Let's Talk Sustainable Business: Recent Episodes
The Conference Board
The Let's talk Sustainable Business' podcast series is aimed at people interested in how corporations can drive sustainable development by integrating sustainability into their overall business strategy and managing for positive impact. The series will feature conversations with experts and practitioners in the field of sustainability. The target audience includes corporate executives, consultants, academics and students as well as people in civil society with an interest to learn more about this complex subject. The series will cover the scope as laid out by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the principles of responsible business.
Adam Hearne is the CEO and co-founder of CarbonChain, which helps companies and banks decarbonise their supply chains through its software, which provides precise accounting of the global carbon emissions caused by industrial sectors. In this episode, we discuss specific, global ESG-related policies - including the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and the EU Omnibus Simplification Package - how CarbonChain tracks regulatory developments and whether Adam thinks companies still be motivated to manage their value chain emissions if carbon regulation becomes less stringent worldwide.
Adam Hearne is the CEO and co-founder of CarbonChain, which helps companies and banks decarbonise their supply chains through its software, which provides precise accounting of the global carbon emissions caused by industrial sectors. In this episode, we discuss why CarbonChain decided to focus its business offering on supply chain emissions, how CarbonChain carefully gathers data for its carbon accounting platform and how Adam sees the trend of recent ESG regulatory developments.
Kozue Nishizaki is the Founder & Sustainability Strategist at Horizon Green, a sustainability consultancy supporting companies and municipalities in implementing sustainable business strategies. In this episode, we discuss how the tourism sector is especially vulnerable to climate change impacts, how increasing investor interest in sustainability could benefit the sector and the role legislators can play in helping mainstream sustainability in tourism.
Kozue Nishizaki is the Founder & Sustainability Strategist at Horizon Green, a sustainability consultancy supporting companies and municipalities in implementing sustainable business strategies. In this episode, we discuss some of the sustainability-focused tourism projects she's worked on - including the Circular Hotel Leaders Group in Amsterdam - how she brings sustainability to the table with board members and why she feels the corporate sector is more advanced on sustainability legislation compared to the tourism sector.
Anne-Sophie Garrigou is Director of Editorial and Campaigns at Climate KIC, a European agency tackling climate change through innovation. Anne-Sophie is a climate conference veteran and in this episode, we discuss the unique intensity of meetings like the UNFCCC COPs, why face-to-face meetings are so important for climate diplomacy and what she is anticipating from the upcoming UNFCCC COP30 in Belém, Brazil.
Anne-Sophie Garrigou is Director of Editorial and Campaigns at Climate KIC, a European agency tackling climate change through innovation. Anne-Sophie is a climate conference veteran and in this episode, we discuss her passion for climate negotiations and how she sees the complex power dynamics at play in these international forums, the role that UNFCCC COPs play in global climate diplomacy and what how businesses should participate in events like the UNFCCC COPs.
Philippa Nuttall is the Editor of Sustainable Views - an ESG-focused service created by the Financial Times - which offers a daily newsletter, analysis and a policy tracker. In this episode, we discuss how sustainability-related topics have been deprioritised by certain policymakers and whether this should affect businesses' sustainability positioning, how policies on climate change & energy have evolved over the years, as well as the role of social media in consuming and disseminating news.
Philippa Nuttall is the Editor of Sustainable Views - an ESG-focused service created by the Financial Times - which offers a daily newsletter, analysis and a policy tracker. In this episode, we talk about how the media landscape has evolved in the last 20 years - especially its digitalisation and focus on social media, how businesses have changed the way they talk about sustainability and the best way for companies to reach journalists when they are seeking media coverage.
As Season Six draws to a close, the Conference Board's ESG Center Leader Anuj Saush joins host Barbara Mendes-Jorge to discuss the lessons learned and insights gained from our guests in this series. This season focused on a range of topics - including cities, circular economy, plastics, food, nature and e-waste - and our guests provided a lot of helpful advice for listeners. We'd like to thank our guests who contributed their time and expertise: Kruti Munot, Kara Fulcher, Marco Jansen, Marie Brueser, Sebastian Leape, Kenny McGee and Mel Blackmore.
Mel Blackmore is Founder & CEO of two companies: Blackmores (UK), an ISO Standards consultancy offering support with Integrated Management Systems implementation in Europe and Carbonology Ltd, which provides training and verification services in the carbon standards sector. Shealso hosts 'The ISO Show podcast', which aims to dispel myths and share tips for businesses to succeed with ISO Standards by asking business leaders to share their journeys. In the second part of our conversation, we discuss how attitudes to ISO Standards' adoption have changed over the years, the variety of clients Mel works with - "all kinds of businesses, from small start-ups to multinational corporations"- and how UK and EU policy has facilitated ISO Standards' adoption.
Mel Blackmore is Founder & CEO of two companies: Blackmores (UK), an ISO Standards consultancy offering support with Integrated Management Systems implementation in Europe and Carbonology Ltd, which provides training and verification services in the carbon standards sector. She also hosts 'The ISO Show podcast', which aims to dispel myths and share tips for businesses to succeed with ISO Standards by asking business leaders to share their journeys. In this episode, we discuss Mel's background in quality management and her inspiration to start two companies, the crucial role she feels ISO Standards play in a company's sustainability journey, and why she decided to create a separate company, Carbonology, to provide companies with assurance for carbon emissions.
