Carbon Disclosure Project Supply Chain Report Launch

Recently, Strategic Sustainability Consulting got the opportunity to attend yet another highly informative 2degrees webinar with timely updates from the world of sustainability. This time around the session, “Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) Supply Chain Report Launch,” was hosted by Dexter Galvin, the Head of CDP Supply Chain.

Galvin opened the session explaining, “We found [the CDP] over a decade ago to accelerate solutions to climate change by putting relevant data at the heart of business policy and investment decisions.” Since their humble beginnings, the CDP now works with 655 institutional investors holding US$78 trillion in assets to help reveal the risk in their investment portfolios and has some 50 purchasing organizations such as Dell, PepsiCo, and Walmart using the global CDP system to mitigate environmental risk in their supply chains.

As Galvin handed the session over to Aditya Sharma, of Accenture Sustainability Services, Sharma proceeded to reveal some intriguing correlations made from this year’s CDP report. He found that:

• This year’s data proved that companies are not only making the business case but utilizing green benefits.
• Members are not only doubling in their investments, but in financial savings as well.
• A gap is beginning to form in the communication taking place between member companies and their suppliers. Those companies that capitalize on their clear lines of communication can statistically prove that indeed greening your whole supply chain makes a monumental impact!
• Business leaders are also realizing that they can stay on top of the competition through brand improvement and through innovation in the revenue stream.

The webinar also reviewed how leading companies are using the CDP Supply Chain report to assess suppliers on their maturity and action on climate change; FirstCarbon Solutions 2012 CDP Supply Chain scoring trends; and BT Group and Jaguar Land Rover's experiences of engaging their suppliers on climate change and sustainability. Learn more by checking out the complete webinar recording here!

Looking Back on 2012 and Wishing You Happy Holidays!

Where did 2012 go?  It was a great year for us and in the midst of so much activity it really flew by. Looking back, some of our favorite projects have included helping companies finalize their carbon footprints for annual Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) reports and working with clients on their annual Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) assessment. 

We wrapped up several CDP reports for our clients, and helped Chicken of the Sea in their sustainability journey as they moved to publish their first-ever sustainability report! We were also busy with client projects like providing independent verifications for Montgomery County's Green Business Certification, celebrating with our client Teck Resources on their continued inclusion in the DJSI, and providing ongoing support for green nonprofits through our work with NeighborWorks America.

Jennifer was elected Vice Chairman of the Coalition for Responsible Fire Protection and was still able to attend several key conferences and events while keeping up with the SSC pace.  One of our favorites was a stakeholder workshop hosted by Verite and Walmart, bringing together members of the food and agriculture value chain to talk about social sustainability standards. We also really enjoyed FMI/GMA Sustainability Summit that focused on sustainability activities in the food and agriculture industry.

We finished another onsite waste audit, and despite the "dirty work" it was great to meet new faces from the SSC Consultant Network and work together! A special thanks to all those who reached out and especially to those who participated ... we are proud to have such a great network!

It’s been another successful year for SSC (our seventh in fact!) and we're so grateful for your loyal support across the years. Here were some of your favorite SSC resources and articles from this past year:

Top Ten SSC Blogs and Articles in 2012

1. Three Ways Retailers Can Help Their Suppliers Tackle Sustainability
2. The Brutal Truth about Sustainability Reporting
3. Four Things Your Company Needs to Know About The Carbon Disclosure Project
4. Reasons Not to Publish a Sustainability Report (At Least Not Yet)
5. Case Studies Enliven Sustainability Reports
6. The Untapped Potential of a Sustainability Story
7. Seven Questions to Focus Sustainability Leadership
8. Is the Sustainability Consulting Market Reaching Maturity?
9. Setting Targets and Encouraging Behaviors That Work
10. Why You Should Wait to Act on Sustainability

Top Ten SSC Resources in 2012

1. Green Retrofitting 101
2. Every Last Drop: Water and the Sustainable Business
3. Engaging Employees in the Company's Sustainability
4. Choosing Sustainability Management Software for Your Business
5. Become a Sustainability Champion: At any Career Level
6. Sustainable Manufacturing: Comparing Lean, Six Sigma, and Total Quality Manufacturing
7. Sustainability Consulting 101 - Introduction to Sustainability Consulting
8. Sustainability Change Management: We’ve Had the Green Audit...Now What?
9. Sustainability Certifications and Standards
10. SSC Green Auditor Certification

This is our last blog for 2012, and we will be signing off to enjoy the holidays!  We will be closing our office December 20, 2012 and will reopen on January 7, 2013 ... except for previous commitments to existing clients.  From the team at SSC we wish you happy holidays and hope that a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2013 is had by all!

Infographic: Where Will Climate Change Hurt You the Most?

We love a good infographic -- and we recently came across this great visualization on climate change vulnerability. Vulnerability is grouped into four categories: health impacts, weather disasters, habitat loss, and economic stress. Circles on the left side of each set indicate relative magnitude of vulnerability in 2010, circles on the right indicate the same for 2030. Click on the image to view a larger version:

While the data is pretty interesting on its own, it can also be a valuable tool to assist companies with supply chain risk assessment -- particularly if you are a Walmart supplier responding to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) Report questionnaire. Identifying the types of vulnerability in the geographies where you source raw materials (or contract manufacturing) can make it easier to pinpoint what kind of issues you may be facing in the future.

Source: DARA, a Madrid-based humanitarian advocacy organization, recently partnered with the Climate Vulnerable Forum, comprising countries particularly vulnerable to climate change, to create Climate Vulnerability Monitor 2010, an atlas of vulnerability. This infographic presents a small portion of the picture the Climate Vulnerability Monitor paints.