US Assumes Chairmanship of the Arctic Council and Promises to Prioritize Climate and the Environment

The far north will assume a leading role in the war against climate change now that the U.S. has replaced Canada as the leader of the Arctic Council. On Friday April 24th 2015, the U.S. assumed the leadership of the international body that is charged with addressing climate change and other important issues facing the Arctic. The Council's mandate is to protect the Arctic environment and promote sustainable development in the northern communities.

The Council is composed of the United States, Canada, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Finland, Russia and Arctic Indigenous Peoples. Each nation is given the opportunity to lead the Council for two years on a rotating basis.

Leadership is important to the future of the Arctic as the region is on the front lines of climate change. Some of the key interrelated Arctic issues that need to be addressed are melting sea ice, anomalous weather, shipping traffic, and warming causing GHGs to leech from the permafrost.

At an April 24th Arctic Council biennial meeting in Iqaluit, ministers signed a Declaration that reaffirmed each nation’s commitment to maintaining peace in the Arctic, sustaining indigenous communities, and combating climate change in the region.

Failed Canadian Leadership

Canada’s Arctic Council tenure was pro-industry, pro-fossil fuels and pro-shipping. Going into the Iqaluit meeting, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry acknowledged that governments are not moving fast enough to avert a climate disaster. This statement was directed in part at Canada, one of the world's most egregious climate laggards.

Canada has failed to show leadership during its tenure on a number of fronts. With Canada at the helm, the Arctic Council has been anemic on environmental protection and climate change. Canada's support for fossil fuels and feckless climate leadership have hindered environmental action from the council.

Canadian inaction on climate change increases the risks from flooding that could inundate entire northern communities. Several environmental organizations have criticized Canada's chairmanship of the Council. Greenpeace Canada Arctic spokesperson Farrah Khan said that under Canada's leadership, the Council produced “poor outcomes that saw corporate interest acquire a stronger voice in the pan-Arctic forum, and environmental protection fall low in the priority list."

New Agenda

Greenpeace is among those that have urged the U.S. to do more with the chairmanship of the Council than Canada. A number of groups have also asked the US government to put environmental and climate issues at the forefront of the Council agenda. This was also the message contained in an open letter from British actor Emma Thompson to retired Coast Guard admiral Robert Papp, the U.S. special representative for the Arctic. “It should be noted that unlike its preceding chair, the U.S. is at least actively embracing climate change emissions reduction and environmental protection during its two-year mandate at the Arctic Council’s helm,” Thompson said.

Greenpeace sent all Arctic Council foreign ministers framed copies of its Declaration on the Future of the Arctic. It was signed by almost 2,000 prominent figures including scientists, politicians, religious leaders, intellectuals and celebrities.

Under the leadership of President Obama and Secretary Kerry, the U.S. has been taking huge strides to combat climate change and there is every reason to believe that this will extend to their chairmanship of the Council.

The U.S. has indicated that they intend to shift the priorities of the Council and focus on climate change and the environment. In his address to the eight nation ministerial gathering in Iqaluit, Secretary Kerrysaid Council nations “must do everything we can to prevent worse impacts [from GHG emissions]...The Arctic Council can do more on climate change,” Mr. Kerry added.

The State Department has an ambitious agenda for the Council over the next two years. The U.S. has already made progress securing a pledge to do more to fight black carbon and methane. Black carbon is soot that settles on snow and ice and makes the ice absorb more energy from the sun causing it to melt even faster. A major part of the soot problem in the Arctic comes from diesel generators that are used to supply heat to the four million people that live there. Secretary Kerrysaid, “one of the most important things we can do for the people of the region is help them with renewable, clean energy.” Other sources of black carbon include oil-well flaring and open burning of forests and grasslands.

The United States’ theme for its two years on the Council will be “One Arctic: Shared Opportunities, Challenges and Responsibilities.” and climate change will be front and center. “There’s only ‘one Arctic’ and all of us – the United States, other nations, indigenous peoples, and Arctic communities – must join together to ensure responsible stewardship of this incredible region,” Kerry said at the meeting.

As explained by Khan, "we’re pleased to see the U.S. is making climate change mitigation and ocean protection a priority for their two year term.”

Drilling

Oil extraction is one of the most contentious Arctic issues. Canada was criticized for its support for Arctic oil exploration leading Khan to say, "during Canada’s chairmanship, the oil industry was given unfettered access to Arctic leaders through the creation of the Arctic Economic Council." It remains to be seen how much this will change under American leadership.

There are many promising initiatives that can be expected from US leadership, however a moratorium on Arctic drilling is not expected to be one of them. The U.S. is providing oil leases despite the risksassociated with drilling for oil in the Arctic.

As quoted by Earth Justice, Dan Ritzman, Alaska Program Director for Sierra Club's Our Wild America Campaign, warns against drilling in the Arctic:

“America's Arctic Ocean is the last place we should be drilling for oil. The risks to wildlife, to subsistence communities, and to the climate are clear. Equally clear is the need for the U.S. to take a leadership role on climate, especially as it takes over the Arctic Council next year. Real progress on climate requires the administration begin leaving dirty fuels in the ground, starting with the Arctic Ocean”.

As Thompson explained in her letter to Papp, “Protecting the Arctic from oil drilling goes hand in hand with protecting the world from the worst impacts of climate change.”

A number of celebrities are among those who support Greenpeace’s call for an “Arctic Sanctuary,” which would see the Arctic Ocean protected from oil drilling, industrial fishing and military activity. With so many nations vying for access to Arctic resources, creating a Sanctuary may be the best way to protect the region and preempt potential conflicts in the region.

Need for Cooperation

While cooperation is necessary, it has not been forthcoming under Canada's leadership of the Council. Political concerns expressed by Canada over events in the Ukraine caused Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to boycott the Iqaluit summit. Russia has even allowed a barge filled with oil to drift across the Arctic Ocean. It is now frozen in the ice about 80 kilometres off Russia's northeast coast where it threatens the summer habitat of Pacific walrus.

Unlike Canada, the U.S. understands the importance of ongoing cooperation with Russia despite the situation in the Ukraine. "The Obama administration has been very clear that Arctic co-operation must continue," said Michael Byers, international affairs professor at the University of British Columbia, "that the issues of climate change in the Arctic are simply too important to be caught up in the tensions in Ukraine and eastern Europe," Byers said.

The Finnish foreign minister Erkki Tuomioja, said, "its in no one's interest to let problems elsewhere impact cooperation in the Arctic.

Hope

The future of the Arctic looks far better under U.S. leadership and it may even increase the prospects of securing a global climate agreement. It is hoped that the world will come together to sign a global emissions agreement at the forthcoming climate talks planned for Paris at the end of the year. The Obama administration has expressed hope that the changes observed in the Arctic will add urgency to the Paris proceedings.

American leadership of the Council may help to lay the foundation for an agreement in Paris. Secretary Kerry has indicated that he plans to use U.S. leadership of the Council to highlight the connection between melting ice in the Arctic and environmental effects around the globe.

The Arctic is important to all of us, and this is an opportune time for the U.S. to take the reigns from Canada. The fact that America is now at the head of the Council bodes well for global efforts to address climate change and other environmental issues. 

