Sustainable Business Podcast by Innovation Forum

Weekly podcast – Why measuring land, carbon and biodiversity impact matters

This week: Francis Gassert, strategy and impact lead at Vizzuality, talks with Innovation Forum's Ian Welsh about measuring impact and how to ensure credibility when doing so. They discuss the importance of companies considering their land, carbon and biodiversity impacts and incoming regulatory changes driving this action.

 

And, at COP28, United Arab Emirates' $100m game changing loss and reparation pledge; Civil Society Equity Review's report estimates developing countries require $209bn yearly for renewable energy transition; global methane pledge to cut atmospheric methane by 30% by 2030; and, new research by data and monitoring provider Space Intelligence finds major flaws in earlier research scrutinising voluntary carbon markets and REDD+ projects, in the news digest.

 

Host: Ian Welsh

Landscape action: how to scale corporate nature, climate and social impacts

Rodrigue Kreilmann, corporate sustainability governance manager at Mars, and Veronique Bovee, deputy director for responsible sourcing at Proforest, talk with Innovation Forum's Ian Welsh about Proforest and Tropical Forest Alliance's latest research on driving progress on nature, climate and social targets at a landscape level. They discuss how companies' landscape-scale actions fit into leading climate frameworks and effective solutions for corporate action.

 

To read Tropical Forest Alliance's latest report, click here.

COPwatch: will we be left enthused or deflated?

Speaking live from COP28 in Dubai, Owen Bethell, environmental impact lead, global public affairs, at Nestlé shares on-the-spot reflections with Innovation Forum's Ian Welsh about the increasing focus on the global stocktake and lack of progress of agreement on fossil fuel phase-out. They discuss some progress so far, such as on food systems and methane, as ongoing negotiations take place.

Weekly briefing: COP28 progress and prospects for EUDR FAQ

In this week's briefing, Innovation Forum's Ian Welsh and Bea Stevenson talk about the latest at COP28 in Dubai, as final negotiations take place. They discuss the progress in fossil fuel phase-out and concerns in lack of progress in other areas such as nature and food systems. They also talk about potential updates from the European Commission on the EU deforestation regulation.

 

Plus: Bea Stevenson shares information about the upcoming Innovation Forum webinar on EUDR, the next in the "big debate" series, taking place on 18th January at 1pm CET. Click here to register.

 

And, Innovation Forum's Emily Heslop introduces the future of food conference on 29th-30th May 2024 held in Minneapolis. $500 discount early-bird registrations are open.

Weekly podcast – Reality check: the future of regenerative agriculture

This week: Dominik Klauser, director of regenerative agriculture at SAI Platform, talks with Innovation Forum's Ian Welsh about the key risks and opportunities generated by the current shift towards regenerative agriculture. They discuss the growing importance of traceability and transparency in supply chains and share what best practice looks like in achieving these.

 

Plus: COP28’s Emirates Declaration highlights the importance of food system resilience; six global dairy companies join alliance to cut methane; several nations make new commitments on oil, gas and coal; EU agreement on ecodesign for sustainable products regulation, in the news digest with Innovation Forum's Bea Stevenson.

 

Host: Ian Welsh

The pathway to nature-positive business: definitions, measurements and targets

On 30th November at 2-3pm CET, Innovation Forum hosted a webinar on nature-positive business approaches in partnership with Golden Agri-Resources. This is an audio recording of the webinar. 

 

Faced with what the United Nations calls an ‘unprecedented’ decline in biodiversity, businesses are taking action to find solutions to reduce and ultimately reverse human impacts on our ecosystems.

Recent initiatives such as the 2022 Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, recommendations from the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) and the Nature Positive Initiative aim to offer a path forward with definitions to guide conservation organisations, businesses and financiers towards a net positive impact on nature. But how can businesses put guidance and solutions into practice, and what steps should be taken to set clear goals and find novel solutions for organisations to contribute to a better future for biodiversity and nature?

