professional fellows.

The five founding members of the ISSP Sustainability Hall of Fame are:

• Ray Anderson, founder and chairman of Interface, Inc. and one of sustainability's earliest pioneers. After experiencing a “spear in the chest” epiphany over 17 years ago, Ray altered the direction of his petro-intensive company forever. Inspired by his vision, Mission Zero is Interface's promise to eliminate any negative impact its companies may have on the environment by 2020.

• Gil Friend, president and CEO of Natural Logic. Friend has been a central figure in helping drive the creation of the sustainability consulting arena over the past twenty years. He is the author of The Truth About Green Business, which was ranked as a top "must read" sustainability book in a recent Triple Pundit survey.

• Amory B. Lovins, chairman and chief scientist of Rocky Mountain Institute, who has been active at the nexus of energy, resources, security, environment, development, and economy in more than 50 countries for 40 years.

• Karl Henrik Robert, a Swedish cancer researcher and founder of The Natural Step framework for sustainable development. In recent years, he has focused his scientific research through the Real Change Program, an international initiative linking university research specialization in real world application using The Natural Step framework.

• Bob Willard, a leading expert on quantifying and selling the business case for sustainability. He is a teacher, speaker and author whose books include The Sustainability Advantage, The Next Sustainability Wave and The Sustainability Champion's Guidebook.

All five nominees have been invited to the ISSP Conference 2011, to be held September 22-23 in Portland, Oregon to participate in an induction ceremony for the ISSP Sustainability Hall of Fame. At the conference, each inductee will be will be honored by their peers for their accomplishments in the areas of experience, education, innovation, reach, publication and service to the industry.

The induction ceremony at the ISSP Conference 2011 in Portland will be the culmination of a process that began last autumn, when all members of ISSP were invited to submit nominees, along with a short rationale for each nomination. The ISSP board of directors then narrowed the list to five industry leaders that most closely met criteria for service, research, innovation, advancement of the case for sustainability, participation in the adoption of sustainability in sectors or regions, and/or contribution to the definition of the profession. In future years, the ISSP Board of Directors may chose to induct any number of people at once into the ISSP Sustainability Hall of Fame, including just one in a given year.

“The individuals we have chosen as our founding members for the ISSP Sustainability Hall of Fame are among the giants in the field of sustainability,” says Marsha Willard, executive director of ISSP. “Through their accomplishments, they have certainly set a high standard for those who will come after us.”

About ISSP
The International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP) is the world's leading professional association for sustainability professionals. ISSP is a member-driven association committed to moving the profession of sustainability forward through building strong networks and communities of practice. Formed in 2007, ISSP boasts more than 500 members from every continent in the world. Members share resources and best practices, and professional development. Webinars, webchats, on-line classes, special reports, resource directories, salary surveys, and a professional competency study are just a sampling of the rich content offered to members. For more information about ISSP, its offerings and the upcoming ISSP Conference, please visit http://sustainabilityprofessionals.org.

For More Information Contact:
Ray Berardinelli
(503) 425-9095
rberardinelli@sustainabilityprofessionals.org