McDonald’s praised for extensive deforestation pledge
Global fast food giant McDonald’s has pledged to end deforestation caused by production of commodities in its supply chain, focusing on beef, coffee, palm oil, poultry and packaging. McDonald’s has promised not to buy from suppliers that clear primary forest and other areas with high conservation value, as well as peatlands. It also said human rights must be respected and conflicts over land use resolved through a balanced and transparent process. The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), a US-based advocacy group, welcomed the pledge, saying it was the first by a global fast food chain covering its whole supply chain, and would push the industry to set new environmental standards. A palm oil scorecard produced by UCS shows that fast food firms have lagged behind packaged food and personal care companies. McDonalds was previously given a “little commitment” ranking on the scorecard, although this still put it ahead of competitors including Starbucks, Yum! Brands and Burger King. (Thomson Reuters Foundation; Union of Concerned Scientists)
Fashion Revolution Day: A day to ask #WhoMadeMyClothes?
Today is Fashion Revolution Day, an opportunity for consumers to reflect on the welfare of the workers who make the clothes we all wear. Created following the Rana Plaza disaster, Fashion Revolution is a global coalition of designers, academics, writers, business leaders and parliamentarians calling for systemic reform of the fashion supply chain. Hundreds of thousands of ethically-minded fashion enthusiasts will be turning their clothes inside out and snapping selfies with the hashtag #whomademyclothes for Instagram or Twitter as missives to their favourite clothing companies. The theory of change is that clothing companies will see this outpouring of consumer demand for transparency and release greater levels of information about where their clothes are being made, who is making them, and how much those people are getting paid. (Huffington Post; Fashion Revolution)
Corporate Reputation
Deutsche Bank hit with record fine for interest rate manipulation
Deutsche Bank has been fined a record $2.5bn by US and UK regulators for its role in the fixing of the Libor and Euribor inter-bank rates. The fine handed to the German bank ($2.1bn by the New York Department of Financial Services, and £227m by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority) is particularly high due to its attempts to mislead regulators: actions that could have hampered wider investigations. The manipulation of the inter-bank interest rates, crucial to the operation of financial markets, was seen by traders as a means to improve their trading positions. Investigators released email evidence of the fixes, including one exchange asking “can we have a high 6mth libor today pls[sic]” to which the response was, “sure dude, where wld[sic] you like it mate?” Deutsche Bank responded to the fine saying, “We have disciplined or dismissed individuals involved in the trader misconduct; have substantially strengthened our control teams, procedures and record-keeping; and are conducting a thorough review of the Bank’s actions in addressing this matter.” (BBC)
Climate Change
Youth call for climate education to be taught in US schools
To coincide with Earth Day, the New York City Council, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Natural Resources Defense Council,Alliance for Climate Education and Global Kids held a joint press conference to call for New York State-wide climate education for K-12 schools. The proposed resolution calls for climate education to be included in the New York State school curriculum: it currently has 21 of the 26 needed sponsors to pass. According to a report released on Monday by the Yale Project on Climate Change, only about half of Americans think that global warming, if it’s happening, is caused by humans. And, only about one in 10 Americans understands that over 90 percent of climate scientists think human-caused global warming is happening. Today’s youth understand that the key to climate action at scale is an informed public, which is why they are leading the way by demanding that climate change be taught in their classrooms. (Sustainable Brands)
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