Collaboration
Follow the growing amount of collaborative work — cross-functional, cross-sector, pre-competitive and more — bringing about massive, disruptive, needed shifts to business as usual.
Trending: Regenerative Sourcing, Circular Models Revamping Fashion
This week, two fashion giants with extensive brand portfolios announced partnerships that show promise for cleaning up “dirty fashion.”
'Powering Down Corruption' in Cobalt Supply Chains a Business Imperative
A new report from Washington D.C.-based nonprofit the Enough Project highlights just how rampant corruption and human rights abuses are in the supply chain for cobalt, a mineral used to power battery technology.
Sharing Is the Key to Scaling Sustainability
A solid argument can be made that corporate America has made significant progress in the sustainability arena.
Tesco, WWF Partner to Improve Sustainability of UK Food, Diets
UK grocery giant Tesco and WWF have announced a groundbreaking, four-year partnership aimed at reducing the environmental impact of the average UK shopping cart by 50 percent, improving the sustainability of food while ensuring it remains affordable for all.
The Biggest Threat to Life Below Water? Apathy
Our oceans have never been more threatened. The great challenges of overfishing, climate change, pollution and habitat loss have taken a terrible toll, jeopardising vital fish stocks and the lives and livelihoods of the hundreds of millions who depend on them. But there’s another problem that’s seldom mentioned: Apathy. Unlike many of the issues facing the ocean, it’s one that should be easy to put right. And ironically, it’s one that nobody is really talking about.
Global, Multisector Commitments Aim to Eliminate Plastic Pollution at the Source; Is It Enough?
NOTE: This article was updated on October 30, 2018 at 11:45am ET. A Global Commitment to eradicate plastic waste and pollution at the source has been signed by 250 organisations including many of the world’s largest packaging producers, brands, retailers and recyclers, as well as governments and NGOs. For some signatories, the Global Commitment is just one facet of their plan to overhaul their approach to plastic. The New Plastics Economy Global Commitment is led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF), in collaboration with UN Environment, and was officially unveiled at the Our Ocean Conference in Bali today.
Nat Geo, Wattpad Call for Stories About Global Plastic Crisis
The only positive side of the marine plastic problem is the growing tide of actions from the global business community to try and solve it — in the past year alone, the issue has spawned campaigns, documentaries, cross-industry collaborations, scientific breakthroughs,
As Michael Approaches, Companies Are Changing the Way We Weather Natural Disasters
Natural disasters are becoming a new reality for many Americans. In 2017 alone, 25 million people, or 8 percent of the U.S. population, were affected by a natural disaster — a “historic year,” according to FEMA. More often, corporates are responding before, during and after natural disasters to serve affected employees, customers and communities. Historically, companies have responded to disasters by providing the basics of food, water, and shelter — often via cash donations to relief organizations. But in the past few years, we have seen more companies bring their competencies, products or services, and people to disaster situations in innovative ways. And they are changing the way communities across the U.S. weather and recover from disasters.
Making National Parks 'Smart' Could Be Key to Their Sustainability
More and more studies suggest that time spent outdoors can help foster our mental and physical development and wellbeing. Unfortunately, maintaining green spaces such as urban and national parks is not always an easy task. Maintenance can be particularly challenging for national park authorities, who often need to keep watch over hundreds of miles of wild terrain.
BCFN Foundation, UN SDSN Promise Roadmap to Global Food System Transformation
The past few weeks have seen a flurry of big announcements and commitments regarding increasing sustainability in a variety of areas, including overhauling our broken food system: Two weeks ago, at the Global Climate Action Summit, FoodShot Global launched a new investment platform aimed at accelerating food system transformation through a “Moonshots for Better Food” challenge to startups working to create a healthier, more sustainable and more equitable food system worldwide; while earlier this week at Climate Week NYC,
APP, MTG Partner to Turn 1K Women from Forest Communities into Herbal Entrepreneurs
The Indonesian Network of the United Nations Global Compact today announced a partnership between Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) and Martha Tilaar Group (MTG) — a leading Indonesian manufacturer of cosmetics and herbal medicine — to train 1,000 women from forest communities to help preserve herbal plants and become self-sufficient entrepreneurs.
Neighbourly Calling for More Partners to Redistribute Surplus Food Across UK, Ireland
Giving platform Neighbourly has today put out a call inviting charities, food projects, schools and community groups to join its free food surplus redistribution scheme. Neighbourly is the redistribution partner to retailers and manufacturers including Marks & Spencer, Starbucks, Heineken, Lidl and Danone.
Stakeholders Collaborating for a More Sustainable Bioeconomy
Over the last few years, the bioeconomy — a global economy that uses biological resources and waste from the land and sea as inputs to food, industrial and energy production — has been a major point of discussion for scientists and policymakers alike. According to the World Economic Forum, our bioeconomy is far from sustainable as it presently exists, as companies across many industries continue to rely on environmentally damaging practices.
Latin American Leaders Commit to Forge Inclusive Digital Future for All
On Thursday, Dr. Victor Santiago Pineda — a globally recognized disability rights expert, President of World Enabled and Director of the Inclusive Cities Lab at the University of California Berkeley — shared his vision for socially inclusive, smart cities of the future in a keynote address at the Smart City Expo LATAM Congress 2018 in Puebla, Mexico.
GCAS: 400 Investors, Salesforce & Friends 'Step Up' to Ensure Climate Turning Point by 2020
Today, among a flurry of big announcements at the Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS) in San Francisco, Salesforce announced its leadership in the creation of the Step Up Declaration and strategic corporate commitments to help catalyze a climate turning point by 2020.
Nature's Path, Back to the Roots Partner to Bring Organic Cereals to Every School in America
Marking a major milestone moment for the organic food movement, Nature’s Path — the world’s largest organic breakfast company — and sustainable food and garden startup Back to the Roots have inked an exclusive licensing agreement to bring Back to the Roots’ organic, four-ingredients-or-less cereals into every school cafeteria across the country.
Thought Leadership Is Overrated
My first problem with so many people focusing on “thought leadership” is the myriad of people (and organizations) who confer the title on themselves — rather than understanding that, to be a thought leader, one must be considered such by others. But my bigger problem with the concept is that, in my opinion, it focuses too much on the individual and fails to recognize, appreciate and encourage what I call ‘collaborative co-creation,’ where more than one person comes together to create something greater than they could have alone.
Creating Business Alliances Around Bolivian Quinoa
When multiple layers of the supply chain work together, transformation is most effective. At Archer Daniels Midland Company, we have seen this firsthand, through providing financial and other support to improve the lives of quinoa farmers in Bolivia. Together with our partner, Andean Naturals; and our customer, Kashi, we have been working to promote sustainable quinoa and improve the welfare of the farmers and their families by empowering women farmers, improving access to education, and increasing quinoa productivity.
UNICEF, LIXIL Partner to Provide 250M People Access to Basic Sanitation by 2021
Sanitation is one of the most pressing social and public health challenges today. 1 in 3 people worldwide do not have access to a safe toilet — and 892 million people have no choice but to defecate in the open. Every two minutes, a child dies from a preventable diarrhea-related disease — approximately 288,000 children each year. The issue also contributes to the number of girls who drop out of school, since they are especially affected by a lack of hygiene and sanitation during their period.
Why Apparel Brands Should Work Together to Build a Sustainable Future
I recently spent time in Copenhagen for the Fashion Summit. There were a lot of statistics thrown around but there is one that I can’t get out of my head. 50 million tons of clothes are produced every year and 87 percent of them will end up incinerated or in a landfill. And our industry is expected to double. That math is 87 million tons per year burned or tossed!