Source: Global Warming is Real

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The Unacceptable Risks of Arctic Drilling

Drilling for fossil fuels in the Arctic is one of the most controversial corollaries of a warmer world. In addition to climate change causing emissions from the burning of fossil fuels there are also a number of environmental risks associated with drilling in a region as remote as the Arctic. The catastrophic impacts from oil spills and difficulties in cleaning up such spills are at the top of those risks.

As quoted by Earth Justice, Kevin Harun, Arctic Program Director, Pacific Environment said, “The Arctic’s marineenvironment is relatively pristine, yet fragile and extremely vulnerable to potential oil impacts. It is clear that the oil industry is not prepared to drill safely in Arctic waters. What’s at stake here is one of the important ecosystems on the planet and food security of indigenous peoples who depend on these Arctic marine waters for sustenance.”

Nonetheless, as the Arctic warms and the ice retreats the race is on to extract resources from this fragile region.  Oil companies are increasingly pursuing Arctic oil. In 2012 Russia was already lining up investors to drill in the Arctic. Since 2005 oil bids for leases in the Arctic Chukchi and Beaufort seas, an area rich in marine life, total more than $2.7 billion. These two seas are home to half of America's polar bears, whales, walruses, seals and other wildlife. All of which are already suffering due to climate change. An oil spill, which is almost certain, would add insult to injury.

“The Chukchi Sea provides important habitat for many special animals, including walruses, bowhead whales, seals, polar bears and migratory birds. Drilling for oil and gas in this vulnerable region could have enormous impacts—and there’s no proven way to clean up a major oil spill in these waters,” said Andrew Hartsig, Director of Ocean Conservancy’s Arctic Program. “Lease Sale 193 should not be affirmed. Instead, the Obama Administration should focus on protecting important marine areas in the Chukchi Sea and other parts of the Arctic Ocean.”

Last January, the Ninth Circuit Court declared the Chukchi Lease Sale 193 unlawful. Their ruling indicates that the Bush Administration wildly underestimated the risks of spills and other hazards when it opened the Chukchi Sea to oil leasing and exploration in 2008. The court found that the environmental impact statement for the sale arbitrarily analyzed “only the best case scenario for environmental harm.” 

A recent report showed how an oil spill is likely if we drill for oil in the Arctic and this would be calamitous for local wildlife. The report from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) declared that Arctic drilling for oil comes with a 75 percent chance of a large spill (more than 1,000 barrels, or 42,000 gallons, of oil).

"There's no such thing as safe oil exploration, drilling and transport - there will be spills," said Dune Lankard, Eyak Preservation Council. When such spills do occur there is no way effectively to clean up or contain them in Arctic Ocean conditions.

The BOEM analysis reveals that such a spill would cause hypothermia in polar bears and ingestion would cause ulcers, liver damage, and brain damage. Exposure to crude oil would be lethal for beluga whales and it would disrupt the October migration of endangered bowhead whales. Pacific walrus are also vulnerable to a spill.

In addition to the risk from a spill noise pollution from Arctic drilling is also a threat to seals and whales. More than 50,000 seals and 6,000 whales may be exposed to noise that could disrupt vital life activities like migration, breathing, nursing, breeding, feeding and sheltering.

“Whether it will be from an almost inevitable oil spill, or from the unavoidable noises from seismic surveys, vessel and platform stabilization, underwater acoustic communications, seafloor hydrocarbon processing, and re-injection well compressors; we know that oil and gas operations will disrupt the habitat for Arctic marine,” said Michael Stocker, Director, Ocean Conservation Research.

Despite the fact these known impacts, the US department of the Interior has opened the door to Arctic drilling. Exxon Mobil began drilling in Russia's Arctic on Aug. 9, 2014 and others will follow. After spending 5 billion on exploration then being forced to sit-out 2013 due to protests and accidents, Shell will resume its Arctic drilling in 2015.

Shell is clearly unprepared for Arctic drilling. The proposed resumption of activities in the Arctic comes after Shell’s rig had to flee from a 30-mile-long iceberg and its drill rig carrying 150,000 gallons of diesel fuel, ran aground near Kodiak, Alaska during relatively routine winter weather in 2012. One of Shell's spill-response barges was also detained for 400 safety-related defects. Noble Drilling, the company that operated Shell’s two drill rigs used in the 2012 Arctic offshore season, was forced to pay $12.2 million in fines stemming from environmental and safety violations aboard its vessels.

“Shell’s disastrous 2012 Arctic Ocean drilling and transport operations demonstrate that even technically advanced and well-resourced companies are no match for Arctic conditions and the challenges of getting to and from there,” said Nicole Whittington-Evans, Alaska Regional Director for The Wilderness Society.

As explained by Susan Murray, Deputy Vice President, Pacific for Oceana. “Shell has demonstrated, companies are not ready to operate safely in the Arctic Ocean.”

While oil giants like ConocoPhilips and Statoil have canceled plans to drill in the Arctic or put their drilling on hold there are a number of others that are undeterred by the risks.

Cindy Shogan, Executive Director for Alaska Wilderness League, described Arctic drilling as “unsafe, dangerous and irresponsible.” Stocker added, “opening the Arctic to fossil fuel extraction is just plain reckless,”

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Shipping in the Arctic: Economic Opportunty or Environmental Calamity?

The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the global average and as the ice disappears the Arctic Ocean is becoming more navigable. Previously inhospitable areas will see a lot more traffic from shipping, fishing, and tourism.

Tourism is on the rise in the Arctic. The number of nights spent by visitors to the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard north of Norway has risen more than 300 percent between 1993 and 2013.

There is already a Canadian cruise ship that is preparing to travel the Northwest Passage in 2016. The cruise ship Crystal Serenity belongs to Crystal Cruises, escorted by an icebreaker, it will travel from Anchorage to New York in 2016.

As the water warms a number of fish species are moving into Arctic waters. Countries are already harvesting hundreds of thousands of tons of mackerel cod, haddock, herring, blue whiting and other species

Russia has had its sights set on exploiting the Arctic's riches for more than a decade and that country already has 16 deep-water ports along its Arctic coastline. Russia is well positioned because the Ice conditions in the Northwest passage remain very hard to navigate while the Northern Sea Route (just off of Russian shores) is far better.

Some experts have estimated that by 2030 shipping in the Arctic could account for a quarter of the cargo traffic between Europe and Asia. One 2012 study suggested we will see a radical increase in trans-Arctic shipping routes linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

China is another example of a country looking for ways of expediting the flow of goods by ships. The Chinese media refer to the Northern Sea Route as the 'Arctic Golden Waterway,' Professor Bin Yang of Shanghai Maritime University estimates the route could save China between $60 billion and $120 billion per year.

Navigation of the Northwest Passage is not new but it is the most perilous shipping route in the world. However, as the ice on the Arctic sea continues to melt, shipping traffic may soon explode even along the Northwest Passage. It was first navigated between 1903 and 1906 by Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen. In 1969 the Canadian ice breaking oil tanker, the S.S. Manhattan also traversed the passage.

With declining levels of ice vast swaths of the Arctic Ocean are now being used as a shipping route. As early as 2030 the area may be completely ice-free in the summer and as a consequence it will be open to shipping traffic. According to one study ships without ice-breaking hulls will soon be able to cross previously inaccessible parts of the Arctic Ocean.

