The latest products, services, design approaches and business models that are helping organizations of all sizes deliver on their sustainability ambitions and establish a new business as usual
Two design challenges are back and accepting new entries for products designed to help enable a sustainable future. The non-profit H&M Foundation is accepting applications for the second edition of its Global Change Award through October 31st, 2016. The competition is seeking early stage ideas that present new circular approaches for the fashion industry – whether by changing the way garments are designed, produced, shipped, bought, used, or recycled – by adding disruptive technology or using a new business model.
A new study released by mobile marketplace OfferUp has found that many Americans are increasingly drowning in things they no longer need or want, yet – strangely enough - there is a widespread struggle to meet household expenses on time every month.
Only four years ago, offshore wind farm developer DONG Energy set an ambitious 2020 target to build offshore wind energy for less than €100 per MWh. The target was also later adopted by the offshore wind industry. With Borssele 1+2, the forthcoming wind farm in the Netherlands, the target has now been reached. Head of Wind Power at DONG Energy, Samuel Leupold, says: “With Borssele 1 and 2, we’re reaching a critical industry milestone more than three years ahead of time. This demonstrates the great potential of offshore wind.”
Six industries could enjoy massive savings and emissions cuts by digitizing their business processes and applying data to monitor resource use. According to SAP, Europe’s largest software company, each of the identified industries could cut at least half a gigaton of carbon emissions by making such changes, and together, they could help save around $33 trillion worth of resources and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 7.6 gigatons by 2030. In order of highest potential emissions cuts, the six industries SAP identified are: utilities (2.2 gigatons); agriculture and food production (1.6 gigatons); transportation and logistics (1.5 gigatons); construction (1.1 gigatons); manufacturing (0.7 gigatons); and retail and consumer production (0.5 gigatons).
News Deeply, in partnership with Sustainable Brands, has produced a series of profiles looking at how brands are tackling some of the world’s biggest challenges. The goal is to examine trends and gather insights from a new wave of corporate citizenship – in an era when the private sector is increasingly expected to play a positive role in improving our lives and societies. This is the 7th article in the series.
More than one-third of American adults agree: Finding parking in many major cities is such a pain that they’re ditching driving to avoid the hassle. But with Ford’s new FordPass® platform, drivers can eliminate that anxiety — and avoid a showdown over parking — before they even get into their car.
NIKE, Inc. has announced a new strategic partnership with private equity firm Apollo Global Management, LLC, aimed at building a transparent and ethical apparel supply chain in the Americas. Through the partnership, Nike aims to increase regional manufacturing capabilities, enable quicker delivery of more customized product to consumers and drive investment in sustainability.
Ethical apparel brand PACT | ORGANIC today launched a new campaign that aims to show how dirty the fashion industry really is. “The Skidmark,” a new digital campaign produced by the creative firm Denizen Company, shines a light on the proverbial (and in this case, literal) stain the $3 trillion global fashion industry is leaving on the environment and people affected by its production. What starts as your basic sexy underwear ad quickly shifts gears, and (fair warning) comes to a rather explosive conclusion.
The average American emits 17 tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year just by going about their daily life – breathing, blow-drying their hair, cooking, and so on. The figure is similar for Australians (16.5 tonnes) and not much better for Canadians (14.1 tonnes), and for most people, it is impossible to reduce this figure to zero. At the same time, many understand that we face an imperative to reduce our impact and help cool the planet. So what are we to do?
Ford has announced a plan to have a ride-sharing service featuring high-volume, fully autonomous, Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)-defined level 4-capable vehicles in commercial operation by 2021. To get there, the company is investing in or collaborating with four startups to enhance its autonomous vehicle development, doubling its Silicon Valley team and more than doubling its Palo Alto campus.
These three facts should give pause to anyone who wants to see a resource-efficient clean energy future become a reality:
In our last article, we explained why it’s important to make sure that your purpose is thoroughly grounded in the political, economic, social and technological context in which you operate. We call this the “dig” phase: intensively researching and analysing your external environment. The “dig” phase doesn’t stop with the outside world, however. It’s just as important to look inwards. For your purpose to have any hope of gaining real purchase on the day-to-day operations of your business – to have any hope of being authentic - it must be fully aligned to the truth of your business.
Each year, a new wave of computers, smartphones and accessories spill onto the market with smaller components made from increasingly complex materials. Even as awareness of e-waste has grown and the circular economy has begun to spread its wings, progress is being undermined by a disposable culture in the tech industry.
As communications partners, we at Edelman are often asked by clients to help them bring their sustainability stories to life. But despite decades of progress on environmental initiatives, many companies still face challenges building CSR programming that resonates across the organization.
A report released today from As Yow Sow and Corporate Knights reveals that a list of 200 clean energy companies known as the Carbon Clean 200™ (Clean200™) show a simulated annualized return of 21.82 percent over the past decade – nearly triple that of the Carbon Underground 200™, a list of fossil fuel companies being targeted for divestment, which generated a 7.84 percent annualized return over the same period. The Clean200’s high figure was largely due to the explosive growth experienced by Chinese cleantech firms, but firms outside of China still had figures superior to the S&P 1200 global benchmark and Carbon Underground 200.
As an industry, we’re ignorant at best or utterly demagogic, one-sided and irresponsible at worst. The majority of do-good efforts from brands are little more than a cheeky pick-up line to charm consumers into buying more. How can we continuously ignore the societal or environmental consequences of our craft? I often hear marketing execs talk about advertising as a mirror of society despite its omnipresent impact. Advertising unquestionably promotes screwed-up beauty ideals, preys on people’s insecurities and egoism, and pushes a material arms race in which people are considered backward if they don’t have the newest gadget.
On April 22 – Earth Day 2016 – a record 175 nations agreed to keep this century’s global temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius by signing the Paris Agreement, conceived at last year’s Paris Climate Conference (COP21). While unclear what country-level solutions will emerge, we know moving towards a low-carbon future is a critical component.
With the potential to change how businesses think about their waste, circular economy models could be an effective means of emissions reduction towards the commitments under the Paris Climate Agreement in addition to economic benefits, waste reduction, and reduced consumption of virgin materials.
News Deeply, in partnership with Sustainable Brands, has produced a series of profiles looking at how brands are tackling some of the world’s biggest challenges. The goal is to examine trends and gather insights from a new wave of corporate citizenship – in an era when the private sector is increasingly expected to play a positive role in improving our lives and societies. This is the 4th article in the series.
Transportation accounts for around one-seventh of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. And globally, greenhouse gas emissions are rising faster in transportation than in any other sector, with rapid motorization — more cars and trucks — being the principal cause.