The Global Council for the Promotion of International Trade, the Global Council for Cluster Excellence and Research (GCCER), the Confederation of Indian Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (CIMSME), and UFirst Eduversity have launched “Sustainomics”, an innovative newsletter created in collaboration with the twelve global alliances.
The “Sustainomics” offers new ideas on sustainability, best practices, economic development and resilience in times of crisis, and was formed out of a need to create sustainability awareness to micro, small, and medium businesses during the lockdown.
“Sustainomics” forms part of the Global Sustainable Development Mission and Global Alliances of this group of the not-for-profit organisation, which normally involves virtual/face-to-face events and workshops with entrepreneurs, subject matter expert and impact investors.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it quickly became clear to us that it wouldn’t be possible to go ahead with the planned activities. Instead, we decided to get creative, and invited global subject matter experts and practitioners to share their visions for building a more sustainable, thriving future in a time of immense disruption. And the group celebrated successfully its grand “Global Sustainable Development Summit 2021”.
The Sustainomics is a compilation of the council’s favourite submissions. We were thrilled with the quality of the submissions received, and the newsletter is a testament to the passion and creativity of the entrepreneurs and experts who got involved.
Special mention of Professor Mohan Munasinghe
Professor Mohan Munasinghe outlined the first ideas about sustainomics from 1990 onwards, culminating in a formal paper presented at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, which set out key elements of the framework.
Sustainomics is defined as “a transdisciplinary, integrative, comprehensive, balanced, heuristic and practical framework for making development more sustainable.” Unlike other traditional disciplines, it focuses exclusively on sustainable development. Thus, the main principle of the framework seeks to make ongoing and future development efforts more sustainable in a practical way, as a first step towards the ultimate goal of sustainable development. Other key principles stress: (a) balanced and consistent consideration of the three dimensions of the sustainable development triangle (social, economic and environmental); (b) better integration by transcending conventional boundaries imposed by discipline, space, time, stakeholder viewpoints, and operational needs; and (c) practical application of innovative methods and tools throughout the full cycle from data gathering to policy implementation and feedback.
In brief, Sustainomics is an innovative transdisciplinary framework (or transdiscipline), based on a holistic set of key principles, theories and methods. It facilitates sound research and decision making, drawing on many other scientific approaches and techniques involving the natural and social sciences, engineering and humanities — because no single traditional discipline can cover the vast scope and complexity of SD issues.
Small actions can make a big difference
Workers at Unilever’s PG tips tea facility in Trafford Park, England, had a brilliant idea inspired by the company’s sustainability tagline, “Small actions can make a big difference.” The majority of tea in the United Kingdom is packaged in paper tea bags. Every shift, 15 large reels of paper may be saved by lowering the end seals of each tea bag by 3 millimetres. This factory-floor proposal has saved €47,500 and 9.3 tonnes of paper since its inception in 2015. (about 20,500 pounds).
In early 2015, six Unilever employees contacted the factory manager in Khamgaon, India, with the idea of creating a beauty and hair care school in their village to help local women find work or start a business while also marketing Unilever’s personal care goods. Management got the go-ahead in March 2015, and the training centre opened its doors. 825 women have been taught to date, with 610 working in beauty salons or starting their own businesses.
Were these high-profile instances in Unilever’s sustainability journey? No. Even if you keep up with sustainability news on a daily basis, you’ve probably never heard of them. That is precisely our point. These examples demonstrate how Unilever, like IBM, Marks & Spencer, and BASF, is incorporating sustainability into every employee’s job and converting a sustainable business strategy into business as usual.
Cleaver-Brooks announces the launch of a sustainability initiative
Sustainability is a primary emphasis for most firms throughout the world today, thanks to heightened awareness of environmental challenges and their influence on future generations. Cleaver-Brooks has created a sustainability project to assist businesses in their efforts. They will examine a company’s boiler plant and tailor a solution of sustainable boiler products and services to help them meet their goals.
“Both within our company and among our customers and communities, Cleaver-Brooks has the potential and responsibility to promote change in the world,” stated Bart Aitken, president and CEO of Cleaver-Brooks. “We have the experience, solutions, and people in place to help companies enhance our environment in real and measurable ways.“
Cleaver-Brooks currently works with a number of Fortune 500 firms in a variety of industries, including automotive, chemical, food processing, health care, and pharmaceuticals, to achieve ambitious sustainability targets. For instance, the company can help with:
- Reduce a company’s overall carbon footprint;
- Convert a plant to renewable energy from fossil fuels;
- Improve a facility’s overall energy efficiency; and
- Reduce NOx and CO emissions to near-zero levels.
Cleaver-Brooks’ solutions and experience are unrivaled in the boiler industry and are available to businesses of all sizes in any industry.
They are also offering intelligence and advice to help companies accelerate their sustainability initiatives in addition to boiler and burner solutions.
Sustainability: United Colors of Benetton launches global sustainability project “GreenB” (Mumbai, India)
Benetton Group has established GREEN B, a project that brings together all of the company’s environmental projects, as part of its legacy and commitment to a sustainable world. From the conception and production of a product to the supply chain, from energy efficiency to community needs, this comprehensive vision formalises the company’s commitment to the environment and people, which is one of the company’s core principles.