There are powerful market forces driving interest in Arctic shipping. Taking a northern course offers dramatic reductions in the distance traveled and therefore the amount of time for each journey. These faster ways of going from east to west could reduce travel time by as much as 40 percent compared with shipments that go by the Suez Canal. This significantly reduces the cost of fuel and salaries. Going north cuts the shipping distance from Asia to Europe by at least 1,000 nautical miles. This translates to between four days and two weeks less travel time when compared to the duration of a trip that goes south through the Panama Canal.

Currently the Northern Sea Route is far easier to navigate than the Northwest Passage which is full of islands and fjords. 2010 The Nordic Orion was the first non-Russian company to use this Sea Route when it shipped iron ore from Norway to China. In 2012 Nordic Orion's sister ship, the Nordic Odyssey, used the route to ship iron ore from Russia to China. These ships are owned by a Danish company called Nordic Bulk Carriers which is establishing itself as a pioneer in Arctic shipping. They estimated that each trip saves them more than $400,000 on fuel alone.

In August 2012 a Chinese vessel was the first container transporting freighter to transit the route in a journey that took two weeks less than the usual one through the Suez Canal. In November 2012 Russian gas export company Gazprom made the first delivery of liquefied natural gas through the Northeast Passage, sailing from Norway east to Japan.

In September 2013, the same week that the UN’s IPCC released its fifth assessment report, the Nordic Orion transported a cargo of coal across the Northwest Passage became the first bulk carrier to traverse that route. The Nordic Orion traveled with a Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker.

All together, in 2013 and 2014 there were almost 150 cargo ships that traversed the Arctic north of Russia.

Arctic shipping is associated with a wide range of potential dangers and a host of environmental concerns and risk.

In recent years there have been some daunting reminders of the dangers of shipping in ice infested waters. In 2007, the supposedly robust and capable ice-strengthened MS Explorer sank during an Antarctic voyage. Another problem associated with Arctic shipping is ice coagulation on the top portion of vessels that can cause them to tip over. Even "icing," which occurs when ocean spray freezes onto the superstructure of a ship, can cause it to become top-heavy and capsize.

Due to shorter voyages, shipping in the Arctic reduces emissions compared to a longer trip. However, some have expressed concern that there is no net benefit and there may even be a greater environmental cost. "Emissions of soot from heavy oil in the Arctic climate eliminates the benefits of choosing a shorter route," said Sigurd Enge, Bellona’s senior advisor on Arctic affairs. “Problems of soot in Arctic waters have a proven effect on the accelerated melting [of the Polar Icecap]. Chosing shorter routes is therefore solely for profit at the expense of the environment and the climate. This form of risk transfer is the last thing the Arctic needs now."

Another concern associated with Arctic shipping activity is that there is no environmental and safety infrastructure in Canada’s North. Single hull boats could easily rupture spilling their cargo and bunker fuel into the water. "These waters are highly risky to operate in," said Enge. "If such a ship wrecks in these waters , we have neither equipment nor emergency infrastructure to clean up or conduct rescue operations."

Opening the Arctic will also bring a range of invasive species including harmful pests like mosquitoes, forest beetles, mussels and barnacles. These new species can damage local ecosystems and threaten native plants and animals.

While some are greedily looking at the Arctic as the new economic frontier," Achim Steiner, head of the U.N. Environment Program does not share this optimistic view. "I would caution against the hypothetical bonanza that some people see," he said.

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The Vatican's Climate Conference Calls for a Moral Awakening that Includes Rejecting Fossil Fuels

On April 28th, the Vatican held a major conference on climate change that called for a moral awakening. The summit addressed the need for urgent action including reductions in our consumption of fossil fuels. The conference was titled, Protect the Earth, Dignify Humanity: The Moral Dimensions of Climate Change and Sustainable Development. It was hosted by the Pontifical Academy of Science and included 60 scientists, religious leaders and diplomats.

The opening address was delivered by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the conference participants included the American economist Jeffrey Sachs, the director of the UN Sustainable Solutions Network and the Earth Institute at Columbia University. As Sachs explained to reporters,

"Companies that invest in fossil fuels will lose money. Everybody needs to understand that policies are going to change to make it unprofitable if you wreck the planet," he said. "Those companies that continue exploring and developing fossil fuel resources for which there is no safe use are going to pay a very heavy cost for that."

This event included participants from each of the world's major religions. As explained by the Vatican the goal was to, "help build a global movement across all religions for sustainable development and climate change throughout 2015 and beyond...[and] elevate the importance of the moral dimensions of protecting the environment in advance of the papal encyclical and to build a global movement to deal with climate change and sustainable development."

The encyclical which has already been written is currently being translated and it is expected to be released this summer.

A statement by Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana, who helped the Pontiff to write his encyclical said, "the ever-accelerating burning of fossil fuels…is disrupting the earth’s delicate ecological balance on almost unfathomable scale." He said that a "full conversion" of hearts and minds is needed if we are to succeed in meeting the threat of global warming.

"In our recklessness, we are traversing some of the planet’s most fundamental natural boundaries," Turkson warned. "And the lesson from the Garden of Eden still rings true today: pride, hubris, self-centredness are always perilous, indeed destructive. The very technology that has brought great reward is now poised to bring great ruin."

The conference specifically focused on what the Vatican called, “the intrinsic connection between respect for the environment and respect for people—especially the poor, the excluded, victims of human trafficking and modern slavery, children and future generations."

The Heartland Institute, a fossil fuel funded lobby group that poses as a think tank sent a delegation to Rome to protest the idea that climate change is caused by human activity. However, the Pope has been unequivocal in his belief that man is the primarily cause of climate change. The Pope has called exploiting the Earth a sin and has also indicated that a Christian who does not protect God’s creation "is a Christian who does not care about the work of God."

The conference repeatedly referencing the scientific observation that humans are the driving force behind climate change and no space was provided for the anti-scientific views of climate skeptics (aka climate deniers).

Both Turkson and Ban made it clear that scientists and people of faith were united in their call for action. "Science and religion are not at odds on climate change. Indeed, they are fully aligned. Together, we must clearly communicate that the science of climate change is deep, sound and not in doubt."

In addition to slamming the door on climate denial, the conference urged industrialized countries to reduce their carbon footprints and invest in clean energy. Turkson also called faith leaders to be role models. "Think of the positive message it would send for churches, mosques, synagogues, and temples all over the world to become carbon neutral," he said. "At a time like this, the world is looking to faith leaders for guidance."

Acknowledging that our current trajectory invites calamity the final joint declaration was categorical in its emphasis on immediate action. "Human-induced climate change is a scientific reality, and its decisive mitigation is a moral and religious imperative for humanity."

The message from the Vatican summit was that all people of faith should embrace climate action and part of those efforts involve reducing our reliance on fossil fuels.

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Arctic Sea Ice is Disappearing

Arctic sea ice has been getting smaller and thinner as part of a general decline witnessed over the past four decades. In recent years Arctic sea ice has reached the lowest level ever recorded, shrinking to less than half the area it occupied a few decades ago.

