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.
Worldwide, according to forecasts from the United Nations, emerging economies will contribute 98 percent of population growth to 2050. Millions of new consumers will be joining the middle classes in years to come. That makes it an appropriate time to discuss a social and economic phenomenon that is transforming both Brazil and other emerging economies around the world — the rise of a new middle class of consumers, with a major impact on the current global system of production and consumption.
A recent Boston Consulting Group (BCG) research report showed responsible products accounted for two-thirds of grocery product growth in 2013. That’s a pretty incredible number considering how grocery brands have been struggling.
Just in time for back-to-school season, eco-friendly school supplies company Green ABCs has launched a new line of supplies, which help minimize waste with recycled materials, renewable resources and innovations in biodegradability.The company’s co-founder and CEO, Beth Davies, says she was compelled to help start the company after finding it difficult to find eco-friendly school supplies for her son. With a widening gap between classroom supply needs and adequate funding provided from school budgets, parents, teachers and Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) increasingly are making up this difference in school supplies.
Farmland LP, Public Lab, Rising Tide Capital and Sustaintech India are the winners of the Social Venture Network’s (SVN) 2014 Innovation Award, which recognizes companies that demonstrate the greatest impact in solving social, environmental and economic problems.The winners were selected by a panel of 16 judges, including Leigh Buchanan of Inc. magazine, Neil Grimmer of Plum Organics, Jean Oelwang of Virgin Unite, Jorge Calderon of Impact Strategy Advisors and Ed Dugger of the National Institute for a Sustainable Economy. The entrants were judged on their use of innovation, impact and ability to scale.The WinnersFarmland LP
Organizations in the retail, consumer goods, telecommunications, consulting and property management industries are among those shortlisted for the 2014 Finance for the Future Awards, which recognize the role of the finance function in creating sustainable business models and economies. The finalists — in the Large Business, SME, Public Sector, Social Enterprise and Innovative New Idea categories — will be judged on September 5, with the winner announced at the awards ceremony on October 14.
BMW of North America this week launched its BMW i DC Fast Chargers, which can charge the BMW i3 all-electric vehicle’s battery up to 80 percent in 30 minutes.A joint development between BMW and Bosch Automotive Service Solutions, the charger was on display on July 28 at Plug-In 2014 on July 28 at the San Jose Convention Center.Half the size of a traditional electric vehicle DC charger, BMW i DC Fast Chargers can be mounted on a wall, a first for EV DC fast chargers. The chargers also will be significantly cheaper than other DC Combo chargers in the market, priced at $6,548 for authorized BMW partners.
British luxury carmaker Bentley Motors announced this week it has become the first automotive manufacturer to earn the triple Carbon Trust Standard, having separately secured group’s Standards for Carbon, Water and Waste through significant reductions in these three key areas at its Crewe, Cheshire headquarters.Bentley joins Marks & Spencer, PwC, AkzoNobel Decorative Paints and Ireland’s ABP Food Group as one of only 11 companies to date to achieve the triple standard from the Carbon Trust, one of the world’s leading independent authorities on delivering carbon reduction and achieving greater resource efficiency.
With its subtropical climate and rich pest population, Florida has been slow to embrace the organic movement: Fewer than 8,000 of its 541,328 acres of citrus groves are organic. Matt McLean has made it his mission to change that. As the founder and CEO of Uncle Matt’s Organic — the largest and oldest organic orange juice company in the US — McLean not only sells delicious juices, he’s making it easy for other small Florida citrus growers to transition to organic.
In the three years since it first set up a modest stall in London’s Borough market, UK startup Rubies in the Rubble can be now found lining the shelves of Waitrose, Selfridge’s Food Hall and Harvey Nichols. In 2012, the concept won Ben and Jerry’s pan-European Join Our Core competition, bagging €10,000 in cash and six months’ mentoring from experts at Ashoka — a nonprofit supporting entrepreneurship.
