In This Issue
Editor's Note
A New Year’s Resolution for Sustainable Consumption
'Tis the season for shopping. And, of course, consuming—which is why we're focusing this week on sustainable consumption.
BSR President and CEO Aron Cramer recently returned from Dubai, where he led a discussion on this subject under the auspices of the World Economic Forum. In his feature article, Cramer reveals three priority recommendations for business to support sustainable consumer habits: by mobilizing consumers, exploring new business models, and creating innovative public policy.
Speaking of public policy, we also spotlight recent work by BSR's DR-CAFTA Responsible Competitiveness Project on how business can work with government to advance responsible labor practices.
Lastly, BSR's climate expert Ryan Schuchard reports back from his week spent at COP15 in Copenhagen.
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In Depth
Sustainable Consumption: An Idea Whose Time Has Come?
By Aron Cramer, President and CEO, BSR
The recession brought a temporary pause to our focus on food, fuel, and water-security problems, but the long-term trends suggest that the question of whether existing business models can be sustained is squarely on the table.
Read more →
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Spotlight
Working With Government on Responsible Labor
By Ryan Flaherty, Manager, Advisory Services, BSR
Through BSR's DR-CAFTA Responsible Competitiveness Project, we recently presented recommendations to the Salvadoran government on how the country can promote company and national competitiveness through improved working conditions. Our benchmarking of global public-policy practices revealed that more governments are incorporating sustainability incentives into their policies.
BSR recommends that companies capitalize on these new public policies by taking the following steps:
- Get involved: Join multi-sector and tripartite discussions on responsible labor to share your company’s perspective and influence decision-making.
- Reduce duplication: Collaborate with government on auditing processes.
- Leverage your impact: Understand government priorities and share your company’s best practices with policymakers.
- Mitigate risks cost effectively: Seek donor-funded projects or public-private partnerships focused on improving supply chain labor practices.
- Improve reporting: Engage with government and civil society to create meaningful indicators that measure progress on labor practices.
- Lead: Position your company as a leader on this important sustainability issue.
On the Record
Overheard at COP15
BSR Research & Innovation Manager Ryan Schuchard spent last week at COP15 in Copenhagen. After standing in line for hours to get in, Schuchard presented on corporate climate leadership, watched presentations on climate science and U.S. legislation, and attended Klimaforum, the people's summit. Here is some of what he heard at Copenhagen:
"Justice is intrinsic to sustainability, and we cannot sustain an unjust world."
—Bill Becker, executive director, Presidential Climate Action Project (December 2009)
"If I hear the word 'grandchildren’ one more time … [Climate change] is happening now."
—Bill McKibben, author and cofounder of 350.org (December 2009)
"Barack Obama said we need transparency, but the partner to transparency is accountability."
—Polly Higgins, lawyer, activist, and founder of Planet Earth Trust, on why three things should be prioritized: identifying emissions upstream at the point source, identifying subsidies at the source, and implementing effective laws that incentivize positive action (December 2009)
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