Sat.Aug 22, 2020 - Fri.Aug 28, 2020

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The rise (and rise) of sustainability-linked finance

GreenBiz

The rise (and rise) of sustainability-linked finance. Joel Makower. Mon, 08/24/2020 - 02:11. One silver lining of this horrific moment is the rise of loans, bonds and other financial instruments linked to sustainability outcomes. In this sense, "sustainability" is broadly defined to include environmental issues as well as social ones. And, more recently, a new subcategory of, yes, pandemic-related issues.

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Turning the small business crisis into an opportunity for equitable employee ownership

Impact Alpha

Small business owners are facing catastrophically bad choices these days, with half predicting they will be forced to close as a result of the COVID-19 economic crisis. Meanwhile, nearly 40 million workers have lost jobs and are struggling to get by, as evidenced by miles long lines at food banks and a brewing eviction crisis. The post Turning the small business crisis into an opportunity for equitable employee ownership appeared first on ImpactAlpha.

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Initiative turns marine plastic pollution into reusable PPE

Envirotec Magazine

The initiative appears to be a world first for reusable PPE. A seemingly world-first collaboration is bringing recycled and reusable PPE visors to UK health workers and NGOs in the Dominican Republic. The initiative brings together the activity of Heroes, a charity founded by and for NHS workers, and environmental organisation Parley for the Oceans (Parley).

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Announcing the 2020 Global Solutions Forum

Sustainable Development Network

In the face of the current global health crisis, it is more important than ever to shine a light on transformative and scalable solutions that shape the path towards a sustainable future. In October 2020, SDSN will take the Global Solutions Forum (GSF) to the next level to showcase the eight best solutions coming from SDSNs National and Regional Networks in a one-of-a-kind virtual event.

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How to Drive Cost Savings, Efficiency Gains, and Sustainability Wins with MES

Speaker: Nikhil Joshi, Founder & President of Snic Solutions

Is your manufacturing operation reaching its efficiency potential? A Manufacturing Execution System (MES) could be the game-changer, helping you reduce waste, cut costs, and lower your carbon footprint. Join Nikhil Joshi, Founder & President of Snic Solutions, in this value-packed webinar as he breaks down how MES can drive operational excellence and sustainability.

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New sparks for the electric vehicle industry

GreenBiz

New sparks for the electric vehicle industry. Zoé Bezpalko. Tue, 08/25/2020 - 01:45. Thinking back to the beginning of 2020 can seem like a lifetime ago. Before the pandemic took root on a global level, the transportation industry was already in the midst of a great and exciting transition. The move to electric vehicles (EVs) was intensifying. . Take General Motors, for example.

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How investors can blend finance for CDFIs to advance economic and racial justice

Impact Alpha

Community development finance institutions have long been “first responders” to small businesses in historically underinvested communities. The COVID-19 pandemic has in stark terms revealed the degree to which those same communities are subject to the impacts of systemic racism and an economy built on poor-quality jobs. This moment in time requires each of us—community lenders, The post How investors can blend finance for CDFIs to advance economic and racial justice appeared first on ImpactAlpha

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Lessons in Resilience: Louisiana Braces for Laura as It Observes 15 Years Since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

Sense and Sustainability

Editor’s Note: This article was first published by the Environmental Defense Fund, an organization focusing on creating economical policies to support clean air and water; abundant fish and wildlife; and a stable climate. The article was authored by Steve Cochran and originally appeared here. As Louisiana and Texas prepare for Hurricane Laura to make landfall, our primary focus is on the safety of those in its path.

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Amazon hands Mercedes-Benz its biggest electric vehicle order to date

GreenBiz

Amazon hands Mercedes-Benz its biggest electric vehicle order to date. Katie Fehrenbacher. Fri, 08/28/2020 - 00:00. German auto giant Mercedes-Benz announced its largest order of electric vehicles to date Friday: 1,800 electric delivery vans for retail giant Amazon to use across Europe. The deal shows how companies are increasingly paying attention to ways to decarbonize transportation including buying more zero-emission commercial vehicles.

