Sustainability Supply Chain Resources
The Product Sustainability Index: It's Not just for Walmart Suppliers (GreenBiz.com, September 25, 2009)
Years ago when I worked for EPA, I recall a conversation I had with my dad who said, "Gee, if I only knew the impacts of the products I buy, it would change my habits. If this information were as widely available as nutrition labels … now, that would benefit the environment." That conversation happened in the 1980s (I know…ancient history), but has stayed with me ever since. (The rest of this story helped launch the EPA lifecycle assessment program, but that is topic for another article).
Fast forward 20-plus years and now Walmart, the world's largest retailer, is collecting sustainability information from all their vendors.
Perspectives on Information Management in Sustainable Supply Chains (Business for Social Responsibility, August 2007)
Over the past three decades, China has made remarkable strides in economic development, maintaining a GDP growth average of nine percent a year and lifting more than 400 million people out of poverty.1 China is determined to ensure the sustainability of its economic and social development as it enters the 21st century, which it envisions in terms of a “harmonious society.” To this end, sustainable investment has an important role to play, not only as a means of risk mitigation for the financial system, but also as a powerful lever for influencing corporate behavior and helping to improve ESG performance. However, the potential of sustainable investment as a positive force for broader economic performance remains underdeveloped.
Mainstream investors in China have limited awareness and capacity related to ESG issues. Most domestic market participants have not yet moved from the “what and why” to the “how.” Confusion over terminologies obscures the differences between sustainable investment and environmental thematic investment. Skepticism prevails regarding the business case for ESG integration and statistical evidence of SI financial returns. The lack of human resources— analysts and researchers trained to perform both ESG and financial evaluation— limits institutional investors’ competencies to execute sustainability-oriented investment.
Joris Wiemer, Transparency in the Supply Chain, Blog post, (The Global Reporting Initiative, 2007)
About this blog
My name is Joris Wiemer and work with the Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) program of the Global Reporting Initiative, together with Leontien Plugge. Currently, a big part of our work is the GRI/GTZ “Transparency in the Supply Chain” project, looking to prepare SMEs that are part of the global supply chains of European Multinationals to go through a reporting process. Through this project, daily communications, new articles and research we come across every aspect and many actors involved in sustainability in supply chains. This blog is meant to put some of these ideas and issues out there for a wider readership and more importantly, to get your inputs.
