When news breaks about a downturn in the economy -- or worse -- most companies have a standard reaction. Let's say your organization is facing the need for a second round of budget cuts in less than a year. Hard decisions are being made everywhere, and sustainability efforts -- including those related to climate change -- appear to be attractive targets for cutting costs that will not impact the core business. Similarly, your internal partners are questioning whether they should be spending their time and money "doing sustainability" when other near-term priorities seem more urgent.

During tough times, strategically managing sustainability efforts, such as those related to global climate change, require a bold and aggressive approach. What should you do? Better yet, what are some things you can do to reduce the likelihood of facing this situation again? What follows are some lessons we have learned with Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) members and clients managing through difficult turns in the market:

Sharply align sustainability efforts with core business objectives: Which activities can be "dialed up" to support the company's cost-saving efforts? Which programs help manage the employee- and reputation-related challenges that often come with a downturn? Rising energy and material costs create ample opportunities for sustainability to be a significant part of the cost-control agenda, which helps avoid the need for painful headcount reductions. Companies from 3M to Wal-Mart credit their sustainability efforts with total cost savings in the tens to hundreds of millions of dollars.

To take advantage of sustainability opportunities, make sure your business portfolio is broad enough to encompass activities that contribute to tangible -- and material -- business success. One approach to achieving this level of focus is to conduct a formal materiality assessment of your company's sustainability issues and efforts, as BSR has done recently with companies such as GE and AT&T. In each case, the sustainability agenda has been clearly focused around two or three key themes that directly support broader corporate priorities.

For the rest, "think R&D": For those sustainability priorities that don't provide the near-term relief of cost savings, create and communicate credible links to long-term success and profitability. Like R&D, sustainability is about disciplined action and capability-building that sustains and increases the value of core company assets -- your products, your people and consumer trust in your brand -- over time.

The last thing any company wants to do to weather a temporary downturn is cut back efforts in areas deemed critical to the firm's future competitiveness. Indeed, great companies, from GE to Toyota to Novartis, have been hailed by analysts and management experts for finding ways to ...