Maximums

In 2015 Arctic sea ice maximum was the smallest on record. This information comes from satellite data produced by NASA-supported National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) at the University of Colorado, Boulder. On February 25th there were 5.61 million square miles (14.54 million square kilometers) of sea cap ice. That is 50,000 square miles below the previous lowest peak wintertime extent. It is both the earliest and the smallest maximum amount of floating ice on top of the Arctic Ocean since record taking began in 1979.

Minimums

The lowest minimum extent has also occurred in recent years. In 2012 there was only 1.31 million square miles of ice. That is about 300,000 square miles, or 18.6 percent smaller than the previous record low of 1.61 million square miles in 2007.

Thinning

These observations are part of a trend of declining Arctic sea ice. In fact according to a study published in an issue of journal The Cryosphere Arctic sea ice is thinning at a steadier and faster rate than researchers had previously thought. This study was unique in that it used modern and historic measurements including satellite, submarine and direct measurement. This research showed that ice in the central Arctic Ocean thinned 65 percent between 1975 and 2012. During that time it has decreased by 7.6 feet. It went from 11.7 feet (3.59 meters) in 1975 to 4.1 feet (1.25 m) 2012.

In the month of September when sea-ice levels are at their lowest historical records show ice thickness thinned by 85 percent between 1975 and 2012. During this 37-year period ice thickness went from 9.8 feet (3.01 m) to 1.4 feet (0.44 m). The seven lowest September sea ice extents in the satellite record have all occurred in the past seven years.

"The ice is thinning dramatically," said lead researcher Ron Lindsay, a climatologist at the University of Washington (UW) Applied Physics Laboratory. "We knew the ice was thinning, but we now have additional confirmation on how fast, and we can see that it's not slowing down."

Melting

The period during which the Arctic ice melts is currently 15 days longer than it was 30 years ago. Melting starts earlier and ends later. The overall trend indicates that it is growing by several days each decade. For example the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas, are freezing up between six and 11 days later per decade. This has a feedback effect because open Arctic waters absorb solar radiation and cause more melting. These are the findings in a study by National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) and NASA researchers.

"The Arctic is warming and this is causing the melt season to last longer," said Julienne Stroeve, a senior scientist at NSIDC, Boulder and lead author of the new study. "The lengthening of the melt season is allowing for more of the sun’s energy to get stored in the ocean and increase ice melt during the summer, overall weakening the sea ice cover."

End of Summer Ice

The Arctic sea ice is shrinking at the rate of approximately 13 percent per decade and it is expected that by the summer of 2030 it will disappear completely. 

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Sustainability Communications: Internal and External

Good sustainability communications can mean the difference between success and failure. Sustainability leaders must understand the art of effective communication both internally and externally.

There are a host of challenged companies face in communicating sustainability. First and foremost they must do the work to minimize their environmental footprint and social impact. Second they must contribute to environmental and social betterment. Then they must develop a communications strategy.

Companies must not only find innovative ways of genuinely engaging sustainability they have to contend with distrust. The best way to combat distrust is through trust. Rather than become defensive, open up, speak authentically and truthfully.

Surmounting skepticism can best be achieved through an authentic approach that resonates. To do this it is important to engage in a collaborative conversation rather than a one way monologue. The language used to communicate must be accessible. Communications that are riddled with jargon is often confusing and many will simply tune out.

Focus on common points of agreement without ignoring the facts. While the science of climate change may be clear, people are not. Consequently it is important to forge a common basis of understanding before segueing into more arcane realms that may not be known to your audience.

Listen to your audience and know who you are speaking to. Always look to your audience to get a sense for whether your message is hitting home. Rephrase your comments and refine your delivery to ensure that the message is received. However, make sure you do not belabor a point, be clear and concise.

Make sure that what you say is sufficiently specific to speak to the reality of your audience. A message that is too generic may not resonate. Being specific makes your audience feel like you are talking to them while being too general may sound impersonal.

Know when to use logic and when to use emotion. When talking one on one about a specific project your approach should be logical, but when you are talking trying to motivate a crowd emotion is better.

Sustainability continues to evolve consequently related communications is part of a life long learning process. Make sure that you are authentic and open. No one knows everything about sustainability be receptive to new information.

Failure to communicate effectively increases the likelihood that people will lose interest and your goals will not be achieved. Conversely good sustainability communications breeds loyalty with employees, customers and consumers.

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Arctic Warming Feedback Loops: Algae Blooms and Thawing Permafrost

The Arctic is the epicenter of global warming and what happens in the far north has global implications. New research points to previously unknown warming feedback loops in the Arctic that could push us past irreversible tipping points. The latest research points to relationships between warming, algae blooms and carbon releases from the permafrost. Together these three phenomenon could significantly exacerbate global warming.

Average temperatures in the Arctic are already 2.7°F higher than the 1971-2000 average, according to some estimates that is warmer than it has been in as much as 44,000 years. While the entire earth is warming, Arctic temperatures have increased at almost twice the global rate and far exceed the bounds of historical natural variability.

Gifford Miller of the University of Colorado, is one of the many researchers who are studying Arctic warming. “Our findings add additional evidence to the growing consensus that anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases have now resulted in unprecedented recent summer warmth that is well outside the range of that attributable to natural climate variability,” Miller said.

This warming has both local and global implications. Locally, warmer temperatures are destroying a centuries old way of life by preventing Nunatsiavut Inuit communities from hunting fishing and trapping. This has led to a host of social problems from family strife to drug and alcohol abuse.

Globally the warming Arctic is disrupting weather patterns all around the world. The warming Arctic has caused the jet stream to be less stable and the result is that weather patterns stay longer in one place.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) 2014 Arctic report card paints a grim picture of rapid warming and a distressing prognosis for the future.

Scientists have discovered some unexpected corollaries of Arctic warming that could significantly worsen the climate picture. A new study published in PNAS uses computer models to suggest that algae blooms (aka phytoplankton) in the Arctic Ocean could accelerate warming by as much as 20 percent by the end of this century.

Phytoplankton thrives on the combination of thinning ice and elevated levels of atmospheric CO2. When the phytoplankton dies it carries the CO2 to the sea floor. While this has been considered to be a good way to remove carbon from the atmosphere, the authors of this study suggest that it may actually increase warming by trapping more heat in the upper layers of the ocean where it can easily be released back into the atmosphere.

"We believe that, given the inseparable connection of the Arctic and global climate, the positive feedback in Arctic warming triggered by phytoplankton and their biological heating is a crucial factor that must be taken into consideration when projecting future climate changes," says Jong-Seong Kug, a professor at POSTECH's School of Environmental Science and Engineering and one of the leaders of this study.

Algae blooms could cause summer temperatures in the Arctic to be as much as 23.4° F warmer in than they were before human emissions began in the 1800s. If the 20 percent increased warming figure proves to be correct that would increase temperatures to 28° F warmer. This risks thawing the permafrost which would release vast quantities of carbon. 

According to a University of Georgia study published in April ancient organic matter locked away in Arctic permafrost for thousands of years, is now being transformed into carbon dioxide and released into the atmosphere. While scientists have been aware of the dangers of carbon released from the melting permafrost, the findings from the University of Georgia Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, documents what happens when organic carbon is released.

