Contact Us

Contact Us

    Sustainability Academy’s New Website is taking up a notch the ESG Tools for Sustainability Professionals

     

    Education is the most powerful tool to transform organizations for becoming more Sustainable and have a positive impact on our planet.

    We focus on all professionals, entrepreneurs and graduates who want to excel in the sustainability (ESG) profession.

     

    The Sustainability Academy is excited to announce the launch of its brand-new website at sustainability-academy.org

    At Sustainability Academy, we believe that education is the most powerful tool to transform organizations for becoming more Sustainable and have a positive impact on our planet. We focus on all professionals, entrepreneurs and graduates who want to excel in the sustainability (ESG) profession.

    With that in mind, the website supports the most excellent user-friendly navigation with well-formatted content to browse. It is designed to specifically encourage deeper interaction among visitors, trainers, and consultants.

    Streamlined menus create a smooth navigation by providing direct paths to high-use pages, enabling the website to evolve to meet changing user preferences.

    Acknowledging the growing percentage of users who access information on mobile devices, the website delivers seamlessly across all device types and platforms.  All content is 100% responsive on tablets and smartphones, so that information is easy to see, with full functionality retained.

     

    Sections and features of the new Sustainability Academy website include:

     

     

    The introduction of the Sustainability Academy’s new website celebrates the soaring record-breaking demand for group online training for companies and online course services in gerneral and is here to take up the challenge!

     

    About Sustainability Academy:

    The Sustainability Academy is CSE’s global initiative to offer affordable specialized online education and in the field of Sustainability, Climate Change, Circular Economy, and Corporate Responsibility. The Sustainability Academy is set to make a difference on this planet, and we invite you to take on the journey with us!

     

    For more information, please visit  https://sustainability-academy.org/

    Also follow us on Twitter @CSE_network or on our company page on LinkedIn.

    Reach us at: info@sustainability-academy.org

    Sustainability Academy’s New Website is taking up a notch the advanced Certified courses, that will be of interest to professionals who want to update their knowledge and have a recognized qualification in the field of Sustainability, Corporate Responsibility, Sustainable Development and Circular Economy.

    When we imagine the future, it tends to be through the lens of our current set of circumstances. However, this is not necessarily accurate. Take lithium-ion batteries and electric vehicles. While it is true that right now the batteries being used in these cars have poorly sourced elements and tend to be short lived, the narrative for this may prove different in the future. The solutions we have now, aren’t necessarily the solutions we’ll end up with in the future. As production of electric cars will likely skyrocket in the next decade, innovation will ensue to generate innovative solutions for the battery supply chain. Humans are consistently improving on new ideas.

    So, the question remains: how will this ensue? The current issue with producing lithium-ion batteries is earths abundance and extraction. These batteries not only require lithium, but also cobalt and nickel. All these elements need to be mined, which has devastating effects on local communities and the environment.

    While research continues to be conducted, science is not moving fast enough to create a battery that doesn’t require these elements. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean we are still on the path of complete extraction. A new way to get these elements has appeared. It’s called urban mining, which is essentially a fancy word for recycling. Until recently, lithium wasn’t being recycled. Multiple companies have popped up globally that are recovering and reusing lithium and other battery materials, and Li-Cycle, a Canada based company, is one of them.

    Approximately 10,000 tons of lithium-ion batteries per year were being recycled as of 2021, or the equivalent of 20-30,000 electric vehicle batteries to put it in perspective. This could potentially increase to hundreds of thousands of tons in the next four years. The industry is moving fast. Considering new legislation and regulations, such as the Inflation Reduction Act, millions of electric vehicles will be produced in the next decade. All these cars will need their batteries replaced and recycled. Keeping this in mind, relying on mining long-term for these elements is not sustainable. We need to be able to keep lithium, cobalt, and nickel in the supply chain circularly to diminish the amount needed from mining.

