Congratulations to The Natural Step Founder Dr. Karl-Henrik Robèrt and The Natural Step Canada Board Member Bob Willard for being named finalists for the International Society of Sustainability Professionals’ inaugural Pinnacle Award. We would also like to extend our congratulations to the other finalists, who are all friends of The Natural Step: Interface’s Ray Anderson, Natural Logic’s Gil Friend, and Rocky Mountain Institute’s Amory B. Lovins.

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ISSP Board of Directors to Announce Recipient In Mid-June

PORTLAND, OR (May 3, 2011) – The International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP) has selected the finalists for the professional association’s first ISSP Pinnacle Award. The new award program was launched this year by ISSP to recognize individuals who have contributed significantly to the advancement of the profession by promoting the adoption of sustainability and by helping to prepare others to do the same.

“The ISSP Pinnacle Award acknowledges those people that have contributed the most to the emerging field of sustainability,” says Marsha Willard, president and executive director of ISSP. “It honors those that have given their time, their knowledge, their creativity and their hard work to blazing the trail for other professionals to follow.”

Who are the finalists? 

• Ray Anderson, CEO of Interface Corporation and one of sustainability's earliest pioneers. He is a frequent conference speaker and author of “Mid-Course Correction: Toward a Sustainable Enterprise: The Interface Model and "Confessions of a Radical Industrialist: Profits, People, Purpose: DoingBusiness by Respecting the Earth." 

• 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, an American consultant, experimental physicist and 1993 MacArthur Fellow. He has been active at the nexus of energy, resources, environment, development and security in more than 50 countries for 35 years, including 14 years based in England.

• 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 worapplication using The Natural Step framework.

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

“All of the finalists are certainly giants in the field of sustainability, whose shoulders we all stand on as a profession,” says Marsha Willard. “Establishment of the ISSP Pinnacle Award reflects the continued evolution of the sustainability field, and sets a high standard for those who will come after us.”

How were finalists chosen?

The ISSP Pinnacle Award is an honor granted to professionals by their peers. In the autumn of 2010, 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 the finalists 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.

During the next month, the ISSP board of directors will accept comments on the five finalists from the ISSP membership. The ISSP board of directors will use this input to inform their choice, and will announce their selection in mid-June. The recipient will be notified at that time and will be invited to attend the ISSP Conference to be held September 21 – 23 in Portland, Oregon, where the award will be presented on the second day of the conference.

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 develop themselves professionally. 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.