Kenny McGee is Founder & CEO of Component Sense, a company which focuses on the redistribution of excess and obsolete electronic components and whose motto is to "empower sustainability in electronic manufacturing." In this episode, we discuss the EU's circular economy plan and its relation to e-waste, as well as other EU policy areas such as WEEE and RoHS, the advice Kenny would give to consumers and companies looking to reduce their e-waste footprint, as well as what he feels are the most important changes that need to happen to make the electronics sector more sustainable.
Kenny McGee is Founder & CEO of Component Sense, a company which focuses on the redistribution of excess and obsolete electronic components and whose motto is to "empower sustainability in electronic manufacturing." In this episode, we discuss the current state of the e-waste market, Component Sense's 'Electronic Waste Manifesto' and what he thinks stakeholders need to do to scale up e-waste solutions.
Sebastian Leape is the CEO of Natcap, a UK-based nature intelligence company. In the second part of our conversation, we discuss the evolution of the EU sustainability legislation landscape, how companies should report on issues such as pollution and biodiversity, and how Natcap helps businesses access nature-based data insights.
Sebastian Leape is the CEO of Natcap, a UK-based nature intelligence company which helps businesses measure, report and act on their nature-related impacts and dependencies. In this episode, we discuss why "nature intelligence should be integrated into business decisions", the role collaboration can play in helping companies develop a nature-based strategy, and why Sebastian decided to focus his career on nature-based solutions.
In this special crossover episode of Let's Talk Sustainable Business and Let's Talk Global Business, hosts Sara Murray and Barbara Mendez-Jorge delves into the complexities of ESG reporting with The Conference Board's Anuj Saush and Andrew Jones. The conversation highlights the challenges of managing complex ESG data, the role of ESG controllers, and the cultural differences in ESG adoption between the US and Europe.
Marie Brueser is Senior Corporate Venture Manager at EIT Food, an organisation co-founded by the European Commission which is focused on driving innovation in the food and agricultural sectors. In the second part of our conversation, she outlines the EU's 'Farm to Fork Strategy', discusses how companies and policymakers can use EIT Food's Consumer Observatory as a database full of consumer insights, and talks about how food is at the heart of so many UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Marie Brueser is Senior Corporate Venture Manager at EIT Food, an organisation co-founded by the European Commission which is focused on driving innovation in the food and agricultural sectors. In this episode, we discuss EIT Food's focus areas, 'Healthier Lives Through Food', 'Net Zero Food System' and 'Reducing Risk for a Fair and Resilient Food System', Marie's work connecting start-ups with bigger corporates to help scale up solutions, and the impact EU policy is having on companies' approach to sustainability.
Marco has worked in the plastics space for over 20 years and is currently Chief Commercial & Public Affairs Officer at Avantium. This conversation was recorded during Marco's previous role, as Business Director Biopolymers EMEA Advocacy & Sustainability Director Europe & Asia at Braskem. In this episode, we talk about Braskem's clients and collaborators - including Allbirds, Tetra Pak and the Olympics, why Braskem is choosing to prioritize game-changing technologies worldwide, as well as the role plastics should play in creating a circular economy, including food preservation.
Marco has worked in the plastics space for over 20 years and is currently Chief Commercial & Public Affairs Officer at Avantium. This conversation was recorded during Marco's previous role, as Business Director Biopolymers EMEA Advocacy & Sustainability Director Europe & Asia at Braskem. In this episode, we discuss the origins of Braskem's 'I'm green' bio-based PE plastic, made from sugarcane sourced from Brazil, the sustainability benefits to using Braskem's products - and how they differ from fossil-based plastics - as well as why Braskem joined the Renewable Carbon Initiative to support the company's journey toward a net-zero circular economy by 2050.
Kara Fulcher, Director of Sustainability, North America at Michelin talks about the social side of sustainability, why Michelin has committed to the French Act4Nature initiative and how she feels about the ever-evolving ESG regulatory landscape worldwide. You can find out more about Michelin's Bahia Reserve project in this video.
Kara Fulcher, Director of Sustainability, North America at Michelin, outlines Michelin's approach to sustainability and how it has evolved over the years, discusses Michelin's internal carbon pricing scheme and how it has changed the way the company does business and talks about the importance of collaboration to accelerate climate action and the development of sustainable solutions. You can find out more about Michelin's environmental approach in this video.
Kruti Munot, Cities Project Manager at GIZ, talks about some of the circular economy projects she has worked on throughout her career - as well as in her volunteering work with the Global Shapers Community - and the importance of community and prioritising resource efficiency to accelerate climate action. She also encourages listeners from diverse backgrounds to join the online #OpenToClimate community.
Brussels-based Kruti Munot is Project Manager on Cities at GIZ, the German government’s agency for international cooperation and development. In this episode, she talks about her work "at the intersection of climate, finance and development," some of the sustainable urban development projects she is working on - including on water efficiency and waste management - as well as her views on climate finance policy and how to prioritise sustainable procurement.