Thawing permafrost causes bacteria to eat away at the previously frozen organic matter and this releases carbon dioxide. This is troubling because there is more than ten times the amount of carbon in the Arctic soil than has been put into the atmosphere by fossil fuels and 2.5 times more carbon is locked in the permafrost than exists in the atmosphere today.

The findings of this study show that 60 percent of the carbon in the thawed permafrost was converted to carbon dioxide in only two weeks.

While the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) project significant warming their models do not take Arctic algae or melting permafrost into account.

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Sustainable Procurement: Environmental Social and Economic Supply Chain Considerations

Addressing supply chain issues are at the top of the list of sustainability initiatives because they represent more than half of business expenses and they are the source of around three quarters of GHG emissions. Scrutinizing upstream procurement issues is also important for downstream customers who themselves are increasingly imposing stringent standards.

Sustainable procurement involves a thorough review of what you are buying and who you are buying from. For sustainably oriented companies choosing suppliers that align with a companies values and improve overall performance can be daunting. Analyzing each link in the supply chain is a good starting point.

Suppliers should be assessed in terms of the environmental, social and economic risks they present. Environmentally oriented supply chains look at procurement with an eye to reducing carbon footprints and minimizing energy and water use. Resource efficiency is essential as we are currently using almost twice the amount of resources the earth can produce. Recycling, waste and end of life issues should also be considered throughout the supply chain.

Socially oriented supply chains focus on procurement from suppliers that respect human and labor rights and are mindful of poverty concerns. Economic considerations are about ensuring adequate margins and secure access. Other important supply chain considerations include logistics and transportation.

It is important to be prepared to learn from upstream suppliers and downstream customers. In addition to learning it is also important to share knowledge with those that could benefit.

Reassessments of suppliers should occur on a regular and ongoing basis.

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Moving Towards 100 Percent Renewable Energy in the US

We are moving towards 100 percent renewable energy. While we are still a long way off (currently the world only gets about 1 percent of its total energy needs from renewables) we now know that it is possible. We are seeing promising reports about the feasibility of 100 percent renewables in nations and regions all around the world. This disproves the claims of the fossil fuel lobby and their political minions in the Republican party.  The urgent need to reduce emissions alongside declining costs give renewables unstoppable momentum.
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There are no technological or economic reasons why we cannot completely replace fossil fuels with renewable sources of energy. In addition to curbing climate change causing greenhouse gas emissions, renewable energy also improves human health. Minimizing climate impacts and reducing health costs would generate trillions of dollars of cumulative savings.

The idea that the world can be powered entirely by renewable energy is not new. In 2011, Stanford researcher Mark Z. Jacobson and UC-Davis researcher Mark A Delucci concluded that the world can be powered by clean and sustainable energy. The study they co-wrote authored found that using existing technology, the world can abandon fossil fuels and adopt renewable energy in as little as two decades. The researchers further stated that this can be done for the same price as conventional energy.

There are already commitments and functioning examples of 100 percent renewable energy use. In 2014 a number of leading companies pledged to get their power entirely from renewables. The EPA’s Green Power List reviews the growing number of businesses, municipalities and universities that use only clean energy.

Hawaii has been reducing its dependence on fossil fuels to generate electricity, but the state still uses petroleum for 70 percent of its energy generation. A new bill will abandon oil altogether and require the state to get all of its energy from renewables (primarily wind, solar, geothermal and hydro) by 2040.

California is working towards the goal of getting one third of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020. New research suggests that California could produce enough solar energy to provide as much as five times the electricity it currently consumes. This is achievable by deploying solar in developed areas (roof tops or open spaces on the ground) close to where people live and consume power.

California is already getting more than 12 percent of its power from renewable sources and individual cities in California are going even further. San Jose, San Francisco and San Diego have all pledged to get off fossil fuels, starting in 2022, 2035 and 2020 respectively. The San Diego 100% Renewables report shows how San Diego can get all of its electricity from renewable energy.

As of 2014, Aspen Colorado was getting more than 86 percent of its energy from renewables (hydro and wind) and the city has vowed to go 100 percent renewable by the end of 2015. Early in 2015, Burlington, Vermont became the first US city to deliver on the promise to end fossil fuel use for electricity and meet all of their power demands with renewables (biomass, hydroelectric, solar and wind).

On March 18, 2015, Georgetown, Texas announced that it would soon be generating 100 percent of its electricity from renewable sources (solar and wind). What makes this noteworthy is the fact that Texas is the largest oil producing state in the US. The reason Georgetown is turning to renewables is because they are a cheaper source of electricity than fossil fuels.

A number of studies show that renewable energy can meet or exceed U.S. energy demands in a timely fashion. U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) research indicates that renewable energy can replace fossil fuels within 20 years. Sandy MacDonald, director of the earth system research lab at NOAA said that wind and solar could supply 70 per cent of electricity demand in the lower 48 states, with fossil fuel and hydro/nuclear renewables each accounting for just 15 per cent by 2030.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL) Renewable Electricity Futures Study (RE Futures) found that using a diverse array of commercially available technologies, the US could easily supply 80 percent of its electricity needs with renewables by 2050. The Union of Concerned Scientists published a plan for renewable energy to provide 80 percent of our electricity by 2050.

A recent Stanford paper entitled “100 percent Wind, Water, Sunlight (WWS) All Sector Energy Plan for the 50 U.S. States,” suggests that the United States can get all of their power needs from renewables.

These U.S. examples alongside research from all around the world (Europe, Asia, Latin America, Canada, Australia, Africa and the Middle East) reveals that renewable energy has the potential to quickly and affordably replace fossil fuel as the world’s primary source of energy.

As pointed out in a Bloomberg article, renewable energy has “passed a turning point” and we can now say with confidence that 100 percent is possible. The world is shifting away from fossil fuels and towards renewables.

Recent and future prospects look very good for the growth of renewables. In 2014, renewable energy had one of the best years ever and it is looking very good for 2015 and beyond.

“The shift occurred in 2013, when the world added 143 gigawatts of renewable electricity capacity, compared with 141 gigawatts in new plants that burn fossil fuels,” the article stated. “The shift will continue to accelerate, and by 2030 more than four times as much renewable capacity will be added.”

The fossil fuel lobby frequently point to the problem of indeterminacy of renewables (eg the sun is not always shining and the wind is not always blowing). However, as pointed out in a another Bloomberg article, the example of Germany proves the naysayers wrong.

Cheaper storage will further minimize the so called indeterminacy problem. “There’s a myth among opponents of renewable energy that you need 100 percent backup spinning all the time, and it’s utter nonsense,” said Michael Liebreich, founder of Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

The world is transitioning away from fossil fuels and towards renewable energy, the only question that remains to be answered is how long it will take. The real issue that will help or hinder the speed at which this transition occurs is not about technological feasibility or even economics, it is about political will.

The real question is whether the world will allow entrenched interests to threaten the future of humanity.

Source: Global Warming is Real

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Australia Can Dump Coal and Adopt Renewables
Canada Could Get All of Its Electricity from Renewables
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Creative Innovation in Sustainability

Sustainability is a creative enterprise that goes far beyond token environmental concern. Sustainability is about more than just minimizing egregious environmental and social impacts. As we head towards a global climate agreement at the end of 2015, companies must find the equilibrium between sustainability and economic growth. This means they must take the long view on a wide range or issues. The ways that these issues are addressed must be adapted to meet individual realities of each enterprise.

