Month: October 2021

In kicking off its annual 11.11 global shopping event, now in its 13th year, Alibaba Group CMO Chris Tung took the opportunity to  highlight that the main focus for this year’s shopping event would be sustainability.  “We are making sustainability at the heart of the festival,” he told media during a virtual press event.  “We believe that behavioural change is essential to ensuring a sustainable future, which is why as the creator and leader of the 11.11 festival, Alibaba aims to play an important role in driving those positive changes.”

There is no shortage of early-stage startups developing software applications to support carbon accounting and emissions management — there’s even one, Sinai Technologies, working on analytics to help businesses set an internal price on carbon.  As corporate interest in integrating and managing sustainability metrics intensifies, however, the category is attracting the notice of much more established enterprise software players.

SABIC, a global leader in the chemical industry, launched today a new portfolio of bio-based ULTEM™ resins that offer sustainability benefits while delivering exactly the same high performance and processability as incumbent ULTEM materials. These breakthrough polyetherimide (PEI) materials are the first certified renewable high-performance, amorphous polymers available in the industry. Using a mass balance approach[1], for every 100 kg of ULTEM resin produced, SABIC replaces 25.5 kg of fossil-based feedstocks with bio-based materials derived from waste or residue, such as crude tall oil from the wood industry. This advanced offering is a drop-in material option for current ULTEM materials and can support customers’ sustainability goals for challenging applications in consumer electronics, aerospace, automotive, and other industries where high temperature, dimensional stability or demanding mechanical performance is required.

The fashion for «conscious» consumption drives the majority of buyers to the idea of replacing animal products with technological progress. The grocery basket choice varies based on the personal capabilities of the body or environmental conditions, as well as compassion for the animals.  As a result, not only will plant-based products continue to displace other positions from stores, but there will also be tremendous innovations in the generation and laboratory cultivation of cellular meats, seafood and dairy products.  This article touches on meat products. According to the Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the demand for meat in 2050 will double, and the ability to produce enough food will simply be impossible.

Traditional Owners say the resources company attempting to frack in the Beetaloo basin hung up on them and ignored their questions at the company’s Annual General meeting on Wednesday.  Traditional Owners and Native Title holders including Aunty Naomi Wilfred, Aunty Gillian Limmen and Alawa Elder Aunty May August attended Origin Energy’s Annual General Meeting via teleconference.  The group intended to voice concerns about what they call a lack of free and informed prior consent for the resources company’s fracking project on their Country.  They said they were shown “disgraceful” disrespect by those conducting the meeting.  Aunty May was allegedly hung up on when she reached the front of the queue and moved to the back of the queue.

Education Scotland is delighted to announce the winners of the Learning for Sustainability Awards.  The awards – held in partnership with the Daily Record – recognise the amazing achievements of Scotland’s people and the settings, schools and communities that have demonstrated passion and commitment to building a socially-just, sustainable and equitable world.  The COP26 Summit beginning next week provides a unique opportunity to recognise and celebrate innovation in the Scottish education system and our commitment to Learning for Sustainability (LfS). Within Scotland’s curriculum, LfS is recognised as an entitlement for all learners and a recent international PISA study showed that our learners are world-leading global citizens.

The carbon-intensive production of plastics is on pace to emit more greenhouse gases than coal-fired power plants within this decade, undercutting global efforts to tackle climate change, a report released on Thursday said. The report by Bennington College and Beyond Plastics projected that the plastic industry releases at least 232 million tons of greenhouse gases each year throughout its lifecycle from the drilling for oil and gas to fuel its facilities to incineration of plastic waste. That is the equivalent of 116 coal-fired power plants.  “The scale of the plastics industry’s greenhouse gas emissions is staggering, but it’s equally concerning that few people in government or in the business community are even talking about it,” said Judith Enck, a former Environmental Protection Agency regional administrator and president of Beyond Plastics. Also, the report found that petrochemical facilities tend to be clustered in just 18 largely low-income and minority communities, where 90% of the pollution occurs.

The global climate crisis we are facing is impacting society, business and our environment. It is widely accepted that there needs to be radical change to the way we do business with an immediate focus on the next decade. We need to put in place more sustainable systems, that will allow us to meet the climate change targets set by the Paris Accord. Across the globe, businesses, both small and large, are making changes to the way they function to reduce their carbon impact and operate in a manner that will allow them to remain investible.  This event will look at BT’s climate action journey. Having set its first carbon reduction target in 1992, BT was one of the first companies in the world to set a science-based target aligned to a 1.5 degree pathway.

Climate change is accelerating. Global warming is forecast to exceed 1.5˚C during the 2030s—an urgent challenge that demands Australia achieve net zero by 2035.  Climate scientists have observed with mounting concern the continuing emissions and the rise in atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. For decades, they have issued dire warnings about what is at stake and what is required to curb global warming. Yet global temperatures continue to rise, along with damages from extreme weather.  This report “Aim High, Go Fast: Why Emissions Need to Plummet this Decade” is the Climate Council’s science-backed vision for what Australia’s best effort could look like. Australia is a nation of currently high emissions but rich renewable energy resources. The country has been ravaged by unprecedented bushfires, droughts, and floods in recent years, and decision makers should not ignore these warnings.

Just days before COP26, Australia’s long-awaited climate plan has been slammed by civil society, scientists and opposition politicians as void of substance and full of spin.  For years now, the Australian Government led by climate denier Scott Morrison, has been seen as a climate laggard, one still deeply addicted to dirty fossil fuels and an outlier when it came to concerted international action on climate.  Let’s not forget that the Government is led by the same Scott Morrison who, when Treasurer of Australia, brought a lump of coal into the House of Representatives supplied by the Minerals Council of Australia.  “This is coal,” he told his bemused fellow parliamentarians. “Don’t be afraid. Don’t be scared.”

