Network for Business Sustainability

01/05/2024

2023 was a wild ride for business .

Wondering how to make sense of it all?

Andrew Winston's summary might help. Winston is a leading voice in management and sustainability and the coauthor of Net Positive.

He describes 2023 as a year of "duality."

"The forces driving companies toward sustainability are relentless … yet we’re not doing enough, and some powerful counter-pressures are in play. I see duality.

"As a society, we are winning (more companies doing more than ever) AND losing (emissions and inequality still rising). As the clean economy grows, or human rights and equality get more attention, those who do not want these changes also work to slow progress."

Winston identifies 3 key trends that dominated discussions last year:
1. The Anti-ESG Movement
2. China Leads the World to Clean Economy Tipping Points
3. Rising Requirements and Regulations for Reporting

According to Wiston, there's more momentum for the progress toward sustainability action than pushback against it. "There wouldn’t be such powerful backlash if there weren’t real progress," he says. We're not going fast enough, but we are moving in the right direction.

Do you agree?

Read on for Winston's summaries of these 3 key sustainability trends, here: https://hbr.org/2023/12/2023-a-strange-tumultuous-year-in-sustainability

The year 2023 contained several important sustainability narratives and trends. The author outlines three key ones — the anti-ESG movement, China’s acceleration of a clean economy, and the rise of reporting regulations — and then suggests a series countervailing forces pushing against each. He...

12/19/2023

Did you know that December 18th was International Migrants Day?

Migration is an ever important part of our world. It can benefit business and society.

Why is migration so valuable?

Because today, businesses face a “global race for labour.” There are staffing shortages everywhere from your local coffee shop to your accounting department and company leadership.

This is happening partly because of demographic changes, like aging populations in many countries. It means there’s demand for both lower-skilled and high-skilled migrant workers.

Is your company tapping into this talent source?

International migrants offer unique strengths as employees. Because of their international ties, language skills, and ability to navigate different cultures, they are often innovative, entrepreneurial, and well-suited for solving nuanced problems.

But integrating them into company structures and culture isn’t always straightforward.

For managers, it’s important to know that international migrants are a diverse group. Human resources needs can differ depending on what specific types of migrants your company is working with.

In this article, Researchers Milda Žilinskaitė and Aida Hajro describe specific tips for hiring and integrating three groups: High-skilled migrants, Lower-skilled migrants, and Refugees.

Learn more: https://nbs.net/what-migration-means-for-business/

International migration is part of our world. Businesses have a central role in managing this workforce. Learn more from the experts.

12/06/2023

Does your company want to increase your sustainability impact through ?

This article provides concrete circular business models you can integrate into your organization's strategy.

Circularity is more than recycling; there are many ways that companies can pursue it, and some have better environmental outcomes than others.

Researcher and business owner Nancy Bocken describes one particularly impactful set of strategies as "slowing the loop."

Slowing the loop means rethinking business models to keep resources in the economy longer -- consuming fewer materials and creating less waste. Spoiler: you can still be a profitable company with these techniques!

Here are 6 key tactics companies can use to "slow the loop."

1. Design for durability and repair.
2. Provide lifetime warranties and repair services.
3. Support product reuse (ex: through a reselling service).
4. Remanufacture or restore old products
5. Promote "sufficiency" (don't push unnecessary or extra products on consumers)
6. Provide options for customers to rent or lease products rather than buying them (i.e., "product service systems")


https://nbs.net/business-models-for-the-circular-economy-and-which-make-a-difference/

11/28/2023

Not all actions have to be new or fancy.

In the circular economy, for example, media often highlights new and complex technological approaches taking place in developed countries.

But there are tons of circular economy initiatives happening in other, less glamorized settings too.

This article showcases the circular economies in low-income settings, emphasising labour and resourcefulness (“making do”) over efficiency and technological solutions.

Featuring research by Angelina Korsunova, Minna Halme, Arno Kourula, Jarkko Levänen, and Maria Lima-Toivanen, who examined poor urban areas in Tanzania, Brazil, and India, the article offers lessons for anyone interested in circularity around the world.

The graphic below provides a preview of how the circular economy varies by income.

In wealthier countries, the circular economy is led by government and business.

In lower-income settings, the circular economy is powered by the “informal sector,” which means workers without formal contracts or government regulations. Very small businesses and entrepreneurial individuals are at the core of the local circular economy.

For example, there are hundreds of “micro-businesses” that either specialize in making different household items or agricultural tools out of recycled materials, or simply sell pieces of wood and metal scrap for similar purposes. Simple ovens are made out of barrels, and water containers are made from regular plastic containers by adding a nozzle.

As researcher, Angelina Korsunova says: “The simple low-tech solutions can spark ideas and energize us all to value, respect and engage with what we already have at our hands. This informal circular economy can energize us all.”

