In late August, I had the great privilege of attending Fairmount Minerals’ Sustainability in Our Organization (SiO2) Appreciative Inquiry Summit. The phrase "sustainable development" was coined by the World Commission on Environment and Development in 1987. The Commission put forth that sustainable development is the way to meet the needs of the present human population without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. All life forms, human and otherwise, depend upon clean water and air, healthy soils and an abundance of plant life in order to meet their basic needs. It is therefore unwise to foul or use up these resources; doing so threatens the security of people in the present as well as in the future. More than a year ago, FML opted to move in the direction of sustainability. As with other extraction processes, it is not possible to remove product without disruption. In some cases, the government require “reclamation” of mining companies. More often than not, however, that reclamation was typically a minimum effort to put the land back to some semblance of what it had been. But Fairmount, which has long made greater efforts than those mandated by federal, state or local agencies, wanted to do more. It wanted to become a sustainable development company - and it wanted to lead the industry in achieving that goal. The August summit was the culmination of an eighteen-month planning process to move the corporation in the direction of sustainable development from the top down and the bottom up.For this three day event, two thirds of Fairmounts’ employees were brought to a resort outside of Chicago - at company expense. There they were joined by representatives of other companies which are both customers to and suppliers for Fairmount, as well as people from several NGO’s (non-governmental organizations such as Saving Birds Thru Habitat and Wildlife Habitat Council). The event was facilitated by a stellar team from Case Western Reserve University headed by David Cooperrider. What happened over those three days was remarkable. First participants learned that environmental stewardship and social responsibility need not be contrary to profitability, but can go hand in hand. Indeed, environmental stewardship and social responsibility can actually enhance profitability. Later we broke up into various groups to carry out the objectives of the summit, which was to discover the company’s strengths, to elicit what participants envisioned as the future for the company, and then design the way to incorporate those dreams into FML’s mission, its practices and the employees’ daily lives. Finally, participants set in place actions to move Fairmount in the direction of those shared commitments. It is important to note that the contribution of every employee - from entry level equipment operator to CEO and Board President - bore the same weight. It says a great deal about Fairmount's commitment that not only were voices from inside the company heard, but that outsiders, such as Wildlife Habitat Council Program Manager Daniel Goldfarb and me, were an integral part of this process. The end result was a vision for the company that will be a force for positive social change, that will reduce energy use - perhaps even make some or all sites exporters of energy - and that will leave no footprints at any of its facilities. These are lofty goals which will require constant, determined effort by everyone in the company if they are to be met. Do I think they will be met? After spending three days immersed in this project with the Fairmount family, not only do I think the company can do it, I am convinced that it will.Bravo, Fairmount!

/ Kay Charter is Executive Director of Saving Birds Thru Habitat, an organization dedicated to educating people about how to protect, enhance and restore habitat for North American birds./