    Li-Cycle’s recycling process (which allows for 95% material recovery efficiency) works like this: huge drums are filled with batteries from cars, trucks, buses, personal items, and devices, and even scraps from battery manufacturers. These batteries go on a conveyor belt into a shredder that separates the different elements of the battery. This “spoke and hub” process produces a black mass (important metals such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel) which is then transferred to a separate facility or hub. There, hydrometallurgy is used, resulting in the recovery of high-purity battery chemicals. This process generates no solid waste, does not impact the atmosphere, and has an overall lower environmental load than traditional recycling processes.

     

    As more electric vehicles hit the road, there will be an increasing amount of material to recycle in the coming decades. While it is cheaper to recycle these materials than mine, they will have to coexist for a while to keep up with increasing demand.

    If you are interested in learning more about Circular Economy and Carbon Reduction Strategies, Sustainability Academy provides specially designed self-paced online certified courses for professionals who want to gain all the latest tools, legislative development and a unique knowledge in a practical manner.

     

     

    Supply chain sustainability is becoming increasingly important for companies, investing more and more money into initiatives to reduce waste and carbon emissions. It is also presumed that there will be an increased emphasis on the circular economy by the end of 2022.

    A circular supply chain is important for many reasons, but mainly because it saves businesses long term costs, prevents waste from going to landfill, helps manage ESG risk and leads end-to-end network value to business growth opportunities. As stated by the World Economic Forum, the circular supply chain could unlock $4.5 trillion of economic growth by 2030. For this reason, the United Nations (UN) has already outlined Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for global supply chains.

    As more companies are trying to readjust their supply chain, Microsoft Corporation and Schneider Electric are two examples excelling in their sustainability practices, being the winners of The Gartner Power of the Profession™ Supply Chain Awards, an annual community-driven recognition program that inspires supply chain transformation around the globe. Microsoft’s mission is to become carbon-negative, zero-waste and water-positive by 2030, driven by circularity. One the other hand, Schneider Electric has deployed a “self-healing” supply chain platform, saving more than 100 million euros.

    Here is how your company can capture more value from a circular supply chain:

    Lower costs mean greatest profit – Reusing and refurbishing recycled materials results in lower input costs, creating new profit streams.

    Circular economy supports supply chain resilience – Using materials already in the supply chain saves your company from inflation and supply shortages.

    Regulation and certification standards can be easily met – Companies are facing increasing pressure to make supply networks more sustainable and more transparent.

    Drives customer engagement – Circular supply chains are always more appealing to environmentally-conscious consumers. 85% of people indicate that they have shifted their purchase behavior towards sustainability in the past five years.

    The circular supply chain is a new way of conducting business, empowering the collaboration of organizations and companies. With the expectations of stakeholders transforming the supply chain sustainability the last 10 years, a lot of companies are struggling to meet the increasing demands, making it even harder to gain a competitive advantage.

    Take a deeper dive into the way the circular supply chain can benefit your business and enroll to the Online Certificate on Circular Economy. A 20% discount is available until August 31. Use the discount code “summer20”, while registering online.

    The U.S. Plastics Pact, also known as “U.S. Pact”, is a consortium led by The Recycling Partnership and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) as part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s global Plastics Pact Network, officially launched in August 2020. The aim is to redesign the way the United States uses plastics so that they don’t become waste in the first place. For this reason, the Global Commitment was created, setting ambitious circular economy goals until 2025.

    The U.S. Pact is aligned on four specific 2025 targets:

    • Define a list of packaging to be designated as problematic or unnecessary by 2021 and take measures to eliminate them by 2025.
    • 100% of plastic packaging will be reusable, recyclable, or compostable by 2025.
    • By 2025, undertake ambitious actions to effectively recycle or compost 50% of plastic packaging.
    • By 2025, the average recycled content or responsibly sourced bio-based content in plastic packaging will be 30%.

    Four years afar from these goals, US Plastics Pact introduced a new “Roadmap to 2025” supported by nearly 100 organizations. The Roadmap focuses on the key outcomes for each target with corresponding actions and timelines. It was developed by the US Pact founding signatories (known as Activators), which include over 60 of the world’s largest CPG companies and retailers.

    Kwik Lok, Amcor, Clorox, Danimer Scientific and many other companies have already made their commitments towards the Roadmap and set their own priorities. The Clorox Company announced the elimination of waste from packaging as its top priority, while Kwik Lok has committed to innovate materials used in their products, champion sustainable resource use with their suppliers and drive decrease in food waste.

