BSR Insight

A Weekly Newsletter for BSR Members | November 6, 2012

   
 

In This Issue

Editor's Note

Sandy, Sustainability, and the Future of Cities

Natural disasters like the megastorm Sandy have a tendency to exacerbate ongoing sustainability challenges and crystalize our ideas about what must be done to address them.

This week, we compare the storm’s impact on Haiti and the United States. The common narrative is the storm itself, but the sustainability story about how the storm has affected each region’s natural and human-made resources is a tale of two different worlds.

After seeing one of the world’s major cities grapple with the storm—and given the fact that 70 percent of us will live in urban areas by 2050—it’s timely to consider the future of cities through the lens of sustainability. In our feature, BSR’s Raj Sapru shares insights from experts at the forefront of infrastructure development on business’ role in sustainable urban growth.

Finally, we are excited to share some of BSR’s work over the past year with the publication of nine case studies showcasing our projects with companies from Boeing to Bradesco and collaboration on issues from human rights to social investment in China.

The Challenges of Living Large: Scaling Up Sustainable Urban Growth Department Icon

In Depth

The Challenges of Living Large: Scaling Up Sustainable Urban Growth

By

By 2050, almost three-quarters of the world's people will live in cities. What is the private sector's role in ensuring sustainable urban growth?

Read more →
Icon

On the Record

A Tale of Two Storms: U.S. and Haiti

By Julia Robinson, Communications Associate, BSR

As communities across North America regroup following "superstorm" Sandy, two narratives have emerged—of how the developed and developing worlds face loss, recovery, and questions about infrastructure and resources.

The story in the United States

At least 110 people have died, more than 8 million lost power, and the storm may cost up to US$50 billion. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo pointed out that flooding, exacerbated by global warming, will require new approaches to urban planning.

"We have 100-year floods every two years now. We have a new reality when it comes to these weather patterns and we have an old infrastructure, and that is not a good combination."

—Andrew Cuomo, governor of New York, United States, November 1, 2012

The story in Haiti

Haiti suffered at least 54 deaths, may experience a surge in its cholera epidemic (which has killed 7,500 since 2010), and lost 70 percent of the crops in its Southern Department. Haiti is still reeling from previous hurricanes and the 2010 earthquake, and food insecurity, already exacerbated by a lack of rainfall in previous months, is a major concern.

"The storm took everything away. Everything the peasants had in reserve—corn, tubers—all of it was devastated. Some people had already prepared their fields for winter crops, and those were devastated."

—Jean Debalio Jean-Jacques, director of the Southern Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Haiti, October 29, 2012

Icon

Spotlight

BSR Case Studies Examine Our Work in Sustainability

With our 20th anniversary Report, we published several case studies highlighting our efforts to redefine sustainable business leadership with our members and other stakeholders through consulting projects and our Partnership Development initiatives.

From helping a major clothing brand expand its supply chain strategy to improve workers' lives outside of the factory setting to advising a mining company on how to engage early with stakeholders for its development of an underground copper mine, BSR works with businesses across sectors and issues to build a more just and sustainable world.

  1. Bettercoal: Improving Performance in the Coal Supply Chain
  2. The Boeing Company: Assessing the Maturity of Environmental Systems
  3. Bradesco: Helping a Brazilian Bank Engage Society on Common Concerns
  4. CiYuan: Building Cross-Sector Partnerships to Enhance Social Investment in China
  5. CTIA: Outlining How Wireless Technology Drives Sustainability
  6. Human Rights Working Group: Helping Companies Ensure Respect for Human Rights
  7. Levi Strauss & Company: Improving Worker Well-Being in the Workplace and Community
  8. Twin Metals Minnesota: Using Early Stakeholder Engagement to Improve Strategy
  9. Western Union Summit: Addressing Education Needs and Creating New Business Opportunities