Learn more: https://nbs.net/lessons-from-the-circular-economy-in-low-income-settings/

11/17/2023

Students are a powerful force for sustainability.

From the school strikes to university oil & gas divestment campaigns -- student-driven movements for change are a force to be reckoned with on- and off- campus.

Here are some lessons about how students can drive sustainable change while wearing a slightly different hat -- that of the summer intern.

Based on the experiences of 125 fellows in the Environmental Defense Fund Climate Corps program, researchers Soderstrom and Schifeling offer insights into how individuals can achieve change — and how organizations can help them.

Each of these fellows spent the summer working on corporate environmental and sustainability projects on everything from energy efficiency to sustainability strategy.

They found that mentoring, technical expertise, and peer support provided by EDF helped fellows achieve their goals; companies could provide similar support for their employees.

Read more to find tips for students who want to drive sustainable change, and for organizations who want to support them: https://nbs.net/what-840-employees-say-about-creating-change/

11/14/2023

Here are 4 Tips on How to Build Community in Your Supply Chain.

You might ask: "Why would I care if my supply chain members are friendly with each other?"

It turns out, community-building in supply chains is one powerful way companies can improve on climate reporting.

Why?

Research shows that when suppliers in the same supply chain have many contracts with one another, the amount of reporting those companies do goes up – a lot.

Supply chains with the greatest number of supplier-to-supplier contracts disclose two times more data than supply chains with the fewest supplier-to-supplier contracts.

So: how do you increase those supplier-supplier relationships?

1. Map your supply chain.
You want a complete list of all your suppliers and customers and of the contracts among them. You can leverage some existing supply chain databases to get started.

2. Help suppliers and customers build relationships.
Facilitate those links! Hold events, or just suggest meet-ups at existing industry gatherings.

3. Encourage connections across "clusters."
Supply chains can get cliquey. Take extra care to connect suppliers that might not organically meet.

4. Evaluate new suppliers.
Select suppliers that already show transparency and willingness to collaborate.

What are you waiting for? If you're aiming to improve your company's scope 3 reporting, put on your community-building hat and get networking.

Learn more: https://nbs.net/build-supply-chain-community-for-better-scope-3-emissions-reporting/

11/09/2023

Greenwashing happens when organizations imply that they are acting more sustainably than they really are.

The consequences for greenwashing are growing, with new government regulations and public pressure. For example:

-- Keurig Canada was fined $3 million last year by the Competition Bureau for making misleading or false claims that its K-Cup pods were recyclable.

-- In the U.S., an investment firm controlled by Deutsche Bank must pay $25 million to settle charges over misstatements regarding its environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing practices

But greenwashing isn't gone. And researchers are calling attention to "Greenwashing 3.0." That's the new(est) model of greenwashing, in which corporations make environmental commitments that occur in the future rather than the present.

For example, if a company plans for net zero in 2050, it needs a science-based strategy to get there, interim targets, and independent verification. Otherwise, it's greenwashing.

So: how to prevent greenwashing and the damage it causes?

A new research-based report provides guidance, including an assessment tool for companies and regulators to identify and prevent greenwashing. Jump in, and find out how to make your future green -- for real!

Read the press release on the research, from Ivey Business School and the University of Michigan's Erb Institute: https://news.westernu.ca/2023/10/western-report-shows-how-to-combat-corporate-greenwashing/
Read the report: https://online.flippingbook.com/view/175998623/

This interactive flipbook is created with FlippingBook, a service for streaming PDFs online. No download, no waiting. Open and start reading right away!

11/07/2023

Marina Schmitz teaches about sustainable futures...

And she also embraces the future by experimenting with new technologies, such as ChatGPT!

In this article, you can learn about her course “Future Scenarios for Sustainable Business Solutions” for Master’s students in International Business at CBS International Business School in Cologne, Germany.

You can watch the video, where Schmitz presented her course to the Sustainability Centres Community as part of a Series on How to Engage Students in Sustainability

OR, if you'd rather read a summary, you can find ChatGPT's lively (lightly edited) summary of her presentation.

Here are some lessons learned from the presentation, inspired by Chat's summary:

Explore New Horizons: Encourage students to imagine and design multiple futures. It’s about seeing the world not in terms of “what will be” but “what could be.” This exercise opens minds to a vast spectrum of possibilities.

The Power of Play: To foster engagement, bring improv theater into the classroom. In one exercise Schmitz uses, students envision an alternative future for management in 2035 by telling a future story together. Toni, in the year 2035, wakes up in a world without money or competitiveness, where environmental awareness reigns supreme. This playful approach unleashes creativity and helps students think outside the box.