    Is your company ready to make a significant step forward in realizing a circular economy for plastics? Training has a critical role to play in enabling circular economy strategies.

    Check out our brand new Online Certificate on Circular Economy and benefit from our welcoming discount of 20% discount!

    Circular economy is essential to fight climate change while it penetrates almost all industries around the world. New roles and jobs are emerging to drive early circular economy transformations, which require a well-trained workforce. Looking at the new trends toward circularity, the opportunities are going to multiply, so be prepared for one or more new roles within your organization.

    Right now, Netherlands is the country with the highest percentage (8.6%) of jobs related to circularity. Scotland follows the lead with 8.1%, along with Belgium (7.5%). The European commission has already projected a rise in circular jobs by 2030.

    Let’s meet some of the new roles emerging for circular economy.

    Circular investment specialist

    The creation of circular economy has driven innovation and new business models. It can be an investing opportunity to profit by reusing, refurbishing and repairing products. Also, capability in developing and implementing circular policies can be critical.

    Designer for circular products and packaging

    Circular packaging should incorporate the principles of the circular economy. Products designed and packaged with sustainable, recyclable and reusable materials represent the commitment to the new legislations and a sustainable future.

    Customer service professionals in circular economy products

    Customer service professionals need a new common language to address all the environmental attributes and benefits around circularity. Their new role goes beyond purchasing. There is need to create value for consumers on circular economy products and services.

    Reverse logistics manager

    Reverse logistics can help close the loop of product life cycles. The role of a reverse logistics manager starts at the point of consumption and captures the value of products and materials or properly disposes them.

    Circular business models are already taking off internationally and companies need to invest in circular job training and education. Training has a critical role to play in enabling circular economy strategies and support their activities, so it’s time to equip you with all the necessary tools and skills needed for the emerging jobs in the circular economy.

    Looking for a job with a future or a career-change into Sustainability? Check out our brand new Online Certificate on Circular Economy and benefit from our welcoming discount of 20% discount.

    Ask for more information and your promo code:  sustainability@cse-net.org

    To maintain a long term value of the products, materials and resources in the economy, a company needs to acknowledge the importance of keeping its environmental impact as low as possible. This is the starting point to join a circular economy plan. What needs, however, to be done in order to fully implement it?

    Here are five key steps that could help your organization adopt a circular economy model:

    1.Efficiency Improvement

    Get more value from your investments by improving your operational efficiency. Moreover, an efficient use of resources could also contribute to a material security while also improve environmental and economic outcomes.

     2. Make good use of resources

    Incorporating recycled and reused materials into end-of-life products is a big challenge, but that could have a positive impact to a company as it can better recognize the existing resources. Challenge your engineers to identify new ways to process the materials or design new models.

    3.Utilization of new tools and techniques

    There is a constant improvement on tools and techniques that a company can identify and implement. These tools can measure your success and move your operations towards a circular model.

    4.Communicate the business value

    Consumers are in favor of products that use sustainable materials. Trust needs to be built with both the consumers and the stakeholders. Show them your efforts.

    5. Integrated business vision

    Incorporate an integrated business vision not only to the product’s lifecycle, but also to the supply chain. Take into account the product’s end-of-life and collect data from the entire supply chain so as to reduce energy and materials.

    Circular economy is not a choice any more. Companies should mainstream the new policies and bring them to scale.

    To meet this need, Sustainability Academy is beyond environmentally focused as it offers affordable specialized certified online education and coaching in the field of Sustainability (ESG) and Corporate Responsibility.

    CSE, as the sponsor and developer of the Sustainability Academy is organizational Stakeholder of GRI (Global Reporting Initiative), certified Business by Green America, certified Consultant by Accountability (For coaching Services on Sustainability), CMI Recognized Training Program Provider and certified Member of CPD.

    Don’t miss the opportunity to check out our newest course of Online Certificate on Circular Economy and get our welcome discount of 20%. Contact us at sustainability@cse-net.org to get your promo code.