Mike Hower
Managing Director, Sustainability & Social Impact
Deutsche Bank
Mike Hower is tagged in 1051 stories.
Page 25 of 53.
Waste Not /
Staples Advantage, the business to business division of Staples, has partnered with Electronic Recyclers International (ERI) to launch a technology recycling service that makes it easier for for businesses to recycle old electronics.
- 9 years ago
Product, Service & Design Innovation /
Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) has announced five finalists for its Methane Detectors Challenge, a collaboration with seven oil and natural gas companies aimed at identifying next-generation technologies that will help better monitor and reduce methane emissions from oil and natural gas operations.The Methane Detectors Challenge attracted 20 proposals from companies and university research teams, which used an array of diverse technologies ranging from infrared lasers to circuit boards filled with off-the-shelf sensors.
- 9 years ago
Chemistry, Materials & Packaging /
NASA research shows Earth's atmosphere contains an unexpectedly large amount of an ozone-depleting compound from an unknown source decades after the compound was banned worldwide.Carbon tetrachloride (CCl4), which was once used in applications such as dry cleaning and as a fire-extinguishing agent, was regulated in 1987 under the Montreal Protocol along with other chlorofluorocarbons that destroy ozone and contribute to the ozone hole over Antarctica.Parties to the Montreal Protocol reported zero new CCl4 emissions between 2007-2012. However, the new research shows worldwide emissions of CCl4 average 39 kilotons per year, approximately 30 percent of peak emissions prior to the international treaty going into effect.
- 9 years ago
Cleantech /
Nevada-based Algae Systems says it has developed a way to make algae-based biofuel profitable by transforming raw sewage into fuel and clean drinking water.The company says it has a pilot plant in Alabama that can profitably produces diesel fuel from algae by simultaneously making clean water from municipal sewage, utilizing the carbon-heavy residue as fertilizer and generating valuable credits for advanced biofuels. Using a “hydrothermal liquefaction” system, algae and other solids in the sewage are heated to more than 550 degrees Fahrenheit, at 3,000 pounds per square inch, creating a liquid that resembles crude oil from a well. Scientists then add hydrogen to produce diesel fuel.
- 9 years ago
ICT and Big Data /
SAP has announced it will invest up to $500 million through 2020 to train local talent and drive sustainable innovation and growth in Africa, with the overall goal of establishing the continent as one of the company's top-five global growth markets.Much of the direct investment will be outside South Africa, where SAP already has a solid footprint. This will include SAP operations across 51 African countries, including Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, and Mauritania.The SAP Africa growth plan is built on four pillars:
- 9 years ago
Waste Not /
Novelis, global producer of aluminum rolled products, has announced a $106 million investment that will add 100,000 metric tons of coating capacity and 190,000 metric tons of recycling capacity at its Pindamonhangaba facility in São Paulo, Brazil.The new coating line is designed specifically for beverage can end stock, the company says. The addition of this 100,000 ton line will double the market's capacity to supply coated can end stock and enable Novelis to deliver directly to can customers in the region, a function previously provided by a third-party partner. Novelis expects to begin shipping commercial product from the new line in the coming months.
- 9 years ago
Waste Not /
If all of the municipal solid waste (MSW) that currently is put into landfills each year in the US were diverted to waste-to-energy (WTE) power plants, it could generate enough electricity to supply 12 percent of the US total, according to a new study by the Earth Engineering Center (EEC) of Columbia University.This could reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 123 million tons of carbon dioxide per year, the report says.
- 9 years ago
New Metrics /
Average carbon-dioxide emissions for a majority of global ocean container transports have declined year on year, and by nearly 8 percent between 2012 and 2013, according to a new report by BSR.The BSR Clean Cargo Working Group’s 2014 Global Maritime Trade Lane Emissions Factors report provides data from more than 2,900 ships, representing around 85 percent of global ocean container capacity, and is designed to help global ocean transport providers and their shipping customers to measure, evaluate, and report on environmental performance data.
- 9 years ago
Cleantech /
The Global Environmental Management Initiative (GEMI) has announced the availability of a new tool designed to provide insight into how corporations assess and implement renewable and alternative energy technologies.The GEMI Quick Guide on Renewable and Alternative Energy assists companies in evaluating their renewable and alternative energy options, helping them to define a strategy that makes sense for them. To help companies learn by example, the guide also includes mini-case studies to share with users attributes that made their renewable and alternative energy technology project and strategy successful.
- 9 years ago
Behavior Change /
SeaWorld has announced plans to double the size of its killer whale environments at three parks and will fund new programs to protect ocean health and killer whales in the wild.The first of the new environments will be built at SeaWorld San Diego, where the killer whale environment is planned to have a total water volume of 10 million gallons — nearly double that of the existing facility. With a planned maximum depth of 50 feet, surface area of nearly 1.5 acres and spanning more than 350 feet in length, the new environment also will have views exceeding 40 feet in height, providing guests with the world's largest underwater viewing experience of killer whales.
