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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.

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Can You Put a Price Tag on Purpose? How Patagonia Highlights Value Over Cost

In 2014, Patagonia dissolved its sustainability department – a move that the company’s VP of public engagement, Rick Ridgeway, remains proud of to this day. Overnight, the outdoor clothing brand deepened its commitment to environmental and social justice by decentralizing its sustainability team and moving them individually out into core areas of the business where they would have most influence.

DHL Launches Sustainable Logistics, Robotics Innovation Challenges

‘Smart minds’ are invited to submit ideas for self-driving delivery carts or sustainable logistics concepts towards two new innovation challenges from shipping company DHL. Anyone who is at least 18 years of age may join the competition by submitting a written document and video explaining their idea by September 28, 2016. Winners will receive a monetary prize out of a pool of combined 20,000 Euro, will be able to jointly develop their proof-of-concept with DHL, and will display their solutions at DHL Innovation Day on November 17, 2016.

Simple Approach Key to Aligning Brand Strategy, Innovation, Goals with the SDGs

It was a packed house on Wednesday afternoon at SB’16 San Diego, where attendees sat on the floor and crowded around the door to hear panelists from companies leading the way in sustainability discuss their strategies, and their personal experiences, in aligning with and addressing the UN SDGs.

Unilever Foundry Selects 50 Social Impact, Retail Innovation, Marketing Tech Startups

Following a competitive search for the world’s top 50 marketing technology startups, Unilever announced its 2016 Foundry 50 on June 8th. Selected from 4,500 startups Unilever has reviewed over the past two years, the finalists are distributed across five innovation areas: Brand and Content Innovation; Data, Insights and Personalization; Engaging Millennials; Social Impact; and the Future of Retail.

Activating Purpose in the Fashion Industry

Fashion is undergoing a sustainability overhaul.

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Ford Unveils Latest Sustainability Report, South African Pilot to Deliver Medical, Nutrition Services

Ford Motor Company’s 2015-16 Sustainability Report highlights key environmental benchmarks and the ongoing work of the automaker, including its expanded focus beyond vehicle production to developing mobility solutions for the future. The future of mobility Earlier this year, the automaker created Ford Smart Mobility LLC, a new subsidiary to design, build, grow and invest in emerging mobility services using existing Ford innovations, products and technologies.

Less Talk, More Action: How Brands Are Effectively Communicating Around Purpose

“I think in an organization, when you’re trying to do something different, it’s important to take up that shared risk,” said Alex Thompson, VP of Communications & Public Affairs at REI, during the Thursday morning plenaries at SB'16 San Diego.

From Footprint to Handprint: AT&T, Dell, SHINE and More on the Path to Net Positive

It is an achievement of the sustainability movement that standards for measuring and reducing our societal and planetary footprint have been established and are being tracked. But evolution tells us that more must be done - business must become restorative. Where is the roadmap for that?

The Old Guard Needs the Next Generation: How M&As Can Bolster Internal Sustainability Dynamics

Picture a big bowl of sustainable mac and cheese. Cheesy and delicious, made with non-GMO, organic ingredients – 100 percent real cheese and no artificial flavors, synthetic colors or preservatives - this is a satisfying dinner you can feel good about eating. Hopefully you’re thinking of Annie’s iconic orange box. For more than 25 years, Annie’s Homegrown has married business and social responsibility to produce high-quality products that consumers love.

Lessons from Spirituality, Nature and Business on the Meaning of Purpose and How to Activate It

Cross-Posted from Behavior Change. The purpose of business is changing. While historically, business students have been taught that the purpose of business solely is to increase investors’ profits — known as the Friedman Doctrine — the most successful brands are searching for a deeper meaning. Defining and activating purpose in business was the key theme of Tuesday evening’s plenaries at Sustainable Brands 2016. While Millennials often receive credit for compelling companies to embrace higher ideals, this actually is something all generations of demanded, said Shannon Schuyler, Chief Purpose Officer at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). However, because Millennials are such a large demographic and constantly communicate via technology, their voices are being heard.

