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Recycling – The Circular Economy: Admirable Efforts, With Significant Challenges As The Efforts Expand & Become More Complex for Businesses In these last days of the year 2018, of course, we’ll be seeing shared expert perspectives on the year now ending and a look into the new year, 2019. Sustainable Brands shared one person’s perspectives on three sustainability trends that are gaining momentum heading into 2019. The commentary is authored by Renee Yardley, VP-Sales & Marketing of Rolland Inc., a prominent North American commercial & security paper manufacturer established in 1882. The company strives to be an environmental leader in the pulp and paper industry. A wide range of fine paper products is made using renewable energy, recycled fiber, and de-inked without the use of chlorine. Rolland started making recycled paper in 1989 and adopted biogas energy in 2004. The company is privately-owned and headquartered in Quebec, Canada. The trends the author explains, of course, affect users of all types of paper products but also are useful for businesses in other sectors & industries; he sees: (1) a shifting of global recycling mindsets and in the circular economy; (2) more open collaboration and partnerships for impactful change; and (3) the need measurement and efforts to quantify impact. Rolland is a paper supply company and so there is a focus on recycled (post-consumer) paper, fiber, forests, the recycled paper process, moving toward zero waste, municipal recycling in North America, and so on. On recycling: we are seeing reports now of problems arising in the waste stream; in the USA, municipalities are calling for a reduction of waste and automating processes (to help reduce costs). There are new online marketplaces as well for buying and selling recovered items. The “market solution” is a great hope for the future as we continue to use paper products (we are not quite a paperless society, are we?). Part of the issues recycling advocates are dealing with: China is restricting the import of recyclable materials (think: that paper you put at curbside at home of business). Consumers can be encouraged to reduce consumption but paper is paper and we all use it every day – so new approaches are urgently needed! That leads to the second trend – developing and leveraging partnership & open collaboration: Yardley writes that collaboration across the spectrum of an organization’s stakeholders can help to address supply-chain wide sustainability if an organization can “understand the wider system” it is operating in (citing Harvard Business Review). And, if an organization can learn to work with people you haven’t worked with before. Rolland, for example, leverages biogas as a main energy source, partnering with a local landfill to recover methane (since 2004). This trend is on the rise, with the EU biogas plants expanding by 200% (2009-2015). And then there is Measure and Manage: Environmental measuring and reporting is an important part of a company’s sustainability journey – at the outset and continuing and at G&A Institute we stress the importance of reporting year-to-year results in a standardized format, such as in a GRI Standards report most importantly including a GRI Content Index. At the Sustainable Brands New Metrics conference in 2018, SAP explained that organizations integrating ESG objectives see higher employee retention, and minimizing of risk for investors. Renee Yardley’s commentary is our Top Story choice for you this week – do read it and you’ll find excellent examples of how companies in various sectors (Ford, Microsoft, Starbucks, Patagonia, Unilever) are dealing with their sustainability commitments in the face of challenges posed. ________________________________________
________________________________________ This Week's Top Stories Three Sustainability Trends Gaining Momentum for 2019
Sustainability: Continuing Forward Momentum! No such thing as sustainable palm oil – 'certified' can destroy even more wildlife, say scientists Can sustainability look good AND be good for business? House panel issues scathing report on 'entirely preventable' Equifax data breach Sustainability part of the wallpaper at PwC Cities Hold the Key to Food Sustainability How to create a sense of urgency around sustainability and climate action Our cities fall short on sustainability, but planning innovations offer local solutions Resolutions for Myself and for the Coffee Sustainability Sector Act Now for Sustainability! Should Companies Be Activists?
Millennials are too poor to live like Generation X and baby boomers, federal study says Pipeline Portfolio: ESG and the Rise of Socially Responsible Investing Trump EPA Proposes Major Rollback Of Federal Water Protections Are Artificial Christmas Trees Better for the Environment Than Real Ones? It Depends Dreaming of a green Christmas? More shoppers look for gifts good for the environment Want To Give Sustainable and Socially Conscious Holiday Gifts? Here's How. Waste of Energy
Sustainable Travel: Young Travelers Drive Hilton's Latest Effort To Cut Carbon Footprint In Half And the Headlines of interest… Amazon touted as big win for NY, but math is more complex Sustainable Warehouses and the ROI Equation Related: Sustainable Warehouses and the ROI Equation New York Times: Chinese hackers behind massive Marriott breach
News & Opinion: Asset Managers, Sovereign Wealth Funds, Pension Funds New CIOs at NZ Super, NYC and CalPERS US dominance in oil markets is only going to get bigger, the IEA says Tackle climate or face financial crash, say world's biggest investors
Act now to prevent an environmental catastrophe Why We Don't Need a Moonshot to Solve Climate Change Wind and solar clash with energy reality Business Ethics – Challenges And Responsibilities | New Governance & Accountability
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G&A Institute Sustainability Update™ ________________________________________
________________________________________ _________________________________________ Louis Coppola from G&A Institute Goes In Depth on How to Improve ESG Performance
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_________________________________________Governance & Accountability FLASH REPORT: 85% of S&P 500 Index® Companies Publish Sustainability Reports in 2017
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G&A Institute is the Data Partner for the Global Reporting Initiative's (GRI) in the USA, UK and Republic of Ireland. We identify, receive, collect, analyze, database, and communicate about every report issued in any of the 3 countries. Over the past 6+ years, G&A analyzed 6,000-plus sustainability reports in this pro bono role and databased 100+ important data points for each report. Find out more @ G&A's What's A Data Partner_________________________________________
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The Sustainability Highlights eNewsletter is prepared by Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc. based on continuous monitoring of trends and developments in Sustainability and ESG. Governance & Accountability Instiute is the "Sustainability Headquarters™" for clients in the corporate, investment, public and social sectors. Based in New York, G&A is a for-profit consulting organization providing a range of value-added strategies, services and resources related to ESG & sustainability to clients in the corporate and capital markets communities.For G&A's full range of services, click on each of the links below: For more information, contact Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc. | |||||||||||||
From all of us at Governance & Accountability Institute, we wish you all the best for the new year 2019 – this should be another year of significant progress in corporate sustainability and sustainable investing. We’ll be reporting on this progress in 2019 for you!
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