Rexam and Carlsberg team up in new sustainability initiative
Beverage can maker Rexam has become one of the founding partners of Carlsberg’s new initiative, the ‘Carlsberg Circular Community’. The new initiative, which uses the ‘Cradle-to-Cradle’ design framework, sees Carlsberg working with its suppliers in pursuit of zero-waste. The concept of Cradle-to-Cradle looks at rethinking the design and production of traditional packaging material, with the aim of developing products that are optimised for recycling and reuse, whilst retaining quality and value. The Carlsberg Circular Community aims to increase the creation of sustainable innovations, create materials that are optimised for reuse and recycling, and support knowledge-sharing between companies. John Revess, Sustainability director at Rexam said that, “as a manufacturer, Rexam has a responsibility to work in an increasingly sustainable way. By partnering with our customers and the full supply chain, we can further improve the environmental impact of our industry as a whole.” (Edie)
Unilever joins Ellen MacArthur Foundation as a Global Partner
Unilever will join Cisco, Kingfisher, Philips and Renault as the latest Global Partner to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. This group represents key industry players working to pilot and test circular economy practices at scale, and will support Unilever in unlocking the value of the circular economy within the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry. Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever, has long viewed the circular economy model as a key opportunity for business development. Commenting on the topic he said that in a circular economy, “products do not quickly become waste, but are reused to extract their maximum value before safely and productively returning to the biosphere. Most importantly for business leaders, such an economy can deliver growth.” According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the circular economy represents a US $700 billion opportunity for the FMCG sector. (Ellen MacArthur Foundation)
Employees
Japan ponders quotas for women in politics
Women are to be put at the heart of Japan’s economic reforms, with the aim of filling almost a third of top civil service jobs by 2020. Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, said that, “the female labour force in Japan is the most under-utilised resource. By 2020, we will make sure 30 per cent of leading public sector positions are occupied by women.” Figures from a Goldman Sachs report state that ramping up the number of women in the workforce could boost Japan’s gross domestic product growth by as much as 15 percent. According to a government report, in Japan, the world’s third-biggest economy, women make up just 11% of lawmakers in the lower house of parliament, putting it 121st out of 186 nations in terms of female representation. A spokesman from the government, who headed up the report, said that, “we need more positive action to increase our number of women leaders and increase our number of role models.” (Wall Street Journal, Times*)
Pensions opt out should be scrapped
Policy Exchange, a leading UK think tank, has warned the government that most Britons are not saving enough for their retirement, calling the issue a pensions ‘time bomb’. The report supports the automatic enrolment that was launched in October 2012, which aims to get up to 11 million more people saving by putting them directly into a workplace pension scheme, but says that the minimum contribution made by many will not be enough to fund people’s retirement. Policy Exchange claim that around 11 million people are saving six times less than they should for their retirements, and is calling on the government to make savings for pension funds mandatory, saying that, “building up a pension pot should be an obligation equivalent to paying taxes for public services.” (Guardian)
Community Investment
UK government confirms that lottery consultation will go ahead
The UK’s National Lottery operator, Camelot, is calling for an increase to the minimum contribution made by lotteries to good causes, as well as a 15 percent cap on the costs and profits of large-scale lotteries. The current minimum percentage that must go to good causes is 20 percent, and the Lotteries Council, which represents charity lotteries, has raised concerns that increasing this could lead to the closure of many society lotteries and result in less money going to good causes. Clive Mollett, chair of the Lotteries Council, said that, “we can achieve growth of the sector, and make it sustainable only by investing and recruiting new players into the market. To try to cap the expenses involved would mean any growth would be severely restricted.” A spokesperson from Camelot said that, “our position is that we believe all lotteries should deliver social good by raising as much money as possible for their beneficiaries.” The UK government has confirmed that it will launch a consultation on the matter but is yet to set a date. (Third Sector)
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