Age of Sustainability dawning
December 04, 2017 by Denis Pombriant
This is a tiny roundup of positive eco news happening now. Lots more to discover if you want it. What’s different about this than the stale argument about what causes climate change and whether or not humans bear some responsibility for the mess is this: All of this news is focused on solutions great and small. That’s how we’ll solve the problem. Guys like Charles Koch, Scott Pruitt, Rick Perry and Donald Trump can just stand down. We’ve got this.
From Old Gold & Black, the student newspaper of Wake Forest
http://wfuogb.com/2017/12/winston-salem-strengthens-climate-action/
“It was incumbent upon us to uphold the Paris Accords despite the president’s decision,” Winston-Salem mayor Allen Joines said in an interview. “Ignoring the agreement’s stipulations is not taking us in the direction we need to go.”
Joines is one of 382 mayors in the U.S. who have pledged to locally honor the Paris Accords through the Mayors’ National Climate Action Agenda. This effort has been broadened by the We Are Still In movement, a cohesive initiative of over 2,500 leaders in businesses, cities, counties, states, tribes, colleges and universities that began this past summer after Trump announced his intended withdrawal of the U.S. from the Paris Accords. This collaborative effort between different kinds of institutions is aimed at strengthening climate action, even locally with the relationship between Wake Forest and Winston-Salem.
From MetroWest Daily News
http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/20171203/framingham-group-pushes-to-hire-sustainability-chief
Framingham pushes to hire sustainability chief
More than a dozen communities in Massachusetts have hired sustainability chiefs, a concept that has gained traction over the last decade. Among them are Cambridge, Newton, Medford, Greenfield, Northampton and Somerville, which has a three-member Office of Sustainability and Environment. Concord also recently filled a sustainability position.
While many other cities and towns pursue green initiatives, hiring a full-time staff member to coordinate their efforts can reap both environmental and financial benefits, Croci said.
Cutting down energy usage is one area where they stand to see the greatest gain. With more than two dozen municipal buildings and a fleet of several hundred vehicles, Framingham currently spends an estimated $3 million or more on energy.
From Forbes magazine, by Terry Waghorn
Sustainable Reporting: Lessons From the Fortune 500
Many companies extol their positive environmental performance, their social causes and exemplary governance (ESG). How do investors and other stakeholders verify those claims? A first step is to look to the company’s Sustainability Report. More than a marketing piece, these reports also indicate company intent and follow-through and are complementary to annual Financial Reports. Annually, the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence (CSE) publishes its unique research on sustainability reporting trends. This year’s research, Sustainability Reporting Trends in North America 2017, focuses on the United States and Canada, with surprising insights on sustainability reporting and profitability.
From the Financial Times
https://www.ft.com/content/96cb123a-c9f8-11e7-ab18-7a9fb7d6163e
From “feng shui copper” to low-carbon aluminium, the green energy revolution is jolting global commodity markets and spurring demand for higher-quality raw materials. As the world’s largest car companies focus on producing more electric vehicles, they are facing greater scrutiny about the ethical and environmental effects of their supply chains.
From ChannelNews Asia, by Elizabeth Neo
Electric Car-sharing schemen to his the roads Dec 12
SINGAPORE: The first fleet of cars for an electric car-sharing scheme will hit the roads next Tuesday (Dec 12).
BlueSG, a subsidiary of French transportation firm Bollore Group, said it will deploy 80 vehicles which users can book via the BlueSG mobile app. The app will be available on the App Store and Google Play from Dec 5.
Comments