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Eight predictions for the future of Indian agriculture

Impact Alpha

ImpactAlpha, August 27 – By 2030, India will be home to more than 1.4 billion people who will collectively spend $1.6 trillion annually on food. City dwellers will outpace the rural population. A quarter of Indians will be part of the upper-middle class, demanding not only more protein in their diets, but more meat. For. The post Eight predictions for the future of Indian agriculture appeared first on ImpactAlpha.

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Stop perverse climate impact of biomass by radically reforming CO2 accounting rules, says advisory body

Envirotec Magazine

Several European countries who are considered leaders in climate protection owe their apparently good emission reductions to biomass. These might turn out to look quite different in the future, if carbon-accounting under the Emissions Trading System (ETS) were to be based on science and the real effects on climate. As the European Commission works on a revision of its central climate policy tool, the European Academies’ Science Advisory Council suggests a radically new standard.

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The Key to Sustainable Energy Optimization: A Data-Driven Approach for Manufacturing

Speaker: Kevin Kai Wong, President of Emergent Energy Solutions

In today's industrial landscape, the pursuit of sustainable energy optimization and decarbonization has become paramount. ♻️ Manufacturing corporations across the U.S. are facing the urgent need to align with decarbonization goals while enhancing efficiency and productivity. Unfortunately, the lack of comprehensive energy data poses a significant challenge for manufacturing managers striving to meet their targets. 📊 Join us for a practical webinar hosted by Kevin Kai Wong of Emergent Ene

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ESG in Mexico: At a Fork in the Road?

MSCI

Mexican companies’ ESG risk-mitigation practices have come a long way over the past decade, but there has been some slippage over the past two years. We examine the current status and why investors may want to pay attention.

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Episode 234: Circularity 20 highlights, talking green chemistry

GreenBiz

Episode 234: Circularity 20 highlights, talking green chemistry. Heather Clancy. Fri, 08/28/2020 - 02:00. Week in Review. Stories discussed this week (6:45). The rise (and rise) of sustainability-linked finance. This Israeli startup mimics mangroves, coral and oysters to create protective seawalls. Amid devastating forest fires, One Trillion Trees movement puts down U.S. roots.

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Agents of Impact: Professional basketball players. The women and the men.

Impact Alpha

ImpactAlpha, Aug. 28 – When the lineup of the Milwaukee Bucks refused to take the court on Wednesday, the players didn’t realize they’d be joined by the rest of the NBA. And then the WNBA. And then professional leagues from baseball to soccer to tennis. The sports world’s bottom-up, wildcat strike followed the police shooting. The post Agents of Impact: Professional basketball players.

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Land redevelopment and rewilding firm hires 20 environmental consultants

Envirotec Magazine

Eleanor Shield, a wildlife biologist and conservationist, is among those recruited by Kaitiaki Consulting. A Scots firm that focuses on large scale land redevelopment and rewilding has hired 20 environmental consultants after a global recruitment drive. Kaitiaki Consulting, which is based in Scotland and New Zealand, has brought in specialists in forestry, ornithology, botany, soil science and a raft of other key sciences as it ramps up its activities.

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Are Your Impact Comms Resonating With Stakeholders?

Whether your organization is at the start of its sustainability and impact journey or years into it, many brands share a common concern: the uncertainty of whether they are sending stakeholders mixed messages. Creating content that speaks to your audience's “love language” can be a tricky dance. But, worry not! 3BL has put together tips to ensure that your content not only finds its rhythm but also resonates with your target audiences.

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Reaping What We Sow

Sense and Sustainability

One of sustainable development’s great issues that can oftentimes be overlooked in the public arena lies not above in the changing patterns of our atmosphere, but below with the degradation of the soil we all depend on. A 2018 report by the UN-backed Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) states that soil degradation includes “nutrient removal in harvest greater than it is replaced; depletion of soil organic matter, surface sealing, compac

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This is why investors want financial regulators to tackle climate risk

GreenBiz

This is why investors want financial regulators to tackle climate risk. Ravi Varghese. Mon, 08/24/2020 - 01:15. To understand economic crises of the recent past, present and future, there may be no finer teacher than Michael Lewis. Many readers will be familiar with Lewis’s book "The Big Short," which documented how excesses in global credit markets spawned a worldwide financial crisis.

