The Decision
Submissions must center on a specific decision.
The decision should involve a proposed step that is about to be authorized, relied upon, escalated, or continued, and that may become difficult to reverse once action is taken.
Examples include queue entry, site control, drilling, excavation, injection, corridor fixation, infrastructure placement, capital escalation, resource dependency, or continued reliance on an existing commitment whose basis may have changed.
What to Submit
Provide the minimum required to evaluate the decision:
- the step being considered
- why the step matters now
- what would become difficult to unwind if it proceeds
- what remains unresolved
- what evidence currently supports the step
- who holds decision authority
- who bears consequence if the decision is wrong
- the timing pressure, if any
Supporting materials may be included where relevant.
Useful materials may include project summaries, maps, site or route information, technical evidence, uncertainty summaries, proposed next actions, decision deadlines, authority structure, or prior commitments already made.
The Conditions
Sustainable Exploration operates within a narrow decision interval:
- a decision has formed
- commitment has not yet fully locked in
- unresolved uncertainty may still change the legitimacy of the commitment
- refusal, deferral, constraint, or re-evaluation remains institutionally possible
The best time to engage is while the decision can still go more than one way. If this interval has passed, the question may shift from whether the commitment should form to whether the existing commitment still remains within its admissible basis.
What Follows
Submissions are first assessed to determine whether the matter falls within Sustainable Exploration’s scope.
If the matter is in scope, the appropriate governance review is identified.
This may include:
- Decision Exposure Review
- Pre-Commitment Admissibility Screen
- Governance Posture Review
- Minimum Evidence Determination
- Commitment Integrity Determination
If the matter is out of scope, it is declined.
Sustainable Exploration does not approve, optimize, design, finance, permit, or execute projects. Responsibility for action, inaction, reliance, communication, execution, and outcomes remains with the Decision Authority.