Sustainability

COVID-19 is a disaster for public health and the economy. Yet there may be a glimmer of a silver lining for the natural environment: By year end, the globe may see the biggest dip in carbon emissions on record. Investment in next-generation clean energy now could restore jobs, provide new ones, drive economic growth and lock in environmental gains.

How should brands communicate their sustainability plans and their corporate environmental performance? Professor June West and Joanna Price, Sr. Vice President, Public Affairs and Communications at Coca-Cola, explore the challenges of developing a successful communication strategy around climate action.

Business has the tools to solve the global climate crisis, but will business leaders have the will to drive the changes necessary to avoid the worst consequences of climate change?

Call it a win-win-win: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation honored Kroger for its Zero Hunger | Zero Waste initiative, which works to end hunger in its local communities and food waste in its entire company — victories for multiple stakeholders and the environment. Here’s how the initiative’s doing just that.

Disruption is essential to economic growth and societal advancement. But a backlash is brewing, and some worry that the pace of new technologies leads to unintended consequences that are too great. Professor Mike Lenox discusses the pros and cons of disruption and the reason the right kind of aggressive innovation is critical to saving the world.

With a global population projected to reach 9.8 billion by 2050, food production will require innovative new methods for producing more food, more sustainably. Here, Darden Ideas to Action highlights one company trying to do just that: Beanstalk, founded by brothers Mike and Jack Ross in 2017.

Becky Duff discusses the largest sources of GHG emissions – livestock farming and soil management – and explores the best practices and technologies that support carbon-smart farming. She also discusses the levers and opportunities in more detail with Darden Professor Mike Lenox.

Ambitious and polarizing, the Green New Deal brought the climate discussion back to the fore of government debate. But federal policy is not the only driver of impact on this crucial challenge.

We focus on the three largest emitters of CO2 – steel, cement, and petrochemicals – and explore some of the ideas and technologies best positioned to decarbonize these industries, and the challenges faced for broader adoption. We then discuss the levers and opportunities in the industrial sector with Darden Professor Mike Lenox.