A global study conducted by Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) has found that transport companies are lagging behind other sectors in mitigating greenhouse gases and setting targets.
The first comprehensive report of its kind, this study surveyed 291 of the largest transport companies in the world, including those that cover road, rail, sea and air transport. The results show that: (more…)
Over the past few years, I have used this blog to promote the message that businesses can do well by doing good. It’s a message that I’m passionate about, and in fact, I’ve been advocating for conservation and sustainability for well more than two decades now. I’ve worked with a variety of organizations, including World Wildlife Fund, The Nature Conservancy, American Forests and Fundacion Natura, Ecuador’s leading conservation group, and in the early 1990s I also helped formulate corporate sustainability strategies for companies such as Eddie Bauer and Timberland.
Again and again, I’ve seen how sound CSR policy translates into solid business success, and that’s precisely why the title of Aneel Karnani’s recent Wall Street Journal article, The Case Against Corporate Social Responsibility, caught my eye.
In sum, Karnani’s basic premise is that CSR efforts are either irrelevant or ineffective. “The idea that companies have a responsibility to act in the public interest and will profit from doing so is fundamentally flawed,” he writes . . .
. . . and I’m sure it won’t surprise you to learn that I whole-heartedly disagree. (more…)
The newly updated Climate Counts scorecard, released earlier this month, reveals that over the past year businesses have made some improvements with regard to sustainability issues. However, huge differences remain between sectors, and it appears that, in general terms, industry as a whole is failing to meet the climate challenge. Taken altogether, Climate Counts Executive Director Wood Turner describes the results as “disappointing.”
Here are a few of the details: (more…)
The French government has launched a major renewable energy investment program targeting emerging clean energy technologies, such as solar, marine and geothermal energy, carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects and advanced biofuel development.
The new program will offer €450m ($572m) in subsidies and a further €900m in low-interest loans to cutting-edge technology projects. About €190m ($241m) will be invested before the end of the year 2010, with €290m set aside over the next 4 years up to 2014. All told, the program, called Démonstrateurs et plates-formes technologiques en énergies renouvelables et décarbonées et chimie verte, will provide €1.35bn ($1.7bn) of financial support to the renewable energy sector over the next four years.
According to analysts, this move may signal a shift in strategies for France, which has traditionally favored more established alternative energy technologies, such as nuclear and wind. (more…)
NSK, a manufacturer of motion and control products, released its new corporate environmental policy last week. The policy outlines NSK’s pledge to conduct business in a manner that protects human health, prevents pollution and protects the environment, and it also outlines how employees and suppliers are encouraged to participate in the company’s efforts.
NSK, which is headquartered in Tokyo, has been recognized among the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations.
In the announcement last week, NSK said that in 2009 employees in the United States contributed to environmental savings of: (more…)