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Thinking Outside the Room: Catalyzing and Speeding Up Purpose-Driven Innovation

The San Diego breeze rustles the palm fronds above the Mission Bay Patio - it's nice to be in an outdoor presentation space enjoying the Southern California climate. The topic for the afternoon is innovation, and the panel brings a good range of perspective. Carrie Majeske kicks things off by detailing some of Ford's initiatives under the tagline, "Driving change for a better world."

How to Factor in Exponential Technologies and Deep-Future Trends in the Innovation Process

Technology is exponentially accelerating, creating a future that is difficult to imagine and one that impacts communities on a systems level. It is Robert Suarez’s job to think way, way outside of the box and design for that exponential future. Whether helping to put a 3D printer and recycler in space or creating a virtual holographic room with Lowe’s, Suarez dreams big and designs for exponential impact. As the Managing Director of Innovation and Design for Singularity University, he tackles large social and environmental issues.

What Underlies the Success of the World's First Billion-Dollar Sustainable Brands

What do Organic Valley, Target, REI and Toyota have in common? They are what Freya WIlliams describes as “Green Giants,” companies that have turned sustainability into billion-dollar businesses, and they are not alone.

The Missing 60%: ExxonMobil, Forceful Stewardship and the 2°C Business Model Imperative

The Spring 2016 proxy votes supporting the 2°C stress test resolutions at last week’s Annual General Meetings of ExxonMobil (38.2%) and Chevron (41%) give cause for both celebration - and concern. These votes suggest that key asset managers are recognizing (and others seem to be willfully ignoring) climate risk inherent in the business-as-usual practices of the largest U.S. oil and gas corporations and their downstream value chains.

Lessons Learned from Buddhism, 10 Years of Sustainable Innovation Set Tone for SB'16 San Diego

KoAnn Vikoren Skrzyniarz, founder and CEO of Sustainable Life Media and Sustainable Brands, kicked off the 10th annual Sustainable Brands conference Monday evening by going back to when she first asked the question, “Why Sustainable Brands?”

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Whole Systems Mapping: How to Design for Innovation and Achieve Sustainability Goals

The room was buzzing during design strategist Jeremy Faludi’s Monday afternoon workshop, Whole Systems Mapping: Driving Innovation and Sustainability Through Prioritized Ideation and Value Chain Maps. Despite a sunny waterfront view, participants were engrossed in the activities in front of them as the interactive session guided them through various brainstorming and design processes.

Nestlé in the U.S. Continues 'Creating Shared Value' by Improving Product Nutrition, Supplier Standards

Nestlé in the United States (which includes Nestle USA’s people food divisions, as well as Nestle’s other Stateside operations, including Nespresso, Purina and Nestlé Professional) today releases its 2015 Creating Shared Value Report, highlighting its achievements for the year in nutrition, health and wellness; environmental sustainability; water management; rural development and responsible sourcing; and social impact, as well as new objectives and commitments for the U.S. market.

With Help of $10M Series A, Back to the Roots Poised to Truly 'Undo Food'

Back to the Roots, an Oakland, California startup pioneering how families reconnect with food, announced today that it has expanded its January crowdfunding campaign on CircleUp into a $10M Series A. The new investment was led by Acre Venture Partners, Campbell Soup’s venture capital fund for food startups, and also includes funding from S2G Ventures and Red Sea Ventures.

PrintEco: Partnering with Competitors to Double Down on Sustainable Printing

Two years ago a story was penned here on Sustainable Brands about a partnership between my company, PrintEco - a small startup with an app to enable more efficient printing - and Domtar, one of the largest paper & pulp manufacturers in North America. It was certainly a unique combination: a paper company promoting a paper-saving software.

Supply Chain Visibility Critical for Seeing the True Cost, Sustainability of Our Products

As Sustainable Brands marks its 10th anniversary, many of us find ourselves in a reflective mood. We can recall the decade’s pivotal milestones like they were yesterday as we also consider the challenges that lie ahead. Despite the countless amazing achievements and major advances in embracing sustainable practices among corporations, what strikes me is the continued widespread lack of visibility and business integration that exists between governing boards, shareholders, and their supply chains. They still seem to exist in different universes – which can’t be good for our economy and even worse, I imagine, for our climate.

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