Eco-Leadership

Sometimes it is difficult to identify the ideal leadership principles required by leaders to succeed in their endeavors. This brings the question about eco-leadership, which is now referred to as the “new style of leadership” for the millenniums. Non-Government Organization plays a vital role in global social development, including areas that address children’s health. This organization has thrived throughout the years because it believes that distributed leadership is the only way clients can be reached. The complexity of the dynamic system of this organization has led to adaptive challenges. Therefore, there is a need to draw ecological principles to understand the leadership processes required in creating a sustainable, generative future. This new discourse motivates individuals by clearly outlining the goals and purpose beyond authenticity, thus connecting communities and clients. In addition, Eco-leadership addresses the internal and external components of the organization.

 Eco-Leadership is a discourse that encompasses several qualities, including connectivity and interdependence, systematic ethics, leadership spirit, organization, and organizational belonging. The Executive Director would like to expound on the four attributes of Eco-leadership regarding uncovering better Leadership discourses before consulting with fellow leadership and NGOs. The organization’s past, present, and future status will be examined and discussed by considering the four attributes of Eco-leadership. This is because the leadership control in this discourse is hierarchical to the network, dependent on autonomy, secretive to transparency skills set on a foundation of hard and soft skills such as motivation, communication, collaboration mindset, and influencing. Eco-leadership acts as a silo to open networks development connectivity and network mindset. It provides holistic and integrated approaches for clients’ outsourced work and all the organization’s stakeholders.

Eco-Leadership in a Non-Government Organization.

Introduction

Over the past centuries, several changes have been observed in leadership approaches. Traditional discourses that dictated leadership are now being replaced with new systems in the modern world. Eco-leadership is a new approach that has dominated the existing leadership discourses to adapt to the organization’s context (Western, 2020). Several concerns have been raised concerning the non-governmental organizations in Africa, Central, and South America to have fallen short of quality leadership. The reason behind NGOs thriving for years is their belief that distributed leadership is the only way customers can be reached. Poor leadership causes an alarm on the organization, and there is a need to address the issue quickly (Burns, 2017). Therefore, the organization is mandated to draw a leadership program with values, self-motivation, and authentic engagement that will create a supportive dynamic network that caters to everyone (Western, n.d.). Eco-leadership is the modern discourse adopted by many organizations in the contemporary world to allow interconnectivity and interdependence, which is not exclusive to environmental leadership but implies all leadership. Eco-leadership suggests that leadership is dictated by system intelligence, and leadership does not reside in a single individual; rather, it is diffused throughout the organization.

History

Non- governmental organizations in Africa, Central, and South America leadership have failed to keep pace with the changes, bringing the Eco-leadership discourse, which needs to be adopted and developed quickly. The NGOs develop initiatives and projects in the pediatric health community (Young & Dhanda, 2012). The organization caters to these children through advocacy, analysis, awareness-raising, and fundraising activities to cater to global healthcare (Young & Dhanda, 2012). The NGOs have put much effort in trying to end dictatorship and give a voice to the oppressed and expand frontiers across the broad spectrum of issues concerning children’s health. This area, predominantly the advocacy subset, suffers from a wide range of challenges that hinder the full realization of potential, which is significant in sustaining the impact change at scale (Young & Dhanda, 2012). NGOs are better positioned to reach out to poor and remote communities and mobilize the population to regain control of their lives and strengthen local organizations.

Moreover, myths of central authority have been seen to reflect on the concept of the globalized, networked world as the center, while the truth is there is no such thing as a center. This has been evident in the financial sector, the soviet block, the Arab Spring, in which informal networks have undermined the central control (Young & Dhanda, 2012). The environment is under pressure, and due to climate changes, the resources are depleting, which means food and water shortages are expected to soar in the near future. Besides, social inequality increases the social and environmental implications due to the rapid changes, including the redistributed power from the west in the BRICS countries that has brought many out of poverty(Peterson, 2017). The countries are increasing in wealth. However, this has led to an increase in the consumption of fossil fuels, thus putting pressure on the environment and climate (Young & Dhanda, 2012). Leadership is therefore vital in promoting sustainable community development. Having a deeply connected distributed leadership will best help keep the networks together and encourage appropriate service dissemination to the customers. By basing the education series of Western leadership discourses, the group understands and culminates with Eco-leadership, thus giving the go-ahead to the entire group.