In the first episode of Season Six, Bárbara Mendes-Jorge interviews Paula Byrne (Program Director at the ESG Center) and Manali Paranjpe (Program Director at the ESG Center, Europe) on the key areas they are focusing on this year and how the ESG Center supports The Conference Board members on their sustainability journeys. We discuss how companies need to urgently familiarise themselves with the EU's CSRD legislation - which is already transforming sustainability reporting - why human rights, biodiversity and circular economy are three of the main topics the ESG Center is focused on this year and, continuing on from discussions had last season, why it is so important for companies to avoid greenwashing.
As Season Five draws to a close, the Conference Board's ESG Center Leader Anuj Saush joins host Barbara Mendes-Jorge to discuss the lessons learned and insights gained from our guests in this series. This season focused on greenwashing and how companies should tackle ESG issues, and our guests provided a lot of advice for those seeking to improve their sustainability communications and better incorporate sustainability into their corporate strategy. We'd like to thank our guests who contributed their time and expertise: Marilyn Waite, George Harding-Rolls, Louise Ayling, Malgorzata Golebiewska, Mari Granstrom, Genica Schaefgen and Guy Jubb.
Professor Guy Jubb, Honorary Professor at the University of Edinburgh Business School, talks about how sustainability reporting standards have developed, what he believes legislators should prioritise in corporate governance policy, the role of assurance in reporting, as well as why private equity and management and internal controls are two important governance-related issues for companies to consider.
Professor Guy Jubb is an Honorary Professor at the University of Edinburgh Business School and Co-Director of the Conference Board's European Corporate Governance Council. A chartered accountant, Guy is a corporate governance pioneer, having worked on investor stewardship and ESG issues since the early 1990s.
In this episode, Guy talks about being one of the first people in the UK to have 'governance' in his job title, why he feels 'stewardship' as a concept is a sustainability cornerstone, and why remuneration and greenwashing are two important governance-related issues for companies to consider.
Genica Schaefgen from Ecosia talks about how customers' privacy is at the core of the business, how Ecosia is the official "planting partner" of debit card company TreeCard - which dedicates 80% of profits earned from merchant transaction fees into planting trees, why the company is very careful who it partners with, and Genica's work with the Social Entrepreneurship Network Germany, which helps raise the visibility of socially-focused companies to politicians and other stakeholders.
Genica Schaefgen is Head of Ecosia Germany, a Berlin-based tech company best known as the "search engine that plants trees". In this episode, Genica explains how using Ecosia contributes to its global tree-planting projects, enabling a tree to be planted "every 1.3 seconds", why Ecosia positions itself as a social business and takes a holistic approach to its biodiversity projects, and how the company aims to hold itself accountable by publishing their financial reports every month.
Mari Granström from Origin by Ocean talks about scaling up and reimagining an algae processing value chain, how she feels about EU and global climate and oceans policy, developing collaborative partnerships, and the advice she would give to anyone thinking of setting up a company with a bio-based focus.
Mari Granström is the CEO and Founder of Origin by Ocean, a Finnish start-up building a business ecosystem based on farmed and harvested algae, which is turned into ingredients used in the production of everyday consumer goods including in food, cosmetics, detergents, agriculture, textiles and packaging. In this episode we discuss why Mari decided to focus on the processed algae market, how Origin by Ocean uses biorefinery technology to tackle the problem of marine eutrophication and the company's partnership with Finnish brand Marikmekko.
The European Commission's Małgorzata Gołębiewska talks about how the EU Green Claims Directive aims to "level the playing field" for companies, the recent amendment to the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, the important role independent verification will play in the future, and also answers a question she often receives - what will the cost be for companies needing to adhere to the EU Green Claims Directive?
Małgorzata Gołębiewska is Team Leader for Environmental Footprint & Green Claims, DG Environment, at the European Commission. She leads the preparation and negotiation for the EU Green Claims Directive, a proposal to help combat greenwashing which sets out requirements on how to substantiate environmental claims and introduces rules on environmental labelling schemes. In this episode, we discuss the extent of greenwashing in the EU, how important it is to rebuild consumer trust and help consumers make more sustainable choices, and the role of labels such as the EU Ecolabel.
Radley Yeldar's Louise Ayling talks about how reporting standards such as the ESRS can help bridge the 'communications gap' prevalent in sustainability and how they provide an opportunity for companies to talk about their impact in a more transparent and compelling manner. We also discuss some of our favourite sustainability communications campaigns and whether 'greenwashing' remains a useful term.
Louise Ayling is Director of Sustainability and a board member at Radley Yeldar, a creative consultancy specialising in brand, corporate and sustainability communications. In this episode, Louise talks in-depth about Radley Yeldar's practical guide 'Words that Work: Effective Language in Sustainability Communications", which reviewed the sustainability webpages from 50 of Forbes' '100 most valuable brands' and compared their communications style with ten leading 'sustainable brands'. We discuss the importance of spotting and avoiding 'Stock Sustainability' and whether she feels greenwashing is still prevalent among most brands.
Eco-Age's George Harding-Rolls talks about the greenwash.com website he helped set up and its aim to help consumers better identify greenwashing. We also discuss whether companies should become advocates for legislative change in sustainability to "change the rules of the game", rather than focus too much on creating "the perfect green product".
