The Sustainability Lens was first introduced in the book Social Entrepreneurship as Sustainable Development, Introducing the Sustainability Lens (Stenn, 2017). The Sustainability Lens is a compilation of mindsets and approaches that create many options for building more innovation, fun, and resilience within an organization. It is based on the following four concepts:
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Suma Qamana
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Circles of Sustainability
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Permaculture
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Solidarity Economy
The Sustainability Lens Games were developed by Dr. Tamara Stenn, Professor of Entrepreneurship at Suffolk University Sawyer Business School. They are built on years of work in sustainable development, leadership, US Fulbright research, and countless student and practitioner game-plays and input.
About our Game
The 4 concepts that make up the Sustainability Lens
Suma Qamana
Living Well
Using indigenous wisdom passed down 4,000 years, Andan people today are re-imaging their worldview based on the chakana (Southern Cross). This is known as Suma Qamana (living well) and is depicted as a balance between yachay (knowing), munay (loving), ruray (doing), and ushay (power) brought together by a spiraling, interconnected life force.
Circles of Sustainability
A concept born from work with the United Nations Development Program, Circles of Sustainability is a global project of people's self-reported well-being based on economic, environmental, cultural, and political experiences. Carried out by stakeholders in the communities studied, it gives a voice to those not easily heard while building collaboration and opportunity.
Permaculture
Manifested in Permaculture's natural systems of regeneration and abundance, the Sustainability Lens replicates the redundancy and diversity of nature and the multiple systems with a model that supports growth, life, and well-being.
Solidarity Economy
Solidarity Economy is understood as working together to share in the use and distribution of resources. It includes creation, production, exchange and transfer, waste, consumption, and surplus allocation - which then becomes creation in a renewable, circular fashion. RIPESS is a global organization working Solidarity Economy.