CSR: Cleaning Up The Blues For Survival

By

-

June 8, 2018

It is believed that in the last decade, the world has produced more plastic than it has in the whole century. India alone generates 60% of the world’s plastic waste, which has adverse impacts on the health of our oceans, rivers and marine life. Over the past few weeks, several events and campaigns across the country have highlighted the issue of the irreversible adverse effect of single use-plastics on the environment.

India recently globally hosted the World Environment Day with ‘Beat Plastic Pollution’ as the theme. In continuation to the same, the globe today is celebrating World Ocean day and highlighting the issue of preventing plastic pollution and encouraging solutions for a healthy ocean.

Global trade enabler DP World has become the first company in its sector to join the World Ocean Council (WOC) as part of its leadership journey to actively engage in the protection of the world’s oceans. By becoming a member of the growing international multi-industry alliance on “Corporate Ocean Responsibility” DP World will commence, enhance and advance its responsibility.

The WOC is a global, cross-sectoral business leadership alliance with a network of over 35,000 stakeholders addressing corporate ocean responsibility. Developed by and for the private sector, it addresses issues affecting ocean sustainable development, science and stewardship. It brings together representatives from shipping, oil and gas, tourism, fisheries, aquaculture, mining, renewable energy, ocean technology and financial services sectors. The WOC is a registered not-for-profit organisation in the US, the UK and Europe.

DP World Group Chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, said: “We recognise the value and need in establishing partnerships to undertake robust ocean stewardship and combat marine pollution. Our experience and expertise across our network in marine environments will contribute to the alliance and its work in areas such as sustainable ocean development, science and stewardship. The Council will support our commitment to protect the ocean’s natural resources and our intention to become a leader in this area of environmental stewardship which forms part of our sustainability programme, “Our World, Our Future.”

Coming back domestically, according to CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) data, India generates 15,342 tonnes of plastic waste per day (about 5.6 million tonnes annually), out of which Delhi alone contributes to 690 tonnes daily — making it the largest contributor. Such plastic waste takes too long to decompose, if at all.

Discarded after usage of just few seconds, plastic straws clog our landfills, drains and rivers before making their way into oceans. About eight million tonnes of plastic straws are estimated to enter the marine environment every year and consumed by sea birds, fishes and mammals. They choke the marine life and do not bio-degrade for hundreds of years. New campaigns and initiatives are being launched inorder to raise awareness across all age groups and include everyone to address this menace.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Subscribe

CSR: Innovations To Reduce Emissions And Water Usage

By

Hency Thacker

-

June 8, 2018

Climate change has become a global concern today. There is a huge pressure on the automobile industry to focus on reducing the carbon footprint.

Globalisation and liberalisation policies in India have increased the number of road vehicles by almost 92.6% from 1980-81 to 2003-04. These vehicles mainly consume non renewable fossil fuels, and are a major contributor of green house gases, particularly CO₂ emission. According to the paper ‘Emissions from India’s transport sector: Statewise synthesis, Atmospheric Environment (2009)’ by Ramachandra T.V. and Shwetmala, In India, transport sector emits an estimated 258.10 Tg of CO₂, of which 94.5% was contributed by road transport (2003-04).

Reaffirming their commitment towards environment protection, Maruti Suzuki India has introduced a series of innovations across its products and manufacturing processes that contain emission and lower water use.

The Company has saved an estimated over 8.3 lakh tonnes of CO₂emission over the past decade through introduction of CNG, LPG and Smart Hybrid vehicles. It has been consistently achieving improvements in fuel efficiency in the conventional petrol engine and diesel engine vehicles. The efforts have led to nearly 20% fuel efficiency improvement in compact cars in both gasoline and diesel vehicles. This is achieved through focused innovations such as new generation platforms, friction reduction in drive train and improvement in drive-line losses. The innovative next generation HEARTECT platform has also helped in lowering the CO₂ emission by 6-8% while offering superior performance and safety.

At its manufacturing facilities, the company has reduced water consumption per vehicle manufactured by 6% in 2017-18, compared to the previous year. At the same time, there is a 1% reduction in CO₂ emission while manufacturing every vehicle over the past year.

“Maruti Suzuki is working systematically to reduce vehicle emissions and the impact of manufacturing on the environment. The Company has been consciously introducing innovative technologies to make products environment friendly. Going forward, we will continue our focus on investing in new technologies and further bring down CO₂ emissions per vehicle,” said, Mr. Kenichi Ayukawa, Managing Director & CEO, Maruti Suzuki. He added, “As part of our effort to use renewable source of energy, in this fiscal we plan to install a 5MW solar power plant at our Gurgaon campus. At Manesar, our existing 1MW solar power plant will be complemented by an additional 0.5MW solar plant.”

