Businesses urge EU to agree ‘robust 2030 climate goals’
Tesco, Kingfisher, Shell and GlaxoSmithKline are among a group of big businesses and environmental organisations that are pushing EU leaders to lay out a clear 2030 energy and climate policy framework. In an open letter, the Prince of Wales’ Corporate Leaders Group (CLG), with the support of 57 companies representing 4.5 million employees, has stated that “each [company] acknowledges responsibility for a sustainable economic future for Europe”. It follows an announcement in March that the EU was to put off making a decision on Europe’s 2030 climate and energy policy package until October. The letter stresses that a timely decision by Heads of State and Government is critical. “We… urge you to agree at the European Council on 23rd and 24th October 2014, a robust 2030 energy and climate policy framework and energy security strategy that…can deliver a global climate change agreement”, it reads. Commenting on the letter, CLG director Sandrine Dixson-Decleve said: “Our members are increasingly concerned about the potential cost and risk associated with delayed action”. (Edie)
Corporate Reputation
Lego ends Shell partnership following Greenpeace campaign
Lego will not renew its marketing contract with Shell after coming under sustained pressure from Greenpeace to end a partnership that dates to the 1960s. The environmental campaign group, protesting about the oil giant’s plans to drill in the Arctic, had targeted the world’s biggest toymaker with a YouTube video that attracted nearly 6 million views for its depiction of a pristine Arctic, built from 120kg of Lego, being covered in oil. Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, Lego’s chief executive, said Lego would honour its existing deal with Shell, but “as things currently stand we will not renew the contract with Shell when the present contract ends”. Lego toy sets are currently distributed at petrol stations in 26 countries, in a deal valued at £68 million. The toymaker had previously argued that the relationship had a positive impact on the world by inspiring children with its toy sets. John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace UK, said that he hoped the move by Lego would prompt other organisations that work with Shell, such as London’s Science Museum, to think twice about their partnerships. (Guardian)
Anti-cancer Susan G. Komen Foundation accused of ‘pinkwashing’ the fracking industry
The breast cancer charity Susan G. Komen Foundation has entered into a year-long partnership with a major oil field services company, despite possible links between fracking and cancer. The Houston-based company Baker Hughes is selling 1,000 pink-painted drill bits as a “reminder of the importance of supporting research, treatment, screening and education to help find the cures for this disease”. However, fracking operations have been found to use carcinogenic chemicals, and some studies have found increased cancer rates in areas of oil and gas development. The advocacy group Breast Cancer Action has condemned the partnership. “With all the toxic chemicals Baker Hughes is pumping into the ground, we thought they didn’t care about women’s health”, quipped Karuna Jaggar, the group’s executive director. A spokeswoman for the Komen Foundation commented that “the evidence to this point does not establish a connection between fracking and breast cancer”. (International Business Times, Huffington Post)
Diversity
Named and shamed: The FTSE 250 companies with no women at the top
UK business secretary Vince Cable and Lord Davies are today naming and shaming the 28 FTSE 250 companies that still have all male boards. The pair have written to the chairmen of the 28 companies, which include pub group Enterprise Inns, sportswear chain JD Sports and miner Petra Diamonds, to warn them they are falling behind peers. Lord Davies published a report into Women on Boards in 2011 and set a target that boards should be 25 per cent female by next year. Lord Davies said: “Every single company needs to address the issue of gender balance in the boardroom and make sure they support UK business in our collective goal”. The letter sent to the companies today calls for the gender diversity across FTSE company boards to improve in the next six months to meet targets. The Women on Boards half yearly update today revealed that women make up 22.8 per cent of FTSE 100 boards in the UK. Mr Cable added: “Although our target is in sight, we must keep up the momentum”. (Independent)
Technology & Innovation
San Francisco event to be powered by renewable microgrid
VERGE San Francisco, a four-day GreenBiz Group conference focusing on the intersection of technology and sustainability, will be powered by a fully functional, replicable, renewably powered microgrid. The microgrid will feature battery storage and power generation from solar and biomass gasification, demonstrating the capabilities of distributed energy solutions on the market today. “Microgrids are a key element of emerging resiliency strategies for cities and large energy consumers embracing renewable distributed energy systems”, said Eric Faurot, CEO of GreenBiz Group. The microgrid will feature a biomass generator provided by ALL Power Labs, whilst the microgrid control platform is provided by technology firm Spirae. “This year, Spirae is deploying our next gen platform to manage the 100 percent renewable microgrid system that will power the entire conference”, said Sunil Cherian, founder and CEO of Spirae. “We are showing that these are not fringe technologies of the future, but proven solutions that are reliable, scalable and economically viable today”, he added. (GreenBiz)
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