Solar power has again delivered more than 100 per cent of local demand in South Australia, in what is expected to become an increasingly regular occurrence.  The combination of rooftop solar (1275MW, or 80.9 per cent of local demand) and large scale solar (331MW, or 21 per cent) delivered a combined 101.9 per cent of local state demand for a 5-minute period.  At the time there was a little bit of wind generating (just 22.2MW), and about 275MW of gas generation. The state’s three big batteries were charging (72MW) and a total of 326MW was being exported to Victoria.  And while the 100 per cent level was reached for just one five minute period, from 1030 to 1530 – a period of five hours – solar contributed more than 90 per cent of state demand.

A community of urban researchers and city makers recently launched 17 keys for sustainable and just cities. The keys provide practical ways for urban decision makers, administrators, activists and urban planners to tackle the twin challenges of injustice and unsustainability.  In order to build sustainable cities, we need to get to the root of injustice. The keys open paths for decision makers to shape a better future for their cities. Each key comes with a wealth of resources, including videos, podcasts, wikis and publications, through which users can delve into innovative approaches and governance arrangements.

For over fifty years, governments around the world, including in Canada, have discussed the importance of sustainability or sustainable development.  One of the more prominent undertakings was the Rio Summit in Brazil in 1992, which led to the creation of Agenda 21.  Subsequently, the Millennium Development Goals were adopted by the United Nations in 2000, which were then followed by the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015.  While these global forums and commitments have made a difference in putting economic prosperity and environmental conservation on a more equal footing, the international community routinely fails to achieve the sustainability priorities it has set for itself. As a case in point, we are unlikely to achieve any of the 17 SDGs by the target date of 2030.

Pacific island nations have shaped the international response to climate change. At the United Nations summit in Glasgow, they’ll draw a line in the sand.  Chair of the Pacific Islands Forum, Fiji prime minister Frank Bainimarama, has said Pacific island countries ‘refuse to be the canary in the world’s coal mine.’   The Pacific Islands are at the frontline of climate change. But as rising seas threaten their very existence, these tiny nation states will not be submerged without a fight.  For decades this group has been the world’s moral conscience on climate change. Pacific leaders are not afraid to call out the climate policy failures of far bigger nations, including regional neighbour Australia. And they have a strong history of punching above their weight at United Nations climate talks – including at Paris, where they were credited with helping secure the first truly global climate agreement.

Ward 99 consists of Hyde Park in Mitchells Plain and parts of Khayelitsha. The neglected state of Hyde Park, in Tafelsig, validates its status as the Lost City.  Mitchells Plain is a sprawling Cape Town suburb whose inhabitants range from the middle class to the poorest of the poor. In the Hyde Park area of Mitchells Plain residents grapple with a lack of infrastructure, housing and rampant crime. Hyde Park, Freedom Park and parts of Tafelsig are referred to as Lost City.  Hyde Park presents a poverty pattern that has remained largely unchanged for years. The only significant improvement, voters said, is the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) homes built between 2008 and 2010.

As a result of increased agricultural activity brought about by the expansion of the wine industry, the biodiversity of the floral kingdom is under threat in the Cape Winelands. A conservation programme by the WWF is now helping to ensure that wine farms decrease their impact on the environment.  Wine farmers in the Cape Winelands are increasingly turning to alternative farming methods, which are helping to preserve the two global biodiversity hotspots in the region.  About 95% of South Africa’s wines are produced in the Cape Winelands, which is in the Cape Floral Kingdom and includes the Succulent Karoo biome. Unesco has recognised it as one of the world’s six floral kingdoms and it is the smallest and most diverse plant kingdom.

If you haven’t tried a shampoo or beauty bar yet, Christchurch based company Ethique are now giving Aucklanders a great incentive to do so now. $20 off – no minimum spend required (and there are many products under $20). Ethique is a company who is not only getting great recognition in NZ, but also on the global stage and is now selling in countries all over the world. They want to say ‘thanks’ to those of us in Tāmaki Makaurau for doing the hard yards in lockdown. All you need to do is type AUCKLAND as the coupon code, and the discount is yours.

The theme of this year’s Sustainability Summit is Social Responsibility: Cultivating Civic Engagement.  Sustainability is a system thinking approach that addresses equity (people), the economy (prosperity) and the environment (planet). All three are interconnected. If one of these areas is ailing, then eventually they all will be affected.  This year’s conference examines the idea that citizens have a social responsibility to make a positive contribution to their community. And it offers suggestions for how to make that contribution.

Join us for our event with ING, where we consider the role banks can play in fighting climate change. Since 2018, ING has committed to steering its lending portfolio towards the goals of the Paris agreement. One year after making this commitment, ING published its first Terra report, a detailed description of its portfolio current emission intensity and the bank strategy to reach its climate goals – a world-wide first of its kind. Since then, ING increased its ambitions by committing to Net-Zero by 2050 through the Net Zero Banking Alliance. In this presentation, Alberto and Stefanie will share how ING uses the Terra approach to measure and steer its lending book. They will deep dive into a few sectors on which ING reports to demonstrate how they work with methodologies. Looking towards the future, Alberto and Stefanie will also share their outlook for sustainability in banking, including the challenges and opportunities that banks and financial institutions are facing.