Raising business awareness one sustainability footprint after the other

LexisNexis Analytics tracks emerging and innovative sustainability approaches and the local and international diffusion of various environmental and social indicators to help companies benchmark themselves to their competitors and identify opportunities to improve their commitment to sustainability.

While sustainability issues have progressively become mainstream preoccupations in the past years, many indicators and best practices programs are still only in pilot testing phases at company or institutional level throughout the world, and their integration in business strategy and reporting is very far from generalization.

This post sums ups several “sustainability footprint” initiatives which were launched in the past 10+ years, aiming to accelerate the business adoption of measurement, management, disclosure and environmental & social impact improvement practices.

The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) focuses since 2000 on the reporting and management of carbon emissions and has extended its activities in 2009 to water issues with the CDP Water Disclosure project.

The Forest Footprint Disclosure project was initiated in 2008 by the Global Canopy Foundation and asks companies to disclose how they manage their “forest footprint” based on exposure to 5 commodities which can be sourced from recently deforested land (soy, palm oil, timber, cattle products and biofuels).

The Plastic Disclosure Project was launched in 2010 and is operared by the Ocean Recovery Alliance and encourages companies to report their overall plastic use.

And on the social side ? Oxfam released in 2009 a Poverty Footprint methodology for companies to assess and understand their effects on society and on people living in poverty. It analyses poverty in five company impact areas (macroeconomy, value chains, local environmental practices, product development and marketing, policies and institutions) through five dimensions of poverty (livelihoods, health and well-being, diversity and gender equality, empowerment, security and stability). Using this methodology, Coca-Cola and SAB Miller examined the impacts of their value chains in Zambia and El Salvador and communicated the results of their study in a report released earlier this year.

Fabrice Landousy

Chef de projet, Ph D
LexisNexis Analytics

Image sources :

http://ahharsfnews.com/2011/04/17/carbon-disclosure-project-goes-straight-to-the-source-source-44-llc-of-solana-beach-ca 

http://www.forestdisclosure.com/

http://www.trademarkia.com/pdp-plastic-disclosure-project-85249869.html

http://policy-practice.oxfam.org.uk/publications/oxfam-poverty-footprint-understanding-business-contribution-to-development-114043

In October, new dialogue platforms on breast cancer will emerge through social media

The social media will, this year more than in any other, deck themselves out in pink, in October – opening up the door to dialogue between professionals and Internet users, on the subject of breast cancer. 

From October 3-28, the French Association for Cancer Research (ARC) will open an online platform, so that the general public can engage in discussion with four renowned researchers, on a variety of topics related to breast cancer. The new platform will be launched as part of Pink October, the month dedicated to official mobilisation against breast cancer, so as to raise awareness and inform Internet users on the subject. 

The American Chemical Society celebrates both the International Year of Chemistry and sustainability

From 28th August to 1st September 2011, the American Chemical Society (ACS) held one of the largest-ever sessions devoted to sustainability and green chemistry for its 242nd National Meeting & Exposition in Denver, Colorado.  

150 reports on sustainability & green chemistry were presented to attendees through 30 symposia and topics ranging from green chemistry for sustainable production of fuels and innovative new solutions against water pollution to controlling emissions of the greenhouse gases that drive global climate change (see the digital Complete program).

Several symposia were recorded as part of the ACS’ Electronic Dissemination of Meeting Content project and shall be available for the public  online starting from 3^rd October (under the Archives section on ACS’s website or through SoftConference platform).

From June 21^st to 23^rd  2011 in Washington, the ACS had already held its 15th Annual Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference for which recordings are already available online. The ACS underlined the need to celebrate the International Year of Chemistry and sustainability which is "on the minds and lips of more and more people — determined to use resources today in ways that do not jeopardize the needs of future generations”.

ACS also offers a microsite dedicated to sustainability with a wide range of information and resources on the topic by bringing together contents from  all across the  institution.

Probing local specificities of risks associated to ingredients

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As partner of cosmetics and food industries’ leaders, we review the risks associated to hundreds of ingredients used by manufacturers, particularly ethics of ingredient sourcing.

 

It appears that when choosing raw materials, our clients take more and more into account the ethical issues. The recent controversies on palm oil, on the dubious ethics of the clinical tests in India or on the non-sustainable exploitation of water resources are examples of crises that companies are willing to avoid by staying away from unscrupulous suppliers. It is well known that controversies which are largely spread on social networks are then remembered for a long time.Through analysis of scientific publications, world press, international watchdogs’ comments (scientists, politicians, NGO, consumers' associations…) or consumers’gossips, we can draw up geographic risk maps to help companies manage these issues while taking into account local specificities.

TV in hospital: what place for pharma companies?

In France, the Diabetology Department of the Simone Veil Hospital (Eaubonne, Val d’Oise), has launched, in collaboration with a multidisciplinary medical team, a new medical information TV channel intended for diabetic patients: Diab TV.

What is better than using TV as a tool for patient’s therapeutic education on topics such as glycemia monitoring, insulin injection or diabetes complications ?

Hospital TV channels already exist in France like in Marseille with APHM Télévision, created in 2005, or Campus Santé of the St Louis Hospital.  Not only these channels provide therapeutic education, but they also help to understand better how Hospital Departments are organized and work.  Not really involved yet, will pharma companies seek to use this communication media through corporate communication or patient education on public health topics?
France is currently still very far from the U.S. model illustrated by the channel Patient Channel broadcasted to nearly 17 million patients per year through 1.600 hospitals. Programs interrupted by commercials for Pampers or Plavix are directly broadcasted in the patients’ rooms. It’s not always easy for the patients to know the difference between reportage and advertisement.
Another U.S. offer aimed at relaxing patients is the CARE Channel (for Continuous, Ambient, Relaxation, Environment Channel), a program that broadcasts a 70-hours loop of relaxing images of varied landscapes.

The Life Sciences Team