Sustainable Business Podcast by Innovation Forum

Weekly podcast – How to spot a good carbon project

This week: Charles Bedford, chief impact officer at Carbon Growth Partners, talks with Ian Welsh about what differentiates a good carbon project and, in particular, what buyers should look for in REDD+ forest projects.

And, at Innovation Forum’s recent sustainable apparel and textiles conference in New York, Toby Webb, Cotton Connect’s Alison Ward and Visionspring’s Ramona Hendel-Bejema reflect on some of the key discussions from the event’s panel sessions.

Plus: tropical deforestation up 10% in 2022 says Global Forest Watch; UK’s Climate Change Committee calls for quadrupling of emissions reductions in non-electricity sectors; Nestlé and Earthworm partner on cocoa forest protection project in Côte d’Ivoire; and, long-awaited ISSB standards published, in the news digest.

Host: Ian Welsh   

What does the route to a sustainable food and beverage sector look like?

At Innovation Forum’s recent Future of Food EU conference, Ian Welsh asks Dom de Ville from the Wine Society, Hanne Søndergaard from Arla Foods, Owen Bethell from Nestlé and Paulig Group’s Lea Rankinen to elaborate on some of the key sustainability issues and innovations that came up at the conference. These quick-fire discussions range in topic from innovative packaging solutions, to net-zero strategies, to evolving human rights legislation.  

Monday briefing: London Climate Action Week raises ambition in its fifth year

In this week’s preview, Innovation Forum’s Ian Welsh and Bea Stevenson talk about the agenda for London’s fifth Climate Action Week, focusing on themes of accelerating the global clean economy, and delivering a fair, inclusive and just climate transition. They also discuss the task of setting up a global biodiversity framework fund, at the 64^th Global Environment Facility Council meeting in Brazil.

They also preview of Innovation Forum’s upcoming free webinar with Bayer Crop Science on how best to support European farmers in the regenerative transition. This will take place on 29^thJune at 2pm BST. You can register for free here.

Plus a look at what to expect at this year’s Sustainable Plastics and Packaging Conference in Amsterdam on 3^rd and 4^th October. Register here to save €500 on conference passes.

Weekly podcast – Remote sensing: The data that gets to grips with carbon impacts

This week: Marco Albani, CEO of Chloris Geospatial, talks with Ian Welsh about the developing remote sensing technology that can enable better understanding of carbon and other impacts. They discuss how companies can best utilise the data to strive for a nature-positive approach.

 

Plus: none of the UN Sustainable Development Goals on target for 2030; poor progress at Bonn climate conference; massive investment in developing economies green energy please, say IEA and IFC; and, JBS pulls US ads amid greenwashing row, in the news digest.

 

Host: Ian Welsh

The potential for regenerative cotton in Brazil

Scheffer's head of commercial, finance and sustainability, Fabiana Furlan, talks with Ian Welsh about the potential for more regenerative agricultural techniques for Brazil’s cotton sector and how they can best be implemented. They discuss how a focus on biodiversity and carbon sequestration can help improve soil health and build more robust and fertile

Monday briefing: Collaboration to drive progress on sustainable apparel and textiles

In this week's preview, Ian Welsh talks with Catie Ball about the upcoming sustainable apparel and textiles conference in New York City starting this Wednesday. They discuss what attendees can expect and the key themes that will be discussed over the two days. Registrations are closing soon – you can still register here.

 

And, Hanna Halmari introduces Innovation Forum's sustainable commodities and landscapes forum to be held in Amsterdam on 31st October-1st November. Register by this Friday 23rd June to save €400 on conference passes.

Weekly podcast – Cross-value-chain collaboration for food sector resilience

This week: Rikke Kyllenstjerna, senior vice-president, food chains, at Norway-based fertiliser business Yara International, talks with Ian Welsh about the company’s all value chain approach to carbon reduction that can help deliver long-term food sector resilience. They discuss the importance of precision agriculture and the potential for carbon pricing and cost-sharing.

 

Plus: Net Zero Tracker says nation-wide net-zero targets are lacking; OECD guidelines for responsible business conduct returns with tougher regulations on climate change and human rights impacts; and, UK House of Lords votes for financial services deforestation-free due diligence checks, in the news digest.

 

Host: Ian Welsh

How digital traceability can drive circularity in the apparel sector

Debbie Shakespeare, senior director for sustainability and compliance, apparel solutions, at Avery Dennison talks with Innovation Forum's Ian Welsh about how hi-tech solutions including radio frequency identification – RFID – can help scale circularity in the apparel sector. They discuss the potential of digital traceability in addressing overproduction, and for end-of-life management, re-use and recycling.

Weekly podcast – What does the future of food look like?

This week: at Innovation Forum's future of food conference in Minneapolis, some of the expert participants spoke with Ian Welsh, reflecting on conversations from the conference. They discussed the importance of farmer incentives, regenerative action for long-term resilience and how to best set science-based targets using the FLAG guidance. Hear from Ted McKinney from the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, Regrow's Anastasia Volkova and Thalia Vounaki from FAIRR Initiative.

Plus: University of Leeds research shows developed economies owe $170 trillion on climate reparations; Plastic recycling poses chemical risk; small-scale farming leads to greater agriculture-driven deforestation than large-scale farming, says FAO, in the news digest.

Host: Ian Welsh

The power of recycled plastics and packaging

Katherine Hofmann, sustainability strategic initiatives manager at Eastman, and Ed Higgins, director of product development at Stanley Black & Decker, talk with Ian Welsh about their collaborative progress in developing sustainable power tools using chemically recycled plastics and packaging. They share their strategies on providing end of life solutions and scaling these sustainable approaches without sacrificing performance.