A group of 11 leading energy utilities from around the world have published a major new report detailing how 50 electricity technologies could play a role in meeting international climate change targets. The 68-page report has been developed by the Montreal-based Global Sustainable Electricity Partnership (GSEP) and is designed to provide negotiators at the upcoming Paris Summit with a reminder of the crucial role a power sector that accounts for a quarter of global carbon emissions will have in tackling climate change. GSEP is backed by American Electric Power, EDF, Eletrobras, ENEL, EuroSibEnergo, Hydro-Québec, Iberdrola, Kansai Electric Power Company, RusHydro, RWE and State Grid Corporation of China, which together delivered around one-third of the world’s electricity last year, of which about 60 percent was generated with no direct CO₂ emissions. The report is accompanied by an open letter to the Paris negotiators from the 11 electricity providers, arguing that a supportive and stable international policy environment will help accelerate the rollout of clean technologies. (Greenbiz)
Employees
Exclude criminal records from job applications, companies urged
For many of the 10 million people in the UK with a criminal conviction, job application forms with a box requiring them to declare their criminal record are cause for despair. UK non-profit Business in the Community (BITC) says it wants everyone to be fairly considered, based on merit, before all checks and risk assessments are made. Its Ban the Box campaign, launched exactly two years ago, aims to remove such “archaic” disclosure checks from job applications – with the exception of specific jobs where they are legally required. 50 major employers in the UK with a combined workforce of 400,000 – including Barclays, Boots, property developer Land Securities and law firm Freshfields – have now signed up to the campaign. Others, such as high street chains Greggs and Timpsons, have set up employment support schemes for ex-offenders, including pre-release training inside prison workshops. A BITC survey of inmates at HMP Nottingham shows that 91 percent of prisoners want to work upon release, but only a third would bother to apply for a job with a conviction history box on the application form. (Guardian)
LinkedIn launches tool to hire copies of ‘rock star’ employees
Professional social network LinkedIn wants to help employers hire copies of their best staff with a new recruitment product, designed to cater to companies who cannot define their ideal employee — but know they have a “rock star”, or standout staffer, on their team. “When you conduct a search using a rock star co-worker’s profile, the recruiter analyses the job title, location, skills and education on their profile to build a search string and surface members who are similar professionally,” said Eddie Vivas, head of talent solutions. Mr Vivas rejected the idea that the feature could lead to a lack of diversity in teams. He said if a company wants to improve the mix of its staff, it could use its own employees’ profiles to find “diversity candidates” who are similar professionally. “For example, recruiters can search for members who attended a predominantly Hispanic college, or belong to a LinkedIn Group for African-American software engineers,” he said. (FT)*
Health
UK parks call for research into green prescriptionsA body representing the UK’s parks has this week urged the government to invest in research into how so-called green participation prescriptions could improve public health and curb economic costs. Non-profit The Parks Alliance (TPA) has called for a full clinical trial into the costs and benefits of green prescribing, whereby GPs refer patients to non-clinical sources of support – such as parks and environmentally-focused programmes – in a bid to improve their mental and physical health. The call comes in response to a government consultation, A New Strategy for Sport, which aims to reverse the falling numbers of people participating in sport in England. TPA said parks are already playing a key role in helping UK citizens lead more active lives, but it argues innovative new approaches such as green prescriptions could help to encourage wider participation in outdoor activities. “We all know there is an obesity crisis in the UK and parks can offer a solution to get more people active,” said Mark Camley, chairman of TPA. (Business Green)
Sustainable Development
Small and medium enterprises adopt sustainable business practices in Morocco
The World Environment Center (WEC) has announced the successful completion of a US Department of State funded project to expand the sustainable development commitments of Moroccan businesses by improving operating costs, reducing materials, energy and water consumption, and minimising solid waste, wastewater and air emissions. WEC has partnered with the Casablanca-based firm RIO (Reduce-Invent-Optimize) to implement the local activities and provide advanced technical expertise for the project. The partnership is the fifth of its kind between the State Department and WEC, which together span seven countries. Through the WEC and RIO partnership with the Moroccan food-processing and two textile associations, the technical team selected 15 small and medium-sized local member companies to receive technical assistance. Significant results to date include companies reducing their CO₂ emissions by 2.6 percent since implementing earlier this year. (3BL Media)
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