Apart from this, the company has adopted the Dry Wash system for cars which has saved a whopping 285 million litres water in 2017-18. On product designing, it has developed the full vehicle virtual validation capability, which has helped to induce efficiency in the product development processes to reduce carbon footprint.

Going forward, the Company is aiming to adopt International Material Data capturing system to study parameters like ASR (Automotive Shredder Residue), RRR (Reuse, Recycle and Recover) and substances of concern (like Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr) across all models so that prohibited substances can be identified and eliminated. This initiative will strengthen end of life system (ELV) for vehicles.

For exports Maruti Suzuki will align with the European Union system of classification, labelling and packaging of chemical substances adopt VCI Packaging (Volatile Corrosion Inhibitors) guidelines for packaging materials. By aligning with EU norms the disclosures on components will be comprehensive.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Subscribe

CARE Enterprises And Bamboo Capital Partners Join Forces To Tackle Poverty

By

The CSR Journal

-

June 7, 2018

Businesses that improve the lives of people living in poverty across South and South-east Asia were boosted by the coming together of a strategic partnership between Bamboo Capital Partners (“Bamboo”) and CARE Enterprises (“CEI”).

CEI, a for-profit subsidiary of CARE USA, a leading non-profit organisation that works around the globe to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice; and Bamboo, a private equity firm delivering social and financial value, launched the partnership at the Asian Venture Philanthropy Network Annual Conference in Singapore.

CEI and Bamboo have joined forces to improve the situation in a region where half of all residents live below the international poverty line. Despite this, there has been a lack of regional capital devoted to social investment. Enterprises in South and South-east Asia typically fall into the global investment gap, being too large for grant funding and too small for traditional capital, and many face scaling issues as a result of inappropriate investment structures.

The strategic partnership will focus heavily on impact and begin by investing in early stage companies that benefit the most marginalised communities in Vietnam, Indonesia, and Bangladesh with a goal to expand globally in the future. The tie-up will offer a range of flexible investment structures along the debt to equity spectrum, designed and tailored to accommodate different business models.

In order to continue both CEI and Bamboo’s mission to empower women and girls across the globe, they will ensure that the investments improve women’s access to finance, increase workplace equality policies and practices, and expand access to goods and services that help bring women into the formal economy.

Bo Cutter, CARE Enterprises board member and former managing director of private equity firm Warburg Pincus, said, “Our partnership with Bamboo is the latest milestone in the evolution from CARE’s previous success in micro-finance into the world of direct investments. We want to be bold and believe that by working closely with Bamboo, we can develop new investment structures that meet the growing needs of businesses looking to improve the lives of people living in poverty across South and Southeast Asia.”

The combined strengths of CARE, with regional footprint in South and Southeast Asia, and Bamboo, will help the strategic partnership identify and support businesses that can deliver at scale in the region, both financially and socially.

Jean-Philippe de Schrevel, Founder and Managing Partner at Bamboo Capital Partners, said, “From our experience, investing patient capital at an early stage in promising social ventures, and closely partnering with entrepreneurs, can create business models which can then be scaled rapidly through new growth fund strategies. We believe that our partnership with CARE Enterprises will facilitate the emergence of disruptive companies that will have long-term impact at scale across the globe.”

In addition to the new partnership, CEI also announced the addition of Managing Partner, James Dien Bui, to their team. James joins CEI with over 20 years of experience in economic development and impact investing across North America and South-east Asia. Moving forward, Bamboo and CEI plan to leverage the success of local accelerators, such as Lotus Impact, to work collaboratively through co-investments and support ecosystem building efforts.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Subscribe

Innovations To Combat Water Crisis

By

Hency Thacker

-

June 6, 2018

Global water crisis is deepening with each passing day. Even a developed city like Cape Town in South Africa is enduring one of the worst water crisis and it may allegedly run out of water next year, if not sooner. Closer to home, Kerala has declared 9 districts as drought hit due to shortage of water. There are 1.2 Billion people or almost 1/5th of the world’s population that live with water scarcity. In India, 330 million people suffer from regular water shortage issues with limited access to clean and safe water.

The critical condition of the availability of this natural resource has led to several innovations to conserve water. Rainwater harvesting, irrigation techniques and atmospheric water generation are few of the areas of innovation.

