There were many positive developments and trendlines in 2018 that we believe were encouraging for corporate sustainability & responsibility managers, sustainable investing champions, NGO managers and members, and other stakeholders. The analyses and wrap-ups are beginning to appear now in the many media outlets and platforms that we monitor. We bring you some highlights in this first newsletter of the exciting new year, 2019!
In these last days of the year 2018, of course, we’ll be seeing shared expert perspectives on the year now ending and a look into the new year, 2019. Sustainable Brands shared one person’s perspectives on three sustainability trends that are gaining momentum heading into 2019.
Nearing the end of the 20th Century, the United Nations assembled experts to develop the eight Millennium Goals (MDGs), to serve as blueprints and guides for public, private and social sector actions during the period 2000-2015 (the “new millennium”).
Game changer – early adopter – first mover – tipping point – striving for excellence: These are some of the familiar themes of their work offered by best-selling business authors. These phrases help to frame our understanding of established or emerging trends.
Peter Economy, the “leadership guy” at Inc. magazine, offers us his take on the McDonald’s food chain announcement that “will change the future of the fast-food industry.
Whether you are an investor, company executive or board member, or an issue advocate, or civic leader, these “high probability” outcomes should keep you up at night: more superstorms; more drought; increased risk of forest fires; more floods; rising sea levels; melting glaciers; ocean acidification; increasing atmospheric water vapor (thus, more powerful rainstorms)…and more.
How about a potential drop of 10% in the U.S.A. Gross Domestic Product by end of this century?
This issue we bring you two important Top Stories that capture the state of sustainable investing from varying points-of-view. We selected these for their value to both corporate managers and investment professionals. Corporate staff can use the findings to “make the case” upward to C-suite and boardroom using both documents. Investors not yet on board with Sustainable / ESG investing can gain valuable insights from both reports.
The story is being well told -– a growing number institutional shareowners and their global networks of asset managers steadily embrace ESG / sustainable investing approaches. Corporations of all sizes are adopting sustainability strategies and churning out sustainability and responsibility reports to tell the story of their sustainability journey. Many national, state and local governments are following through on their commitments made in Paris in 2015 (the Paris Accord on climate change). NGOs galore are focused on driving sustainability into all corners of human behavior.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was organized by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in 1988 (30 years ago!) to provide a “clear scientific view of the current state of knowledge in climate change and its potential environmental and socio-economic impacts”.
The buzz for the past few days has been about the report of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that urged governments everywhere to “take rapid and far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society” to avoid catastrophic events and conditions brought on by climate change.
It’s three-quarters of the way through the year 2018 – what is the state of the Sustainability Profession? John Davies, writing in GreenBiz (he’s VP & Senior Analyst), shares some interesting highlights gained through the firm’s recent report with us this week.
Among the major themes: (1) Companies large and small see advances – progress – more companies are communicating what they are doing. (2) Serious concerns, challenges, barriers are still ahead (look at what is happening to the US SEC and the dismissal of sound science by policymakers).