Experienced corporate campaigner and sustainability professional George Harding-Rolls is Fossil Fuel Fashion Campaign Lead and Director of Policy & Advocacy at Eco-Age, having previously worked on Fashion, Plastics & Circular Economy at the Changing Markets Foundation.
In this episode, George joins host Bárbara Mendes-Jorge to discuss the need for improved greenwashing regulation, whether greenwashing should be seen as anti-competitive and how important it is for different departments within companies to openly discuss sustainability issues in order to prevent greenwashing.
The Climate Fund's Managing Director Marilyn Waite talks about the European Commission's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the related European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) and how this will impact companies with more than 50,000 employees on sustainability reporting.
Marilyn also talks about her book 'Sustainability at Work: Careers that Make a Difference' and outlines how individuals can balance having a successful career with a more sustainable professional life that makes a positive difference to society.
Sustainable finance and investment expert Marilyn Waite leads The Climate Finance Fund, a philanthropic platform which helps mobilize capital for climate solutions, focusing on capital domiciled in the US, Europe and China.
In this episode, Marilyn sits down with host Bárbara Mendes-Jorge to talk about how the ESG sector is developing, what regulators should consider when designing climate-friendly policies and the importance of addressing the intersections of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion.
ESG Center Leader Anuj Saush introduces the new host of ESG-focused Season 5: Brussels-based sustainability communications expert Bárbara Mendes-Jorge.
The ESG Center continues to experience remarkable expansion as companies are increasingly interested in prioritising corporate responsibility and integrating ESG strategies within their organizations.
This season provides advice on how companies can prioritise ESG and avoid greenwashing, helps demystify and break down confusing sustainability-related words and gives practical tips on improving sustainability within your organization.
We will also be discussing the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), which will soon impact companies with more than 50,000 employees on their sustainability reporting.
For the last episode of Season 4, guest host Claudia Lee reflects on the key insights she learnt from her guests about how to implement and execute corporate sustainability strategies effectively. The episode is broken down into two parts 1) building a strategy 2) implementing and executing the strategy.
Special thanks to our guests this season, including: Agrosustain, Xampla, Lush, Ikea, Maersk and Danone
Note: Maersk accelerated their goal to reach net-zero by 2050 by a decade. The firm now aims to reach net-zero by 2040.
In this episode, Danone’s Vice President of Public Affairs and Regenerative Agriculture Policy, Chris Adamo, shares examples of the firm’s sustainability strategy in practice. We get insights on their keystone regenerative agriculture program and how Danone works with dairy farmers to track and mitigate climate impact. We also hear about the firm’s efforts to reduce GHG in their operations via their Methane emissions initiative.
During this episode, Claudia speaks to Chris Adamo, Danone’s Vice President of Public Affairs and Regenerative Agriculture Policy. Danone is a multi-national food corporation headquartered in Paris. The firm’s North American branch recently became one of the largest certified b-corps in the world.
Chris shares the three key pillars of Danone’s impact journey. This includes the firm’s sustainable business operations, its vision of nutrition and health and how they collaborate with value chain stakeholders. Chris also discusses US environmental policy, and breakdown the key facets of his role at Danone N.A.
Head of Corporate Sustainability & ESG at A.P Moller-Maersk Lene Serpa discusses how sustainability is ingrained into the shipping firm’s business model. She talks about how to implement an ESG strategy that ensures accountability and shared vision in their 95,000-employee strong company. Lene also reveals key insights learnt as a sustainability leader, including how risk, responsibility and opportunity can be balanced to create strategic value.
In this episode, Claudia speaks to Lene Serpa, Head of Corporate Sustainability & ESG at A.P Moller-Maersk. Lene breaks down Maersk’s plan to reach net-zero by 2040, explaining how the firm can decarbonize shipping by leveraging tech and offering low-carbon solutions to clients. Their conversation covers green fuel use-cases in the shipping industry and the importance of a global carbon price for the shipping industry.
In this episode, Claudia continues her conversation with Karen Pflug, the Group Chief Sustainability Officer at Ingka Group. She discusses Ikea’s goal to reach zero-emission deliveries by 2025. She also highlights their efforts to bridge consumers’ ‘worry-to-action’ gap through pop-ups, take-back schemes and education. As CSO, Pflug offers some valuable advice to sustainability leaders on the same journey, reminding leaders to act with ‘optimism, driven by action and empowerment’.
Relevant links:
- Ikea’s zero-emissions deliveries
- Ikea’s renewable energy program
- Buyback & Resell Program
In this episode, Claudia speaks to Karen Pflug, the Group Chief Sustainability Officer at Ingka Group. Karen introduces Ikea’s People and Planet Positive Strategy and shares how it’s implemented throughout the company. She highlights Ikea’s ‘democratic design principles’, plus how traceability is observed in the value chain. Pflug also discusses their transition to renewable energy and the plan to become fully renewable by 2030.
Relevant links:
- Sustainability | Ingka Group
- Climate positive by 2030 | Ingka Group
- Ikea’s Democratic Design Principles
- Buyback & Resell Program
In this episode, Claudia speaks to Ruth Andrade, who leads the Giving, Regenerative Impact and Organizational Development team at LUSH. Ruth shares LUSH’s regenerative business model via three case studies:
- Sumatra Patchouli Project
- Bring Back Scheme
- The Cork Pot project
In this episode, Claudia speaks to Ruth Andrade, who leads the Giving, Regenerative Impact and Organizational Development team at LUSH. Ruth breaks down the ‘giving strategy’ at LUSH, which includes change campaigns and grassroots initiatives. She also shares key pieces of advice for businesses wanting to transition to a regenerative supply chain.
