Unilever issues first ever green sustainability bond
Consumer goods giant Unilever has issued a £250 million “green bond”; the first such bond in the sterling market. The market for green bonds that finance environmentally friendly projects increased more than fivefold last year. Most such bonds have so far been issued by organisations such as the World Bank, but in November EDF, the French power group, raised $1.9bn in the first euro-denominated green bond issued by a large corporate. Unilever has worked with DNV GL to develop a Green Sustainability Bond framework based on the company’s Sustainable Living Plan, in order to provide clarity and transparency around the use of proceeds. It includes a set of clearly defined criteria on GHG emissions, water use and waste disposal for the projects selected; and outlines a yearly reporting structure to provide full traceability of the funds. Jean Marc Huet, Unilever’s Chief Financial Officer, explained: “By issuing our first Green Sustainability Bond, our intention is to invite investors to support our vision for sustainable growth, while investing in the Unilever credit.” (Financial Times)*
Employees
Orange France investigates second wave of suicides among staff
The French telecoms company Orange is on “serious alert” after reports of a fresh spate of work-related suicides. Since the beginning of the year, 10 of its employees have killed themselves – most for reasons “explicitly related” to their jobs, according to the company’s own stress and mental health watchdog. The number of suicides so far this year is almost as high as for the whole of last year, when 11 workers took their own lives. On Wednesday the French health minister, Marisol Touraine, called the new deaths worrying. “The company has to take the necessary measures. I know that the company and the unions are alert to this … we cannot leave the situation as it is,” she told French radio. In a statement, Orange admitted there had been “several suicides” this year, adding: “Each of these acts is by its nature singular and stem from different contexts. But these situations remind us to be vigilant and for the need to repeatedly question the efficiency of the numerous preventative measures put in place, several for the past few years.” (The Guardian)
Policy
UK Budget 2014: “dirty business as usual” and social enterprise tax boost
In his annual Budget speech yesterday, UK Chancellor George Osborne pledged that the government would invest in new sources of energy – name-dropping nuclear, renewables and shale gas as well as mentioning energy efficiency initiatives – in an effort to cut energy costs. However, the environment and climate change went unmentioned while the chancellor revealed a number of policies that will boost polluting industries. The announcement of policies that will support fossil fuel companies and cut the price of carbon has led to environmental campaigners calling this year’s Budget “dirty business as usual”. Osborne also declared the government was backing social enterprises and announced tax relief for social investments at a rate of 30%. The announcement has been well-received by the industry, with Big Society Capital estimating that the tax relief could unlock nearly half a billion pounds in finance for charities and social enterprises over the next five years. (Blue and Green Tomorrow)
Singapore held up as “test bed” for sustainable innovation
Global corporations see Singapore as a test bed for sustainable products and ideas, many of which could be applied to other countries, according to a report in The Guardian. Singapore, which currently relies on neighboring Malaysia for its water, is aiming for water self-sufficiency by 2050, with 55% of its water needs met via recycled water and 25% from seawater desalination. Moreover, its Sustainable Singapore Blueprint, which the government released in 2009, sets a target of certifying 80% of its buildings as green by 2030, while Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University is aiming to be the greenest eco-campus in the world. Meanwhile, global corporations – including Panasonic, Bosch, EDF and Veolia – are investing in helping Singapore to reach its goals with innovative tech solutions. “We are ahead at demonstrating new, urban solutions, therefore we want to attract and work with the world’s best companies in the space,” said Chee Kiong Goh, executive director for cleantech and infrastructure at the Singapore Economic Development Board. (The Guardian)
Environment
Greenhouse gas rise ‘will boost crop yield’
Rising greenhouse gas emissions may result in better harvests of wheat and soya beans even after allowing for the damage caused to crops by more frequent heat waves, researchers say. Their findings appear at odds with theIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which said in a leaked draft of a report due later this month that global warming would damage yields of wheat and “erode food security”. The study, led by the University of East Anglia, used computer models to test the impact on crops of a range of scenarios for future emissions to find that yields of wheat and soya beans would increase for the next 70 years under a “business as usual” scenario, in which carbon dioxide emissions rose rapidly. Wheat yields would grow globally by 34 percent by 2080 and soya beans by fifteen percent. Maize production was projected to fall by thirteen percent during the same period. The increases would not be evenly distributed, with Britain and other countries in temperate regions experiencing more of the benefits while yields may decline in the tropics. (The Times)*
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