Former Shell chairman advocates fossil fuel divestment
The former chairman of Shell has advocated investors moving their money out of fossil fuel companies as a rational response to the industry’s “distressing” lack of progress on climate change. Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, who spent almost four decades at Shell and rose to be its chairman, also said that big oil and gas companies had been calling for a price to be put on CO2 emissions for 15 years, but had done little to make it happen. His striking remarks are the most supportive of divestment made by any senior figure in the fossil fuel industry. The company is currently positioning itself to be part of the solution to climate change rather than part of the problem, but faces criticism of its Arctic and tar sands operations. (The Guardian)
Innovation
Microsoft turns to gamification to tackle water crisis
Tech giant Microsoft has taken its corporate social responsibility to the world of smartphones, with the launch of a new mobile app designed to raise awareness of global water issues. The One Drop of Life app, launched in partnership with the not-for-profit One Drop Foundation, gamifies water-saving activities and educates users on the positive impacts that reduced water consumption can have across the world. This initiative comes on the heels of Microsoft’s collaboration with One Drop through the sponsorship of One Night for One Drop – an annual fundraising event produced in partnership with Cirque du Soleil to raise funds and awareness for global water issues. “The most pressing issues facing humanity – including water resource management – require innovative solutions, which is why we are pleased to support One Drop in its goal of providing sustainable access to safe water for communities worldwide,” explained Microsoft’s chief marketing officer for Western Europe, Christian Frei. (Edie)
Coca-Cola unveils world’s first entirely plant-based PET bottle
The Coca-Cola Company yesterday unveiled the world’s first PET plastic bottle made entirely from plant materials at the World Expo — Milan. PlantBottle packaging is Coca-Cola’s vision to develop a more responsible plant-based alternative to packaging traditionally made from fossil fuels and other non-renewable materials. PlantBottle packaging uses patented technology that converts natural sugars, found in plants, into the ingredients for making PET plastic bottles. The packaging looks, functions and recycles like traditional PET, but has a lighter footprint on the planet. In November 2013, Coca-Cola teamed up with Danone, Ford, Heinz, Nestlé, Nike, P&G, Unilever and World Wildlife Fund to form the Bioplastic Feedstock Alliance (BFA), a coalition supporting the responsible development of plastics made from plant material and promoting a more sustainable future for the bioplastics industry. BFA focused on guiding the responsible selection and harvesting of feedstocks used to make plastics from agricultural materials. (Sustainable Brands)
Waste
Tesco expands charity food scheme
Tesco, the UK’s biggest grocer, is expanding a scheme which gives unsold food to charities from warehouses to include some local stores. Leftover food from 10 of its UK stores will now also be available to local charities through the UK food redistribution charity FareShare. Tesco said that of the 55,400 tonnes of food it threw away in the last year, 30,000 tonnes could have been eaten. Tesco has been working with FareShare to donate surplus food since 2012. Bakery items, fruit and vegetables, and convenience items such as sandwiches and salads make up most of the shop wastage. It is trialling an app with FareShare and Republic of Ireland social enterprise Food Cloud, that will allow store managers to inform charities of the amount of surplus food held at the end of each day. Beneficiaries will include homeless hostels, women’s refuges and the children’s clubs. (BBC)
Corporate Reputation
Chevron pays record fine in Pennsylvania blast
Oil and natural gas producer Chevron Corp has paid a US$ 939,553 fine for a fatal 2014 explosion at one its Pennsylvania gas wells that state officials said may be the largest amount paid in the US for a single incident. The fine reflected the US state Department of Environmental Protection’s assessment that the second largestUS oil company’s management of the well failed to meet state standards, said agency spokesman John Poister. An employee of Cameron International Corp, a Chevron contractor, died in February 2014, when natural gas escaping from the new Lanco 7H well in Greene County southwest of Pittsburgh exploded. Pennsylvania investigators blamed an improperly tightened bolt and said guidelines for how the bolt should have been tightened were hazy. They said Chevron supervisors at the well site were preoccupied with paperwork and did not properly oversee the work done by Cameron International contractors. (Reuters)
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