WORKSHOP: Sustainability Trends: How will they impact your company?

Moderator: Nelmara Arbex, Teaching Fellow, Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship

Hosted by

Copyright 2017

Sustainability Trends: How will they impact your company?Nelmara Arbex

Topics of high concern for business

Social1. World population increase (and

aging) 2. Food and water security3. Wealth inequality and unemployment4. Human rights protection5. Promotion of peace , conflicts’

management (including migration) and security

Environmental1. Climate change impacts2. Global and regional management of

natural resources (water, land, oceans)

3. Ecosystem protection4. Waste and contamination

management

Technology and efficiency1. Disruptive technology

development2. Need to increase efficiency

in the production/distribution of goods and services

3. Need to create new models/technology for energy production and distribution

Governance and development model1. Loss of trust and legitimacy in institutions2. Corruption3. Lack of trust in political leaders4. New role for business and civil society

leaders, to lead by integrity4. Need to further develop appropriate society’s governance structures5. Need for a new generation of development models

“What is happening” and “what is coming”

Society has many critical issues to

solve/The context where business operate

changes considerably

Stakeholders react and

create “trends”

Company has to get ready to re-

positioning itself, manage risks and

create new business

opportunities

Contextual Changes Trends

New challenges and new

opportunities for business

What is happening What is coming

New demands on companies – examples

Will the company be able to partner with governments and other players to better

manage resources and solve social issues?

Which is the goal/plan to become

“fossil fuel free”? GHG emission zero?

And zero waste?

Which policies were set to protect natural

resources ?And eco-systems?

Also in the supply chain?

How will the company help tackling poverty or wealth

distribution?

How is the company dealing with regional/local conflicts?

And Human Rights’ protection?

Is the company ready to relate to stakeholders in a more interactive

way?

And to share information about its impacts almost real

time?

Is the company disclosing robotics

impact on workers?

Environmental

Social

Governance and development

Technology

Society’s reactionsNew actors, new emphasis, new alliances, new goals

Photo: The Guardian

Society’s reactionAlliances for setting specific goals for concrete challenges

Society’s reaction Governments are setting goals on GHG emissions

Society’s reaction Governments – more regulations on corporate reports

GRI, Carrots & Sticks, 2016

OXFORD, England (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Growing global wealth inequality is becoming a fundamental risk to democracy and to economies around the world.

"It's very dangerous," said Ngaire Woods, dean of the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford. "If people can't aspire to succeed within the system, they will aspire … outside

the system, in ways that break the system.“

(Jun 2016)

Society’s reaction Risks perception – inequality as a risk for the economy

Society’s reaction - Business Companies go for zero waste campaign

Let’s have a closer look at stakeholders’ reaction to:

“Climate Change” factors

Companies committing - GHG zero plan and reductions

Pension Funds - divesting from non-renewable energy

15

16

Investors S&P and DJSI launch new “fossil fuel free” indexes

Investors – others are following

Governments for renewables – US and the world

Renewable in developing countries is increasing faster

19

Consumers are pro-actively changing

Innovators are everywhere

Countries committing – Fossil Fuel - Free

Get to your group, read the instructions, choose one participant as the “note taker” TASK 1: Get the “issues cards” and prioritize them by high or low influence on the sector

High: this issue will impact the whole business or critical parts of it in the next decade

Low: this issue will not impact OR may impact some but not critical parts of the business TASK2: Identify hard trends

From the high priority trends/issues - Which of them are connected to “something that will happen: a future fact that probably cannot be changed”

TASK 3:

For each of the high impact trends, describe how this issue/trend will impact companies in this industry?

Exercise - Instructions

Industries are: energy (production), agriculture, transportation, food & beverage, chemical

On the flip chartHigh influence

low

On the flip chartHigh influence

Supply chaininputs

Clients/Customersoutputs

Communities

Business’ core

Employees

5 min - get to your group, read the instructions, choose one participant as the “note taker”

15 min - do Task 1: prioritize the trends/issues considering your industry

10 min – do Task 2: In the “high priority list”, Identify “hard trends” 10 min – do Task 3: For each “high priority trend/issue”, make a short

list describing how they will impact the company 15 min – Let’s have a look at the groups results!

Exercise – total 55’

Thank you!