INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
While so much of our lives have veered toward the digital, many organizations’ operations still rely to some degree on paper. Innovative solutions to help minimize the impact of continued paper use include print-optimization technologies and even more “sustainable” fonts.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
Stakeholders are yet again criticizing the European Commission’s new Circular Economy Package. The original policy, released in December of last year, was denounced as insufficiently ambitious, resulting in its dismissal and a review process over the course of 2015. The Commission adopted the revised package on December 2nd, but some claim the new policy is even weaker than the original.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
In September and October, Carlsberg Group accepted submissions for its "Cheers to Green Ideas" competition, hosted in partnership with think tank Sustainia. The competition asked people and organizations from around the world to submit their ideas about how to make Carlsberg more sustainable.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
A new documentary is racking up awards across the United States, exposing the dangers hidden in the products found on store shelves. Director Jon Whelan stumbled across the issue of undisclosed chemicals when he noticed a foul smell from a pair of pajamas he purchased for his daughter. The film, aptly titled STINK!, follows his journey to uncover the source of products’ odors and what “fragrance” on a label really means.
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
Diverting waste from landfills and the innovative reuse of textiles are becoming higher priorities for businesses large and small. From pro baseball teams to grocery stores, partnerships are helping companies send less waste to the dump.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Let me start by saying that I don’t expect you to believe what you are about to read. Why should you take an opinion of an executive of a multi-national at face value?
There was a recent quote on Reddit that opened my eyes to an unexpected truth: “April fool’s day is the one day of the year when people critically evaluate news articles before accepting them as true,” (user: kellenbrent). But shouldn’t we aspire to have this attitude every day? Let’s be critical when we are presented with a foregone conclusion. Let’s be curious about what is behind every piece of information we see or hear. Let’s leave preconceived notions at the door and be open to challenging what we believe or what may seem obvious.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
The 2015 winners of the annual R&D 100 Awards were announced on November 13 in Las Vegas. Often referred to as the “Oscars of Innovation,” the awards recognize technology inventions commercialized in the past year. The Dow Chemical Company had the largest number of nominations and winners of any single developer, with 21 nominations and six awards.The winning Dow products included two packaging solutions, a paint modifier, an adhesive, a power cable insulation, and a solder:
NEW METRICS -
Construction machinery and equipment giant Caterpillar recently hosted the first major national summit on infrastructure restoration, with the clarion call that investing in nature is smart business. As a major player in the manufacturing industry, Caterpillar reached the conclusion that moving beyond technical principles and establishing a broad coalition of stakeholders is required to bring the restoration conversation mainstream.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
After spending much of her childhood in landfills near Mexico City, 22-year-old Sandy Yazmin Colohua Gomez is now one of the women who has gained financial independence and confidence through The Coca-Cola Company’s 5by20 initiative. The company has released a short film, 5by20: Meet the Artisans, to share the global impact of the initiative through stories such as Sandy’s.
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
Around the world, more and more action is being taken to create a more sustainable clothing industry. In the U.K., waste reduction charity WRAP is seeing significant progress on its Sustainable Clothing Action Plan (SCAP). Meanwhile, two U.S.-based Kickstarter campaigns are offering sustainable, certified organic options: men’s denim made in America; and temperature-regulating base layers that use nanofibers from Austria.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
I came to Colorado, like millions before me, for the mountains, the active, sustainable lifestyle — and, of course, the beer. Coloradoans love their beer. So when I was invited up to Fort Collins to check out the water-saving initiatives of a local brewery I jumped at the opportunity. “Which one?” I wondered. Fort Collins is home to more than 15 breweries (roughly 1 for every 10,000 residents), amongst the highest concentrations for any city in America. New Belgium is a certified B Corp — that’d make sense. Or maybe Odell?
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
Food waste has proved to be a persistent global challenge despite numerous efforts to reduce it from stakeholders throughout the value chain, from corporates, to non-profits, to startups. At the same time, it may not be obvious to business owners and employees what they can do to be reducing food waste in their daily operations.
MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS -
Soon consumers in the US will come a lot closer to knowing what's in the food they buy thanks to a new standard being introduced by the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA). SmartLabel was created to meet the public’s desire for more information about the products they use and consume, and Hershey is the first brand to adopt it.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
This week, Nestlé announced it is the newest member of the How2Recycle Label Program. Selected Nestlé USA and Purina® brands will use the How2Recycle label to help communicate to the public how to recycle their packaging.The How2Recycle label is a project of GreenBlue’s Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC), developed to provide clear and concise on-package recyclability information and keep recoverable materials out of landfills. The brands join over 40 How2Recycle member companies using the label on packaging.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Flicking through various CSR reports, it’s interesting to note how often packaging is highlighted as an area in need of more attention. It’s hardly surprising given the complexity of applying lifecycle thinking to a material that needs to protect the product inside it while also delivering a satisfying consumer experience.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
The Dow Chemical Company on Tuesday announced the launch a new family of resins that offers unprecedented performance levels to help customers address some of today’s most challenging packaging performance gaps.Innate Precision Packaging Resins are created from a patented molecular catalyst coupled with advanced process technology, which Dow says will empower customers to unlock new packaging opportunities through “unmatched stiffness-toughness balance, processing ease and improved sustainability profiles.”
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
Levi Strauss & Co. claims its consumer care recommendations could have saved California 35 billion liters of water over the past four years — the amount of time that the state has been experiencing a severe drought.
NEW METRICS -
Microsoft has, as of July 1, 2015, achieved carbon neutrality across its manufacturing operations, according to the company’s 2015 Citizenship Report.The software company’s data centers, software development labs, offices and business air travel have been carbon neutral since July 2012.Microsoft was able to achieve carbon neutrality across its global operations due to its internal carbon fee. The program puts a price on carbon and makes the company’s business divisions responsible for the cost of reducing and compensating for the carbon emissions associated with their electricity use and air travel.
PRESS RELEASE -
Sovermol® 830 promotes sustainable development for industrial flooring systems, coatings exposed to potable water and semi-structural adhesivesExcellent hardening and mechanical characteristics even under difficult conditionsBASF has extended its range of high-quality bio-based polyols sold under the Sovermol® trademark. The products are used for manufacturing extremely low-emission 2K PU coatings for interior and exterior applications. With Sovermol 830 BASF is launching a new polyol that makes indoor floorings, e.g. in industrial warehouses or sports halls, more resistant.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
UK waste-reduction charity Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has announced a three-year commitment to reducing clothing waste through a new €3.6 million pilot project. Funded by EU LIFE, the European Clothing Action Plan (ECAP) aims to divert over 90,000 tonnes per year of clothing waste from landfill and incineration across Europe by March 2019.