The first tech entrant into the UK’s £800m corporate philanthropic sector launched Thursday — with corporate giants Starbucks and Marks & Spencer among the first companies to sign on to the service.neighbourly, a finalist in our 2013 SB London Innovation Open, is a social network designed to help connect community and charity projects with socially responsible companies that can contribute funding or volunteers.
After an 11-week challenge in partnership with design and innovation platform OpenIDEO, the eight winning ideas for Coca-Cola Enterprises’ (CCE) brief to encourage consumer recycling are as simple as an illustrative sticker and as complicated as a dedicated app. It’s all in a bid to close the recycling gap, helping consumers develop habits and the inclination to recycle when the packaging materials are designed to be used again.
Seventh Generation, a leader in household and personal care products, has acquired Raleigh-based beverage brand Gamila Company for an undisclosed sum. Gamila is the startup behind brewing products Impress, a single-serve coffee maker and the Teastick, a tea infuser.
AT&T Chairman and CEO Randall Stephenson joined President Obama today to commit $18 million to education programs with a youth mentoring component. This funding supports the company’s goal of providing youth across the country one million hours of mentoring by AT&T employees through the end of 2016.“Research shows that the presence of a mentor in a young person’s life significantly improves their potential for success. That’s why thousands of AT&T employees volunteer to mentor students across the country,” Stephenson said. “I am proud to be a part of this initiative with the president.”
Airbnb has a fresh coat of paint – including a new website and mobile app, and Bélo - a new logo that invites you to 'belong anywhere.' In addition to the rebranding, the company has tried to redesign its entire user experience – the new website attempts to provide a more intuitive experience with bigger photos, clearer listings and a simpler booking process.Termed as the 'universal symbol of belonging', Bélo is “an iconic mark for our windows, our doors, and our shared values. It’s a symbol that, like us, can belong wherever it happens to be,” says Airbnb. A video released by the company explains that Bélo stands for people, places, love and Airbnb.
Only a third of consumers regularly consider sustainability in their purchasing decisions, according to a global study by Accenture and Havas Media RE:PURPOSE, which reveals the reasons for the disconnect between business and consumer expectations of sustainable products and services.
Food+Tech Connect's recent Hack//Dining hackathon in New York City has yielded some insightful solutions to big problems faced by the dining industry. The call to “re-engineer the future of food” was answered by nearly 200 hackers who spent the weekend trying to use technology to find answers for a more sustainable industry.“The problems in the food industry are complex, and they aren’t going to be solved in a weekend,” said Danielle Gould, founder of Food+Tech Connect. “The point is to get new ideas into circulation, new people working on this, and to do rapid prototyping — to actually make a real product in a weekend.”
General Electric (GE) has announced the launch of an up to $1 million ecomagination open innovation challenge to help accelerate technology development in Canada’s oil sands.The Innovation Challenge will target two of the biggest opportunities to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the oil sands: new uses for waste heat and improved efficiency of steam generation.
Dell reduced the energy intensity of its product portfolio by 23.2 percent over the last two years, and that of its server portfolio by roughly 50 percent, according to the company’s new sustainability report.Dell asserts customers who purchased products in FY14 can expect to spend $449 million less on electricity to power their products over their lifetime compared to those purchased in 2012.
In 2013, West Elm committed to invest $35M in artisan partnerships around the world through 2015. These partnerships create a number of benefits for both West Elm and the artisans they collaborate with.
While the World Cup is drawing attention to Brazil from millions of soccer fans across the world, a Los Angeles-based entrepreneur is working with Brazilian manufacturers to develop a new line of sustainable footwear.Called Joya da Terra, the handmade sandals are made of natural and recycled materials and the production process is centered on zero waste, recycling and sustainable manufacturing."Not only do we have our unique handmade sandals (aka 'flip-flops'), but we also have 'our take on the TOMS shoe.' All these styles are unisex," said Cynthia Tello, the company’s founder.