A brief review of the history of The Environment Council offers important insights into current activity and potential future direction.

The Environment Council acquired its name in 1986.  Prior to this it was known  as the Council for Environmental Conservation (CoEnCo). It was established in 1969, born out of the Royal Society of Arts 'Future of the Countryside' events and operated as an environmental umbrella group which represented membership bodies such as the WWF, RSPB and CPRE in meetings with Government. In 1980 it spawned the successful Wildlife Link that took on responsibility for a large part of this co-ordination and lobbying function, which necessitated a reassessment of the parent organisation’s role.

The name CoEnCo was replaced by The Environment Council, through which a Business and Environment Program was developed and a worldwide network of environmental managers created with the aim being to help managers introduce sound environmental policies and practice into their corporate affairs.

During the late 80s and early 90s The Environment Council went on to develop two further principal areas of focus.  The Sustainable Business Forum and Environmental Resolve. The Forum comprised a group of 'responsible companies seeking to define and promote business practice that will deliver a sustainable future’.  It focused on 'sensible dialogue', and 'mediation and facilitation' in order to 'maintain a balance between different interest groups and ensure ownership of sustainable decisions'.

The Sustainable Business Forum drew upon the expertise and learning of the Environmental Resolve group within The Environment Council. This group was described as helping to 'prevent and resolve environmental disputes using processes such as Environmental Dispute Resolution, mediation and facilitation'. Environment Resolve was initially made up of a small committee of mediators, facilitators and decision process engineers. At the outset, Environmental Resolve applied itself to low conflict situations, often based around reviewing activities or internal company projects. The first major debate addressed by Environmental Resolve was over the management of Lake Windermere in the Lake District in March 1993. At this time the decision-making process was referred to as consensus building and it was not until 1995 (during the Brent Spar oil platform debate) that the term Stakeholder Dialogue was first used.

The successful resolution of the Brent Spar decommissioning debate launched Stakeholder Dialogue, with The Environment Council being established as the 'only UK charity to be undertaking such an initiative'.  The successful process also marked a change in emphasis within The Environment Council as it continued to grow around Stakeholder Dialogue.  By 1998 the name Environmental Resolve was dropped as it was in effect competing with The Environment Council as the title of the charity.  The dramatic increase of interest in the participatory approach offered by Stakeholder Dialogue coincided with the arrival of the New Labour Government, and its acknowledgement of the need for greater social inclusion and community involvement in policy design and implementation (Blair 1998).

Throughout The Environment Council's short but dynamic history two critical elements in the delivery of its approach to participatory decision-making have remained the same.  The first is the stated independence of the organisation and, building on that, the second is its association with a team of professional facilitators.

In presenting this short historical review it becomes clear that The Environment Council developed Stakeholder Dialogue as a 'sustainability tool' in response to the growing awareness of the central role decision-making plays in determining sustainable outcomes. The application of this tool has brought considerable success to the organisation in terms of impact, reputation and organisational development.  Stakeholder Dialogue at The Environment Council continues to recognise the constantly dynamic state of society and the environment. In reaction to these challenges Stakeholder Dialogue is continually evolving, under constant review through implementation and experience, with new methods of practice frequently under development in reaction to new directions.