In this episode, Claudia speaks to Simon Hombersley, CEO of Xampla, a company that has developed natural alternatives to single-use plastics. Simon tells us about the importance of reaching price parity with traditional plastics, minimizing negative externalities and why business and policy are critical to achieving net-zero.
In this episode, Claudia Lee sits down with Simon Hombersley, CEO of Xampla, a company that has developed natural alternatives to single-use plastics. Simon shares Xampla’s mission, the lengthy R&D process and the product’s versatile applications.
In this episode, Claudia speaks to Olga Dubey, co-founder of Agrosustain, a company that manufactures natural coatings that can extend the shelf life of fresh produce. Olga explains the science behind Agrosustain's key product - ‘breathable’ coating that can be sprayed onto crops after harvest to keep crops fresh for longer. The founder also shares challenges in R&D and certification that the startup has faced.
In this episode, Claudia speaks to Olga Dubey, co-founder of Agrosustain, a company that manufactures natural coatings that can extend the shelf life of fresh produce. Olga explains the key challenges behind commercial farming and food supply chains. She also discusses the process of developing the product and launching Agrosustain.
Introducing a special season of Let’s Talk Sustainable Business with host Claudia Lee, Sustainability and Governance Research Fellow at The Conference Board. Every week Claudia will speak to guests from global corporates and SMEs about how they integrate sustainability into their business models and company values. Tune in to the series upcoming episodes.
Shamini Harrington Vice President: Climate Change at Sasol and Presidential Climate Change Commissioner for South Africa in discussion with Uwe Schulte explains what the challenges managing for a Just Transition imply. Moving away from the fossil fuel base requires helping employees to make the transition to new jobs by skills and capability building, working with suppliers to help them to adjust their business model to the renewable energy conditions and more. Shamini explains how Sasol is forging collaborative networks and what benefits they bring in jointly managing the change. Going beyond the company approach she shares the importance of the impact governmental policies have, to create a good base for developing just solutions to the climate challenge.
Shamini Harrington Vice President: Climate Change at Sasol in conversation with Uwe Schulte explains how a fossil-fuel based company plans to do their part towards the goals of the Paris agreement. Shamini explains how they are going to use their technology know-how to use sustainable sources of carbon and hydrogen to produce for example sustainable aviation fuel in the future. She shares the uncertainties of the technological transition and how the company plans keep option open by working with business partners on a variety of solutions.
Jacob A. Sterling, senior director and head of ocean decarbonisation and innovation at A.P. Moller-Maersk joins Uwe Schulte to discuss the existing challenge of converting sea freight from fossil fuels to e.g., green methanol, and how this fuel choice provides the necessary flexibility. They explore why without having secured the supply, yet Maersk has chosen to go ahead with ordering 12 new vessels running on green fuel. Together they explore what it takes to become a leader in the field of decarbonization.
Jacob A. Sterling, senior director and head of ocean decarbonisation and innovation at A.P. Moller-Maersk, shares his experience of moving from an NGO, the WWF Denmark, to work for a multinational company. He explains their ambitions for sustainability, and how being family owned, and implicitly looking for a basis for a long-term striving existence has helped the organization decide to take the risk of changing the business to net-zero by 2040.
Jacob A. Sterling, senior director and head of ocean decarbonisation and innovation at A.P. Moller-Maersk, shares his experience of moving from an NGO, the WWF Denmark, to work for a multinational company. He explains their ambitions for sustainability, and how being family owned, and implicitly looking for a basis for a long-term striving existence has helped the organization decide to take the risk of changing the business to net-zero by 2040.
In this episode Thomas Udesen, Chief Procurement Officer at Bayer, explains how Bayer Procurement is supporting the company’s sustainability efforts. Small hold farmers are an important partner for Bayer and the procurement team has developed an engagement process to help farmers to adopt sustainable farming methods.
Another important issue is the reduction of Scope 3 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. As for many companies 80% of the total GHG comes from scope 3 emissions. Bayer has started with a spend based approximation and is now focusing on the contributors and encouraging them to report via CDP. Thomas is also one of the founders of The Sustainable Procurement Pledge. More information can be found in the LinkedIn group here.
Continuing the conversation Cyril Giraud, Senior Vice President Performance Minerals, APAC gives examples of minerals helping customers to improve their sustainability performance. Imerys is for example providing a coating for paper to replace laminating with Polyethylene film and making products recyclable. IMERYS is also providing vital components for batteries for electric vehicles in form for example of graphite improving conductivity. He explains how they achieve externally audited life cycle analysis for their products and their projects to reduce their carbon footprint.
Cyril Giraud, Senior Vice President Performance Minerals, APAC at Imerys in conversation with Uwe G. Schulte explains how IMERYS is approaching the consequences of their impact by quarrying. They approach it in three phases preparation, exploitation, and rehabilitation with minimizing biodiversity losses at every stage. Imerys is engaging with external partners to join forces for ecosystem restoration.
