The Sustainability Learning Forum

“1+3”: Building a responsible value chain

Lucy Li Jin Xiu, BASF
BASF SE

In China, there are over 32,000 chemical enterprises and many more if we consider the entire supply chain. Over 90% of the related companies are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which contribute strongly to the overall economic activities of the country but often find it hard to mobilise enough resources to effectively practise sustainable development. Thus, BASF in 2006 initiated a program called “1+3”, which mobilises and supports its partners and suppliers in China to improve their corporate social responsibility (CSR). more[...]

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Lowering CO2 emissions in group-wide effort

Coca Cola Hellenic

Coca-Cola Hellenic, the largest independent bottler of Coca-Cola products in Europe, is constructing 15 Combined Heat and Power (CHP) units in 12 countries as part of a group-wide plan to significantly reduce CO2 emissions in its operations. more[...] login_required

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Keep persevering and act local

Peter Graf, AMPEG
AMPEG

Bad news from the world of climate research arrives on our doorsteps nearly every day, and not one day goes by without our using a back door to redress our personal balance of thought on the world in which our children will live one day: Perhaps it is just a temporary glitch in the climate—something natural, that will right itself in the end. Even Hans Joachim Schellnhuber from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research consoles himself with the hope that the scientific community may have made a collective error on this issue. He expressed his thoughts on the percentage probability of his hopes becoming true in the following statement on 26th March 2009. "Well, the chance that the whole scientific world has actually made a mistake here probably lies below one percent." more[...] login_required

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Upgrading Infrastructural Capacity and Reducing Atmospheric Pollution

Simonetta Giordani, Autostrade per l’Italia
Benedetta Masignani, Autostrade per l’Italia
Andrea Ragni, Autostrade per l’Italia
Autostrade per l’Italia

Given the interest in the issue of air quality – an issue that necessarily implies a scientific approach – Autostrade per l’Italia embarked on an in-depth examination of the problem in all of its aspects in 2007. This was done with an awareness that the motorway network is not a source of pollution, but rather an infrastructure that facilitates the transit of vehicles, whose emissions vary depending on their basic technical features, their speed, and traffic flow in general. A correct approach to the issue of air pollution therefore leads to the conclusion that since motorways free the ordinary road system of traffic, they can serve to reduce pollution. more[...] login_required

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How Climate Change Will Affect Food Security

Dr. David Nabarro, United Nations

Governments and the international community are responding by feeding the hungry while seeking longer-term solutions to increase the resilience of farmers and their capacity to grow more food. At the same time, there is a growing call for better-functioning social safety nets to protect the most vulnerable. more[...] login_required

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Every drop counts

José Lopez, Nestlé

Water will run short in the future. In 2030 five billion people will not have access to adequate sanitary installations. Major causes for this shortage will be due to a fast-growing global population and the effects of climate change. In this discussion, Dr. Filiz Demirayak (WWF Turkey) and José Lopez (Executive Vice President Nestlé) have different opinions about water politics but are in complete agreement that every drop counts. more[...] login_required

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United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development

United Nations

The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) is being organized in pursuance of General Assembly Resolution 64/236 (A/RES/64/236). The Conference will take place in Brazil on 20-22 June 2012 to mark the 20th anniversary of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), in Rio de Janeiro, and the 10th anniversary of the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg. It is envisaged as a Conference at the highest possible level, including Heads of State and Government or other representatives. The Conference will result in a focused political document. more[...] login_required

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Human Rights Council takes strong action on water, climate change and toxic waste

The United Nations Human Rights Council has taken great strides to ensure national water governance better considers human rights, and has also taken into account national concerns over the effects environmental degradation is having on human rights, according to environmental nongovernmental organizations Green Cross International and WaterLex. more[...] login_required

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Achieving land degradation neutrality no longer an option, claims UN

Members of the UN Decade for Deserts and the fight against Desertification (UNDDD), the International Year of Forests and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) meet in Algeria to discuss the international problem of growing drylands. more[...] login_required

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Achieving land degradation neutrality no longer an option, claims UN

Wagaki Mwangi, UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)

Members of the UN Decade for Deserts and the fight against Desertification (UNDDD), the International Year of Forests and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) meet in Algeria to discuss the international problem of growing drylands. more[...] login_required

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Bangladesh: Climate Change Threatens Livelihood

Climate change continues to threaten food security in Bangladesh, one of the poorest countries in the world, where rising sea levels and seasonal storms worry farmers. Those living along the country's southern coast fear for their crops and livelihoods. Now the Government of Bangladesh is working with IFAD, the International Fund for Agricultural Development to provide training to farmers with the aim of introducing new techniques to beat the crisis. more[...]

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The world' s challenge - Feeding 9 billion people

Dr. Marion Guillou, INRA (Instut national de la recherche agronomique)

If a global population of 9 billion by 2050 is to be fed adequately, more food must be produced, and this in keeping with increasingly stringent standards of quality and with respect for the environment. Not to mention the land that must be set aside for the production of energy resources, industrial goods, carbon storage and the protection of biodiversity. more[...] login_required

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Global Compact International Yearbook 2009

Dr. Elmer Lenzen

The inaugural issue of the Global Compact International Yearbook , highlighting key sustainability issues on the international agenda and showcasing a wide array of corporate practices, has just been published. more[...] login_required

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Sustainable Forest Management and Carbon in Tropical Latin America: The Case for REDD+

Dr. Robert Nasi, Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)

Tropical forests are threatened by the distinctly different processes of deforestation and forest degradation. While deforestation involves the conversion of forests to another land use type, degradation results in forests that have lost some of their ability to provide environmental goods and services. In economic terms, deforestation tends to be associated with investments in other land uses, mainly agriculture, whereas degradation tends to be linked to short-term extraction of forest rents or wildfires. Forest degradation translates into losses of biodiversity, reduced capacity of forests to provide the full spectrum of goods and services, enhanced likelihoods of subsequent deforestation, and reduced resilience and adaptation potential to climate change. more[...] login_required

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Business and Climate Change

Lila Karbassi, UN Global Compact

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called climate change “the defining challenge of our time” – for good reasons. Climate change is the most pressing and disruptive issue the world is facing today. It affects every aspect of society, from energy resources and water sustainability to public health, food security, and even human security. more[...] login_required

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