“I think the internal combustion engine will disappear from the streets of our cities in the next thirty years because transportation will be mass transportation, or probably electrical power.” — Gaylord Nelson, April 1990[1]
Unless something really amazing happens in the next
Corporate social responsibility has quickly evolved over the years, from changing light bulbs to strategically embedding sustainability into business operations. CSR has not been part of the boardroom conversation for very long – at least not in Canada – and so progress made among a growing number of companies is encouraging. That being said, business
Is bigger always better or can we still say ‘small is beautiful’, as the pioneering economist E.F. Schumacher argued way back in 1973? Certainly, the ‘muesli-eating, sandal-wearing’ New Age approach to small-is-beautiful has been rather more of an advert for ‘small is groovy, but ultimately ineffectual’. But what if we could do both big and small at the same time?
The energy industry is particularly adept at taking raw material and turning it into products. Whether producing heat, power, or fuel, the model has proven exceptionally efficient at moving highly concentrated and homogenous resources over long distances through intricate supply chains.
It should come as no surprise that the large majority of environmental impact takes place outside a company’s physical boundaries. Greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) reporting probably gives us the best estimate of this; the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) estimates that over 50% of an entity’s greenhouse gas emissions are indirect ‘Scope 3’
In a recent study released by the Everest Group, 2012 Market Predictions, the professional consulting firm predicts the growing use of supply chain service providers in the coming years. As companies seek to elevate the roles of their procurement professionals to more strategic business sustainability activities, outsourcing of transactional
Developing and delivering commercially successful products and services that build customer loyalty can be a challenge in today’s dynamic consumer market. However, many of our sustainability consulting clients now realize that repeat business is one of the most important aspects of their survival.
At Addison, we work with many companies that are just beginning to address sustainability as a core business issue. The question that often comes up is, “Will producing a sustainability or corporate social responsibility (CSR) report increase our stock price or drive revenues?”
The German software company SAP is a leader in using computer analytics to help a company reduce its environmental footprint while also saving a few bucks. This week, SAP unveiled software that can establish how much CO2 and water it takes to make an individual product.
A full half of multinational companies plan to select suppliers based on carbon performance, according to a study by Carbon Trust Advisory.
The research says that 29% of suppliers are likely to lose their places on green supply chains if they do not have adequate performance records on carbon.
As the number of companies compiling sustainability reports grows, the content of those reports is evolving to include more focus on water impacts and supply chain information, according to corporate sustainability officials and consultants.
More companies are including information about
Supply chain transparency is no longer a CR buzzword, but increasingly, a legal mandate. In the past year, legislation has been enacted to address everything from conflict minerals, to human trafficking and slavery, to bribery. A recent article in The Guardian notes, “Throughout these regulations and initiatives
The Washington Post’s assertions today about the Department of Energy’s loan programs today are both incomplete and inaccurate.
Here are the facts: over the past two years, the Department of Energy’s Loan Program has supported a robust, diverse portfolio of more than 40 projects that are investing in pioneering companies