THE NEXT ECONOMY -
As regenerative ag gains momentum in the US, how do we ensure that the transition of the food system materializes in a way that supports equitable economic prosperity while allowing people and planet to flourish long term? Here are four areas where today’s decisions will shape US agriculture’s future trajectory.
CLEANTECH -
As creators of our digital world, we have a powerful role to play. We must consciously reinvent web design to radically reduce the polluting impacts of our sites and apps. We must use our talents to rethink how we build websites, reduce wastage and save energy — or else, we’re complicit.
COLLABORATION -
The role of business in the health of society and the planet has never been more critical. And as stakeholder calls for companies to use their resources for social and environmental good grow louder, it’s clear that not even multinationals can effect change on their own.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
Industry-leading carbon-farming program provides new revenue stream for farmers and an immediately accessible, scalable nature-based solution to climate change for businesses.
SUPPLY CHAIN -
In a unique industry collaboration, the three online retailers are launching a bespoke learning platform to support their brand partners in setting science-based emissions-reduction targets.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
If you see a lab-grown diamond and a mined diamond side by side, they both elicit the same scintillating awe; but lab-grown gemstones don’t carry the injustices of their mined counterparts. For Aether and Sacet, transparency, ethics and regeneration are the future of luxury.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
As the prior generation of plastic-based alternatives wanes, a host of new, animal and plant-based options are sprouting up — but challenges remain for unseating conventional leather.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
To deliver the rapid decarbonisation and conservation we need, and to enable communities to grow in a sustainable way, we have to catalyse new finance for good — and we need to maximise that impact, so we know how much good is achieved and how we can improve.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
“Our alternative chocolate is saying that this industry can function in a different way — and it doesn’t have to be stuck doing things it has been doing for 60 years, making billions of dollars a year off the hard work of farmers in West Africa.” — WNWN co-founder Johnny Drain
BEHAVIOR CHANGE -
Research from Sustainable Brands and Ipsos reveals a global misperception on the most impactful sustainable behaviors — with a belief that recycling will yield bigger benefits than eating plant-based diets, increasing energy efficiency, and 58 more impactful choices.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
New report finds that with 25% of global GHG emissions caused by the food value chain, the shift to alternative proteins may be the most capital-efficient and high-impact solution to addressing the climate crisis — and over 30% of consumers are ready to make the switch.
CLEANTECH -
With a wealth of technologies and competing demands across sites, decarbonization can be a complex challenge for companies of all shapes and sizes. Taking a data-centric approach to building an energy roadmap — and letting the data point to what happens next — is key in supporting companies along the way.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
For too long, investors have lacked the data and analytics to make well-informed investment decisions around the financial risks of water impacts. That is about to change.
BEHAVIOR CHANGE -
Lowering the washing temperature of a laundry load or dish cycle can greatly reduce carbon emissions. But for people to turn down the temperature or select eco-cycles, they must trust that products will still clean with brilliant results — this is where brands can play a crucial role in decarbonization.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
The meat sector in its current form is unsustainable; yet so is completely replacing the use of animals as a food technology. For the biggest and fastest environmental impact, we must address the way we grow our food. More sustainable models will involve coexistence between traditional and alternative production methods.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
As ever, it is the most vulnerable people around the world who suffer greatest from slow growth, rising inflation, and the energy and food system disruptions stemming from the war in Ukraine. Bridging the finance
divide, while ensuring that resources catalyze the necessary transformations, will be key for putting the SDGs back within reach.
MARKETING AND COMMS -
The open-source playbook from TrusTrace, Fashion Revolution and Fashion for Good offers a one-stop guide for fashion brands wanting to fulfill on the new business imperative for transparency.
MARKETING AND COMMS -
Weekly emissions data from Sweden’s energy, industry, road transportation and domestic aviation — used to track Sweden’s path towards 2030 emissions-reduction
goals — are being displayed on digital billboards throughout Stockholm.
CLEANTECH -
Sunlit Sea’s prefabricated, floating solar panels optimize longevity, power production and safety, whilst taking a fraction of the time and cost to install.
THE NEXT ECONOMY -
A recent Innovate4Climate workshop focused on technology’s role in improving carbon accounting verification processes. SustainCERT and INFRAS explored how digitization will revolutionize emissions-reductions verification in both voluntary and compliance markets.