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A little later then usual here are the Top 5 Sustainability & CSR News stories of the past week. I really like the last article on IKEA. Well worht checking out.

My Top 5 Sustainability/CSR News Stories the past week:

US execs: CSR initiatives do boost the bottom line
Three quarters of business executives now accept that responsible corporate citizenship brings with it financial rewards.

Greenhouse Gases Warmest Ever in 2007
It’s no fun reporting on ever-rising greenhouse gases – the United Nations weather agency, the World Meteorological Organization, says carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide reached record highs in 2007, and methane rose to its highest level in 10 years.

A Green Deal for Transportation
Interesting article on the need for the US Auto Bailout to be more sustainable.

London 2012 publishes sustainable procurement code
Olympic’s green procurement guidelines likely to get tougher as Games approach.

IKEA Goes Beyond Plastic Bags
Great read from the GreenBiz column on IKEAs effort to become more sustainable.

Sorry for the lack of posts this week. It has been an extremely busy week. Nevertheless have I been reading some interesting stories this week. The most interesting articles make it into my weekly top 5 list.
This week my favourite in terms of topical area is the article on nuclear power as I believe that our decision whether to invest in nuclear power is a decision of great significance for our sustainable future. I also really liked the Al Gore’s article on Sustainable Capitalism in the WSJ.
Take a look and let me know what you think by commenting below.

My Top 5 Sustainability/CSR News Stories this week:

British Energy chief: “We can’t meet our climate change obligations without nuclear”
Nuclear operator claim plans for four new reactors need to be accelerated. If you like it or not we need to find a solution on the nuclear debate soon. One way or the other. Our time runs out.

Size matters: Long CSR reports win most green gongs
Longer corporate responsibility reports are more likely to win companies an environmental gong but they are still packed with greenwash and vague references to terminology such as ’sustainability’.

We Need Sustainable Capitalism
Nature does not do bailouts. An article by Al Gore.

Yahoo! Study Finds Growing Green Market
The drive to sustainability is having a broad effect on consumers, with three in four defining themselves as “green,” according to a new survey by Yahoo!.

Green Building Could Triple by 2013 – Report
The U.S. green building market is accelerating at a dramatic rate. The value of green building construction starts was up five-fold from 2005 to 2008 (from $10 billion to $36-$49 billion), and could triple by 2013, reaching $96-$140 billion, according to a new report.

Picture Credit: huntz

After last weeks stronger focus on CSR this weeks focus in the news I saw was more on environmental topics again. Less corporate news but more reports and opinion. Especially on Climate Change. All in all has it been an interesting week. I do not really have a clear favourite this week. I like then all. So take your pick.

Here are my Top 5 of this week:

Big Global Investors Getting Tough on Climate Change
Interesting news item on what is needed in any case. Big investment involvement regarding climate change.

Gore urges Obama to deliver 100 per cent renewables within a decade
Former vice president and potential climate change ambassador calls for national smart grid and renewables targets to underpin climate policy.

Employees peer pressured into being green
Would you turn off the light just because Jenny did it? Apparently so, according to a YouGov poll.

Report Finds That Most Corporations Fail to Address Risks That Threaten Long-Term Profitability
A recent report by EIRIS found that the majority of companies are exposed to significant unmanaged risks on key environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, SocialFunds.com reports.

Is Carbon Capture and Storage the Fix?
Promoted in Europe, the technology for storing CO2 emissions underground could someday transform electric utilities and other industry into eco-friendly businesses.

This week has obviously been a big politics week seeing the new president-elect Barack Obama win the US Election. So how much damage can Bush still do? Take a look at the first link. Interesting article.
Otherwise has this week seen a mix of environmental and economic news items. The big fear is the financial crisis. Only the future will tell whether the outlook is really that bad. The third article tackles this to some degree.
But my favourite of this week is the last article. NetImpact, an international NGO, has published its BusinessAsUnusal student guide to graduate business schools. This time focusing on the sustainability of business schools across the globe.

My Top 5 News stories of the week:

How much environmental damage can Bush do in last 100 days?
US House of Representatives committee warns Bush administration could use last few months in office for huge roll back of green legislation.

Budgets Squeezed, Some Families Bypass Organics
As budgets of consumers decrease what will they do when it comes to organic food? Nice NY Times article.

UK: Climate change to take formal role in planning decisions
The UK Government moves to address renewables project bottleneck by forcing all national planning strategies to make it clear how they will mitigate climate change

Brazil sees carbon market saving Amazon
Growing concern over climate change, and the potential of the carbon credit market, could give the Amazon forest a financial value rivaling the lucrative activities that are eating it away, Brazilian officials believe.

Choosing the right business school – From a Sustainability point of view
Bainbridge Graduate Institute tops rankings as study reveals burgeoning demand for green MBAs. Very useful publication from NetImpact.

This week has seen a lot of interesting news items on CSR and Sustainability. The most interesting stories I came across where the first and second stories below. Namely on the link of effective management and sustainability governance and the research on CSR reporting done by KPMG study mentioned in the second article.

Here are the Top 5 of this week:

New research confirms link between corporate responsibility and improved financial performance
New research released today by Business in the Community (BITC) reveals a statistically significant link between effective management and governance of environmental and social issues and financial performance.

Sustainability Reporting Grows Dramatically Among Multinationals
The number of large multinational companies reporting corporate responsibility (CR) data has risen dramatically over the last three years, with vast majority doing so because of ethical reasons, according to new research from KPMG.

