ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
Nearly three-quarters of organisations surveyed (72 percent) mention the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in their annual corporate or sustainability reports — an increase of 10 percent on last year, according to a new study by PwC. But concrete measures and integration remain elusive for many as organisations struggle to identify actions beyond business-as-usual targets.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
Atlanta may not be the first city that comes to mind when you think of sustainability — but perhaps, it should be.
SUPPLY CHAIN -
Let me tell you a few things about failure — a subject on which I’m something of an expert.
MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS -
WWF Germany recently published a report, Boom in Raw Materials: Between Profits and Losses, which offers one of the first concrete rebuttals from a major environmental group against the notion that industry actions alone are enough to move the global industrial mining sector towards greater responsibility.
COLLABORATION & CO-CREATION -
A new report from Washington D.C.-based nonprofit the Enough Project highlights just how rampant corruption and human rights abuses are in the supply chain for cobalt, a mineral used to power battery technology.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” — R. Buckminster Fuller
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR CHANGE -
During this season of giving, many of today’s more discerning consumers won’t be joining the masses scrambling to answer the siren call to stock up on discounted “stuff” — they’ll be remembering the values meant to be at the heart of this season, by taking REI’s advice to #OptOutside to enjoy nature and giving back by cleaning up; and when they do shop, they’re increasingly basing their loyalty and purchasing decisions on companies’ reputations rather than just product features and price.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
It was 2014 and social entrepreneur Samir Lakhani was working on sustainable aquaculture projects in the villages of Northern Cambodia. Watching a mother wash and bathe her new baby using laundry powder rather than soap is a vision that has stayed with him to this day.
It was also the inspiration for his next business venture.
“I noticed that nobody seemed in good overall health — whether it was an infection that wouldn’t go away or a child with diarrhea,” he told Sustainable Brands in a recent interview.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
The global movement to end textile waste continues, with the release of outer- and undergarments from new and established brands alike.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
Last week at Sustainable Brands’ New Metrics ’18 conference in Philadelphia, PA, over 300 delegates from brands, NGOs, strategists and practitioners across sectors gathered to share the newest credible tools and solutions for assessing the ROI of Sustainable Business.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
Corporate culture sets the groundwork for how your team interacts with each other and your customers.
NEW METRICS -
Last week at Sustainable Brands’ New Metrics ’18 conference in Philadelphia, PA, over 300 delegates from brands, NGOs, strategists and practitioners across sectors gathered to share the newest credible tools and solutions for assessing the ROI of Sustainable Business.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT -
The Hispanic Federation, together with actor Lin-Manuel Miranda and his family, today announced the launch of a five-year initiative to revitalize Puerto Rico’s coffee sector. The founding partners include Hispanic Federation, Nespresso, The Rockefeller Foundation, Starbucks, TechnoServe and World Coffee Research, all of which are committed to supporting smallholder coffee farmers on the island.
SUPPLY CHAIN -
Nespresso has partnered with Blue Marble Microinsurance — a startup with the mission of providing socially impactful, commercially viable insurance protection to the underserved and incorporated by nine insurance entities — to launch a pilot weather index insurance program for smallholder coffee farmers in Colombia.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
EcoVadis has published the second annual edition of its Global CSR Risk and Performance Index. The report provides an updated look at the corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance of more than 33,000 companies, across the calendar years 2015 through 2017.
COLLABORATION & CO-CREATION -
The Indonesian Network of the United Nations Global Compact today announced a partnership between Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) and Martha Tilaar Group (MTG) — a leading Indonesian manufacturer of cosmetics and herbal medicine — to train 1,000 women from forest communities to help preserve herbal plants and become self-sufficient entrepreneurs.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
60 members of the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles have revealed concrete action plans to ensure humane working conditions, greater environmental protection and fair wages in their own companies and in their suppliers’ production facilities. The Partnership — a multi-stakeholder coalition made up of companies, associations, NGOs, trade unions, standards organisations and the Federal German Government, formed in 2014 with the aim of making improvements along the entire textile supply chain —considers this a major step forward, as it means that many members agree on revealing even sensible information for the first time.
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
Earlier this month, adidas by Stella McCartney launched its Fall/Winter 2018 sustainable women’s activewear collection, paying tribute to the power of nature. Designed to equip female athletes whatever the weather, the animal-inspired pieces serve as a reminder that everyone can do their part to protect the world around them. The campaign features supermodel Ming Xi as its new global ambassador who is charged with bringing the brand’s continued mission of LESS IMPACT = MORE POWER to life.
PRESS RELEASE -
Eastman today announces the release of its 2018 sustainability report, Changing the trajectory. Building on the company’s progress, the report provides a review of Eastman’s sustainability strategy and goals as well as highlights from the past year. The interactive report is available online at www.eastman.com/sustainability.
PRESS RELEASE -
Humana Inc., one of the nation’s leading health and well-being companies, today released its 2016-2017 corporate social responsibility (CSR) report. In the comprehensive report, Humana, for the first time, announces the company’s alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), becoming one of the first U.S. health insurers to commit to the international targets.