Leadership
Exemplary cases of sustainability leadership and intrapreneurship, and the qualities, ethical principles and/or dilemmas inherent within them.
How Leadership on Sustainability Shapes Smart Regulatory Policy
This past year, we’ve seen some bold action by companies in what we’ve dubbed the business-policy nexus, and it’s taking several different forms. Some have been calling for state or federal action on environmental impacts, while others are taking far-reaching voluntary efforts that could help support policy advocacy in the future.Whether you view engagement on public policy as risk mitigation, providing market certainty, supporting corporate sustainability goals or securing competitive advantage, leading businesses are increasingly stepping up their efforts to support smart policy reform that will benefit the environment and economy.
#SB14London: Henisz Teaches Lessons in Corporate Diplomacy
On Wednesday afternoon, Witold Henisz, presented his recent book, Corporate Diplomacy: Building Reputations and Relationships with External Stakeholders, offers corporate leaders a framework to increase their effectiveness when engaging customers and external stakeholders.At the center of the conversation are multinational companies, which too often don’t engage with their communities, suppliers, partners and employees.
Study: Current and Future Business Leaders Agree on Most Sustainability Challenges
Current and future leaders believe the most significant leadership challenge facing business today is the integration of sustainability into core business operations, according to a new study by BSR, GlobeScan and Net Impact.
#SB14London: How Holonomic Thinking Can Help Us Upgrade Our Leadership Skills for the New Economy
On the way into this workshop, I overheard a remark that this was a novel session, and involved working with clay … this turned out to be absolutely true, but more on that later.Simon Robinson and Maria Moraes Robinson are the co-authors of Holonomics: Business Where People and Planet Matter. The obvious question is, what exactly is ‘Holonomics’? Simon explained that he and Maria had struggled to find a suitable term for the point where ‘wholeness’ and ‘economics’ converge, and decided to create Holonomics, shorthand to describe the way in which we view the outside world, and especially the naturally occurring but complex systems in nature.
The Business-Policy Nexus: Why the Time for Leadership Is Now
As we approach the 25-year anniversary of EDF’s work with the corporate sector, it’s an opportune time to reflect on our successes and plan for the work ahead.Over the years we have worked with McDonald's, Walmart, FedEx, KKR and many others to integrate sustainability into their operations, strategy, and supply chain management. Together, we have kick-started market transformations in sectors including fast food, shipping, retail, private equity and commercial building energy efficiency. While we’ve made great strides, there remains a huge distance to go in order to fully protect our natural resources, clean up our dirty energy system, and turn the corner on global greenhouse gas emissions in time to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.
UCLA Creates $15 Million Self-Replenishing Sustainability Fund
UCLA has announced the creation of a $15 million self-replenishing fund to support campus sustainability projects — the largest fund of its kind in the United States.The university says creating the UCLA Energy and Sustainability Revolving Fund is a way to acknowledge that sustainability is a way to help minimize climate change, as well as a good financial investment. The fund will be created through bond financing and will not use tuition or student fees, UCLA says. Supporters will also be able to donate to the fund to support sustainability at the university.
Report: Chief Sustainability Officers Expanding from Tactical Executors to Strategic Lynchpins
Chief Sustainability Officers (CSOs) have expanded their responsibilities from internal program managers to strategic lynchpins who guide corporate strategy, identify product innovation opportunities, and orchestrate sustainability initiatives both inside and outside the company, according to a new report by The Weinreb Group.
Beware of Knotworks – Networks with Ego
I do not know who the artist is who drew this cartoon (above), so I cannot acknowledge them, but it seems to be quite famous and has been doing the rounds for some time now. I added the ego – eco element myself, and ego is something I would really like to explore as we move from a hierarchical society to a networked, co-creative society.
CDP: Microsoft, SAP, Unilever Among 'A List' Companies Doing the Most to Combat Climate Change
This week, CDP revealed its list of 187 companies illustrating that a low-carbon future does not mean low profit.The 2014 Climate Performance Leadership Index (CPLI), which highlights companies taking action to mitigate climate change, outperforms The Bloomberg World Index by 9.6 percent.