Global Investors Issue $4T Incentive for Sustainability
A powerful group of global investors has launched an initiative to call on almost 9,000 listed companies to sign-up to international standards on human rights, the environment and anti-corruption measures.

Future of green is not so black, say some
The deepening economic crisis may appear to be the perfect storm for environmentalism, but many in and around the green movement contend the opposite, seeing in it a time of opportunity.

U.N. Set to Spur Global Green Market
The United Nations Environment Programme launched the Green Economic Initiative last week to shift the global economy toward environmentally friendly investments in order to create jobs and address climate change.

Environmental and climate Change topics is the focus of this weeks Top 5 Sustainability/Corporate Social Responsibility news stories. This is not intentional but merely a reflection of the interesting new I came across during that week.

Here are the Top 5 of this week:

EU announces next eco-design product priorities
The European Commission has unveiled a list of ten priority energy-using product groups for which it wants energy-efficiency standards to be established in the next three years.

Top 10 sources of pollution named and shamed
Mining and material extraction have health risks that could be avoided with relatively small investments.

UNEP plans green version of the New Deal spacer
The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has launched a ‘Green New Deal’ initiative, which it hopes will give governments the tools to perform an environmental overhaul of their economies.

Crunch fails to crush cleantech investment
Money invested globally in green technology has grown strongly this year, despite the downturn.

Calif. Efficiency Laws Saved State Big Bucks
A report from the University of California, Berkeley, reaffirmed research recently released by the state Air Resources Board: Strong energy policies will become a key driver for improving job creation, household incomes and the Gross State Product.

This weeks Top 5 Sustainability/Corporate Social Responsibility news stories focus more on Climate Change topics. I noticed that there where a lot of interesting climate change studies published this week. Next to the interesting Climate Change topics I particularly like second article on the importance of brand strength for sustainability.

Here are the Top 5 of this week:

Combating climate change could create millions of jobs, says UN-backed study
Tackling climate change could potentially generate millions of new employment opportunities, according to a new United Nations-backed study – the first of its kind on the emergence of a “green economy” and its impact on labour.

Sustainability credentials essential to brand strength
Authors of top 100 brand report argue that good environmental performance is becoming an increasingly important factor in a company’s brand power.

Global carbon emissions still rising
Man-made C02 emissions are increasing four times faster than pre-2000 figures.

Study: GM Gets Thumbs Up for Eco-Friendly Practices
In Web discussions and blogs centred on environmental health and sustainability, Toyota and Honda have an unlikely stable mate: General Motors, a bane of environmentalists for spending millions to lobby against fuel economy mandates.

Consumers Say Business Should Take Leading Role in Fighting Climate Change
Consumers believe businesses should bear the heaviest load of the burden to address climate change and while companies acknowledge the problem, they haven’t done as much as they could to address it, say two recent studies.

Here are the Top 5 news stories and links I thought where some of the most interesting Sustainability/Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) news stories of the past 5 days. Feedback is highly appreciated.
I particularly like the Financial Times blog post on the CSR future during the current financial crisis.

My Top 5 of this week:

Measuring the Transparency of Environmental Sustainability Reporting – An evaluation of Fortune 50 companies to determine the depth and detail of information presented on environmental sustainability efforts of the company.

Will corporate social responsibility survive the bust? – Great blog from the Financial Times.

UK carbon trading to have little impact on emissions – But report argues stringent penalties for non compliance mean firms would still be well advised to move now to draw up a carbon management plans.

High Cost of New Technology is the Biggest Challenge to Greening Products: Report – Green products hold great competitive promise, but companies need to be smart when pursuing costly development strategies, says a recent report by the Aberdeen Group.

China to become world’s largest investor in green energy – China is on the verge of becoming the world’s largest investor in green energy as it struggles to reverse the catastrophic effect its industry has wreaked on the environment.

Here are my top 5 links I thought where some of the most interesting Sustainability/Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) news stories of the past 5 days. Feedback is highly appreciated. As always.

The Top 5 Stories of this Week:

1. The changing face of Corporate Social Responsibility – Interesting article on the ever increasing level of awareness on CSR topics.
2. Climate change barely altering European habits – Lifestyle changes and knowledge lag behind awareness of the seriousness of climate change. Sad but true.
3. Berlin to get electric car network – Companies are working togehter to build a electric car network.
4. World first Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) plant inaugurated this week – To be started up this week in Germany. Is this the future? We will see.
5. Green Sectors Key to New U.K. Manufacturing Strategy - The U.K. government plans to invest almost £150 million into programs to boost the manufacturing industry, including support of low emission vehicles and renewable and nuclear energy. A good move in my opinion.

Have a good weekend everyone.

Fabian

This is a new series for every Friday from now on: I will list the top 5 links which I think are some of the most interesting Sustainability/Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) news stories of the past 5 days. Feedback is highly appreciated.

My Top 5 of this week:

1. eBay Launches Marketplace for Ethically Sourced and Eco-Friendly Products Will this be a success? Time will tell I guess.
2. Shell accused of manipulating environmental report Outrageous if this is true. Read for yourself.
3. Fuel cell powered ship takes to the water One of the first fuel cell powered passenger ships in the world has been put into operation successfully. Fascinating technology in my opinion.
4. Taking Green Initiatives to the Next Level Feature article from GreenBiz.com on making sustainability initiatives stick within an organisation.
5. New Era for Sustainable Investing Financial Times article that takes a look at SRI investing and that this type of investment is becoming a new benchmark for investment decisions.