Sustainable Development

Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes Review

The annual Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) for 2012 are in, and the new additions include corporate giants in the United States such as Microsoft and Target. However, IBM, GlaxoSmithKline PLC, and United Technologies Corp. all got booted.

DJSI

Photo – sustainability-index.com

The “Corporate Sustainability Assessment” for the DJSI review is done by SAM, the investment boutique focused exclusively on sustainability investing.

SAM annually invites the world’s 2,500 largest companies (by free-float market capitalization) from 58 sectors to report annually on their sustainability performance.

The result of the Corporate Sustainability Assessment provides an in-depth analysis of economic, environmental and social criteria, including corporate governance, water-related risks and stakeholder relations.

SAM annually identifies the top company in each of the 19 supersectors derived from the 58 sectors. The 2012-2013 Supersector Leaders are as listed below:-

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG – Automobiles & Parts

Australia& New Zealand Banking Group Ltd – Banks

UPM-Kymmene OYJ – Basic Resources

Akzo Nobel NV – Chemicals

GS Engineering & Construction Corp – Construction & Materials

Itausa, Investimentos Itau SA – Financial Services

UnileverNV- Food & Beverage

Roche Holding AG – Healthcare

Siemens AG – Industrial Goods & Services

Swiss Re AG – Insurance

Telenet Group Holding NV – Media

Repsol SA – Oil & Gas

Koninklijke Philips Electronics NV – Personal & Household Goods

GPT Group – Real Estate

Lotte Shopping Co Ltd – Retail

Alcatel-Lucent SA – Technology

KT Corp – Telecommunications

Air France-KLM – Travel & Leisure

Iberdrola SA – Utilities

Launched in 1999, the DJSI are the first global indexes tracking the financial performance of the leading sustainability-driven companies worldwide.

The DJSI enable investors to integrate sustainability considerations into their portfolios while providing an effective engagement platform for encouraging companies to adopt sustainable best practices.

This has a very real, huge and global financial impact, as evidenced by the approximately 55 products that are based on the indexes serving asset managers and banks in 15 countries, with a total of approximately $6 billion in assets under management in a variety of financial products.

Read more about the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) review at sustainability-index.com.

UC Davis Receives Million Dollar Award To Assist Sustainable Agriculture Businesses

www.news.ucdavis.edu/

UC Davis has recently received a million dollar award which will ultimately result in the development of sustainable agriculture businesses.

Innovative technologies will ultimately be provided as a result of the million dollar award. UC Davis will utilize the award to create an innovation center.

Representatives Mike Thompson and Doris Matsui announced the grant which will be given to UC Davis and the campus.

Matsui elaborates on how UC Davis is one of the top research facilities in the U.S. and is ultimately pleased that the innovation center will be developed.

Matsui pinpoints the positive impact of the center such as:

  1. Linking the agriculture industry to brand new technologies
  2. Sustaining the nation’s food supply
  3. Fueling job growth
  4. Boosting economic growth on a myriad of farms across the United States

Representative Thompson pinpoints that agriculture is considered to be the backbone for the economy in the region of Northern California. The brand new innovation center will allow ranchers to build their businesses through brand new technologies. When businesses are growing for ranchers and farmers, the agriculture economy grows while the number of jobs is boosted. The construction of the innovation center will also accelerate entrepreneurial thinking between businesses and many researchers.

The establishment of the innovation center will also result in the creation of the AgEntrepreneurship Academy. Agriculture food chains will be created in the process as market needs are met. Chancellor Linda Katehi elaborates on how the grant will turn research into economic development and jobs in the future. The Challenge Grant is known for supporting entrepreneurship and innovation. A dean for the school of Management at U.C. Davis states that many universities are hubs for innovation and that many consumers will benefit through the Clean Innovation Center.

Overall, the grant will positively affect the agriculture community as jobs are created and economic growth occurs.

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UNCTAD 2012 Trade and Development Report

The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has published its 2012 Trade and Development report, which explores the links between income distribution, growth and development.

UNCTAD 2012 Trade and Development report

UNCTAD 2012 Trade and Development report (Photo – un.org)

The report says that governments should use fiscal and labor market policies to reduce income inequality.

Trends over the last 30 years show income inequality increasing both within countries and between them.

The share of wages in total income has fallen by five percentage points or more in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, and by 10 percentage points or more in France, Germany and Ireland.

In several countries, the richest one per cent of the population now accounts for 10 to 20 per cent of national wealth. This high inequality deprives the people at the bottom from access to education and credit, and prevents the expansion of domestic markets.

In 1980, the per capita income of the 15 richest nations was 44 times that of the 15 poorest. By 2000, that multiple had increased to 62. The report notes, however, that in 2009, reflecting better economic performance in several developing and transition countries; the ratio had fallen to 56.

