Corporate Social Responsibility

In 2008, Marks and Spencer charging 5p for a plastic bag was seen as a huge risk. Today, DEFRA data shows bag sales are down 98%. Proof that voluntary corporate leadership paves the way for national policy. Back in 2008, I was part of the team at M&S that voluntarily introduced the 5p carrier bag levy in food halls. Before rolling it out nationally, we tested it across 50 stores in Northern Ireland and the South West. Demand plummeted by over 70% almost instantly. To make the transition seamless for shoppers, M&S gave away free reusable bags for a month before the May 2008 launch, and partnered with Groundwork to channel every penny raised directly into local green spaces and community parks. Seven years after that initial bold move, the UK government made the 5p charge mandatory across all major retailers. Now, bag usage is down by 98% (over 7.4 billion fewer bags!), proving three key principles about driving real sustainability: Pilot before you scale: Testing behavioral shifts in limited markets builds the data and confidence required for big decisions. Remove friction with alternatives: Giving customers reusable options upfront turned potential resistance into collective action. Corporate bravery enables policy: When business proves a model works, regulators can step in with confidence. Systemic change rarely happens overnight, but it almost always starts with a single organisation willing to challenge the status quo. https://lnkd.in/ejhwWYKW Clare Wilkes, Mike Barry, Carmel McQuaid, Paul Willgoss, Louise Nicholls, Richard Gillies, Alexis Steadman, Daniel Himsworth

Today I would like to talk about a problem affecting many fellow women in my profession: Architecture does not have a pipeline problem. It has a retention problem. Women enter architecture schools in huge numbers. They graduate, enter practice, and build experience. But the further you move toward senior leadership, ownership, and decision-making positions, the fewer women you see. That is not because women suddenly become less talented or less ambitious. It is because the profession still rewards a very specific type of worker: someone who can stay late, travel at short notice, prioritize projects over everything else, and rely on someone else to absorb the unpaid work at home. Add motherhood, unequal care responsibilities, slow salary progression, opaque promotions, and a culture that romanticizes overwork, and the result is predictable. Women do not leave because they cannot handle architecture. They leave because architecture often makes staying unnecessarily difficult. And the industry loses years of education, experience, technical knowledge, client relationships, and leadership potential every time that happens. This will not be fixed by telling women to be more confident. It requires structural change: transparent salaries clear promotion criteria flexible working real return-to-work programs paid parental leave reasonable hours equal expectations of fathers and more women in decision-making positions We already have the talent. We are just very good at losing it. Save this, share it, and ask your office what it is actually doing to keep women in architecture. #architecture #womeninarchitecture #architecturecareer #architectureschool #youngarchitect architectureindustry gendergap genderequality architectureoffice architecturestudio architecturalpractice womenindesign womeninleadership workingmothers parentalleave workplaceculture designindustry architecturecommunity architectlife futureofarchitecture

Some technologies don’t just solve problems — they give people their independence back. I rediscovered Liftware, and I was genuinely moved by what it can do. It looks simple: a smart handle connected to everyday utensils. But inside, it’s a powerful piece of engineering designed for people with hand tremors (Parkinson’s, essential tremor, and more). Here’s how it works: 🔹 Sensors detect tiny hand movements in real time 🔹 Micro-motors instantly counteract the tremor 🔹 The spoon or fork stays stable — even if the hand doesn’t The result? Up to 70% less shaking. And for many people, that means eating soup again… without help. This is technology at its best: invisible, intelligent, and deeply human. 💡 My take Most people don’t know this, but Liftware was developed by a small startup before being acquired by Google’s life sciences division (now Verily). What makes it remarkable is the engineering challenge: the device doesn’t try to stop the tremor — it predicts and cancels it. It’s basically a tiny real-time AI system… hidden inside a spoon. This is the future I love: not just smarter devices, but more compassionate ones. If you’ve seen other innovations that genuinely improve people’s lives, I’d love to discover them. What’s one piece of tech-for-good that inspired you recently? #techforgood #innovation #technology #healthtech #accessibility #assistivetechnology #futureofhealth #inclusiveDesign #AI #impact