Thomas Udesen, Chief Procurement Officer at Bayer talks about the role of procurement in the large merger / demerger transition Bayer went through in the last years.
In this episode Ken Bowles, Chief Financial Officer at Smurfit Kappa Group talks to Uwe Schulte about collaborating for Sustainability. Ken explains several amazing achievements e.g., replacing polystyrene in thermal packaging and helping customer to reduce their carbon footprint significantly. As a CFO Ken is convinced that companies not addressing the social aspects of ESG inside their own operation and their extended value chain, will face serious stakeholder (customers, communities etc.) issues negatively affecting their business going forward.
Ken Bowles, Chief Financial Officer at Smurfit Kappa Group in conversation with Uwe Schulte explains how Smurfit Kappa can provide all their packaging solutions with 75 % recycled material content. Ken expands how the virgin fibre material required for the reliable strength of the packaging is coming from sustainable forestry. Safeguarding biodiversity and the care for the well being of local communities are important aspects of the overall Sustainability programme. The significant growth of online shopping and home delivery is a new challenge requiring a redesign of the supply flow of used carton to continue with a circular solution to paperboard for packaging.
Guest speaker, Chever Voltmer, Plastics Initiative Director for Ocean Conservancy continues discussing the ocean pollution challenge, especially that of plastic waste contamination. She explains that the first approach we all should take is to avoid using and make sure that we recycle plastic. Building a good recycling structure and aiming for circularity are actions that companies can play an important role in. Chever, discusses how they help corporations to engage with the vast global resource of low-income waste collectors to improve their livelihood and their effectiveness. A new initiative is to engage all cities to tackle the plastic waste issue at the source. The corporate sector can also play an important supportive role in this initiative.
Chever Voltmer, Plastics Initiative Director for Ocean Conservancy joins Uwe Schulte to explore the organization’s extensive activities to fight negative influences threatening the ocean’s ability to stabilise climate change and support marine life. Chever, discusses their annual Ocean Clean-up efforts and the useful database ‘Tides’ which has resulted from these initiatives. Sustainable fishing and the negative effects of ocean acidification are topics discussed as well as the looming threat of plastic waste pollution. Chever, shares first experiences with a scalable technology to clean rivers from plastic waste.
Continuing the discussion with Uwe Schulte, David Hone, Chief Climate Change Adviser at Shell, now describes the implications of the three climate change scenarios. They discuss the need to find alternative pathways out of the global economy’s heavy dependency on fossil resources as well as the timing challenges involved. David expresses the need not just for the oil and gas industry to change but for all business sectors. The changes required cannot be limited to just the types of energy purchased.
In this podcast David Hone, Chief Climate Change Adviser at Shell explains the principles of Scenario Analysis Methodology and how this can help businesses prepare for the future. The Pandemic has caused major disruptions, the Shell Scenario Team have analysed three pathways out of this crisis and their implications on climate.
- Waves: Countries focus on repairing the economy –with an emphasis on immediate recovery and return to status quo.
- Islands:Countries focus on the near-term recovery at home – security first. Resilience is understood as autonomy
- Sky 1.5:Countries focus on responding to the pandemic – health of humans first. This is followed by a growing emphasis on collaboration across the globe All three scenarios point to the need for speed in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Following on from her previous conversation with Uwe Schulte, Kim Dabbs, Global Director Social Innovation at Steelcase explores how the company is profiting from the multitude of social innovation projects they are currently running both in the mid and longer term. All employees have a right to participate and suggest initiatives. Driving communal education improvement projects and equity initiatives, helps to improve the skills and competencies of future employees. Internal employee engagement improves motivation, and engagement to improve environmental performance enables Steelcase sites to operate sustainably. Kim shares advice on how companies can kick-start their own journey to create social initiatives.
In this podcast, Kim Dabbs, Global Director Social Innovation at Steelcase, discusses the objective and application of social innovation. For Steelcase, reducing inequality, improving education, and creating a positive environmental impact are the core elements that help build the company purpose. Kim gives examples of community engagement and shows how the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals guide their priority setting. Integration into everyday business life is essential to their success.
In this episode Geraldine Matchett Co-CEO and CFO at Royal DSM discusses how the company is putting the focus on UN SDGs where they can have the most impact. DSM started managing their innovation pipeline many years ago to address for example, the nutrition needs they saw developing at the time. Today they are a key contributor in the global fight against malnutrition. Geraldine emphasizes that it is impossible to compensate a company’s negative impacts either socially, or on the environment by doing ‘good deeds’ elsewhere. The UN SDGs provide a common language and common goals worldwide and an organization must at least be neutral in all of them by making a positive impact where they matter most. Through living their purpose in every strategic decision companies can attract and retain talent and prepare themselves for the challenges ahead.
Geraldine Matchett Co-CEO and CFO at Royal DSM states why ‘ you cannot be a successful company in a world that fails. Geraldine describes the transformation of DSM from a state mine to a company that sees its purpose ‘to create brighter lives for all’ with an emphasis on all – not leaving anybody behind and ensuring a healthy environment for all to live in. Financial success and positive sustainable corporate impact are not contradicting each other. DSM have embraced the concept for more than 15 years and constantly improved their footprint and at the same time grown profitably. Learn from an impressive female leader how such success can be achieved.