Backcasting for Success: Students can work backward from long-term goals to identify the steps needed to achieve envisioned futures. This strategic planning method empowers students to chart a course toward their desired future, empowering them to lead change.

https://nbs.net/teaching-business-students-to-create-and-navigate-sustainable-futures/

How are you envisioning and embracing the future?

Tomorrow’s leaders need new visions of the future. Marina Schmitz shares insights from her course merging futures studies and sustainability.

11/03/2023

Have you heard of the "Waste Recovery Hierarchy"?

It might sound boring, but it's an important tool to understand if you care about the Circular Economy.

Why?

Because not all "circular" strategies are made equal.

Usually, it's better to prevent waste altogether than to recycle it, for example.

We often consider these different strategies as they relate to things like plastics, metals, batteries, etc.

But circular strategies from the waste hierarchy are relevant for the food sector, too!

The "Food Recovery Hierarchy" includes strategies like:
-- Prevention
-- Redistribution (or discount selling)
-- Upcycling
-- Material recovery
-- Animal feeding
-- Anaerobic digestion, composting, and incineration

Learn more about each in the slider below.

Understanding these guidleines is useful -- but following them isn't a sure-fire way to maximize your positive environmental impact. To use these tools best, companies need to think in systems. For example: Will upcycling require more transportation and ultimately create more emissions than a strategy "lower" on the hierarchy?

Learn how to assess these trade-offs, and 4 best practices to apply, in this article: https://nbs.net/when-does-the-circular-economy-improve-agrifood-sustainability/

10/30/2023

Calling all Business School Educators:

Do you have experience teaching about climate change? Perhaps you:

Have integrated a climate-focused lecture, case, or activity into a core business course;
Teach a sustainability-focused course where climate is a key topic;
Teach a climate-focused elective or certificate.
If so, we want to hear from you.

The Network for Business Sustainability is hosting monthly webinars, starting in January 2024, to showcase examples of teaching climate in business schools.

These webinars will help educators learn from one another and catalyze the adoption of climate content in business curricula. All interested academic faculty and staff are welcome to attend – and to contribute!

We're seeking educators who can provide short (5-10 minute) presentations on a single effective approach they’ve used in teaching climate.

Ultimately, each 1.5-hour virtual session will feature multiple short presentations, as well as Q&A and discussion breakouts.

The call for submissions will be open until November 19.

If you have experience teaching climate, please fill out our short form and apply to share it through this series!

Learn more and find the submission form here: https://nbs.net/teaching-climate-change-in-business-schools-nbs-virtual-event-series/

10/24/2023

We all want to believe we're headed for a better future.

Sometimes, reading the news can make that belief hard to maintain.

But the latest projections from the International Energy Agency on the growing renewable energy sector paint a better picture.

The World Energy Outlook 2023 report projects that by 2030:

-- Nearly half of the world's electricity supply will come from energy.
-- Ten times as many electric cars will be on the road.
-- Heat pumps and other electric heating systems will outsell boilers.
-- There will be three times as much investment in new offshore wind projects than coal- and gas-fired power plants.

However, all these positive trends do not mean that we -- goverments, businesses, investors, NGOs and individuals -- can stop pushing.

The report emphasizes that "much stronger policies are needed to limit fossil fuel emissions to keep warming to 1.5C by the end of the century."

is an opportunity for governments and other stakeholders to advance that goal.

Along with the meetings between government leaders, COP comes with many "side events" with other stakeholders with the potential to make meaningful change.

How is your organization responding to the need for stronger policies? How will it fit into the new, greener, energy future that the IEA describes?

Let us know in the comments below, and read more about the IEA's announcements here: https://www.cbc.ca/news/climate/iea-report-world-energy-outlook-2023-1.7005194

10/18/2023

The fast-changing world of AI can be scary — for business, people, and the environment.

Can a nonprofit organizational structure make it safer?

To answer this question, Prof Tima Bansal looked at Open AI — one of the leading organizations driving AI technology today.

Open AI is a nonprofit — but it owns a for-profit organization: “Open AI LLC.”

Open AI’s leadership points to this nonprofit ownership as assurance that the organization will foster openness and safety and ensure benefits are distributed widely.

But, according to Bansal, there is little evidence to show that is the case.

Instead, there are several indicators that OpenAI’s non-profit ownership structure has very little influence on its current operations.

1. It has not made its research “open,” — contrasting with the original value and emphasis on transparency

2. It uses web content without permission from (or compensation for) those who own the data — contrasting with the original value of distributing benefits broadly

3. It is not contributing much of its profits back to the nonprofit owner

Learn more about Open AI’s structure and why nonprofit ownership might not guarantee organizational behaviour that’s good for the world: https://www.forbes.com/sites/timabansal/2023/10/13/does-openais-non-profit-ownership-structure-actually-matter/?sh=95cd087d18a6

There is little evidence to show that OpenAI's non-profit ownership structure influences OpenAI's operations.