In this webinar, our expert panel discussed:

• How should businesses define terms like nature zero and nature positive to help them measure and manage progress?
• What action brands are already taking to create and articulate their nature strategies, and what lessons can be learned for the future to drive measurable change.
• Where and how should companies set targets to effectively address a nature-positive future?
• The support needed from government, regulators, finance and other stakeholders to achieve change

Our panel:

• Götz Martin, Head of Sustainability and Strategic Projects, Golden Agri-Resources
• John Buchanan, Vice President Sustainable Production, Conservation International
• Conor McMahon, Global Net Zero and Nature Lead, Nestlé
• Loraiza Davies, Global Sustainability Manager, Land and Biodiversity, GSK

The webinar was moderated by Tanya Richard, COO and Head of Stakeholder Engagement at Innovation Forum

Expert insight: future of sustainable commodities and landscapes

At Innovation Forum’s sustainable commodities and landscapes conference in Amsterdam, Ian Welsh spoke with a number of the expert panellists and delegates attending the event. 

• Joseph D’Cruz, CEO, Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil
• Palavvi Sharma, agriculture commodities sector lead, Global Rights Compliance 
• Anita Neville, chief sustainability and communications officer, Golden Agri-Resources 
• Giorgio Budi Indrarto, deputy director, Madani 
• Olivier Tichit, director of sustainability, Musim Mas 
• Catherine Barton, policy lead, Chester Zoo 
• Hanna Halmari, head of conferences, Innovation Forum
• Peter Stanbury, senior associate, Innovation Forum 

They talk about challenges and unintended consequences of the incoming EU deforestation regulation for business, conservation and non-EU supply chain stakeholders.

Monday briefing: Finance, energy and just transition at COP28

In this week's briefing, Innovation Forum's Ian Welsh and Bea Stevenson talk about the conversations coming up at COP28 this week, including themes of finance, energy and just transition, land-use, food and agriculture, and more. They also discuss Oxford University's latest analysis of the costs of putting carbon capture and storage solutions too much at the centre of decarbonisation strategies.

 

Plus: Innovation Forum's Natasha Bodnar introduces the future of climate action conference on 12th-13th June 2024 to be held in Amsterdam. €500 discount early-bird registrations are open.

Regenerative food systems in Africa: scaling solutions to empower smallholder farmers

Over the coming decades, smallholder farmers throughout Africa will play a pivotal role in supporting the continent’s economic development and enabling food security. However, these farmers currently face numerous constraints that hinder their productivity and profitability. Challenges include a lack of support and access to resources such as financing, technology, inputs, and markets.

Accelerating Africa’s regenerative agricultural transformation requires a farmer-centric, ecosystem-led approach that involves actors across the whole value chain. Impactful partnerships and collaborations between farmers, governments, developmental organisations, entrepreneurs, food companies, and stakeholders must yield innovative solutions to help smallholder farmers overcome this complex set of constraints. Access to resources and opportunities through resilient value chains is essential to optimising profitability and improving smallholder livelihoods.

Our panel of experts drew on from real-world examples and experiences, as they discussed:

• The current financial, economic and technological barriers preventing many African smallholders from implementing more sustainable farming techniques
• How can value-chain stakeholders best work together to build capacity, and support farmer-centric solutions to smallholder farmers challenges within fragmented value chains?
• The role of policy changes and support mechanisms in fostering robust, efficient and inclusive smallholder ecosystems
• Examples of new and innovative technologies that can improve rural access to financing, for improved livelihoods and climate-smart farming

This webinar was moderated by Toby Webb, founder of Innovation Forum.

This was the second part of the Focus on Farmers webinar series, hosted in partnership with Bayer Crop Science. To listen to the first part in this series, click here. 

To find out more about Bayer's work in this area, see here.

Weekly podcast – Collaboration to drive progress in transforming the food and agriculture sector

This week: Charlotte Bande, global food and beverage sector lead at Quantis, talks with Innovation Forum's Ian Welsh about how to improve the weak points in mainstream corporate sustainability decision making within the food and agriculture sector. They discuss the continued importance in peer-to-peer collaboration and share guidance on what a good just transition could look like.

 

Plus: on-the-spot reflections at the future of climate action conference in Washington DC from Rabobank's chief sustainability officer Terryn Lawrence and Mura Technology's head of sustainability Geoff Brighty.

 

And, global food business Cargill's commitment to eliminate deforestation and land conversion in South America; Danone announces collaboration with Global Methane Hub to reduce methane emissions from livestock; and, Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative's new guidance on high-integrity carbon credits, in the news digest.

 

Host: Ian Welsh