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Affordable housing startup PadSplit closes $10 million

Impact Alpha

ImpactAlpha, August 24 – Atlanta-based PadSplit manages single-family homes, renting out individual rooms to make housing affordable for low-income families. The company, which launched in 2017, manages more than 1,000 units in Atlanta for tenants earning less than $35,000 a year. A $10 million Series A financing round will help it expand to Houston and.

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COVID-19 pandemic should be a wake-up call for water security, say researchers

Envirotec Magazine

Urgent action on water security is essential to better prepare societies for future global health crises, say experts at the University of Birmingham in the UK and Northwestern University in the US. In a comment article published in Nature Sustainability , the researchers are urging policy makers across the world to focus on behavioural change, knowledge promotion and investment in water infrastructure.

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Mastering Supply Chain Sustainability: Where Does ESG Fit In?

Speaker: Hortense Grouvel

In this new webinar, you will learn firsthand how to set up a sustainable supply chain program that will help meet increasing ESG requirements stemming from regulators, customers, consumers, and investors alike. Hortense Grouvel, ESG expert at IntegrityNext, and Sean Whelan, Global Senior Manager at Halliburton, will look at how ensuring compliance will also help you increase sustainability performance, resilience, and innovation, allowing you to unlock the full potential of your supply chain op

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Is There a Green-to-Fossil-Fuel Premium?

MSCI

As investors evaluate the possible reallocation of capital around the transition toward a low-carbon future, we analyzed the characteristics and performance of companies engaged in green versus carbon-intensive activities. Was there evidence of a “green-to-fossil-fuel premium”?

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Engaging Middle America in recycling solutions

GreenBiz

Engaging Middle America in recycling solutions. Suzanne Shelton. Wed, 08/26/2020 - 01:00. A few weeks ago, I wrote a GreenBiz piece about what Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs can teach us about the moment we’re in right now, based on our latest polling of Americans. At Circularity 2020, I’m talking about how to engage people in recycling, and the two ideas are linked together.

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With ‘mezzanine capital,’ iungo seeks to fill a gap for East Africa’s small and growing family businesses

Impact Alpha

ImpactAlpha, Aug. 24 – AA Fisheries is the kind of enterprise impact investors talk about all the time. But too few turn talk into the capital such businesses need to survive and thrive. The fish farm supplier in Eastern Uganda was a solid performer until the COVID crisis shut it down. But solid is not. The post With ‘mezzanine capital,’ iungo seeks to fill a gap for East Africa’s small and growing family businesses appeared first on ImpactAlpha.

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Analysis points to role for AI in advancing the transition to greener energy

Envirotec Magazine

Artificial intelligence (AI) has already arrived in some areas of the energy industry and has the potential to further advance the integrated energy transition – such are the findings of a recent analysis by the German Energy Agency – Deutsche Energie-Agentur ( dena ) – titled “Artificial Intelligence – from Hype to Reality in the Energy Industry” It examined the technical development status and the cost-benefit ratio for nine specific areas of application and provided so

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What Regulations Will Impact Sustainability Comms in 2024?

Navigating the waters of sustainability reporting disclosures and regulations can be intimidating, to say the least. With various measures set in motion in 2023 to keep companies accountable, there is a lot in store for brands’ impact communication in the upcoming year. 3BL is kicking off this January with our Navigating ESG Comms Through the Cosmos - Capricorn Edition by highlighting the impact of: The U.S Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Climate disclosure rules The European Commission

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Local Pathways Fellows Propose COVID-19 Rapid Response Solutions for Cities

