Day: March 8, 2022

Emerging leaders weigh in on what’s missing from corporate climate action

Read the full story at GreenBiz.

For the business community, climate action requires listening to and learning from one another. That’s part of the work being done at GreenBiz Group’s annual gathering for sustainability practitioners.

Among the more than 1,300 people who attended GreenBiz 22 in February, there were 10 students and young professionals who were part of the Emerging Leaders program, which aims to elevate, cultivate and support the next generation of Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) professionals and upcoming leaders in sustainable business…

At GreenBiz 22, we asked the Emerging Leaders cohort, “What do you think is missing from conversations about sustainability and corporate action on addressing the climate crisis?” Read on for their responses.

Paleontology ‘a hotbed of unethical practices rooted in colonialism’, say scientists

Read the full story in The Guardian.

The public image of palaeontologists as dusty, but rather affable academics, could be due an update. The study of ancient life is a hotbed of unethical and inequitable scientific practices rooted in colonialism, which strip poorer countries of their fossil heritage, and devalue the contributions of local researchers, scientists say.

Writing in the journal Royal Society Open Science, an international team of palaeontologists argue that there has been a steady drain of plesiosaurs, pterosaurs, prehistoric spiders, and other fossils from poorer countries into foreign repositories or local private collections – despite laws and regulations introduced to try to conserve their heritage.

Here’s how Congress can help industry become cleaner and more competitive

Read the full story from ACEEE.

Congress has a pivotal opportunity with pending legislation to help industry become cleaner, more competitive, and better able to meet U.S. climate goals. The United States needs to invest in clean industrial technologies to remain globally competitive, because many of its foreign rivals are already making these investments.

In the coming weeks, Congress will decide the provisions of a bill that could not only boost U.S. competitiveness but also help decarbonize the industrial sector, which now accounts for more than a fourth of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. The House passed a bill earlier this month, the America COMPETES Act, that includes three key manufacturing provisions. A related Senate bill on competitiveness, approved last year, does not contain these provisions, but lawmakers negotiating the final legislation should include them to improve competitiveness and spur decarbonization.

Renewable energy growth in the US lags far behind Biden’s climate ambitions

Read the full story at The Verge.

Renewable energy growth in the US in 2021 fell far short of what’s needed to reach climate goals, according to a new report by trade group American Clean Power.

Do rankings create clarity or confusion over corporate approaches to sustainability?

Read the full story at edie.

The start of the year has seen numerous efforts to rank corporate efforts to improve across a range of sustainability metrics. While many of these have been questioned by the corporates involved, it makes it abundantly clear that disclosure and action are what businesses will be judged on this year.

Leveraging technology to tackle record food waste highs

Read the full story at Business Chief.

From blockchain and IoT, to AI and analytics, technology is being harnessed to tackle global food waste, which is now at record highs.

Community Hubs to Support Energy Transition

Download the document.

The increasing competitiveness of clean energy and growing efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are reshaping the US energy economy. For energy communities—cities, towns, and regions with deep ties to fossil fuel production and electricity generation—this transition may pose significant costs for workers, businesses, and local governments. Federal investments through things such as workforce development and infrastructure expansion can mitigate such costs and provide new opportunities for prosperity.

This issue brief provides an overview of federally supported community hubs as a policy option to support local development efforts in energy regions in transition.

Chicago Wilderness Hub

The Chicago Wilderness Hub was developed by Chicago Wilderness, a regional alliance that works to preserve, improve, and expand nature and quality of life. It includes:

  • a mapping interface for each of their 2025 goals
  • a data repository with curated spatial data, reports and static maps
  • a data gathering system to capture information to support each goal
  • a tracking system to visualize their progress via dashboard metrics

New Kellogg program to reward farmers

Read the full story at Food Business News.

Kellogg Co. has unveiled Kellogg’s InGrained, a new $2 million, five-year program to reward farmers’ efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

As part of the program, Kellogg will partner with Lower Mississippi River Basin rice farmers to reduce their climate impact. According to Kellogg, much of the rice sourced from the Lower Mississippi River Basin is used in rice-based foods such as Kellogg’s Rice Krispies and Kellogg’s Special K cereals.

The InGrained program will pilot in northeast Louisiana in collaboration with GHG measurement firm Regrow, rice producers, Kellogg supplier Kennedy Rice Mill LLC, and agribusiness firm Syngenta.

Milliken & Company to eliminate PFAS from textile finishes, fibers

Read the full story at Furniture Today.

Global manufacturer Milliken & Company has set a goal to eradicate all per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly referred to as PFAS, from its textile finishes and fibers portfolio.