The European Parliament has officially passed Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) legislation that fundamentally shifts the responsibility for textile waste management to fashion brands and retailers – with far-reaching global implications. This new law requires all producers, including e-commerce platforms, to cover the full cost of collecting, sorting, and recycling textiles, regardless of whether they are based within or outside the EU. The financial burden of Europe's textile waste now falls squarely on the brands that create it. What are the critical business implications? UNIVERSAL SCOPE: The legislation applies to all producers selling in the EU market, including those of clothing, accessories, footwear, home textiles, and curtains. No company is exempt based on location. FAST FASHION PENALTY: Member states must specifically address ultra-fast and fast fashion practices when determining EPR financial contributions, creating cost penalties for unsustainable business models. GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTION: As the world's largest textile importer, the EU's new rules will ripple across global supply chains, particularly impacting exporters from Bangladesh, Vietnam, China, and India who supply much of Europe's fast fashion. TIMELINE PRESSURE: Officially adopted September 2025, this creates immediate operational and financial planning requirements. COMPETITIVE RESHAPING: Brands and retailers will inevitably pass increased costs down their supply chains, fundamentally altering supplier relationships and pricing structures globally. What are the implications for various stakeholders? For CEOs and board members: This represents more than regulatory compliance – it's a complete business model transformation. Companies must now integrate end-of-life costs into product pricing, rethink supplier partnerships, and accelerate circular design strategies. For sustainability and decarbonisation executives: This creates unprecedented opportunities for circular economy solutions, sustainable material innovation, and traceability system development across global supply chains. Link: https://lnkd.in/dTyHtHuD #sustainablefashion #circulareconomy #textilwaste #epr #fashionindustry #sustainability #supplychainmanagement #fastfashion #environmentalregulation #businessstrategy #decarbonisation #textilerecycling #fashionceos #boardgovernance #climateaction #wastemanagement #producerresponsibility #fashionsustainability #textileindustry #greenbusiness

🌍 Ten Years After Paris: is the Climate Crisis a Disinformation Crisis? In 2015, the world made a historic promise: to keep global warming well below 2°C, and ideally below 1.5°C. We committed to major emission cuts by 2030, and net-zero by 2050. The Paris Agreement marked a new era of global climate cooperation. But ten years on, we're still struggling with cooperation while the World Meteorological Organization tells us that the Earth’s average temperature exceeded 1.5°C over a 12-month period (Feb 2023–Jan 2024) for the first time. Why? 🔍 A groundbreaking new study, led by 14 researchers for the International Panel on the Information Environment, reviewed 300 studies from 2015–2025. The findings are alarming: powerful interests – fossil fuel companies, populist parties, even some governments – are systematically spreading misleading narratives to delay climate action. 🧠 Misinformation isn't just about denying climate change. It’s now about strategic skepticism – minimizing the threat, casting doubt on science-based solutions, and greenwashing unsustainable practices. 📺 This disinformation flows through social media, news outlets, corporate reports, and even policy briefings. It targets all of us – but especially policymakers, where it can shape laws and delay critical decisions. 💡 So what can we do? 1️⃣ Legislate for transparency and integrity in climate communication. 2️⃣ Hold greenwashers accountable through legal action. 3️⃣ Build global coalitions of civil society, science, and public institutions. 4️⃣ Invest in climate and media literacy for both citizens and leaders. 5️⃣ Amplify voices from underrepresented regions – like Africa – where more research is urgently needed. We must protect not only the planet’s climate, but the integrity of climate information. 🔗 Read more on how disinformation is undermining climate progress – and what we can do about it: https://lnkd.in/eDN9hKAJ 🕰️ The window is small. But with truth, science, and collective action, we can still turn the tide.

