Hannah Furlong
Editorial Assistant
Sustainable Brands
CDP: Threefold Increase in Companies Disclosing Carbon Price from 2014
The Next Economy / Big brands across all industries are now assigning a carbon price to offset the costs and risks of their GHG production: Companies reporting that they price their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project) has nearly tripled this year, now 437 from 150 in 2014. - 7 years ago
Conceptual Water Company's Bottles Are as Empty as California's Reservoirs
Marketing and Comms / Designer Chris Onesto created California Water Company to highlight the state’s historic drought. The company’s water bottles are only about 6 percent full, to reflect the current capacity of California water reservoirs.“The Golden State is turning a toasty golden brown all thanks to a record drought,” reads the project’s website. “Oddly enough Southern Californians could care less. In response I created the California Water Company, bottled water that moves the drought from a startling thought into a disturbing reality.” - 7 years ago
Climate Week: Climate Neutral Now, RE100 Initiatives Recruit Fortune 500 Companies
Cleantech / Two initiatives for reducing businesses’ impacts on the environment have attracted globally recognized brands this week at Climate Week NYC.On Tuesday, the United Nations (UN) announced a new initiative to help businesses and individuals reduce their carbon footprints, Climate Neutral Now. An online platform will facilitate the measurement, reduction, and offset of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. - 7 years ago
Mars, Avery Dennison to Confer with US Forest Owners on Challenges of Sustainable Management
Supply Chain / For the first time ever, family forest owners and well-known marketplace brands will connect and discuss their respective needs and challenges related to sustainable forest management. Mars Inc., McDonald’s, Avery Dennison, and Evergreen Packaging are among the participants. - 7 years ago
Keurig’s K-Cups Inch Closer to Being 100% Recyclable
Chemistry, Materials & Packaging / Keurig Green Mountain Inc. is making progress towards its goal of making all K-Cups recyclable by 2020. Following successful recycling research trials, the company has unveiled plans to transition the entire product line to polypropylene, according to Plastics News. - 7 years ago
P&G Promises 15 Billion Liters of Clean Water, 30% Fewer Emissions by 2020
Product, Service & Design Innovation / Last week, Procter & Gamble (P&G) announced two new 2020 goals: delivering 15 billion liters of clean drinking water through its Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program (CSDW) and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from its facilities by 30 percent. - 7 years ago
Trending: More Fossil-Free Finance Tools from S&P Dow Jones, As You Sow
Cleantech / Investors are becoming warier of the valuation risk in their portfolios as a result of climate change. This week, there are three new indices and a new free web tool to help them navigate their way to fossil fuel-free investments. - 7 years ago
WWF: Food Security Delivers Long-Term Business Security
Supply Chain / WWF-UK and the Food Ethics Council recently interviewed senior food business executives to investigate their understanding of sustainable food security and barriers to achieving it. They said the government needs to take bold action to create a food system that serves citizens, the economy and the planet. - 7 years ago
#BusinessCase: Furniture Take-Back Programs from IKEA, John Lewis Save Money, Emissions
Product, Service & Design Innovation / Furniture waste is the focus of two reports released this month. UK think tank RSA and recycling and waste company SUEZ published Rearranging the Furniture, which takes a design-focused approach to bulky waste reduction, increased reuse of furniture, and development of a circular economy. And the Furniture Re-use Network’s (FRN) new report, Commercial Retailers: Their Impact on the UK Reuse Sector, discusses the impacts of FRN partnerships with major furniture and electrical equipment retailers. - 7 years ago
Help FreshPaper Spread the Word About Its Food-Saving Potential to 100M Super Bowl Viewers
Waste Not / Fenugreen, 2013’s SB Innovation Open winner and creator of the potentially game-changing food-saving innovation FreshPaper, is one of 10 startup finalists in contention for the most coveted of TV spots: a Super Bowl ad. - 7 years ago
Vegan, Non-Allergenic and GMO-Free, Algae Could Be Our New Sustainable Superfood
