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Vizibl launches new sustainability solution
Vizibl has launched a new sustainability solution at its inaugural COLLABORATE Summit. Vizibl Sustainability supplements the Vizibl supplier collaboration platform and enables companies to understand better and track their performance and that of their suppliers against their sustainability goals. Vizibl also announced a new partnership with EcoVadis.
SFMI outlines a sustainable ambition for FM sector
A white paper published by the Sustainable Facilities Management Index (SFMI) provides FM organisations with a framework that can help propel them to leading sustainability status. Sustainable Ambition for the FM Sector outlines the challenges and opportunities for FM service providers during a period of massive social and political turmoil. It aims to provide the industry with the building blocks to transform environmental, social and governance (ESG) sustainability performance.
How Circular is the Circular Economy?
The circular economy has become, for many governments, institutions, companies, and environmental organisations, one of the main components of a plan to lower carbon emissions. In the circular economy, resources would be continually re-used, meaning that there would be no more mining activity or waste production. The stress is on recycling, made possible by designing products so that they can easily be taken apart.
Attention is also paid to developing an “alternative consumer culture”. In the circular economy, we would no longer own products, but would loan them. For example, a customer could pay not for lighting devices but for light, while the company remains the owner of the lighting devices and pays the electricity bill. A product thus becomes a service, which is believed to encourage businesses to improve the lifespan and recyclability of their products.
The circular economy is presented as an alternative to the “linear economy” – a term that was coined by the proponents of circularity, and which refers to the fact that industrial societies turn valuable resources into waste. However, while there’s no doubt that the current industrial model is unsustainable, the question is how different to so-called circular economy would be.
Several scientific studies (see references) describe the concept as an “idealised vision”, a “mix of various ideas from different domains”, or a “vague idea based on pseudo-scientific concepts”. There’s three main points of criticism, which we discuss below.
Frame Awards jury member Humberto Campana thinks beyond sustainability
How important are democratic prices and political sustainability? On the eve of the Frame Awards deadline, we spoke with Humberto Campana about these matters.
Entrepreneur has sustainability challenge covered – with a SpaceMat
An entrepreneurial academic from The University of Manchester has produced a prototype graphene-enhanced product that could help the UK recycle tonnes of unwanted tyres – a waste product that is sometimes shipped overseas for disposal.
Continuing the sustainable composites conversation: CompositesWorld
Once the coronavirus pandemic ends, and a “new normal” begins, what will the conversation around sustainable composites and advanced materials sound like?