PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION - A handful of new initiatives, products and innovations continue the attack on fashion’s wasteful and environmentally and socially destructive practices from a variety of angles.
BEHAVIOR CHANGE - Launched on Global Recycling Day (March 18), the program focuses on the new consumer incentive and rewards program in alliance with ecoins, and will be expanded to 10 countries in Latin America over the next two years.
CORPORATE MEMBER UPDATE - It was recently reported that a dead whale was found washed up on a beach in the Philippines with a total of 88 pounds of plastic products inside its body. While this is a record, it is unfortunately not surprising given that another whale was found dead in Spain in February filled with 64 pounds of trash, and last November another was found in Indonesia with 13 pounds of plastic in its body.
MARKETING AND COMMS - Is something fishy about your fish?
WASTE NOT - Hilton is ramping up its soap-collecting efforts around the world, with a goal of recycling 1 million bars for Clean the World to distribute on Global Handwashing Day (October 15).
COLLABORATION - California faces a unique tension: On one side, we are blessed with a mild climate and rich alluvial soils that combine to give California some of the most fertile farmland in the world. Juxtaposed with that, it is one of the world’s most desirable places to live.
CORPORATE MEMBER UPDATE - Humanity is more aware than ever of its own impacts on the environment, given increased exposure to information in a modern media landscape. The most recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) numbers revealed that Americans produce over four pounds of trash per day, per person.
CORPORATE MEMBER UPDATE - Driven by the desire for closed material cycles and the economical use of resources, the recoloring of regrind for plastic recycled materials is gaining further importance, especially the economic reuse in the same application.
THE NEXT ECONOMY - A landmark soil study from Bonterra Vineyards that proves the climate benefits of organic and biodynamic farming, and a new UK gin made from surplus table grapes, mean these wines and spirit help you “drink responsibly.”
WASTE NOT - In the first New Plastics Economy Global Commitment report, major companies publish data on their annual plastic packaging volumes, many for the first time; while Closed Loop Partners’ 2018 Impact Report measures the effect their investments are having on reducing emissions, diverting valuable commodities from landfill and creating jobs.
BUSINESS CASE - Seminal research shows that sustainability is driving market growth in CPGs; products marketed as sustainable grew 5.6x faster than conventionally marketed products, and 3.3x faster than the CPG market.
MARKETING AND COMMS - Our community has made tremendous strides in building a better world, but if we leverage the combined power of people and data to build a better narrative, we can open up a whole new era of possibilities. We’ve got to put some soul in sustainability.
SUPPLY CHAIN - Anheuser-Busch partnership will produce more efficient rice-growing practices, while General Mills has committed to regenerate 1M acres of farmland by 2030.
COLLABORATION - These days, we can’t go a week without the launch of another initiative, innovation or collaboration aimed at eradicating plastic waste around the world – which means we may actually have a fighting chance at doing it.
LEADERSHIP - Sustainable Brands 2019 Tokyo (SB'19 Tokyo) was held on March 6-7, at the Hilton Tokyo. 189 leaders from both domestic and foreign companies and NGOs, and more than 2,240 participants took part.
MARKETING AND COMMS - adidas, Diageo and HP launch new films and campaigns, while PepsiCo tackles gender equality in agriculture for International Women’s Day.
BUSINESS CASE - The mass population is far more skeptical of institutions than the informed public, only one in five people believes the system is working for them, and large majorities express a sense of injustice and a desire for change.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION - Between Amazon and Etsy’s carbon-neutral ambitions, and more and more options for circular shipping containers, the millions of tons of emissions and waste generated by e-commerce could soon be a thing of the past.
SUPPLY CHAIN - A new EcoVadis report finds that the greatest gaps between UN Global Compact participants and nonparticipants are in the Sustainable Procurement and Environment themes.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT - Backed by John Hancock, COIN offers customers eight Impact Areas — including Better Health, Clean Water, Gender Equality and Reducing Waste — to invest in, with as little as $50.