Product, Service & Design Innovation
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.
WEF’s New Immersive Technology Hub to Address Climate Tipping Points
Part of the Global Collaboration Village, leaders can now come together in the metaverse to experience and solve the deepening effects of the climate crisis.
AI Is Helping Brands Address Forced Labor in Supply Chains
Cross-Posted from Supply Chain. As companies have faced reputational risk due to the uncovering of labor abuses from suppliers that many did not even realize were supplying them, there’s been a push to better manage and ensure supply-chain transparency — with technology playing a key role.
Nike Unveils Fully Circular Shoe Designed for Disassembly, Recyclability
Nike’s ISPA (Improvise, Scavenge, Protect, Adapt) design philosophy challenges creators to experiment, break molds and reimagine products. The ISPA Link Axis uses interlocking components, as few materials as possible and zero glue.
New Insulating Paints Reduce Energy, Costs, Emissions, Discomfort in Extreme Temperatures
Cross-Posted from Chemistry, Materials & Packaging. The paints, developed by Stanford researchers, can reduce the need for both heating and air conditioning in buildings, as well as refrigerated cargo spaces such as trains and trucks.
We Can Eat Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis
Cross-Posted from The Next Economy. Applied to food supply chains, ambient IoT allows farmers, distributors, grocers, regulators and consumers to know where food came from, how far it traveled, how it was transported and stored, and what condition it’s in — in real time.
No More Styrofoam: 2 Startups Creating Viable, Sustainable Alternatives with Ag Waste
Cross-Posted from Waste Not. By upcycling coconut husks and shrimp shells, Fortuna Cools and Cruz Foam are diverting agricultural waste from landfill and offering circular polystyrene alternatives that match its performance.
A Defiant Optimist: How One Woman Has Reshaped Finance to Fight Global Inequality
Cross-Posted from Finance & Investment. “By valuing and giving a voice to [women of color], and recognizing their potential as solutions and stabilizers, impact investing is a powerful way to build systemic resilience … and reduce the negative impact of climate change on everyone.” — Durreen Shahnaz
Becoming a Regenerative Enterprise: Stories from the Field
At Biomimicry 3.8’s third annual Project Positive Summit, participants shared progress and groundbreaking new tools for raising the bar on ‘sustainability’ and demonstrating what regenerative design looks like in practice.
In Current Regulatory Climate, Alt Proteins Can’t Cut It in Race to Reduce Impact of Food
Cross-Posted from The Next Economy. Phasing out animal agriculture over the next 15 years could reduce GHGs 68% by the year 2100. Yet, ongoing lobbying and subsidies in the US and EU are not giving alternatives the chance to fully compete.
Salesforce, Deloitte, WEF Calling on Startups Ready to Fuel Sustainable Aviation
Cross-Posted from Cleantech. The challenge seeks next-generation aviation solutions including alternative fuels and propulsion technologies; and innovations in feedstock, engineering, and physical and market infrastructure.
Tourism Shaped by 'Unseen' Communities Surfaces Unheard Stories, Infuses Capital Into Destinations
Instead of the traditional approach of shielding tourists from places' 'messy' parts, more travel-focused social enterprises are working with marginalized communities to introduce tourists to their destination’s complex fabric.
Increasing Accessibility and Revitalizing Forgotten Devices: Shouldn’t We Be Able to Upgrade Our Laptops?
Cross-Posted from The Next Economy. Those who regularly partake in upgrade programs will have access to the best possible devices, while partaking in a sustainable business practice that enhances the wellbeing of people and the planet.
Researchers Upcycling Kale, Plastic Waste Into Personal Care, Pharmaceutical Ingredients
Cross-Posted from Waste Not. Savvy scientists from Scotland and Singapore have developed sustainable ways to breathe new life into vegetable and plastic waste, as well as local manufacturing.
Why a Circular Dress Code Will Always Be in Style
Cross-Posted from Waste Not. Technology is the magic thread weaving the circular textile narrative together to ensure that fashion isn’t just a statement — but a sustainable, end-to-end lifecycle that respects our planet.
Starbucks Expands ‘100% Reusables’ Tests in Bid to Sink Disposable Cup Waste
Cross-Posted from Behavior Change. Since 2021, Starbucks has been testing the 100% reusables model across more than 25 markets. With most of its beverages enjoyed on the go, the company continues to test and learn how to best encourage customers to embrace reusables.
Free, Open-Source Recycling Ecosystem Is Making Plastic ‘Precious’
Cross-Posted from The Next Economy. Precious Plastic is all about democratizing circularity. And it’s enabling a new form of craftsmanship: One in which anyone, anywhere, can start a small business recycling and making new products from plastic waste.
Could Coastal Carbon Capture Clean Up Atmospheric Carbon at Gigaton Scale?
Vesta is accelerating natural processes using carbon-removing olivine sand to promote coastal resilience, advance ocean uptake and storage of carbon dioxide, and reduce ocean acidity.
‘Big Build’ Brings Mars Closer to Goal of Restoring 1M Corals Worldwide by End of 2023
The massive coral-restoration project took place in the Spermonde Archipelago, Indonesia — in the world’s most biologically complex marine ecosystem in the Coral Triangle — alongside Indonesian community partners.
Advanced Livestock Genetics Are Making Protein Production More Sustainable
Historically, corporate carbon-reduction strategies haven't looked to genetic innovations as a viable Scope 3 reduction opportunity; but it is one of the most important considerations for improving the sustainability of livestock production.
Connected Construction a Promising Way to Rein in the Built Environment
Constructing a sustainable built environment requires more than efficient design, equipment and materials — but processes and workflows that say exactly where and how these assets combine to streamline processes as much as possible.
