Survey: Engagement is number one challenge to sustainable business
The ‘Sustainable Business Trends Tracker’, published by the sustainability network 2degrees, has revealed that regardless of sector, company size, or maturity of their sustainability strategy, businesses currently overwhelmingly view engagement as the number one challenge to driving sustainable business. In the survey, which involved over 700 businesses including Unilever, BT, RBS, Centrica and Coca-Cola, 60 percent of respondents said that their primary challenge was engaging either senior colleagues or peers on the benefits of sustainable business. 80 percent of companies reported that sustainable business is a central or an increasing priority to their business, with 53% identifying efficiency savings as the primary aim for sustainable business. However, many companies said that they are finding it hard to keep up the momentum of effective engagement, with the finance sector particularly struggling to engage senior management. (2degrees)
Environment
World’s third biggest coffee producer plans to track coffee’s carbon footprint
Colombia, the world’s third largest coffee producer, plans to measure the carbon footprint of its coffee production so that the roasters that buy the beans can create, or expand, offerings of carbon neutral brands. The Colombian Coffee Federation (FNC) has developed a methodology to measure the sector’s greenhouse gas emissions following increased requests for carbon-free products from clients in Europe and the United States. The FNC, which represents around 500,000 coffee-growing families, plans to offer roasters precise carbon footprint data so that they can buy offsets to neutralize the emissions and sell carbon-free coffee. Fernando Gast, from the FNC said that, “we want to know what our carbon footprint is when a client asks us. It is also a market opportunity.” Colombia has built a reputation for high-quality coffee and it is estimated that the country will produce 10 million bags of coffee in the 2013/2014 season. (Thomson Reuters)
US mayors forge a new climate for greener buildings
Mayors from ten major US cities, including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago and Houston, have announced a united effort to significantly boost energy efficiency, in both city and private sector buildings. The ‘City Energy Project’ forms part of an increasingly common partnership between businesses and cities, sharing knowledge and resources, in order to leverage sustainability to attract residents, businesses and tourists. The project is designed to create healthier, more prosperous American cities by targeting office space, their largest source of energy use and carbon emissions. $9 million will be invested over the next three years to enable cities to boost building energy efficiency. Cliff Majersik, executive director of the Institute for Market Transformation who designed the initiative, said that, “we have the skills and technology to make buildings more efficient, but we need a coordinated effort by major cities and the private sector to make it happen.”(GreenBiz)
Social Investment
UK government seeks to increase the size of social investment tax relief
The UK government has announced that it will apply to the European Commission for permission to increase the size of the tax relief for social investment. Social investment tax relief allows investors who put money into regulated social organisations, including charities, to claim back part of their investment against their tax bill. The announcement comes as part of the government’s “social investment roadmap”, which sets out plans for how it intends to increase the scope and scale of social investment. David Gauke, the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, said that, “the government wants to make the UK one of the easiest places to invest in social enterprises in the world. We’re setting out the steps we plan to take over the year that will further enhance the environment for social enterprise in the UK, creating the right conditions to allow the sector to thrive. The government is keen to draw on the expertise of the social enterprise sector as we take the next steps in supporting this vital sector.” (Third Sector)
Equality
UK women now a third more likely than men to go to university
Figures from UK university admissions service, UCAS, have revealed that the gender gap is widening as women are now a third more likely to opt to go to university than men. The growing divide is becoming a more pressing issue that the number of applicants from poorer homes according to the chief executive of UCAS, Mary Curnock Cook. Commenting on the figures, she said that, “there remains a stubborn gap between male and female applicants which, on current trends, could eclipse the gap between rich and poor within a decade.” UCAS have revealed that 58 percent of applications for places at universities this year are from women, compared to 55 percent in the 2010-11 academic year. However, applications from would-be students in disadvantages areas are rising, with those from poorer families twice as likely to apply as a decade ago. (Telegraph, Independent)
COMMENTS