Global sales of EVs and hybrid vehicles hit 1.2 million units in February 2025. That's a massive 50% jump compared to last year. But get this: China accounted for nearly 75% of those sales! I've posted before about the pace in China, and it just keeps accelerating. EV sales there are up 76% year-on-year. Brands like BYD, Xiaomi, Xpeng, and Zeekr are launching new models at lightning speed, moving from plug-in hybrids to fully electric in record time. In Europe, the race is still on. Volkswagen boosted BEV sales by 180%, BMW overtook Tesla, and Chinese-owned brands reportedly outsold Tesla in Europe for the first time. Meanwhile, Tesla's EU market share hit a five-year low. But what I still can't get over is the insane pace in China! I recently drove a Xiaomi EV in Shanghai that felt like a one-to-one copy of the Porsche Taycan for $40,000. Incredible materials, smooth drive, and great steering. Even my engineer, who was with me, was impressed. And this is just four years after Xiaomi said, "Let's make cars." Now, they're producing 100,000 a year. Also extremely interesting is that 20% of the car's cost is subsidised. That kind of scale-up is of course possible based on massive government backing. On the autonomous side, I've experienced Waymo in San Francisco and Hyundai's lidar-based system in Shanghai: fully self-driving, even in chaotic traffic. The future is already here. And I've become a real fan, especially when I need to work between meetings or get to the airport. Same as Vay for teledriven car sharing. There’s so much going on! Has Europe lost the race? No! Not yet. But we're under pressure. And we need to move faster. The future is 100% electric: that's crystal clear to me. Hybrids may be an important bridge, but the long-term path is electrification, enabled by renewables. So the real question is: Can Europe match China's speed, scale, and tech leadership? Or are we looking at a permanent power shift in the EV industry?  I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments. #EV #ElectricVehicles #Mobility #Innovation #ChinaEV #EuropeEV #Automotive

Congo's war isn’t just killing people—it’s tearing down forests, silencing activists, and fueling an illicit trade worth millions. The resurgence of the M23 rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) 🇨🇩 has triggered a humanitarian crisis, with millions displaced and thousands killed. Yet another casualty has received less attention: the environment. The conflict is exacerbating deforestation, undermining conservation efforts, and fueling the illicit exploitation of natural resources. The Albertine Rift, home to endangered eastern lowland and mountain gorillas, is under severe pressure. Virunga and Kahuzi-Biega National Parks—both UNESCO World Heritage Sites—have become battlegrounds. Since late 2021, M23 has taken control of towns surrounding Virunga, including Rutshuru, Rwindi, and Masisi, while in February 2025, it pushed into Kahuzi-Biega, seizing areas adjacent to the park’s highland sector. ⚠️ Deforestation in Virunga has accelerated: In 2023, 1,222 hectares of tree cover were lost in a charcoal production zone, more than double the annual average of 571 hectares from 2019-2022. ⚠️ Kahuzi-Biega’s forests are following suit: The same year, deforestation in its charcoal production zone surged to 1,171 hectares , up from 521 hectares annually over the previous four years. ⚠️ Charcoal demand is a key driver: With 800,000 displaced people arriving in Goma, the price of charcoal has spiked, shifting supply chains from Virunga to Kahuzi-Biega. Armed groups have long profited from the region’s natural wealth. The Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) previously controlled much of Virunga’s charcoal trade but M23’s territorial gains have disrupted this balance. The group now levies taxes on charcoal and timber transport. In Kahuzi-Biega, illegal logging is surging, facilitated by newly constructed ports on Lake Kivu. While M23 touts itself as a pro-conservation force, its environmental record is contradictory. It has banned charcoal production in some areas while profiting from the timber trade elsewhere. Meanwhile, park rangers struggle to operate: since 1996, over 200 have been killed. Caught in the crossfire are Indigenous groups such as the Batwa, forcibly displaced by the conflict and unable to access their forests for sustenance. Activists attempting to expose illicit extraction have been silenced, some fleeing, others disappearing. The future of DRC’s forests—and those who depend on them—hangs in the balance. THE WAR 📰 NGOs flee (Elodie Toto): https://mongabay.cc/C8aqxx 📰 The environmental toll (Fergus O’Leary Simpson, Joel Masselink, Lara Collart): https://mongabay.cc/3p5AcP 📰 Toll on Indigenous people (Aimable TWAHIRWA): https://mongabay.cc/c5QGnY 📰 Key factors (John Cannon): https://mongabay.cc/ZMwBNz

