CONSUMERS

Google products to help consumers make sustainable choices  

Tech giant Google has launched a suite of changes to many of its core products to help consumers make sustainable choices more easily. Google Maps will default to the most eco-friendly route when it would take a similar time to make the trip as without taking carbon emissions into account. Google will also display the carbon emissions associated with a flight in the search results, adding a green badge to flights with significantly lower emissions. It will also make display sustainability information on shopping results for energy-intensive products such as furnaces, dishwashers and water heaters. Later in October, search results for queries about climate change will appear in a new layout showing relevant information and guidance from authoritative sources, including the UN, on the causes and effects of climate change. (CNBC)

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

Qurate expands Small Business Spotlight to help minority groups

Multiplatform video commerce and ecommerce company Qurate Retail Group has announced the expansion of its Small Business Spotlight program to further support entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups by giving participants more opportunities for national exposure on television shopping networks QVC, HSN, and ecommerce site Zulily. At least 100 diverse businesses will be selected for the program in 2022. The 2022 participants will appear live on-air on QVC, HSN or QVC2 during one of seven heritage and recognition months in 2022, including Black History Month and Pride Month. New for 2022, online retailer Zulily will enable shoppers to make a difference through specially curated shoppable events during each featured heritage and recognition month, with products from the selected Small Business Spotlight businesses that meet certain sourcing requirements. (Qurate Retail Group newsroom)

NATURAL CAPITAL 

Banks linked to $800bn in annual nature destruction, report warns

A new report, published by Finance for Biodiversity (F4B), estimates that the value of the potential damage to nature from lending activities by public development banks (PDBs) worldwide is around $800 billion annually. The report finds that the value of ‘nature at risk’ currently equates to 7 cents for every dollar invested. PBDs – state-owned financial institutions of which there are more than 450 globally – are therefore exposing themselves to a dependency on natural services that are at risk from a range of disruptive trends, including climate change and a growing population. The report also criticises that, without adequate measurement and reporting of biodiversity risks, shareholder governments and their citizens cannot know if PDBs are damaging biodiversity. F4B is calling on banks to run stress tests on nature-related financial risks. (Edie)

STRATEGY

Global airlines commit to net zero CO2 emissions by 2050

Global airlines have committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050, with the target agreed by members of the International Air Transport Association. The industry’s roadmap relies on 65% of emission reductions coming from sustainable aviation fuel, which is significantly less polluting than traditional jet kerosene, but currently in very short supply. The industry needs 450 billion litres annually of sustainable fuel, but only 100 million litres is currently available. The plan also includes future and unproven new technologies, including electric and hydrogen aircraft, with remaining emissions to be addressed through carbon capture or offsetting. Chinese airlines pushed to delay the commitment to 2060, arguing that climate targets that could hinder surge in demand for flying in developing countries in the coming decades. (Financial Times)*

CIRCULAR ECONOMY

Zalando joins forces with Save Your Wardrobe to advance circularity

German multinational e-commerce giant Zalando is launching a Care & Repair initiative in collaboration with pioneering UK-based digital closet app Save Your Wardrobe (SYW). The latter is a virtual fashion tracker designed to facilitate more mindful consumption. Through the collaboration, users will be able to connect to aftercare services, including repair and alterations. The initiative, trialling in Berlin and Düsseldorf, connects an interactive digital booking system for post-purchase services directly to Zalando’s e-commerce site. People can filter according to service – alterations, repairs, specialist cleaning – to surface a list of providers local to their area code. The project was conceived with the aim of making post-purchase services, a critical element of circularity, convenient and accessible for everyone. (Forbes)

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