A sustainable approach makes business sense

By santos | Published: March 4, 2010 An integrated sustainability framework delivers value beyond traditional economic measures. The efficiency and effectiveness in which environmental resources are managed is the pathway to the licence to operate within communities and with government regulators. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the use of clean water, land disturbance and waste to landfill contributes to the key concept of “doing more with less” and has a positive effect on operating and regulatory costs – ultimately benefiting both the company and the environment. Government regulators and financial stakeholders demand high standards of environmental and social performance. Strong relationships …

Read the full article

Australia’s first modern large electric car consortium

Five local companies have joined forces to build prototypes of Australia’s first modern large electric car. Supported by the Australian Government, the consortium hopes to produce a family car which could revolutionise the Australian car industry. Announcing more than $3.5 million in funding from the Green Car Innovation Fund for the consortium’s project worth nearly $26 million, Innovation Minister Senator Kim Carr said the concept for the car was based on the Holden Commodore. “The government understands that Australia’s future relies on our ability to green our industries. This includes manufacturing environmentally friendly vehicles,” Senator Carr said. “This Melbourne-based consortium, …

Read the full article

Heinz, Coca-Cola Announce PlantBottle Partnership

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: CO) and H.J. Heinz Company (NYSE: HNZ) today announced a strategic partnership that enables Heinz to produce its ketchup bottles using Coca-Cola’s PlantBottleTM packaging. The PET plastic bottles are made partially (up to 30%) from plant materials and have a lower reliance on non-renewable resources compared with traditional PET plastic bottles. Currently, PlantBottle is made using sugarcane ethanol from Brazil. Heinz said its adoption of the PlantBottle technology will be the biggest change to its iconic ketchup bottles since they first introduced plastic in 1983… more Heinz, Coca-Cola Announce PlantBottle Partnership.

People.Productivity.Planet report

Beaton Research and Consulting, in collaboration with The Nossal Institute for Global Health and WellmarkPerspexa, presented the findings from Australia’s most broad-reaching study into business sustainability. The research Scope: A national survey of more than 10,000 leaders and employees of Australian businesses Aim: To identify the stimulus for and obstacles against businesses engaging in sustainability reporting Sustainability reporting is poised to take off The strongest message emerging from the study is the huge latent potential in sustainability reporting in Australia – the will is there, but a substantial proportion of organisations are yet to find the way. Around a third …

Read the full article

Sustainability: The ‘Embracers’ Seize Advantage

SPECIAL REPORT: Sustainability & Innovation February 10, 2011 MIT Sloan Management Review How fast are businesses adopting sustainability-driven management? New study results reveal two distinct camps: ’embracers’ and ‘cautious adopters.’ And the practices of the embracers may be providing a snapshot of how the management future will look.  This report on the second annual Sustainability & Innovation Global Executive Study by MIT Sloan Management Review and The Boston Consulting Group reveals two distinct camps of companies: “embracers” — those who place sustainability high on their agenda — and “cautious adopters,” who have yet to focus on more than energy cost …

Read the full article

Coca-Cola, Kraft and Procter & Gamble to reduce packaging waste

Coca-Cola, Kraft and Procter & Gamble are among the latest companies to join voluntary U.K. pledges to reduce packaging and waste. The companies signed the Courtauld Commitment, set by the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP). The commitment says that companies will reduce the carbon impact of their grocery packaging by 10 percent, reduce household food and drink waste by four percent, and reduce grocery product and packaging waste by five percent. Other companies joining this week include Associated British Foods and Premier Foods, bringing the total number of committed companies up to 48.

PepsiCo UK Sustainability Plans

PepsiCo UK plans to make all its packaging renewable, recyclable or bio-degradable, as part of further sustainability targets to “radically” reduce its impact on the environment. In its second environmental sustainability report, PepsiCo UK looked at climate change, agriculture, water use, its products and how the company works with others, to drive change within the business. The food and drink manufacture plans to introduce FSC paper-based packaging to its Quaker and Walkers brands within three years as part of its plan to make all packaging renewable, recyclable or bio-degradable by 2018. The packing material is currently being trialled on its …

Read the full article

International Green Construction Code: Game-Changer in Sustainable Building

For the last decade, green building rating systems have been the top standard for designing sustainable buildings, but at the end of the day, they are non-enforceable guidelines. Because buildings are the largest contributors of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, it’s become clear in recent years that a more rigorous and complete set of rules are needed for green and sustainable building. The work needed to formalize a code to address sustainability has been a major industry challenge – that is, until now. A new proposal – currently being developed by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the International Code …

Read the full article