Because globalization has advanced greatly over the same 30-year period, the report says, a number of economists have argued that rising disparities in income are the necessary result of rapidly growing international trade and financial flows, and of quick advances in technology. But the study says this outcome is not inevitable – that governments can use fiscal and labor market policies to reduce income inequality.

They cite the example of Latin America in the new millennium’s first decade, where income inequality fell with the implementation of progressive taxation and rising public spending, including social transfers and the provision of essential goods and services to low-income groups. The evidence suggests that the relationship between growth and inequality can be altered by proactive economic and social policies.

Lastly, the report examines how labor-market institutions and policies, together with an appropriate macroeconomic framework, can respond to current challenges and lead to sustained growth and more inclusive development.

They suggest that instead of wages linked to demand in the job market, an alternative approach should be employed based on linking wage growth with productivity growth. This prevents a rise in inequality and supports the process of economic growth and employment creation.

Read the full UNCTAD 2012 Trade and Development report – Download (pdf)

Google Publishes 2011 Sustainable Development Report

Mountain View, California-based Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) has published what it has been doing in terms of sustainable development in 2011.

Google renewable energy usage

Google renewable energy usage (Photo – google.com)

Their carbon footprint for the year works out to 1,677,423 tons of CO2 emissions, but the search giant’s business is carbon neutral since this massive footprint is balanced by their investments in carbon offset projects.

Google has apparently indexed 30 trillion unique URLs and gets a 100 billion search queries a month and they provide service to 425 million Gmail users, among other things.

In a blog post on the Google green blog, Rick Needham, director for Energy and Sustainability, said that, “Our campus sustainability programs are thriving. Last year, our shuttle program saw a 60% increase in ridership, and Googlers drove our fleet of hybrid and electric vehicles over 220,000 miles. The combination of our employee shuttle system and our electric vehicle infrastructure takes the equivalent of about 3,000 cars off the road every year. And we’re proud to have over 6 million square feet of building space around the world set to achieve LEED certification.”

Needham also said that Google’s power usage effectiveness (PUE) across all of their data centers had dropped to 1.13. This means the amount of energy spent on cooing and other overheads is 13 percent of the total energy used by all the data centers put together.

Based on this PUE, Google’s data centers are using only 50 percent of the energy other data centers need. Due to this energy consumption reduction, Google has saved a billion dollars to date. Out of Google’s total energy consumption, 33 percent comes from renewable sources while the rest is balanced with the help of carbon offset projects.

Google’s campus initiatives from the rooftop solar panels to their bike-to-work program have eliminated the equivalent of more than 16,000 metric tons of CO2 per year. At the Mountain View, California Googleplex, there are 1.7 MW of solar panels that produce three million kWh of clean energy.

Google’s carbon footprint per million dollars of revenue has been dropping by an average of 10 percent each year since 2009. Google has now been listed in the Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index for the second year running.

Google has invested millions of dollars in renewable energy projects that together represent a total capacity of over 1.8 GW. That’s the equivalent of power consumed by more than 350,000 homes.

UN-Habitat Using Minecraft for Urban Development, Block by Block

Swedish game company Mojang’s Minecraft game is about putting together blocks to build just about anything. The popular game’s building capabilities have now spilled out of the virtual world into reality with the announcement of a partnership with UN-Habitat called ‘Block by Block.’

UN-Habitat Minecraft - Block by Block

UN-Habitat Minecraft – Block by Block (Photo – mojang.com)

The whole thing began when Mojang teamed up with Svensk Byggtjänst (Swedish Building Services) for a project called Mina Kvarter (My Blocks) which aimed to involve people in the reconstruction of their own neighborhoods.

Volunteers from the Minecraft gaming community created virtual versions of real communities using the Minecraft blocks.

Residents of the real communities were then called upon to log in to Minecraft and make desired changes to their neighborhood, including adding or removing parks, roads and other proposed constructions.

It’s an easy way to foster community participation and get feedback about urban planning ideas from everyone, regardless of their architectural qualifications (or lack thereof).

Mina Kvarter was originally intended to promote sustainable development for the Swedish government plan to build a million apartments outside the major cities.

Mina Kvarter aka My Blocks has apparently been so useful for the million apartment program in Sweden that UN-Habitat got interested and initiated discussions with Mojang about how it could be applied to 300 public spaces they plan to upgrade by 2016. The result is the collaboration called Block by Block.

Planning for the first pilot project in Nairobi is already underway, involving a complete makeover for an informal community called Kibera. Mojang will be funding all the geeky stuff the Block by Block projects need over the next three years.

