How organizations are addressing the 'G' in ESG – striking the balance of maximizing long-term growth and value while safeguarding the interests of all stakeholders
Extreme weather events cost the global economy a record $320 billion in 2017. Food systems are experiencing more shocks than ever before, yet they also cause about one quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions.
The Procter & Gamble Company today announced it has achieved many of its 2020 environmental sustainability goals, has plans in place to meet the rest and has established new, broad-reaching goals for 2030.
Increasingly, businesses are using their clout to influence governments to advance a fair, inclusive and sustainable society and position their business for success. They recognize that government leadership is essential to develop progressive economic, social and environmental public policy to realize a future in which business and society can prosper.
New research from the University of Waterloo suggests that small businesses have enormous potential to advance sustainability in Canada. 86% of SMEs surveyed think that sustainability is important, and more than half have taken steps to make their practices more socially and environmentally-friendly.
Recovering gold, copper and other metals from electronic waste – a practice called “urban mining” – is not only more environmentally friendly than extracting virgin materials, but can also be more cost effective. Newly published research shows that the revenue from selling metals recovered through recycling television sets far outweighs the recyclers’ expenses. With these offsets, it costs 13 times more to obtain these metals from ore than from urban mining.
Larry Fink’s recent clarion call to capitalism that managing “environmental, social,and governance (ESG) matters demonstrates the leadership and good governance that is so essential to sustainable growth” should not fall on deaf CEO ears.
Smack in the middle of the third year of its groundbreaking #OptOutside campaign, which began with a bold stand against the shopping rampage of Black Friday and has expanded into a global movement to empower its customers to embrace the great outdoors, REI Co-op today debuted a set of product standards aimed at elevating sustainability across the retail and
In a first-of-its-kind analysis for the hotel industry, food waste reduction programs were shown to be effective and financially beneficial. The research – which was conducted on behalf of Champions 12.3 – studied the costs and benefits of reducing food waste for 42 hotel sites across 15 countries. Over a three-year period, nearly every site realized a positive return on its investment; on average, hotels saved $7 in operating costs for every $1 they had spent on the programs.
The Hershey Company has announced a new comprehensive strategy for cocoa sustainability with an emphasis on addressing pressing issues facing cocoa-growing communities such as poverty, poor nutrition, at-risk youth, and vulnerable ecosystems. Cocoa For Good will involve collaborative programs, partnerships, and a half-a-billion dollars in investments by 2030.
Companies including Apple, Google and IKEA earned top spots in a new ranking of the top 20 business leaders calling for more ambitious climate policy across the globe. To make the A-List of Climate Policy Engagement, companies must showcase sectoral leadership, be vocal in calling for ambitious policies and align these calls with their own strategic activities.
Dear CEO, I know it’s lonely at the top. Each day you contend with a boiling stew of global competition, digital transformation, labor issues and challenging board members, to name a few. You walk this tightrope while hewing to a notion of shareholder primacy that has guided you throughout your career — the need to maximize financial profits and consider shareholders above all other stakeholders. And now, here comes society nipping at your heels, demanding that you incorporate social purpose into your corporation.
The adage, “behind every great man, there is a great woman,” has officially — and irretrievably — been relegated to the history books. In its place comes the understanding that behind every woman is a powerful and growing network of women who have, and are helping to, pave the way. When I joined Ceres more than a decade ago, I was privileged to experience firsthand the power of working under a female CEO and a gender-balanced leadership team. Today, even as the organization has quintupled in size, Ceres maintains this gender parity.
McDonald’s has made strides towards sustainability this month: it’s the first restaurant company to set an approved Science-Based Target to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; it’s launching a Chicken Sustainability Advisory Council; and it will begin trials to test paper straws – rather than plastic – in several of its U.K. locations.
This is the seventh in a series of articles examining how business leaders and companies can transform their corporate culture in order to succeed in the midst of the impending Purpose Revolution. Find links to the full series below. The business world has been obsessed with the millennials for quite some time now. Millennials are the largest working generation and have considerable influence as purchasers and drivers of consumer preferences. Yet we believe that leading corporations don’t understand the millennial mindset.
“If life were easy, it wouldn’t be difficult.” — Kermit the Frog As a sustainability professional, I am drawn to this Muppet wisdom. Over the many years I’ve worked in the field as an advisor and strategist, I’ve witnessed a slow but steady awakening on the part of organizations to the real challenges of long-term sustainability. It takes intention, commitment – and pivots.
This is the sixth in a series of articles examining how business leaders and companies can transform their corporate culture in order to succeed in the midst of the impending Purpose Revolution. Find links to the full series below.
Sustainable Brands has recently reported on a range of really interesting, wide-range of initiatives coming out of the beer industry, including innovative packaging solutions, the use of renewable energy and efforts to address climate change and water scarcity.
Are businesses ready to respond to the existential threats posed by social and environmental issues such as wealth inequality and climate change? Not yet, it seems. A new report from the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) has found that businesses need to “develop leadership to respond to the unprecedented changes brought by the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” or miss out on the opportunities presented by new technologies and innovations.
Good products and profits have long been the hallmark of successful businesses, but in a shifting economic landscape these traditional metrics no longer hold up, as consumers, employees and investors are increasingly looking to corporations to act on environmental and social issues. So how can businesses succeed in an age of disruption?
As a division of the fashion industry, the footwear sector has a hefty environmental footprint. However, a slew of emerging brands are gearing up to change footwear’s future, raising the bar for the rest of the industry by embracing sustainable sourcing, ethical labor practices and transparency.