In this episode Gayle Schueller Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer at 3M reveals how her company, despite a dauntingly complex product portfolio, manages to create transparency in their value chains, where it matters most. The examples of pulp and paper and conflict minerals exemplify the approach going beyond first tier suppliers to evaluate all social and environmental aspects until the very origin of the materials. Collaboration with suppliers, NGOs and peers are vital to create value chain transparency. The increased visibility helps to identify weak points in the chain and in turn improves the resilience.
For Gayle Schueller Senior Vice President and Chief Sustainability officer at 3M, science has always been an important part of her life. In this episode she explains how through pandemic, loss of biodiversity and the climate crisis, the importance of applying scientific principles has drastically increased. We learn what the 3M initiatives “Science for Climate, Circular and Community” means in practice. Gayle lays out the way forward in fostering large scale collaborations across organizational boundaries to jointly achieve ambitious sustainability targets.
In this episode Lars Kissau, SVP Global Strategic Business Development at BASF’s Petrochemical division explains the business thinking behind their commitment to scale up chemical recycling in a with the aim of becoming a significant source recycled virgin plastic production.
Lars and Uwe Schulte discuss how customer demand for chemically recycled materials is developing and how business collaboration is vital for achieving scale at the required speed.
Lars Kissau, SVP Global Strategic Business Development at BASF’s Petrochemical division joins The Conference Board’s Uwe Schulte in this latest episode of this podcast series. Lars and Uwe explore the pros and cons of converting mixed and possibly contaminated plastic waste back into original oil and then producing new virgin plastic materials from it.
This emerging technology could help avoid dumping plastic waste or incineration. The ecological and commercial impacts of this emerging technology are also discussed.
In this episode Daniel Schmid, Chief Sustainability Officer at SAP discusses with working together with customers to fulfill their purpose and sustainability ambitions. Sustainability is for SAP a critical component in connecting with their customer base. The input and needs of customers integrating sustainability into their business and achieving full visibility of their performance in turn informs the priorities of product development for SAP. Daniel describes the internal processes aligning with sales and other departments using their own achievements as exemplifiers for joint customer interaction.
In this podcast Daniel Schmid discusses his journey from Business Unit Manager to becoming Chief Sustainability Officer at SAP. Having had profit and loss accountability in his prior roles helped to engage his company peers. In order to get support from business partners, it is important to be able to listen and connect their business needs with SAP’s sustainability goals. The organization’s purpose is geared towards achieving positive environmental and social impact in partnership with their customers. Helping to determine a product-based carbon footprint across customer value chains is an example how this can be accomplished.
In this episode, Scott Tew and Rasha Hasaneen from Trane Technologies, discuss their strategies for managing sustainable innovation. Starting with the setting of targets based on materiality analysis and scenario planning. This has led them to be a front runner in adopting science-based targets for their Green House Gas emissions. The rapidly evolving markets and increasing climate crisis require organizations to go beyond refining technologies towards full business model innovation. At the end of this podcast our guests share their outlook how the pandemic will change the business environment in the long run.
Scott Tew and Rasha Hasaneen, the Heads of Sustainability and Innovation at Trane Technologies, join Uwe Schulte to discuss how and why they have embarked on the journey towards sustainable innovation. Analyzing the material impact of their business led them to identify the need for a drastic reduction of their carbon footprint. The push to achieve their ambitious targets without sacrificing product or service performance led to a transformation process. Today new break through projects often involve outside partners from the out-set. Sustainable innovation is the main growth driver for Trane technology.
Kwon Ping Ho Executive Chairman of Banyan Tree evaluates the different aspects of sustainable development in Asia, emphasizing the need for a step change in corporate governance. He looks at the regional differences highlighting the need to fight corruption in the developing parts of Asia. For this the leadership from governments and corporate board is required, COVID-19 is a threat but also an opportunity personally and for business when one reflects on value and purpose. Young people will be formed by this global crisis and social and environmental issues will be addressed with a new focus.
Banyan Tree Holdings Limited is an international hospitality brand that manages and develops resorts, hotels and spas in Asia, America, Africa and the Middle East. Kwon Ping Ho Executive Chairman of Banyan Tree describes their sustainability journey and how the company is developing sustainable tourism solutions. Kwon Ping Ho explains why regenerative tourism is required and how Banyan Tree is taking environmental and social aspects into account, ensuring communities profit from tourism income whilst maintaining their cultural identity. These concepts originally developed in the niche market of luxury holidays are being extended to the mass tourism segment to create meaningful impact.
Joao Ferreira the CEO Latin America of Natura describes how the company is exploring different aspects of Natura’s 2030 sustainability vision. In Natura’s 2030 Commitment to Life the company is pledging firstly to address the climate crisis and to protect the Amazon, secondly to defend Human Rights, and thirdly to embrace circularity and regeneration. This podcast looks at how these ambitions are turned into activities and measurements of impact.
Joao Ferreira the CEO Latin America of Natura talks with Uwe Schulte Leader of The Conference Board’s Global Sustainability Centre about the roots of Natura’s “reasons to exist”. Since 1969 Natura has been emphasising their ambition to sell products and services that promote the harmonious relationship of the individual with oneself, with others and with nature. In this podcast Joao Paulo explains how this purpose is integrated in all business decisions and how it has influenced the growth and success of his company.