While climate change causing carbon emissions are an overarching concern, organizations must also consider a host of other factors including their demand on resources. Right now we are using almost twice the amount of resources that the earth is capable of producing. Our current trajectory ensures that we will run out of raw materials and looming resource scarcity represents a serious business risk.

It is becoming clear that sustainability is not only a matter of establishing a competitive advantage it is rapidly becoming the new normal. The new standard is about efficiency on every level.

Business models must be streamlined to reflect this new normal. Creatively incorporating ongoing environmental and social improvements into products, technologies, and processes is key.

Becoming sustainable is a challenging multi-stage process. It starts with an assessment, then based on this evaluation a strategy is put in place for things like sourcing, purchasing, manufacturing, warehousing, shipping, recycling and waste disposal.

Once a sustainability strategy is established the process must be continually refined and improved. How an organization achieves ongoing environmental and social engagement requires creativity and innovation.

Creative innovation involves thinking outside the box. This should take into account organizational concerns, the goal of the effort and impediments to implementation.

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Australian State Meets Energy Needs with Renewables

One Australian state has been able to meet all of its power demands with renewable energy. This corroborates reports which suggest that 100 percent renewable energy in Australia is achievable. On a few occasions the state of South Australia produced enough renewable energy to supply all the power needs of its 1.7 million citizens.

For brief periods on Sept. 27th and 28th the state produced more wind power than the state’s total energy demand. Between 9.30 and 6pm on Tuesday, September 30th 2014, all of South Australia's 1.7 million inhabitants derived their power from renewable energy.

This enabled South Australia to power down all but two coal generators and one gas unit. This accomplishment was due to favorable weather conditions that provided ample sun and wind to the state's solar and wind infrastructure.

These are some of the observations in a report from Pitt & Sherry. On average approximately 33 percent of the state's energy requirements come from renewables. South Australia has almost half of the country’s wind capacity and one quarter of the households in the state have rooftop solar installations.

South Australia is aggressively upping its 2025 renewable energy commitment from one quarter to one half. The state has already met its goals 6 years ahead of schedule.

This is a significant accomplishment in the context of the ruling federal government's love of coal and disdain for anything green. Under the leadership of Tony Abbott Australia already repealed the carbon tax and defunded government agencies responsible for climate change. He has also threatened to eradicate the national renewable energy target. This led to a 90 percent reduction in renewable energy investment in Australia.

Despite the Abbott government's hostility towards renewable energy, businesses and households continue to invest in rooftop PV.  In the first quarter of 2015 approximately 195 MW of rooftop PV capacity was installed, representing a 7 percent increase over the first quarter of 2014.

Related
Australia Can Go 100% Renewable Due to Falling Costs
Investors in Renewables Flee Australia Causing Job Losses
Australia Can Dump Coal and Adopt Renewables

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Sustainability Lends Legitimacy to Profitability

Sustainability is helping organizations to shed the destructive business practices that earned them a reputation as resource devouring planet killers. Through environmental and social engagement corporations can be redeemed and capitalism can be rehabilitated.

To be viable a business must be profitable. This is the overarching concern of any business, however, the pursuit of profit must be understood in a wider context. Sustainability offers an alternative model that reinforces the mutual interdependence of business and society.

There was a time when profits were perceived as a social good in and of themselves. The argument behind this failed philosophy was that businesses contribute to society by providing jobs and paying taxes. This is the premise put forth by the economist Milton Friedman. Friedman may have won a Nobel Prize but the business philosophy that permeated the seventies and eighties fostered deep mistrust. It led to the veneration of wealth for its own sake and it has brought civilization to the brink of its own ruin. Such business philosophies are not only morally bankrupt they invite environmentally and socially calamity.

It is true that there is value in a profitable business. It generate returns for shareholders, jobs for people and taxes for governments. However in purely profit driven business models wealth pools at the top of the pyramid and rarely percolates down in significant quantities.

The trickle down theory must be acknowledged for what it is, a festering lie that has corrupted the economics of capitalism. It strands wealth at the very top and leaves everyone below to fight for the crumbs that fall off the table.

This pure profit philosophy contributes to the growing disparity between rich and poor. This in turn breads highly unproductive social tensions. Even worse such a business model threatens the entire planet and all the life forms that depend on it. A close examination reveals that the unadulterated pursuit of profit is a threat to corporate self interest.

Relating profit to wider environmental and social factors sustainability offers a better way of doing business. By factoring so called externalities profits can contribute to environmental and social betterment.

Philanthropy and environmental off-sets are part of a sustainable business model. Forward thinking businesses go even further than charitable giving and social investment. While there are costs associated with such approaches there are also powerful dividends. Such a model builds trust, engenders loyalty and improves the reputation of a brand in the process.

Business is often described as parasitic, but a purely profit driven approach is far worse as parasites do not usually kill their hosts.

Sustainability offers an interdependent business model that is symbiotic (ie mutually beneficial). By benefiting ecosystems and society profitability is legitimized. This is an enduring business model that is premised on shared value.

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Event - Ottawa Riverkeepers Gala

This Gala event will take place on May 27th 2015 in Ottawa, Ontario. This is Ottawa's most important fundraising event for water. It will be hosted by Evan Solomon, with musical guests Andy Maize and Josh Finlayson of Skydiggers. This year's gala honors Canada's Ambassador to Ireland Kevin Vickers and RBC Past President and CEO Gord Nixon. ecosystem.

Proceeds from the event help to protect the Ottawa River which is part of the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence River Basin, the world's largest freshwater river. The River is important as a source of water and energy however the fishery has declined and there there are a host of chemicals that are present in our drinking water. Proceeds from the event go towards a river that is swimmable, drinkable, and fishable.

Click here for tickets.

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Event - Monterey County Hospitality Association (MCHA) Sustainability Seminar

The MCHA Sustainability Seminar will take place on April 28th 2015 at Asilomar Conference Grounds. At this seminar, which is part of MCHA’s 2015 leadership seminar series, professionals will discuss ambitious environmental stewardship efforts. This year’s MCHA sustainability seminar is titled "Creating Sustainability to Drive Profits through Best Practices." This event explores how conservation helps businesses improve the environment, strengthen the bottom line and better engage with customers, community members and employees.

From 1 to 2 p.m., a tradeshow-style "Great Sustainable Ideas" session will connect participants with vendors offering sustainable products and services. Then, from 2 to 4 p.m., speakers will share real-world success stories related to water and energy conservation, composting, recycling and more.

Participants will explore best practices and discuss specific steps to implement in their own operations.

For more information click here.

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Event - Cause Marketing Forum (CMF) Chicago: Nonprofit/Business

CMF Chicago will take place from May 27 to May 29. This event is for everyone from cause marketing beginners to veterans. This includes people who work for a businesses and nonprofits. There are a number of special programs geared towards all of the groups (separate fees apply for the small group sessions).

