Get Two Certified Online Courses with 30% discount | Promo Code "Bundle30"

close icon

© 2023 Sustainability Academy. All Rights Reserved

The 43rd annual G7 summit was held last week, on May 26 – 27, 2017. The location this year was Taormina in Sicily, Italy. The decision to hold the event in Sicily – and in particular in Taormina was to highlight the capacity to unite hope and hospitality in a single shared effort. The attendees of the 43rd summit included the leaders of the seven G7 member states as well as European Union representatives.

Improving the Conditions for Economic Growth Worldwide through Innovation & Sustainability

The mission of this year’s summit was ‘Building the Foundations of Renewed Trust’. The agenda was based on three fundamental pillars: 1) Citizen Safety; 2) Economic, Environmental and Social Sustainability and the Reduction of Inequalities; 3) Innovation, Skills and Labor in the Age of the next Production Revolution.

Climate Change & the future of the Paris Agreement

With respect to the crucial issue of climate change, the Group of Seven (G7) leaders have said in their final communique that they had failed to bridge differences with US President Donald Trump – and that the U.S.A. was unable to join other countries in committing to the Paris Agreement.

“The United States of America is in the process of reviewing its policies on climate change and on the Paris Agreement and thus is not in a position to join the consensus on these topics,” the communique reads. “Understanding this process, the heads of state and of government of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom and the presidents of the European Council and of the European Commission reaffirm their strong commitment to swiftly implement the Paris Agreement,” it added.

G7 Nations Should Lead the Transition to a Low Carbon Economy

The G7 nations are responsible for 30 percent of coal-generated power worldwide – and as a result they should carry a large share of the responsibility for global greenhouse gas emissions. Talks about long-term growth are futile without taking into consideration the increasing scarcity of resources, which will push up prices and have an impact on the economy. The G7 nations ought to be a model for the necessary transition to a low­-carbon economy.

To read the G7 Taormina Leaders’ Communiqué

According to the European Union’s action plan, countries must achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. Although there’s a great challenge on doing so, as defined by the European Parliament, this does not only imply to completely eliminate GHG emissions. Instead, organizations should manage a balance between their carbon emissions and the amount of carbon that the atmosphere absorbs from the sinks.

How to start with a carbon reduction strategy.

Firstly, you start with a carbon footprint calculation to check on the CO2 emissions and their impact. You have successfully used the right tools to analyze the activities. You have also calculated which are the most polluting. However, are you confident enough to implement a successful carbon reduction strategy?

Usually, a lot of businesses believe that by choosing to offset their carbon can be the first and great option, but this is not effective when it comes to reducing CO2 emissions. Reduction efforts need to become more penetrating with an efficient emissions reduction strategy.

  1. Designing the timeframe

What is the timeframe of this strategy? Scheduling the roadmap will facilitate the process of development and implementation so that the targets can be timely met while staying on the financial plan.

  1. Detecting reduction opportunities

Exploring opportunities in all scopes of emissions can result in actual reduction, while also providing an exceptional ROI. Going through the 3 scopes (direct and indirect), it will be easier to identify potential reduction opportunities.

  1. Setting costs and impacts

A list of potential strategies to evaluate the CROI (climate return of investment) prospective for each opportunity, determination of costs, emissions reductions potential and the timeline for applying need to be considered.

  1. Assess actions

Examine opportunities based on specific criteria, such as complexity, benefits, stakeholder requirements and impact operations. It is useful to score each of these criteria before moving on to prioritize actions.

  1. Developing the plan

It is suggested that a group of professionals has received the proper information and education on how to evaluate and keep track of the progress. It is also important to be in line with the timeframe.

  1. Setting Targets

The more precise the targets (meaning they are measurable, relevant and achievable), the closer to reaching the carbon emission reduction goals.

If you are interested to acquire the necessary practical skills on how to apply a carbon reduction strategy, Sustainability Academy offers a certified course with information on international standards relating to Carbon Reduction Strategies and Reporting, including WRI GHG Protocol, CDP, ISO 50001, GRI.

 

For more information and an exclusive discount contact [email protected]

Bosses across industries are increasingly tasked by long-term ESG (environment, social, governance) concerns.  Atlanta business leaders are no different.  College grads or corporate managers growing as leaders are finding opportunities around sustainability. In a world driven to find short-term gains, are you prepared for long-term challenges?