Emilio Tenuta the Chief Sustainability Officer at Ecolab continues the conversation with Uwe Schulte Leader of The Conference Board Global Sustainability Centre on water scarcity. In this podcast the focus lies on the business opportunities by contributing to the solution of the problem. Emilio also explain why solving water is an important contributor to solving the climate change crisis. Collaboration between companies and with governing bodies is described as a pathway to future progress. The discussion also shows how Covid-19 has highlighted the need to secure consistent access to water everywhere on the planet.
Water scarcity is raising increased concerns but is it just a risk in dry parts of the developing world? Emilio Tenuta the Chief Sustainability Officer at Ecolab in conversation with the leader of The Conference Global Sustainability Centre Uwe Schulte is explaining the reasons behind this rapidly growing problem and what it means for companies and how to evaluate the business risk exposure. Emilio shares evaluation tools and puts the different factors contributing to water becoming an important factor for business into perspective
Filip Engel, Vice President Sustainability at Oersted has a conversation with Uwe Schulte Leader of The Conference Board Global Sustainability Centre about how wind energy will specifically develop over the next decade. Filip explains Oersted’s ambition to be carbon neutral by 2025 as a company and include their full value chain by 2040. The conversation covers the cost of development and their European plans to allocate space for the creation of the required capacities to reach the EU renewable energy targets. The offshore challenges are being considered and the role of Hydrogen as a storage medium and alternative fuel is also being discussed.
Filip Engel, Vice President Sustainability at Oersted shares in this podcast how a Danish fossil fuel-based energy provider completely changed their business model and is now about to become a fully renewable energy company. Filip was part of the change process and tells the story of why and how it happened, and what obstacles the senior management had to overcome in this fundamental transition. The conversation provides insights that go beyond the specific case of Oersted and show how a company can use long-term ambitions to integrate sustainability into their business model and be successful in the marketplace.
Rosey Hurst, the Founder and Director of Impactt discusses with Uwe Schulte how the COVID-19 crisis is influencing human rights in Supply Chains. Whole regions suffer from demand break down. Migrant and workers in precarious conditions face the choice of starvation or risk of infection. Several companies have reverted from executing ‘force majeure’, finding creative ways to maintain a base level financial engagement with suppliers and their employees. Supply chains with extreme demand -like protective equipment- can create working conditions and extreme overtime, putting workers and therefore supply chain integrities at risk. Procurement professionals must be aware and demand changes.
In this Podcast Rosey Hurst, Founder and Director of Impactt, gives a new perspective on Human rights in Supply Chain. Instead of trying to check certain human rights standards, the idea is to start from the workers perspective and try to achieve adequate pay, reliability of income and respect. This way the root causes of human rights abuses can be addressed and eliminated. The COVID-19 Crisis worsens and highlights human rights issues. In cases of low to zero demand, the poverty crisis is intensified and in cases of steeply increased demand (e.g. protective equipment) unhygienic conditions expose laborers to the disease.
Continuing from their conversation in the previous podcast of this series, Márcia Balisciano Global Head of Corporate Responsibility at RELX and Uwe Schulte explore what the UN SDGs offer corporations in terms of framework and opportunity. Márcia describes RELX’s approach in applying the SDGs to their sustainability activities. As a global digital information provider RELX have created a UN SDG Resource Center which they are now extending to insights about COVID-19. They have also committed publicly to targets for specific goals relevant to their business. With SDG inspiration days RELX is actively promoting these goals and connecting people to implement solutions for the 2030 targets.
Márcia Balisciano Global Head of Corporate Responsibility at RELX joins Uwe Schulte in a conversation exploring the origins of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). The discussion covers its more widely accepted adoption and how the SDGs can become an important frame of reference for sustainability. This podcast was recorded during the COVID-19 lockdown and while evaluating the relevance of the SDGs in this context it became clear how much the success of these goals can help minimize the risk of future pandemics and the consequence for human lives.
John Elkington has just published his new book ‘Green Swans’ extending the concept of Black Swans a theory popularized by Nassim Taleb. In his book John introduces the concept of global ‘wicked problems’ (e.g. climate crisis or antibiotic resistant bugs) that can only be overcome with exponential alternative solutions. Regenerative energy generation can be one such ‘Green Swan’ response. Our conversation in this podcast looks at the aspects of responsibility, resilience, and regeneration, with John Elkington challenging managers to actively drive for what he calls ‘Green Swan’ scenarios. COVID-19 is an acute case of the ‘wicked problems’ described in his book and John is optimistic that in coming out of this crisis ‘Green Swan’ solutions will only gain more momentum in this arena.
In this Podcast John Elkington founder and CEO of Volans explores the evolution of corporations from Environment Compliance Policies and Corporate Social Responsibility to the fight for positive impact today. Although the last 5 years has seen C-Suite leaders stepping up their sustainability ambitions and Fund Managers paying more attention to ESG issues, John believes the new decade must see a significant change in sustainability efforts from organisations. The COVID-19 Crisis only serves to reinforce the point of view that no time can be lost.