SUPPLY CHAIN -
The sustainability challenges facing the clothing industry today are immense. In 2013 the Danish fashion institute estimated it to be the second-most damaging industry in the world, with 25 percent of the world’s pesticides used to grow cotton alone, and one-fifth of industrial water pollution stemming from the dyeing and treatment of fabric. The U.S.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
This post is part of a series produced by The Huffington Post, "What's Working: Sustainable Development Goals," in conjunction with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The proposed set of goals will be the subject of discussion at the UN General Assembly meeting on Sept. 25-27, 2015 in New York; they cover 17 key areas of development — including poverty, hunger, health, education, and gender equality, among many others.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
Fenugreen, 2013’s SB Innovation Open winner and creator of the potentially game-changing food-saving innovation FreshPaper, is one of 10 startup finalists in contention for the most coveted of TV spots: a Super Bowl ad.
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR CHANGE -
One year after drugstore chain CVS Health stopped selling cigarettes, the company released new data that shows the decision has influenced tobacco sales across many types of retailers and announced a new school-based tobacco-prevention program.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
If you’re concerned about the recent drought but feel lost on how you can lessen your personal water use, a new initiative promises to help. Anheuser Busch’s Shock Top Brewing Co. is partnering with Indiegogo to identify, fund and distribute water-saving innovations that can help California residents reduce their water consumption.
STAKEHOLDER TRENDS AND INSIGHTS -
A new survey suggests U.S. consumers are largely unaware of the severity of global resource scarcity, but their choice of packaging would be impacted if they had readily available information on how renewable materials mitigate climate change.
MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS -
Greenpeace has begun its latest campaign against Shell, with a month of protests over the oil giant’s plans to drill in the Arctic.
SUPPLY CHAIN -
Today marks the two-year anniversary of the devastating collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory in Bangladesh. It also marks the second Fashion Revolution Day, launched last year to commemorate the Rana Plaza disaster with the aims of encouraging greater collaboration across the fashion sector supply chain.
SUPPLY CHAIN -
On Friday, the second annual Fashion Revolution Day, people in 66 countries around the world will challenge global fashion brands to demonstrate commitment to transparency across the length of the value chain, from farmers to factory workers, brands to buyers and consumers.One in six people work in the global fashion supply chain. It is the most labor-dependent industry on the planet, yet the people who make our clothes are hidden from us, often at their own expense, a symptom of the broken links across the fashion industry.
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
At the World Travel & Tourism Council 2015 Global Summit in Madrid today, Sustainable Travel International (STI) unveiled an industry-wide campaign, entitled “10 Million Better,” to monitor and scale up social and environmental benefits from travel and tourism.The 10-year initiative convenes leading tourism corporations, organizations and destinations around the globe with the goal of tracking and demonstrating improvements in the lives of at least 10 million people and their families by 2025. Improvements to be monitored include growth of income and opportunity, and better protection of destinations’ natural, cultural and heritage sites.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
This week, the WorldWatch Institute, an independent research organization that focuses on energy, resource and environmental issues, released State of the World 2015: Confronting Hidden Threats to Sustainability. The report details a diverse range of threats, driven directly or indirectly by growing stress on the planet's resources, which have the potential to upend social systems, environmental balance and even entire economies.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
There is a worldwide concern that the ability of our environmental systems to sustain the conditions of life as we know it is being compromised. We need to act now, and we need to act fast, so today more than ever we need innovative solutions and a different approach to problem solving.Every time we analyze a problem by focusing only in its consequences, we risk not understanding it at all. We miss the opportunity to comprehend what is causing it in the first place, and that the solution might not be to solve the end result, but to eliminate the root that is causing the problem in the first place.
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
Cambodian fashion brand tonlé is revolutionizing the textile industry not only with its ethical business model, but also a creative approach to zero-waste.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
Since the release of the Responsible Down Standard (RDS) in January, we have been working diligently to get it rolled out to the industry and implemented across our own supply chain. Doing this has been a complex and challenging project for The North Face and our partners, but we believe the RDS will make some critical changes to the down supply chain to improve traceability and ethical treatment of animals.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
By creating an enabling environment to establish novel internal-management systems, Solidaridad's Better Mill Initiative has equipped textile-factory managers and workers to improve working conditions and livelihoods, and reduce the environmental impact of the factories.
MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS -
Of the 50 certified wineries, surprisingly, only three have opted to display the Napa Green logo on their labels — despite the time and cost involved in obtaining those certifications — so, I dug a little deeper.
MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS -
Greenpeace continued its campaign against LEGO on Tuesday with the release of a dramatic video, called “Everything Is NOT Awesome,” aimed at further illustrating the reasons the toy company should sever its ties with Shell, which Greenpeace contends is putting the delicate Arctic marine environment at risk through its oil drilling.
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
In 2013, West Elm committed to invest $35M in artisan partnerships around the world through 2015. These partnerships create a number of benefits for both West Elm and the artisans they collaborate with.
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR CHANGE -
When over 1,100 garment workers died in the Rana Plaza factory collapse in April 2013, it shined an unflinching light on the untenable conditions that many in the industry have long been forced to endure. Since then, consumers, activists and other stakeholders around the world have demanded that brands take immediate action to ensure that workers are not only safe, but paid fairly while they’re constructing the clothing we wear every day.
COLLABORATION & CO-CREATION -
The newest trend in social responsibility in the apparel sector emerged in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam on Monday as several of the world’s most influential clothing brands gathered to develop a roadmap to creating a more sustainable supply chain and conserve endangered forests.