This conference features a range of programing tailored to the individuals in attendance. There is a Nonprofit Corporate Alliance Leadership Summit and a For Business Only Summit. The Halo Awards will also take place during the event. Here are some of the workshops:

CMF2015 Pre- and Post-Conference Workshops

NONPROFIT WORKSHOPS

Cause Marketing 101 for NonprofitsWant to “get in the game” or increase your success at building alliances with corporations? This four-hour class provides the solid foundation you need. A perennial favorite, this workshop has provided hundreds of nonprofit executives with valuable tools for launching and improving their corporate alliance development programs. Wednesday, May 27, 8:00 am to 12:00 pm

Nonprofit Corporate Alliance Leadership Summit(Open to full-time, senior employees of nonprofit organizations only) A closed-door gathering exclusively for senior nonprofit executives interested in frank, private discussions of common challenges and new ideas from industry thought leaders. Wednesday, May 27, 8:00 am to 12:00 pm

Cause Innovation: Supercharging Your Organization's Corporate AlliancesYou want to take your corporate alliances to the next level, but your organization is stuck. This workshop will provide you with the road map you need to attract game-changing revenue and other resources. You’ll learn how leading organizations differentiate their brands, demonstrate impact and leverage data to land multi-million dollar deals. And you’ll be taught how to avoid common pitfalls that can cost you time and support. Friday, May 29, 8:00 am to 11:00 am

BUSINESS WORKSHOPS

For Business Only Summit: Want to compare notes with other corporate leaders? This closed-door session provides you with a unique opportunity to discuss overcoming the barriers of blending purpose and profit.Highly interactive with an emphasis on group discussions and problem-solving, session highlights include gaining buy-in, workforce volunteering and demonstrating impact. Wednesday, May 27, 8:00 am to 12:00 pm

Click here for the full program.

Some of the Companies and Causes in Attendance

Causes 121 Giving
1776 Media Network
3BL Media
ActivisonBlizzard's Call of Duty Endowment
AdWeek
ALEX AND ANI | CHARITY BY DESIGN
Amway Corporation
Anthropologie inc
AT&T
Arizona Coyotes Foundation
Blitz Education
Boston Beer Company
Brookfield Office Properties
Buffalo Wild Wings
Causeguru
Cause Licensing Partners, Inc
CauseMarketing.com
ConAgra Foods
Cone Communications
Criando Consultoria
CVS Health
Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption
DICK'S Sporting Goods
Discovery Communications
Disney
DS Services of America
Field Trip Factory
For Momentum
Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz PC
Giving Strong, Inc.
Global Cloud
GOODcorps
Good Scout Group
Good Sports Inc
Greenberg Traurig, LLP
Groupon
Home Instead, Inc.
House of Blues Music Forward Foundation
IEG Consulting Group
iGive.com
iHeartMedia
IM Strategic Partners
Incite
Investors Trust Administration
INPEx
Jason's Deli
JCPenney
JG Invest LLC
Johnson & Johnson
kbs+ Cause Company
Koch Creative Group
Kohl's Department Stores
LeadDog Marketing Group
Macys Inc
Marketo
MDR: Educators, Youth & Family
MediaVest
Merit Motion Pictures
Microsoft
MRG Consulting
MSLGROUP
Nebraska Furniture Mart
Nemours
New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc.
Newport Beach & Company
Old Navy
Orvis
Perlman & Perlman LLP
Phil & Co
Public Inc.
QVC, Inc.
RALLY
Re/mark
Realized Worth
RF Binder
Richards Partners
Samuel Adams
Sapient
Sappi North America
Scena Media
Selfish Giving
Seventh Generation
Shatterproof
Shop & Support
SigComm
Social Capital
Spotify
Stripes
SunTrust
Taco Bell Corp
The Celebrity Source
The UPS Store Inc
Time Inc.
Time Warner Cable
TKG | The Krim Group
TMI, the DoSomething.org Agency
Unilever
Upworthy
Venable LLP
Walgreen Co.
We-Care.com
WestJet
Whirlpool Corporation
AdoptAClassroom.org
Alliance for a Healthier Generation
ALS.net
ALSAC/St. Jude
Alternative Gifts International
Alzheimer's Association
American Association for Cancer Research
American Cancer Society
American Heart Association
American Lung Association
Blessings in a Backpack
Boys & Girls Clubs of America
Capacity DR
ChildFund International
Children International
Children's Hospital Colorado Foundation
Children's Hospital Los Angeles
Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Children's Miracle Network Hospitals
Children's of Alabama
City Harvest
City Year, Inc.
Cleveland Clinic
Community Health Charities
Conservancy Garden
CureSearch for Children's Cancer
Doctors Without Borders
DoSomething.org
Dream Foundation
Education Center
Entertainment Industry Foundation
Exploratorium
Feed the Children
Feeding America
FoodCorps
Free the Children
Girls on the Run International
Give Kids The World
Goodwill Industries International
Got Your 6
GreatSchools
Habitat for Humanity International
Harvard Business School
Heifer International
Instituto Ayrton Senna
KaBOOM!
Keep A Breast Foundation
Kiva
Make-A-Wish
March of Dimes
Mayo Clinic
MD Anderson Cancer Center
Melanoma Research Foundation
Mercy Corps
Morris Animal Foundation
National 4-H Council
National Autism Association
National Breast Cancer Foundation
National Children's Cancer Society
National Park Foundation
National Recreation and Park Association
National Stroke Association
Nationwide Children's Hospital
Nature Conservancy
NCMEC
Operation Warm Inc.
Pancreatic Cancer Action Network
Paralyzed Veterans of America
Parents As Teachers
Partnership with Native Americans
PetSmart Charities
Reading is Fundamental
Save the Children
Second Harvest Heartland
SeriousFun Children's Network
Share Our Strength
Shatterproof
Sierra Club
Sinai Health System
SOS Children's Villages USA
Stand Up To Cancer
Sunday Lunch
Susan G. Komen
The Ounce of Prevention Fund
The Salvation Army
The Wilderness Society
U.S. Fund for UNICEF
United Nations Foundation
United Service Organizations
USA for UNHCR
WeWIN
WomenHeart
World Wildlife Fund, Inc.
YMCA of the USA

Click here to register.

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Event - Sustainable Investing Conference: Risk Value Impact

The 5th annual Sustainable Investing: Risk, Value, Impact conference will take place May 4th–6th at the Westin Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Participants will learn about new approaches, trends and policy developments while networking with industry leaders.

This event offers a unique opportunity to network with leaders of the sustainable, responsible and impact investing community, and to learn about new approaches, trends and policy developments in the field. The conference will attract representatives of investment management and advisory firms, research firms, financial planners and advisors, broker-dealers, community development institutions and asset owners such as pension funds and foundations, along with policymakers and corporate leaders.

Thought-provoking plenary and breakout sessions will cover a variety of topics including sustainability as a driver of value in private equity, university endowments and climate change, advancing impact investing, major issues in the 2015 proxy season, and responding to the low-carbon energy challenge.

Event sponsors include Cornerstone Capital Group, Northern Trust, Trillium Asset Management, Neuberger Berman, Pax World, Calvert Investments, Bank of America, Bloomberg and RBC. View the full list of sponsors on our conference website.

To secure your place at the conference, visit our online conference registration site today! Our early registration discount ends Friday, April 3. You may also be interested in learning about US SIF Foundation’s live course on the Fundamentals of Sustainable and Responsible Investment.