GREEN B brings Benetton’s various souls together. The logo’s colour is green, and it is this colour that has made the brand famous all over the world. The letter B stands for the initials of the brand’s founders’ surnames, as well as the verb ‘to be’ – because being sustainable is part of our DNA – and the bee, a small, industrious, and collaborative insect without which the entire ecosystem would be in peril,” explains Massimo Renon, CEO of Benetton Group. “GREEN B is the ambassador of Benetton’s naturally green soul, the symbol of everything that is sustainable for us,” says the company.
Sustainability Is Now the Key Driver of Innovation
There’s no alternative to sustainable development.
If they consider sustainability as a goal today, early movers will develop competencies that rivals will find tough to match. They will gain from that competitive edge since sustainability will always be a part of progress.
It isn’t going to be easy. Businesses that have started the trip, according to our research, go through five distinct stages of change. At each phase, they face numerous hurdles and must develop new skills to overcome those challenges. Companies will save time by planning ahead, which is critical because time is of the essence.
Seeing Compliance as an Opportunity – The first steps on the long road to sustainability are frequently dictated by the law.
Creating Long-Term Value Chains: Once businesses have figured out how to stay up with regulations, they become more environmentally conscious. Many people then concentrate on lowering nonrenewable resource usage, such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas, as well as renewable resource consumption, such as water and timber.
Developing Sustainable Products and Services: At this point, executives begin to recognise that a significant number of customers prefer environmentally friendly products and services, and that their companies can gain a competitive advantage by being the first to redesign existing products or develop new ones. Enterprises must leverage competencies and tools earned at earlier phases of their history to identify product innovation goals.
Developing New Business Models: Most executives believe that developing a sustainable business model merely requires evaluating the customer value proposition and determining how to deliver a new one. Successful models, on the other hand, incorporate new ways of gathering income and delivering services in collaboration with other businesses.
Developing Platforms for Next-Generation Practices: Next-generation practises challenge established paradigms. Executives must investigate the implicit assumptions that underpin current practises in order to produce innovations that lead to next practises. This is precisely how the industrial and service economies of today came to be. Someone once questioned, “Can we make a carriage that moves without the use of horses?” Is it possible for us to fly like birds? Is it possible for us to dive like whales? People and businesses have changed the status quo by questioning it.
For the development of a low-carbon economy, leadership and talent are essential. The current economic system has put immense strain on the earth by catering to the requirements of only approximately a quarter of the world’s population, but over the next decade, that number will more than double as consumers and producers. Traditional business models will crumble, and businesses will be forced to seek novel solutions. Only when leaders realise a basic truth will this happen: Sustainability = Innovation.
Global Sustainability Awards 2021 will be hosted virtually on 17th Dec’2021 by the Global Council for the Promotion of International Trade (India, USA, UK and South Africa).
Our Earth is the most valuable asset that all businesses share. Individual and corporate initiatives to preserve this critical resource are not only necessary but also profitable. Seeking acknowledgment for your environmentally friendly effort is also a wise commercial decision. We congratulate you for taking the first step toward distinguishing your company from the competition.
The Sustainability Awards programme allows your organisation to achieve global recognition from a panel of volunteer judges who are business executives and experts.
The Sustainability Awards will recognise those who have incorporated sustainability into their business practices.
Global Sustainable Business Summit 2021 will be celebrated between 16-18th Dec’2021 (Virtually) by the Confederation of Indian Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
The Working as Global Sustainable Business Summit provides an opportunity for anyone interested in learning more about the circular economy, sustainable business and seeing how to take the first steps toward putting these principles into practise in the real world. Before 2050, we must ensure that our economy is diverse, thriving, and sustainable. This event is for any business that wants to spend a few hours learning more, taking stock of where they are on the path to sustainability, and considering how to accelerate faster towards this goal.
This will be followed by an examination of how these principles are applied in both small and large business structures.
Three days of Global Sustainable Business Summit are due to begin on 16th-18th December, with events including discussion on Sustainable Fabrics, Textiles and Fashions, Sustainable Food and Agriculture as well as the business of sustainability.
What You’ll Learn:
- How to drive revenue growth and profitability through social and environmental goals
- Methods of defining and measuring the business value of sustainable practices
- How do investors evaluate sustainable investments?
- Insights into developing replicable business models that incorporate investments
Call for speakers: https://zfrmz.com/83rWTWuLNWwW3f2kznWS
Unveiling 12 global alliances which will be rolled out within 90 days under the guidance of 423+ global leaders, 30+ researchers and 5+ central government departments.
- Global Alliance for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (GAWASH)
- Global Alliance for Good Health & Well Being (GAGHW)
- Global Alliance for Future of Education and Future of Work (GAFEFW)
- Global Alliance for the Future of Food and Agriculture (GAFFA)
- Global Alliance for Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (GAIII)
- Global Alliance for Sustainable Cities and Communities (GASCC)
- Global Alliance for Clean Energy and Transportation (GACET)
- Global Alliance for Climate Change and Environment (GACCE)
- Global Alliance for Sustainable Fashion (GASF)
- Global Alliance for Financial Inclusion (GAFI)
- Global Alliance for Economic Development (GAED)
- Global Alliance for Poverty Eradication (GAPE)
References: http://www.mohanmunasinghe.com/sustainomics.cfm