CSE’s 2018 research Sustainability (ESG) Reporting Trends North America focuses on the influence of Sustainability on Financial Results.  We find confirmation of the link between Sustainability Reporting and Financial Performance.  Paying attention to long-term concerns pays off in annual profits.

CSE research highlights findings from key sectors including:

  • Media and Telecommunications
  • Transportation
  • Energy & Energy Utilities
  • Construction
  • Agriculture
  • Food & Beverage
  • Financial Services
  • IT and Security

These industries are key drivers in Greater Atlanta, in Georgia and throughout the South.  Warner Media, AT&T, Coca-Cola, Delta, Home Depot, (many of whose execs we’ve trained), face serious and growing need to produce and implement a strong sustainability strategy.

Through consulting, research and training, we break down CSR (corporate social responsibility) data by sector.  Drawing from the telecom industry, the issues which keep telecom CEOs on edge include:

  • Sustainable product design,
  • inclusion and diversity,
  • talent management,
  • customer service and transparency,
  • privacy and security,
  • waste and recycling,
  • energy and emissions.

Whether you are an engineer, from HR, client relations, IT or operations, CEOs need sustainability experts.

Another example from telecommunications:

  • only 15 of the 600 sustainability reports in North America were from the telecom industry – more are needed!
  • 27% of those reporting are externally assured – higher than average but room for growth
  • 60% of the top-10 telecom companies (based on revenues) conduct sustainability reports – key to a pattern of success!

Be among those driving successes.  Indeed.com lists thousands of well-paying Atlanta jobs which omit “sustainability” from the job title but includes it prominently in the job description.  For example, ZipRecruiter reports that telecom jobs in Atlanta range from $39,000-$70,000, with many reaching even higher.

CSE’s Certified Sustainability Practitioner Program (Advanced Edition 2019) offers trainings on these key topics and many others. The first 2019 programs in North America are in Atlanta, Feb. 21-22; Toronto, April 11-12; and Seattle, April 15-16, 2019.

Business Ethics and Sustainability

Business Ethics is widely considered to be one of the most important ingredients of the Social pillar of Sustainability. A business can be considered sustainable when supported and approved by its stakeholders, employees and the community. Fairness, efforts towards retention and engagement, and good practices towards these groups constitute key indicators for a business’s sustainability.

Latest Trends

Compliance officers are expected to respond to various trends regarding business ethics, which gradually become more challenging. The evolution of technology greatly assisted the steps towards a business’s sustainability (better work conditions, increased communication, additional jobs), while it has dramatically changed the face of these developments, e.g. automation. Dilemmas have arisen concerning the point where the human substitution becomes unethical. Is it ethically acceptable for organizations to “get into the consumers’ head” or to try to influence their emotions? The examples below come from the marketing and psychology field. One could say the “robots” are taking over.

From Science Fiction to Neuromarketing

Marketing has been the pioneering field in this dynamic invasion of technology in people’s minds. Brands, in their effort to create strong connections and engagement with consumers, have recruited neuroscience. Marketers study the nervous system, how the brain reacts to particular stimulus and specifically what particular emotions they trigger. The ultimate goal is for consumers to bond with the brands and raise engagement and loyalty.

Facebook feels us

In 2012 Facebook also attempted to involve the examination of human emotions in the social media’s strategy, by carrying out an experiment where it screened certain words from 689,003 peoples’ news feed for one week. This disclosure aimed towards seeing how this adaptation would then influence the “participants” of the experiment (it was realized without their knowing) concerning their subsequent posts, “Likes” and reactions. The reactions of the CSR communities however were not positive, mostly criticizing how the experiment had an underlying desirable consumer purchasing behavior.

Meet Ellie, the virtual interviewer, by the USC Institute

Ellie is a human-like machine developed to assist the diagnosis of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, through actual interaction. Substituting the therapist, Ellie “listens” to the patients and detects psychological problems. A job ordinarily assigned to humans has now evolved into a technology involving occupation. What will be the outcome for psychologists and patients over the world? We’ll see.

It looks like technology has invaded in our lives more dynamically than ever. For Sustainability professionals, where should the limit be? For cutting-edge sustainability education on essential sustainability issues, you can take a look at Sustainability Academy’s online courses.

 

Group registration form

    *Please state the number of licensees you require.




    This will close in 0 seconds