US SIF is the membership association for professionals,firms, institutions and organizations engaged in sustainable, responsible and impact investing. In addition to other benefits, US SIF members are invited to a day of member-only programming at the conference, including a reception, annual meeting, policy update and working group events. Members also enjoy substantially discounted registration fees.

To see the speakers list and their bios click here. To register click here.

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Drivers of Green Investment Growth&
Why Investors Want More Nonfinancial Information
Adding Value through Sustainability
Innovative Solar Energy Financing Instruments
New Sustainability Focused Financial Instruments
The Montreal Pledge: Institutional Investors
Resources for Responsible Investing
Investors know that Fossil Fuels will be Replaced
Big Year for Green Investors & Sustainable Business
The Ceres Climate Declaration 
Report Highlights Investor Action on Climate Change
Investors Support the UN Climate Summit Objectives
Fossil Free Investment Resources 
Investors Showing Leadership on Climate Change 
Lucrative Investment Opportunities are Driving the Growth of Sustainability
The Growth of Business Opportunities from Climate Change

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Event - Responsible Business Summit Asia

Ethical Corporation's Responsible Business Summit Asia will take place on May 6 - 7 2015 in Singapore. This event is the regional leading meeting place to find out where business leaders and innovators are headed around their sustainability and CSR strategy – so you can be a leader too.

Cutting edge industry debates: Discover the key issues and opportunities for your role going forward including how to generate profits through embedded sustainability strategy and community engagement.

Senior executive attendees: Find out which senior leaders will be joining you at this year's most senior CSR event including Philips, Johnson & Johnson, Shell, The Walt Disney Company, MAS Holdings - MAS Intimates, Apple, and many more. New interactive formats: Discover the new benchmarking formats for 2015 - in-depth case studies, interactive panel discussions and intimate round table sessions for corporate sustainability 1-on-1.

Meet business leaders: Meet our team of business leaders that can help tranform your sustainability strategy and get practical take aways back to your office. Enter your details on the right to be the first one to get a full run-down on Asia’s leading meeting place for sustainability and CSR professionals.

Some of the companies in attendance include: Interface,Standard Chartered Bank, Adidas Group, New Britain Palm Oil Limited, Huawei, Barclays, Aditya Birla Group, Singapore Management University, Sealed Air, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company, Diageo, MTR Corporation Ltd, Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, Singapore Telecommunications Ltd, Vedanta YBL, BASF, Pure-Circle, save the children, and Akzo-Nobel

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Event - Culture in Sustainable Futures: Theories Policies and Practices

The International Conference in Sustainable Future Culture in Sustainable Futures: Theories Policies and Practices will take place in Helsinki on May 6 - 8, 2015. This conference will address the following questions:

Is culture the fourth pillar of sustainability, alongside the ecological, economic and social aspects?

How does culture act as a catalyst for ecological sustainability, human well-being and economic viability?

What would our futures look like if sustainability was embedded in the multiple dimensions of culture, including different worldviews and values, ways of life, and other forms of cultural expression?

A cultural transition that embeds sustainability in the cultural understandings and daily practices of society has the power to shift humanity’s currently unsustainable trajectory. Culture already plays many roles in (un)sustainability but the scientific, policy-making and societal spheres lack understanding of the essence of culture and how it influences sustainability.

A landmark conference

This conference is both an ending and a beginning. It caps the work of the European research network COST Action Investigating Cultural Sustainability. But rather than closing the book on this international network, this inclusive conference aims to set directions for future research and actions. During the conference, scholars, policymakers, artists, planners and others will discuss the different roles and meanings of culture in sustainability. Representatives from different sectors and across disciplines will explore how culture(s) can support sustainable development and vice versa. The new ideas generated here about understanding culture(s) in sustainable futures will pave the way for integrating sustainability with cultural studies and practices.

Plenary sessions

Lectures from invited speakers on culture, sustainability and development from the inter- and transdisciplinary perspectives Parallel research paper sessions: sessions to present and discuss research papers Parallel panels: sessions providing transdisciplinary dialogue between scientists, policymakers and practitioners (artists, planners, etc.). An “open stage”: a space for posters, art and performances

The conference explores on theories and conceptual approaches; policies and governance; and practices and methodologies that explicitly analyse role(s) of culture(s) in sustainable development. Multiple narratives of culture(s) in sustainable futures are emerging. Some of them have originated in the social and humanistic sciences, philosophy, and environmental sciences, while others have emerged from planning practices, policymaking and the arts. The meaning of culture ranges from worldviews to livelihoods and everyday life practices, from natural and cultural heritage to planning and bottom-up initiatives in different spatial contexts. Various ideas about sustainability will be threaded through these explorations of culture and the participants will reflect on contemporary sustainability challenges such as environmental change, economic crises, poverty and human rights.

The conference will explore the following dimensions:

Theories and conceptual approaches: How can we explore and understand the role of culture in a range of sustainable futures? How can inter- and transdisciplinary approaches (including the artistic and policy) contribute to this? What kind of theories can be useful when analysing values and ethics, or the human-nature nexus, and why? How can we address the normativity inherent in the discussion of culture and sustainability? To what extent does culture need to be sustained or transformed, in which ways, and by whom?

Policies and governance: How can the issue of culture be addressed in relation to sustainability policies? How can culture be included in sectoral and cross-sectoral policies and politics? What types of policies facilitate a culturally embedded transition to possible sustainable futures? What kind of new planning and governance cultures are needed to create sustainable futures? What role can cultural policies play in the transition to sustainability across all levels of culture? How can the cultural turn in sustainability be facilitated?

Practices and methodologies: Culture is both tangible/material and intangible/immaterial. What are possible methodologies for communicating the value of culture in sustainability? What kinds of tools exist to evaluate culture? Where do these tools fall short, and how should such tools be further developed? How can cultural knowledge or values be produced, co-produced and represented? How can culturally sensitive and embedded approaches be promoted in planning, cultural or place mapping, and through artistic and/or planning practices?

Examples that illustrate and reveal the role(s) of culture in sustainable futures may be found in livelihoods, everyday life practices from housing to consumption, food systems, tourism, landscapes, heritage, media, education, planning, architecture, design and more. They may take place in urban, peri-urban or rural contexts, and on a scale ranging from global to local.

Attend the conference - share your knowledge, ideas, and creative expression

The Conference is open for all fields of study and practice. Selected full papers and other contributions will be published in conference proceedings and in a book within the recently-launched book series Routledge Studies in Culture and Sustainable Development. The conference is organised by COST Action “Investigating Cultural Sustainability” www.culturalsustainability.eu and hosted by the University of Jyväskylä, Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy.

The conference is organised by the COST Action Investigating Cultural Sustainability and is hosted by the University of Jyväskylä (Finland), Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy. The conference venue, “Wanha Satama” (Finnish for “Old Harbour”), is a renovated warehouse for coffee and spices located in the heart of Helsinki and close to the seashore.

Supporters and Partners:

Kone Foundation Ministry of Education and Culture, Finland Federation of Finnish Learned Societies - Delegation of the Finnish Academies of Science and Letters Maj and Tor Nessling Foundation Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) Norden Kulturkontakt Nord Ethnos ry

For more information click here. 

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