Sustainable Development Network

New York, USA: Given the strong impact that COVID-19 has had on cities, the 2020 cohort of Local Pathways Fellows developed a set of innovative solutions that address the SDG 11 targets which are presented in the report titled “COVID-19 Rapid Response Solutions for Cities by the 2020 Local Pathways Fellows”. During the month of May the 2020 cohort of Local Pathways Fellows worked on developing their proposed solutions to address the urban challenges that each SDG 11 target is facing amid the pan

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Ensuring Performance and Safety in Recycled Plastics

GreenBiz

Ensuring Performance and Safety in Recycled Plastics. As companies and consumer brands incorporate recycled plastic content into their products and as part of their circularity goals, product integrity becomes an important consideration. There are many ways to evaluate the performance and safety of recycled materials. This one-hour webcast will show you tools to evaluate these aspects and how brands like HP are increasing recycled content in their products and assessing performance and sustainab

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The Brief: Systemic impact investing (audio), China’s plant-based meat, CDFI merger, WorldRemit buys Sendwave, U.K. jobs bond, agri-tech trends in India

Impact Alpha

Greetings, Agents of Impact! Featured: Agents of Impact Call Replay Rooting out racism as a systemic risk (audio). Investors have been talking about systemic risks at least since the Great Financial Crisis of 2008. More recently, climate change, income inequality and, suddenly, pandemics have been recognized as systemic risks as well. The current discourse on.

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Researchers identify human influence as key agent of ocean warming patterns in the future

Envirotec Magazine

The oceans play an important role in regulating our climate and its change by absorbing heat and carbon. Scientists from the Department of Physics at Oxford University say they have discovered that the influence of circulation changes on shaping ocean warming will diminish in the future. This is despite having been identified and modelled as a key factor over the past 60 years.

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What Questions Are Brands Asking About Their ESG Initiatives Ahead of 2024?

Temperatures are rising (and not just metaphorically) as key stakeholders anxiously anticipate the outcomes of COP28. While companies reconsider their 2024 environmental sustainability strategies, there is another aspect of ESG that deserves exploring, the social sector. In the latest edition of "Navigating ESG Comms Through the Cosmos - Sagittarius Edition", 3BL hones in on this sign’s bold quality of asking questions others are burning to know the answers to.

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‘Solutions, not spats like this’: Food innovators' take on plant-based burger brand Lightlife’s campaign against Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat

Eco-Business

A shorter ingredients list does not mean a product is healthier and better. Additives can improve quality. Consumers should also know that animals are often injected with chemicals in industrial farming, experts said.

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Where there's hope for speeding up business action on plastics

GreenBiz

Where there's hope for speeding up business action on plastics. Elsa Wenzel. Wed, 08/26/2020 - 02:01. In 10 short years, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) arguably has done more than any other group to define and advance the circular economy. Its landmark report, "The New Plastics Economy," sounded the alarm in 2016 that if "business as usual" continues, by 2025 the ocean may hold more plastic than fish by weight.

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Call No. 22 replay: Rooting out racism as a systemic risk (audio)

Impact Alpha

ImpactAlpha, Aug. 27 – Investors have been talking about systemic risks at least since the Great Financial Crisis of 2008. More recently, climate change, income inequality and now, suddenly, pandemics have been recognized as systemic risks as well. The current discourse on racism uses systemic in a different way, recognizing the culture, policies and institutions.

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Coping with a changing demand

Envirotec Magazine

In July 2020, the Met Office reported that most UK water companies have seen an increase in average water consumption during lockdown, especially those operating in suburban areas. It’s clear that Covid-19 measures around the world have resulted in societal changes that are directly impacting when and how much water people are consuming. So, how do water companies prepare for an unexpected surge or drop in demand?

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The Silver Lining to Corporate DEI Challenges

In our latest edition of Navigating ESG Comms Through the Cosmos - Scorpio Edition, 3BL embraces the perspective of one of the zodiac's most misunderstood signs: Scorpio. While this sign often has a darker view of the world, they do not shy away from shining a light on controversial topics. This month we take a deep dive into corporate pullback of DEI and how companies can utilize astrological advice to reinvent its social impact communication.