Atmospheric water generators have proved to be particularly important innovation for the places with high humidity but no rains. The invention got a lot of momentum when for a marketing campaign, University of Engineering and Technology (UTEC) Peru created billboards with atmospheric water generators and placed them at various locations in the city of Lima to solve drinking water problems for thousands of people.

In India, Uravu, a Hyderabad based startup has created an atmospheric water generator system which is cost effective and uses solar energy instead of electricity.

The technology used in these atmospheric water generators is no different than the one utilised in Air conditioners. Realising a potential and a space to make a different there, Godrej Appliances, one of the leading manufacturers of home appliances in India, has launched its #MyACSavesWater initiative to educate and encourage people to re-use this distilled water generated from air conditioners.

The thought behind the initiative is – Inside the indoor unit of an AC, there are evaporator coils that cool the warm air blown over it. This causes condensation and moisture forms on the coil, just like how water droplets form on a cold glass of water on a hot day. If run for a period of 8 hours, the air conditioner generates almost 10 Litres of water due to condensation. Generally, this water is taken out of our homes and discarded through drain pipes. However, with approximately 5 million units of air conditioners sold in India each year, that’s potentially 50 million litres of water daily that can be saved and re-used, even without considering the existing installed base of ACs.

Godrej Appliances, as part of the initiative has also provided 1000 customers of its Green Balance range of Air Conditioners, with a unique 10 Litre compact and collapsible water can, to help its customers collect this water and informed them of ways in which the water can be reused like for watering plants, cleaning purposes etc.

As per the Indian Standard Code of Basic Requirements for Water Supply, a person uses about 125 Litres of water a day for bathing and cleaning purposes. With 10 Litres getting collected from air conditioners and re-used every day, we can save about 8% of daily tap water.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Subscribe

Arrest The Unintended Menace Of Plastic

By

Anirban Ghosh, CSO, Mahindra Group

-

June 6, 2018

The business of unintended consequence is pernicious. The use of fossil fuels is a case in point. Who would have imagined that the invention of the internal combustion engine and the thermal power plant would lead to terrible environmental problems in the future? As we combat climate change we must be careful about problems we are creating even as we try to solve the problems of today.

The creation of plastic has been an inflection point in the development of economies and people on earth. It is a wonder of chemistry and has made many things possible. Not the least of which is packaging for food which has completely altered lifestyles because of the way in which processed food can be consumed. Till very recently plastics were a much sought after solution for many problems.

The world’s first fully synthetic plastic was “Bakelite”, invented in New York in 1907 by Leo Baekeland who coined the term ‘plastics’. One of the key characteristics of plastics is that they are extremely durable. The unintended consequence of this is that every bit of plastic ever made on earth still exists somewhere in some form. Imagine a world filled with tooth brushes. Or an ocean full of plastic bags.

The primary raw materials for plastic are petrochemicals, the processing of which releases billions of tons of carbon into the atmosphere. Since there are many kinds of plastic used for innumerable purposes at very affordable prices, they are very popular and are produced in very large quantities. Take ‘disposable’ plastic water bottles for example. More than 563 billion single use plastic bottles are used in a year around the world. The average carbon footprint of a 500 ml bottle is 82.8 grams according to a Beverage Industry Environmental Roundtable (BIER) report. That means every year, production, transportation and consumption of plastic water bottles produces 46 million tonnes of carbon pollution. As per calculations done by EPA, this is equivalent to the pollution caused by 8.5 million passenger vehicles or the energy used by 42 million homes. We would need a forest that covers almost the entire state of Delhi to sequester the carbon associated with single use plastic bottles.

The plastic bag has made shopping so much easier. Yet it has also become the primary polluter of oceans. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation estimates that by 2050 there will be more plastic bags than fish in the oceans. An estimated 100,000 marine animals die each year from suffocating on or ingesting bags, according to Ocean crusaders report. Just the other day there was a report in the newspapers about a dead sperm whale which had 29 kilograms of plastic in its stomach, a problem that is encountered amongst cattle on land as well. What a dystopian future we are creating for ourselves!

Dying marine animals are not the biggest of the problems that plastics cause in the oceans. Oceans have sequestered almost 40% of the carbon emitted on earth in the past 200 years. This has been possible because of the phytoplanktons that exist in them. Plastics in the oceans reduce the population of phytoplanktons and this severely hampers the ability of the oceans to sequester carbon leading to quicker accumulation of carbon in the atmosphere and a faster pace of global warming. This is worse that killing fish, it’s like killing the oceans themselves.