- 9 years ago
ICT and Big Data /
A new NASA field campaign will begin flights over the Arctic this summer to study the effect of sea ice retreat on Arctic climate, according to a recent announcement.The Arctic Radiation IceBridge Sea and Ice Experiment (ARISE) is NASA's first Arctic airborne campaign designed to take simultaneous measurements of ice, clouds and the levels of incoming and outgoing radiation, the balance of which determines the degree of climate warming.
- 9 years ago
Supply Chain /
Suppliers of more than 55 percent of the world’s palm oil have committed to produce or trade 100 percent deforestation-free palm oil in response to demands by global brands, who in turn were responding to investor pressure, according to Ceres.General Mills, Kellogg and Safeway are among the several food and beverage firms, supermarket companies and grocery store chains to commit to responsibly source 100 percent of their palm oil in response to shareholder resolutions.
- 9 years ago
Supply Chain /
PepsiCo has announced it will begin incorporating cashew juice into its blended juice products next spring as part of partnership with the Clinton Foundation, which aims to encourage sustainable agriculture and improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers in Maharashtra, India.Through the Clinton Foundation’s Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership model, founded by President Bill Clinton and philanthropist Frank Giustra, this initiative will apply modern agricultural techniques to improve cashew farming practices, boost yield and productivity, and increase income for local smallholder farmers. It will also scale up and strengthen India’s cashew supply chain to build the future potential of a domestic and export market.
- 9 years ago
ICT and Big Data /
GE has developed a new industrial data lake software system to help businesses manage big data, which could help increase fuel efficiency in the aviation industry and beyond.In a 2013 pilot, GE Aviation collected information on 15,000 flights from 25 different airlines at about 14 gigabytes of metrics per flight. With the industrial data lake approach, GE was able to integrate terabytes of full flight data for the first time in industry to produce measurable cost savings of 10x and significantly reduce analysis time from months to days. The company expects the data collection to grow to 10 million flights and 1,500 terabytes of full flight operational data by 2015.For customers such as AirAsia, this means savings of more than one percent of their fuel bill each year.
- 9 years ago
Organizational Change /
Hospitals deliver life-saving care to individuals, but their substantial environmental footprint can be detrimental to environmental and community health, according to a newly released book by Kathy Gerwig, Kaiser Permanente's environmental stewardship officer.The book, Greening Health Care: How Hospitals Can Heal the Planet, says hospitals contribute 8 percent of the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions produced in the United States. Gerwig argues the healthcare sector has an obligation to reduce its environmental impact and usher in a new industry standard for healthcare delivery — one that embraces environmental stewardship.
- 9 years ago
Waste Not /
McDonald’s Pacific Sierra Region has created a waste diversion execution manual that is resulting in an estimated diversion of 70 cubic yards of waste from landfills each week, according to the company’s 2014 Global “Best of Green” report.The manual enables restaurants to deploy mixed recycling, organics recycling, or both, by providing checklists, shift huddles, and crew/customer engagement and education materials. The manual was initially piloted in 11 California Bay Area restaurants in Alameda County and is being replicated in additional restaurants throughout the Pacific Sierra Region.
- 9 years ago
Product, Service & Design Innovation /
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.
- 9 years ago
Supply Chain /
Bacardi is working with global nonprofit Bonsucro to foster sustainability in the sugarcane sector as part of its effort to make good on its promise of obtaining 40 percent of the sugarcane-derived products used to make its rums from certified, sustainable sources by 2017 and 100 percent by 2022.Bacardi says this means acquiring all raw materials and packaging from sustainably sourced, renewable or recycled materials, while maintaining or enhancing the economic status of growers and suppliers.
- 9 years ago
Products and Design /
Minnesota-based research group Skajaquoda has developed a flexible solar panel that goes around any bag strap and charges its internal battery as you go about your day.The device, called Sun Strap, uses a 1.5W flexible solar panel and has a 5600 mAh built in battery that can charge any USB device such as a smartphone, tablet or camera. When fully charged, Sun Strap's battery is capable of charging an iPhone 5 three and a half times.On the bottom, Sun Strap has a 5V/1A USB output, LED battery indicator and 5V/1A micro USB input so you can always leave the house with a full battery. It's lightweight, which makes it useful for outdoor activities, weighing only 5.8oz (165 grams) and with a size of: 3" x 15" (7.6 x 38 cm).
- 9 years ago
Product, Service & Design Innovation /
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
- 9 years ago