Double Materiality 🌎 Beyond compliance with key regulations like CSRD, double materiality assessments are essential for businesses to develop a comprehensive sustainability strategy. This framework helps companies identify how their activities impact society and the environment while also assessing how sustainability-related risks and opportunities affect financial performance. Impact materiality examines how a company’s operations influence people and the planet, covering topics like climate change, biodiversity, and social equity. Financial materiality focuses on how sustainability factors, such as regulatory changes, resource scarcity, or reputational risks, impact business performance and long-term growth. Some issues, like climate change mitigation, resource management, and labor conditions, fall under double materiality, meaning they are significant for both external impact and financial outcomes. By integrating double materiality, companies can align sustainability efforts with business objectives, risk management, and investor expectations, strengthening corporate resilience. This approach ensures that sustainability is not just a compliance exercise but a strategic tool to drive innovation, operational efficiency, and stakeholder trust. It also supports transparent reporting, helping businesses meet increasing demands from investors, regulators, and consumers for credible sustainability disclosures. Sectors like finance, manufacturing, and retail are already leveraging double materiality insights to guide decision-making, investment strategies, and supply chain management. This matrix developed by Vestas in their sustainability report is a great example of how to structure a double materiality assessment, clearly linking environmental and social impacts to financial performance and strategic decision-making. #sustainability #sustainable #business #esg #climatechange #doublemateriality #materiality

I interviewed 20 sustainability managers 🎙️ That's their #1 pain point 🤕 ➡️ "Reporting is 1st. Impact is 2nd". Challenges that I can see with sustainability in companies: ❌ Competing frameworks confuse. ❌ Data collection becomes more important than actual impact ❌ Disconnect between reporting teams and operational teams ❌ Excessive time spent on documentation. ❌ Risk of greenwashing through selective reporting (I am sure you have your observations to add🙄) 5 secrets to turn this into the biggest opportunity for change: ✅ Use reporting to clarify sustainability vision 100%. ✅ Identify in-company 'spoilers' - and engage them! ✅ Change sustainability reporting from 'a burden' for all, to an 'invitation to do good' for each individual. ✅ Turn deadlines into celebration moments for internal change. ✅ Use data requirements as opportunities to understand the entire value chain (and opportunities for change). You know the pain ?🧐 📲 Ping me to re-write the script on your sustainability reporting ♻️ #circulareconomy #zerowaste #sustainability

Sustainability in Pharmaceutical Industry 26% of Emcure’s revenue comes from injectables but did you know that syringes are one of the toughest to recycle ? Around 16 billion syringes are used annually around the world and they are typically disposed of by incineration or end up in landfills. Most recycling firms are unwilling to accept syringes due to the potential dangers of needle sticks and contamination with pathogens and biological fluids. As you can see from this one example, pharma industry truly has its unique set of environment related challenges. Below I have tried to summarize a few industry specific sustainability issues. Manufacturing . Using Safer solvents (eg Pfizer’s switch to using ethanol and water instead of methylene chloride in the synthesis of Viagra reduced hazardous waste by over 95%), Using Better Catalysts (eg Merck’s use of an enzymatic process in the diabetes drug Januvia reduced waste by 56%), implementing advanced process control and automation (eg Precise temperature and pressure control in reactors helped Astra Zeneca reduce energy consumption by 20%). Finally by recovering and reusing waste heat, overall energy demand can be significantly reduced. Eli Lilly saved an estimated 8000 MWh of energy annually. R&D - Use of digital twins, which are virtual copies of physical assets that provide insights into the performance of their real-world counterparts reduces the use of material and energy consumption. Delivery Mechanisms: E.g. in inhalers, the evolution of propellants from Chloroflurocarbons (damage ozone layers) to dry-powder inhalers has cut carbon emissions by 95%. Packaging: Companies have started recycling, re-using material, and ensuring proper disposal of plastics. Astellas used biomass based plastic from sugarcane for their blister packages. Adoption of QR codes on packaging reduces the need for physical pamphlets. Cold-chain: Keeping products at 2-8 degrees uses a lot of energy and plastic packaging. Optimization of route and improvement in packaging are being worked on. Sourcing: Most companies are now evaluating vendor partners on sustainability criterions. However the sad reality is that most API is sourced from India and China where environment issues are rampant. The documentary “ An unequal fight” on the severe impact of industrial pollution in Patancheru is a shocking tale. Waste management: The Environment Protection Rules 1986 requires installation of Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) to treat waste generated before it is disposed off. Emcure uses ETP and has invested in renewable energy. At a corporate level, better lighting, less paper, such policies are implemented across the board. Emcure is also using modulation of its Cooling Tower Pump at Kurkumbh (precision heat and pressure) to reduce energy consumption. Bottomline - While pharma companies are working on sustainability measures, the reality is that this space remains challenging and we have only scratched the surface !