The next time you throw away a plastic bag remember that there is no “away” when it comes to plastic. Just as we need to discover a way of life without internal combustion engine powered cars and coal powered energy, we also need to find a way of life without plastic if we are to win the fight against climate change. Only, a life without plastic is much more difficult to imagine. There are some applications where plastic is irreplaceable, the transition will be slower there but let us do what we can, as soon as we can, because every additional unit of plastic produced is an additional source of trouble. Join the crusade and help the world move towards becoming a plastic-free planet.

Anirban Ghosh is the Chief Sustainability Officer at the Mahindra Group. He has been working with Group in Sales, Marketing, and Strategy since 1999 and has been recognised as a distinguished CSO in his current role. A gold medal-winning engineer from Jadavpur University, Calcutta, Ghosh has pursued doctoral studies in Marketing Management at IIM Ahmedabad. He enjoys music, reading, travelling, driving, cricket and tennis. He is an active public speaker and has represented the nation at the Festival of India across multiple nations.

Views of the author are personal and do not necessarily represent the website’s views.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Subscribe

हड़ताल पर हैं अन्नदाता।

By

Rahuldeo Sharma

-

June 5, 2018

धरती का सीना फाड़, अपनी मेहनत से, अपने पसीने से, किसान मिट्टी को सींच कर लहलहाती फसल उगाता है। उसी मिट्टी से किसान सोना उगाता है लेकिन किसान को मिलता क्या है? किसान कहने को तो देश का अन्नदाता है पर आज के दौर में किसान जनता का पेट तो भरता है लेकिन खुद भूखा रह जाता है। लंबे अरसे से किसान बदहाली की जिंदगी जीने को मजबूर है। कभी मौसम की मार तो कभी सरकार की नीतियों की वजह से किसान की कमर ही टूटती ही जा रही है। आज़ादी के बाद देश में कई क्रांतियों ने दशा और दिशा दोनों ही बदल दी पर किसान की हालात जस के तस है। तकनीक फर्श से अर्श तक पहुँच गई लेकिन किसान आज भी बैलों के सहारे हल जोतता है। सिंचाई के लिए पानी की बूंदों को तरसता है। इन्ही विषम परिस्तिथियों को बदलने के लिए अब किसान जागरूक हो रहे है। अपने हक़ की लड़ाई लड़ रहे है। शायद यही कारण है कि किसान खेतों से निकलकर सरकार से आरपार की लड़ाई लड़ने के लिए रस्ते पर उतर आया है। ये पहली बार नहीं है कि किसान आंदोलन कर रहे हो। सरकारें किसान संगठनों में फूट डालकर, बाहुबल का इस्तेमाल कर, सिर्फ आश्वासन देकर आंदोलन को कुचल देती है। एक बार फिर से किसान गुस्से में है, एक बार फिर से किसानों का आंदोलन शुरू है। देश के सात राज्यों में किसानों ने आंदोलन के साथ बंद का आह्वान किया है। इसमें 100 से ज्यादा किसान संगठन शामिल हैं, महाराष्ट्र के किसानों ने एक बार फिर पांच जून से सड़कों पर उतरने का ऐलान किया है, किसानों का यह 10 दिवसीय आंदोलन उनके उत्पादों के न्यूनतम समर्थन मूल्य और स्वामीनाथन आयोग की सिफारिशों समेत कई अन्य मुद्दों को लेकर किया गया है।

कर्जमाफी और कृषि उत्पादों की सही कीमत की मांग को लेकर किसानों का आंदोलन मंगलवार पांचवे दिन भी जारी है। 1 जून से शुरू हुए इस आंदोलन के कारण बाजार में सब्जियों की कीमतों में तेजी देखने को मिली है जबकि आंदोलन के दौरान किसानों ने दूध और सब्जियां सड़कों पर फेंककर अपना विरोध भी जताया है। वहीं आंदोलन तीसरे दिन उग्र हो गया था जब यूपी, पंजाब, उत्तराखंड और हरियाणा में जगह-जगह किसानों ने दूध की नदियां सड़कों पर बहा दीं और जाम भी लगाया था। पिछले साल जब किसान आंदोलन हुआ था तो किसान प्रतिरोध को चर्चा में लाने का यह अच्छा तरीका साबित हुआ था, सो जहां-तहां इसको इस बार भी आजमाया गया है। आंदोलन के कई दिन बीतने के बाद भी सरकार के कानों तले जू रेंग ही नहीं रहा। उटपटांग बयान ने किसानों और जनता में रोष जरूर पैदा किया है। मध्य प्रदेश के कृषि मंत्री ने आंदोलन शुरू होने से पहले ही अपने राज्य के किसानों को सुखी-संपन्न और मुख्यमंत्री शिवराज सिंह चौहान की नीतियों से संतुष्ट बताया है, जबकि हरियाणा के मुख्यमंत्री मनोहर लाल खट्टर ने किसानों को बेकार की बातों पर ध्यान न देने की सलाह दी है। हद तो तब हो गई जब केंद्रीय कृषि मंत्री राधामोहन सिंह ने शनिवार को कहा कि देश में चल रहा किसानों का आंदोलन मीडिया का ध्यान आकर्षित करने के लिए है।