Eco-Leadership

 Eco-leadership is the adopted modern approach that focuses on three key areas. They include a social purpose that aims to create shared value for a broader society beyond shareholder or organizational growth (Western, n.d.). The other is Participative organizations that focus on engaging employees and dispersing leadership to maximize every individual’s potential as a whole, creating an adaptive, learning, and dynamic organization (Western, n.d.). The third is the Ecosystem mindset that focuses on shifting from top-down control to address the disruptions, opportunities, and challenges in the networked age. It addresses both the internal and external factors (Dwivedi et al., 2021). Eco-Leaders are able to conceptualize organizations as “Ecosystems within Ecosystems.” This implies that the organization ecosystem will consist of connections similar to a network. This ecosystem of an organization is interconnected and interdependent within the larger ecosystem.

Four qualities of Eco-Leadership

Eco-leadership does not overshadow the other discourses; instead, it integrates them to adapt the organizational changes. This discourse encompasses internal and external boundaries that constitute any organization (Western, n.d.). It is built on empowering and giving rise to new teams to work on specific projects or challenges (Young & Dhanda, 2012). This structure promotes leadership development and goes past the other discourse weaknesses. The four attributes of Eco-leadership include connectivity and interdependence, system ethics, Leadership spirit, and organizational belonging (Western, n.d.). The connectivity and interdependence principle dictates that Eco-leaders can recognize the inescapable connectivity and interdependences within the social, natural, and technological ecosystem (Kate et al., 2018). System ethics principles address ethical issues that go beyond personal ethics, doing no harm and using a more systematic approach, for instance, taking responsibility for poor working conditions of outsourced workers (Western, n.d.). The third is the leadership spirit which ensures leaders strive for a better society embracing a more holistic approach rather than becoming distracted with false idols that erode human nature and well-being (Young & Dhanda, 2012). The fourth is organizational belonging, which conceptualizes organization as not separate but which belong within local and global communities and to the natural world (Bryer, 2019). Therefore, all members must participate in the joys and responsibilities that fully engage and give a sense of belonging.

Conclusion

Leaders and participants in the NGO and pediatric health community should ensure that personal and organizational values are authentic and adhered to by being role models in demonstrating system ethics in all their endeavors. Leaders, therefore, have the responsibility of fostering an ethically positive dedication and environmental sustainability for the future workforce, organizational network, and family and children that they have undertaken in providing care and service. Therefore, leaders should try to maintain their genuine dedication to their core beliefs that give a sense of organizational and social responsibility. As Eco-leaders, they will be able to focus on networks, connectivity, interdependence, thus breaking down silos and achieving a widely distributed leadership that will foster strong connection in both the internal and external ecosystem of the organization.

References

Bryer, A. (2019). Making Organizations More Inclusive: The Work of Belonging. Organization Studies, 41(5), 641-660. https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840618814576

Burns, W. (2017). A Descriptive Literature Review of Harmful Leadership Styles: Definitions, Commonalities, Measurements, Negative Impacts, and Ways to Improve These Harmful leadership Styles. Creighton Journal Of Interdisciplinary Leadership, 3(1), 33. https://doi.org/10.17062/cjil.v3i1.53

Dwivedi, Y., Ismagilova, E., Hughes, D., Carlson, J., Filieri, R., & Jacobson, J. et al. (2021). Setting the future of digital and social media marketing research: Perspectives and research propositions. International Journal Of Information Management, 59, 102168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2020.102168

Kate, S., Georgina, M., & Mahesh, P. (2018). Ecosystem Services and Poverty Alleviation (OPEN ACCESS). https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429507090

Peterson, E. (2017). Is Economic Inequality Really a Problem? A Review of the Arguments. Social Sciences, 6(4), 147. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci6040147

Western, S. (2020). A Brief Guide to Eco-Leadership – Social Science Space. Social Science Space. Retrieved 7 February 2022, from https://www.socialsciencespace.com/2020/03/a-brief-guide-to-eco-leadership/.

Western, S. Leadership (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.

Young, S. T., Dhanda, K. K. (2012). Sustainability: Essentials for Business. United Kingdom: SAGE Publications.