As of date, Minecraft has more than 40.1 million registered users from around the world, and the game has been purchased by more than 7.3 million customers. This makes it easier for UN-Habitat and other urban planners in just about any city in the world to get their citizens and youth involved and get them to participate in “reimagining your neighborhood” block by block.

London Mayor Announces $48M For Sustainable Industries Park

London Mayor Boris Johnson announced a £30 million ($47.6 million) investment by the city for London’s first Sustainable Industries Park, and billed as the largest such park in the United Kingdom. The project will create more than 1,200 direct jobs on site at the park at Dagenham.

London Sustainable Industries Park

London Sustainable Industries Park (Photo – londonsip.com)

The investment includes a $33.4 million anaerobic digestion (read organic) waste recycling facility to be built and run by the TEG Group.

The plant will divert more than 54,000 tons of food waste from landfills each year and use it to generate renewable heating and power for use in the park.

The funding for the plant is partly funded by the Foresight Environmental Fund and partly by the London Waste and Recycling Board. The Foresight Environmental Fund is a part of the Mayor’s London Green Fund which provides financing for low carbon infrastructure across London.

The London Sustainable Industries Park project is supposed to create a green industry cluster of low-carbon energy producers from waste plants, innovative waste facilities and other clean tech infrastructure such as recycling, renewable energy, wind power, solar power, and biomass.

They started off with Closed Loop Recycling, and now TIG and perhaps others who are planning to get on board. The land the park is located on in Dagenham belongs to the Mayor’s office, and Mayor Boris Johnson left no doubt about who gets the credit for transforming a disused site into a thriving new business quarter to attract up to 750 jobs and 500 construction jobs.

“I am investing more than £10 million into this site owned by City Hall to create a vibrant new destination for innovative businesses,” said Mayor Boris Johnson. “Low carbon industries represent a growth market, which will support a new generation of jobs for Londoners but also bring cleaner, energy efficient businesses that contribute to a better quality of life. So I am delighted to welcome our new tenants the TEG Group.”

“We are very pleased to be one of the first companies to come to the Mayor’s new London Sustainable Industries Park,” said CEO of The TEG Group Mick Fishwick. “This is set to be a flagship operation for TEG and will provide a facility to recycle London’s organic food and green waste.”

The Mayor also said they are in talks with another company to build one of the largest industrial gasification plants in the United Kingdom on the park. This plant will take municipal and industrial waste to produce energy.

13 Communities In California To Receive Sustainable Development Funding

www.theurbn.com/

Nearly 13 communities in the state of California will receive sustainable development funding.

The capital will come from Proposition 1C which is a $2.85 billion housing bond which is part of California’s Strategic Growth Plan. The “Catalyst Projects for California Sustainable Strategies Pilot Program” will award approximately $9 million dollars to fund 13 communities in California. The sustainable communities report displays that funding for the community will go towards the implementation of sustainable development strategies.

The communities that will be assisted with the sustainable funds include:

  1. Emeryville
  2. San Francisco
  3. Sacramento
  4. San Diego
  5. Fullerton
  6. National City
  7. Chico
  8. Truckee
  9. Marina
  10. Ontario
  11. Oxnard
  12. San Diego
  13. Hercules

A sustainable strategist named Lynn Jacobs elaborates on how reduced emissions, walkable communities and less time in a car will lead to a much stronger economy as sustainable development moves forward. The sustainable pilot program is partnered with state agencies as local innovation projects are supported. Economic, housing and transportation goals are to be met as well. The sustainable strategies pilot program was also implemented to test out the results of the sustainable development projects in the state of California.

In order to receive funding, the communities must collect certain data and measure the overall effectiveness of the sustainable strategies. After the conditions have been met, all the communities can utilize the information to develop an outline of how the tools and strategies are going to be implemented to benefit the community.  The sustainable development funds are going to better serve California and the surrounding communities across the state. Sustainable practices are going to become important as many people rely on transportation when it comes to driving a car or taking public transportation to get around town.

Overall, the sustainable funds are going to positively affect the communities in California.

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Coca-Cola Foundation Hands Out $10.5M for Global Sustainable Development

Sixty-eight community organizations in 41 countries around the world were awarded a total of $10.5 million in grants from The Coca-Cola Foundation in the second quarter of 2012.

The Coca-Cola Foundation

The Coca-Cola Foundation (Photo – The Coca-Cola Company)

“These grants represent our ongoing investment in the sustainability and the well-being of thousands of communities around the world,” said Ingrid Saunders Jones, chairperson of The Coca-Cola Foundation. “Our investment is designed to have real impact, by helping local communities with innovative ways to meet global challenges.”

