THE NEXT ECONOMY -
At the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos, WEF, the Forum of Young Global Leaders and Accenture revealed the winners of the 2018 Circulars. The awards recognize individuals and organizations that have made notable contributions to the circular economy.
The fourth annual awards ceremony showcased advances from the private and public sectors that drive innovation and growth while reducing dependence on scarce natural resources.
WALKING THE TALK -
This is an excerpt from Fabian Geyrhalter’s upcoming book, Bigger Than This: How to Turn Any Venture Into an Admired Brand. One of eight traits discussed in Bigger Than This is ‘cause,’ which we dive into here …
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE -
Just one year after its launch, The Soulfull Project — a mission-driven startup dedicated to making high-quality, nutritious food more accessible to those in need — has pledged to donate one million servings of its signature, nutrient-dense hot cereal to food banks across the country over the next two years.
WASTE NOT -
While food industry giants and software companies have played an important role in creating solutions for reducing food waste, local community members are proving to be just as critical in driving the movement forward.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
Roughly 60 percent of millennials want to increase sustainability efforts in business. Millennials make up the largest group of consumers besides baby boomers, and 72 percent are willing to pay more for products from businesses committed to sustainability.
WASTE NOT -
Around 7 million tons of food go to waste each year in the UK, but local startups and organizations are dreaming up new and noteworthy ways to tackle the growing problem.
Action Hunger, a charity committed to alleviating poverty and hardship among the homeless, has created a novel solution for simultaneously providing essential items to those in need and diverting food from landfill: vending machines.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
The Vatican might seem an unlikely backdrop for cutting-edge climate change technology, but Stephen Forte of Fresco Capital Fund and Imagine Ventures’ Eric Harr are helping turn the Holy See into a hub for sustainability through their fledgling Laudato Si startup accelerator.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
Cargill is betting on tech to future-fit the food system: the agricultural giant has partnered with Techstars and Ecolab to launch the Techstars Farm to Fork Accelerator in an effort to accelerate food industry innovation. Based in Minneapolis, MN, the Accelerator will kick off in the summer of 2018.
CLEANTECH -
Back in 2015, we first learned about + POOL, a wildly ambitious idea by four enterprising New Yorkers to make the City’s notoriously polluted Hudson River swimmable with the help of a floating, water-filtering pool.
CHEMISTRY, MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Circularity is slowing making its way into the fashion industry, aiming to transform one of the most polluting sectors into a shining example of sustainability, but it still has a long way to go before it can truly shed its bad reputation. Technology has been an important driver of change, allowing brands to improve efficiencies and reduce impacts, but the sharing of resources and best practices is proving to be just as critical in nudging the industry forward towards a circular future.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
Between a growing global population — which is estimated to reach 9.5 billion by 2050 — rapid urbanization and climate change, shifting agricultural to a more sustainable model is essential for safeguarding the future of our food system. Startups in the United States and Singapore are ready to rise to the challenge, championing food sustainability through new technologies and infrastructure solutions designed with urban environments in mind.
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT -
We recently sat down with Helen Sahi (@HelenSahi), senior director, Global Sustainability, at Avery Dennison and long-time SB Corporate Member whose made many contributions to the SB Advisory Board, to discuss her career and what keeps her excited about sustainability.
Many of you already know Helen and that she is a woman of many talents. Read more to get her take on where sustainability has been, where it currently is, where it should be and how we can get there quickly.
PRESS RELEASE -
Everyone needs to do their part to conserve water. But what if entire communities could work together to eliminate the unnecessary waste of this valuable resource?
That’s the idea behind Green Plant Framework/Aquifer Systems, founded by Joshua Parde. The system allows users to compare the total volume of water delivered from a municipal source to the amount actually used in a home or other building. With this data, homeowners and property managers can identify water leaks and make critical repairs.
CHEMISTRY, MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Packaging remains a considerable challenge for businesses looking to reduce their impacts, but innovators such as food-service supplier Eco-Products and Finnish startup Sulapac are helping to accelerate the transition to lower-impact models through cross-industry partnerships and sustainable packaging solutions.
CLEANTECH -
While discussion around the future of urban mobility largely focuses on electric vehicles and public transportation, buzz is growing around the role of bikes in driving down emissions in cities.
Congested city streets pose considerable challenges for delivery trucks, a problem that French startup FlexiModal endeavors to solve with its BicyLift bicycle trailer. The emissions-free logistics solution allows the operator to move Euro pallets (120 x 80 cm) by bicycle and by hand in areas where circulation of traditional delivery vehicles is limited. The trailer weighs 55 lbs. and has a carrying capacity of around 400 lbs.
NEW METRICS -
The new wave of conscious consumption, driven largely by millennials and Gen Z, is pushing companies to innovate around social causes.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
Young, sustainable companies have it tough. With all that excitement and idealism in building a new company comes a mountain of obstacles to overcome. But for purpose-driven companies pursuing opportunities that also create impact, that risk/reward ratio may be even higher.
COLLABORATION -
In a bid to accelerate carbon neutral and resilient urban regeneration, 15 C40 cities have launched the C40 Reinventing Cities initiative. C40 and participating Reinventing Cities invite architects, urban planners, designers, developers, entrepreneurs, environmentalists, startups, neighborhood collectives, innovators and artists to collaborate and compete for the opportunity to transform these sites into new beacons of sustainability and resiliency.
SUPPLY CHAIN -
Plastic pollution is on the rise, a problem that threatens both human and environmental health. Between 4.8 million and 12.7 million tons of plastic end up in the world’s oceans every year and animals aren’t the only ones being affected — a recent report by Orb Media revealed that microplastics have infiltrated tap water across the globe.
CLEANTECH -
Nature could hold the key to reversing or mitigating the effects of climate change — a concept that the Biomimicry Institute and Ray C. Anderson Foundation are banking on. The two organizations have issued a call to action for entrepreneurs to look to the planet’s living systems to create viable solutions to the global climate crisis.