The Home Depot Named EPA 2014 WaterSense Partner of the Year
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has named The Home Depot a 2014 WaterSense Partner of the Year for its commitment to water efficiency and efforts to educate Americans about WaterSense products throughout its stores and online.Through the sale of nearly 13 million WaterSense® labeled products, The Home Depot helped American consumers save more than 42.5 billion gallons of water and over $358 million in water utility costs. This is enough water to supply 291,000 US homes for a full year.This is The Home Depot's third EPA partner award in 2014, marking the second consecutive year the retailer has won three key EPA honors — WaterSense Partner of the Year, ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year and SmartWay Excellence Award.
Study: Most European CEOs Believe Successful Business Combines Profit and Purpose
Nearly nine in ten (86%) current CEOs and future business leaders believe businesses should have a social purpose, but just a fifth of the younger generation agrees they are doing so, according to a new study by Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) in partnership with Cranfield’s Doughty Centre for Corporate Responsibility and The Financial Times’ FT Remark (FT).
On Creativity, Ego and Transformational Leadership
I’ve been having some great conversations recently on the theme of transformational leadership with some very amazing people, and these conversations have triggered a few thoughts I would like to share.I’d like to start by turning if I may to this metaphorical model of the four qualities of knowing — earth, water, air and fire.
H&M, Unilever Commit to Climate Change Disclosure as Matter of Fiduciary Duty
H&M, Unilever, Nestlé and several other leading companies and investors have committed to reporting climate change through the Climate Change Reporting Framework or other comparable frameworks as a matter of fiduciary duty, whether or not required by current regulation.This represents an unprecedented collective commitment and a practical step capable of enabling positive change in economic and financial market activity at scale.
Why It's Time to Reframe the Role of Sustainability Leaders
My first big CSR/sustainability event was the 2010 Net Impact Conference - I had been invited there to speak on a panel on intrapreneurship, which gave me the opportunity to sit in on a number inspiring and insightful talks. One of the sessions I attended was an interview with BSR CEO Aron Cramer. As I recall, much of that hopeful, engaging discussion centered on transparency — a topic that’s close to my heart.
With New Product GHG Reduction Goal, HP Becomes First Global IT Company to Set Goals for Entire Value Chain
As part of ongoing efforts to lower its carbon footprint across all phases of its business, HP has announced a goal to reduce the emissions intensity of its product portfolio(1) by 40 percent by 2020 compared to 2010 levels.(2)With this announcement, HP becomes the only global IT company to have set carbon reduction goals for all three parts of its value chain — operations, supply chain and product portfolio.
Kellogg Joins BICEP Coalition to Push for Better Energy & Climate Policies
Kellogg Company has joined the Business for Innovative Climate & Energy Policy (BICEP), committing to expand its global sustainability efforts by working with businesses and policymakers to enact meaningful energy and climate policies.BICEP, a project of Ceres, was launched in 2008 with a core group of five companies, including Starbucks, Nike, and Timberland. It has since expanded to 32 leading companies, such as eBay, Symantec and Jones Lang LaSalle, which represent a broad spectrum of business sectors. BICEP members have been vocal proponents of renewable energy, sustainable transportation and stricter pollution controls on power plants.
University of California Investing $1 Billion to Fight Climate Change
The University of California has announced it will allocate $1 billion over five years for direct investments in solutions to climate change.In addition, as part of UC President Janet Napolitano’s goal of bringing university operations to carbon neutrality by 2025, the 10-campus university system has signed agreements to secure substantial solar energy for the next 25 years.
DJSI Reveals Its 2014 Global Leaders in Corporate Sustainability
Demonstrating a lead in corporate sustainability has become increasingly important to both businesses and their customers in recent years, as has receiving plaudits for their efforts. This week, the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) released their 15th annual choices for the world’s leading companies, what many consider an important acknowledgment of their progress in this area.
The Dow Jones Sustainability Index: Why We All End Up Winning
On Thursday, the annual rankings of the 2014 Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) will be publicly announced. Based on research by the Swiss-based investment group RobecoSAM, the Index assesses the sustainability performance of close to 90 publicly traded multinationals operating in the chemicals and coatings industries.Each company is ranked based on a detailed analysis of a range of criteria related to standard management practices and performance measures, with the top nine designated as finalists in the DJSI.
Governments, Business Invested $9.6 Billion to Protect World’s Drinking Water in 2013
In 2013, governments and companies invested $9.6 billion in initiatives implementing nature-based solutions to sustain the world’s clean water supplies, according to a new report from Forest Trends’ Ecosystem Marketplace.