The global impact of these sustainable community grants includes:-

-          Education program support and scholarships to 1.8 million students and 164 colleges, universities and schools;

-          Access to fitness and nutrition programs for 1.2 million youth and adults;

-          Collection of more than 470 tons of debris, and involvement of 1.1 million people in recycling awareness programs; and

-          Conservation of 7.2 billion liters of water, and improved water systems and sanitation for 300,00 people.

The grants have been given to the 68 community organizations for funding projects under five different categories – active healthy living, water stewardship, community recycling, education, and local priorities.

Grants under the healthy living category accounted for 26 of the 68 grants, and were given to organizations including $50,000 to America’s State Parks Foundation for its Youth Ambassador Recruitment Campaign. Another $50,000 healthy living grant recipient was YMCA of Greater New York, for its “Food & Fun/Move-To-Improve,” program benefiting 10,000 children in programs at 96 YMCA after school academies.

Fundacion Galapagos Ecuador was one of the four community recycling grant recipients, getting $40,000 for its “Waste and Water Management Systems” on Galapagos Islands in Ecuador to minimize the environmental impact of human activities on the Galapagos Islands, a World Heritage site.

The Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School in Cambridge, Massachusetts was one of the eight education grant recipients, and gets $75,000 for its Latino Leadership Initiative. A similar grant was provided in the local priorities category, where the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute in Washington D.C. was one of the 17 recipients, getting $50,000 for a Public Policy Fellowship Program to support the participation of college graduates in a nine-month education and training program.

You can see the details for all 68 grant recipients on the Coca-Cola Foundation sustainability site.

Marriott International Releases Sustainability Report

en.rian.ru/

Marriott International has released the yearly sustainability report which focuses upon preserving the environment and youth employment.

The yearly report utilized guidelines from the Global Reporting Initiative. Nearly $2.5 million dollars was invested in the environmental portfolio over the past 3 years. Workforce development and finding jobs for the youth were important factors to Marriott International. A global portfolio called “World of Opportunity” has been utilized to address the growing number of youths who are unemployed. Particular programs such as the YCI (Youth Career Initiative) and the SOS Children’s Village were important as Marriott International made advancements in the youth unemployment rate.

Marriott has also assisted youths with disabilities as nearly 13,500 have been employed across 3,500 employers. The Vice President Mari Snyder elaborates on how preserving the environment and creating more of a sustainable future is important to the company. Having a stronger community and creating more jobs is also important to the company. For the next 2 years, nearly 100,000 people are expected to be hired as the Companies portfolio grows. All of the programs are being utilized to assist disadvantaged youth so that they can gain skills which can be applied with a future job with the company.

Some of the highlights of the report include:

  1. 12 percent reduction in water consumption
  2. 4 percent reduction in energy consumption
  3. Setting up a comprehensive list of environmental practices
  4. Opening a brand new hotel in Haiti
  5. Hiring approximately 100,000 people across the world
  6. Making an advancement in social media gaming with the My Marriott Hotel on Facebook
  7. Initiating the Human Rights and Protection of Children Training
  8. Promoting sustainable jobs with Nobility of Nature

The CEO of Marriot International elaborates on how transparency is important to the stakeholders and the company.

Overall, the sustainability report released important news about preserving the environment and employment of the youth.

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BMW Launches Mobile Parking Solution Called ParkNow

http://www.facebook.com/DriveNowUSA

A press conference was held with the Mayor of San Francisco where a BMW board member announced the launch of a mobile parking solution called Park Now. A fleet of all electric vehicles were used to demonstrate the abilities of the Park Now service. Dr. Ian Robertson elaborates on how the BMW group is delivering and developing services which will meet the needs for efficient mobility solutions.

The BMW service will lead to:

  1. The Development of brand new mobility solutions
  2. Reduction of Congestion and Emissions
  3. Improving the quality of life for the residents in San Francisco

The Mayor of San Francisco elaborates on how the region of San Francisco is considered to be the “Innovation Capital of the World” and the “EV Capital”. San Francisco is considered to be the first region that will implement the brand new service. Park Now enables many users to pay for parking in advance as guaranteed access is allowed for many drivers. The mobile application can be utilized to navigate directly to the parking facility which will ultimately lead to a reduction in time spent looking for parking. There are many Park Now locations in Palo Alto and Oakland International Airport to name a few.

Nearly 100 brand new locations will be launched in the upcoming weeks. Drive Now is considered to be a flexible car sharing program which utilizes the first all-electric vehicle. The vehicle allows BMW owners to drive with zero carbon emissions. A charging station can easily be located so that the electric vehicle can be topped off. Charging and parking is also considered to be free for everybody that stops by the Drive Now Stations. All of the initiatives will improve the BMW brand as sustainable solutions are developed.

Overall, the new parking solution will efficiently help out drivers who are constantly on the go.

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