Chemistry, Materials & Packaging / As the alternative protein market continues to grow and companies explore the viability of more sustainable sources such as heat-resistant beans and even crickets, microalgae has emerged as another nutritionally rich contender. Solazyme, California-based producer of renewable oil and bio-products, has gotten in on the action with a whole algae protein product now on US grocery shelves and many more partnerships in the works. - 7 years ago
Startup Working to Provide Jobs to Refugees Resettled in the US
Product, Service & Design Innovation / The ongoing plight of the millions of refugees fleeing Syria and other parts of the world has captured the world’s attention, but what happens once they’ve found somewhere safe to settle?In the midst of the refugee crisis, socially conscious jewelry brand Liberti USA is asking you to support the American dream and help resettled refugees exercise their right to work. - 7 years ago
Three-Quarters of CEOs Now Convinced of #BusinessCase for Climate Action
Organizational Change / CEOs see more opportunities for growth today than they did three years ago — especially when it comes to new products and services in response to climate change. - 7 years ago
27 African Startups Prove Worthy Grassroots Solutions for Sustainable Development
Product, Service & Design Innovation / 27 African social and environmental startups were recognized with awards last week at the 2015 SEED Africa Symposium. The recipients’ business models benefit local communities and help meet sustainable development challenges. Two of the awards were specifically designated for women-led ventures that focus on gender equality and women’s empowerment. - 7 years ago
Business Leaders with Heart: New Top 100 Includes Compassionate Innovators Large and Small
Leadership / A new publication called Salt, motivated by the hope that businesses will play a key role in shaping a better world, has released its first Top 100 Compassionate Leaders List."We want to shine a spotlight on businesses with a heart; those pioneers who are using their corporate power not only to generate profits, but to create a better world," said Salt publisher Stephen Vasconcellos-Sharpe. - 7 years ago
Trending: Uber, Airbnb Optimizing User Experience Through Smart Partnerships
Product, Service & Design Innovation / Not a day goes by that we don’t hear some mention of “the sharing economy” these days, partly because of continued smart moves from the companies creating and riding the wave.First, on-demand ride service Uber recently announced a partnership with hotel chain Hilton Worldwide to help “make travel seamless” through new app features. - 7 years ago
Avery Dennison Announces Ambitious Targets, Including at Least 26% Fewer Emissions by 2025
Product, Service & Design Innovation / Labeling and packaging leader Avery Dennison Corporation released its latest sustainability report earlier this month, which announced several new goals. Foremost among these goals is the company’s plan to reduce its absolute greenhouse gas emissions by at least 3 percent every year between now and 2025. - 7 years ago
Jamie Oliver Proposes Tax on Sugary Drinks in UK; Industry Is Not Amused
Behavior Change / UK chef and “Food Revolution”-ary Jamie Oliver teamed up with food lobbying organization Sustain to encourage the UK government to consider a tax on sugary drinks and use the proceeds to help curb childhood obesity.Oliver launched a petition last week that has gained over 129,000 signatures so far. The UK Parliament considers all petitions that get more than 100,000 signatures for a debate.“Studies show that soft drinks with added sugar are the largest single source of sugar in the diets of UK school children & teenagers,” reads the petition page. - 7 years ago
Could Sugar-Embedded Products Help Us Survive in a World Ravaged by Drought?
Chemistry, Materials & Packaging / Climate impacts already cost billions in economic damage each year. Global drought losses are expected to surpass $8 billion in 2015 alone. A 2010 study by the National Centre for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) predicted that extreme drought will threaten large parts of the U.S., Central and South America, and Southern Europe by the 2030s. - 7 years ago
Cheap, Possibly Sustainable? Ethics of Fish Farming Questioned as Cargill Invests
Product, Service & Design Innovation / Cargill is casting its line into the aquaculture industry. The U.S. food giant recently announced its $1.5 billion acquisition of Norwegian salmon-feed supplier EWOS and a $30 million joint venture with Ecuadorian shrimp producer Naturisa to build a shrimp feed facility. - 7 years ago