सरकारें जानती हैं कि एक बार बारिश गिरनी शुरू हुई, फिर किसान सारा आंदोलन भूलकर धान की खेती में जुट जाएंगे और विरोध का अगला मौका आने तक 2019 का आम चुनाव पार हो चुका होगा। भारत को किसानों का देश बताने और खेती के पेशे को महिमामंडित करने के बावजूद सरकारें ऐसे ही टालू तरीकों से किसानों के असंतोष से निपटती रही हैं, लेकिन इस बार किसानों की मांगें स्पष्ट हैं और केंद्र सरकार का रुख अस्पष्ट। कृषि उपजों की कीमत उन पर आई कुल लागत की डेढ़ गुनी करने की बात खुद बीजेपी ने अपने केंद्रीय चुनावी घोषणापत्र में कह रखी है। एक निश्चित अवधि में किसानों की आमदनी दोगुनी करने का आश्वासन भी खुद प्रधानमंत्री ने दिया हुआ है। महाराष्ट्र और उत्तर प्रदेश में बीजेपी की सरकारों ने किसानों की कर्जमाफी भी की ही है। सरकार उनकी मांगें तुरंत पूरी भले न करे, लेकिन उनसे बात करके सिर्फ आश्वासन देकर मामले को टरकाना या मंदसौर की तरह सीधे टकराव में जाना देश के लिए कई आर्थिक समस्याओं के बीच एक और संकट का दरवाजा खोलने जैसा होगा। इस हड़ताल से नुकसान उलटे किसान का ही हो रहा है। एक तो किसान के फसल का सही दाम नहीं ऊपर से विरोध में सब्जियां, फल दूध सड़कों पर बह रही है, यानि चारो तरफ से किसान ही पिस रहा है। बहरहाल इन सब के बीच सवाल हमेशा से यही है कि आखिरकार किसान खुद भूखे पेट कब तक देश के लिए अन्नदाता बने रहेंगे।

Environmental Sustainability Beyond World Environment Day

By

Hency Thacker

-

June 5, 2018

World Environment Day (WED) is the United Nation’s principal vehicle for encouraging awareness and action for the protection of our environment. First held in 1974, it has been a flagship campaign for raising awareness on emerging environmental issues from marine pollution, human overpopulation, and global warming, to sustainable consumption and wildlife crime. World Environment Day has grown to become a global platform for public outreach, with participation from over 143 countries annually. Each year, WED has a new theme that major corporations, NGOs, communities, governments and celebrities worldwide adopt to advocate environmental causes. The earth is getting polluted day by day so, we need to protect our environment by conducting many awareness programs all over the world. It is our duty to keep our environment clean. If our surrounding is clean, we will be healthy.

This year, India is the global host of 2018 World Environment Day with “Beat Plastic Pollution” as the theme. Plastic pollution is a menace in our planet. However, curbing that is in no way going to salvage the crisis our environment and ecology is facing. There are several other issues that need to be addressed.

Water is a natural resource that is not renewable and is at its exhausting stage. The challenges that the current water situation presents to the nation are aplenty and each one of them need to be tackled with a different policy. Firstly, the decrease in the availability of water per capita along with deteriorating quality – ‘water crisis’ has been a recurring problem. Adding to this, is the growing conflicts for water and the possibility of further social unrest due to water scarcity. Besides, Water related diseases are the most common cause of deaths. The paucity of clean water for domestic use has led to the increase in the number of deaths in both the urban and rural parts of developing economies. And India is no different.

Safe Water Network India through its initiative of iJal plants aim to reduce the dependency of communities on contaminated water sources and in turn save them from the consequences of water borne diseases linked with it. The plan is to reduce the dependency on contaminated water sources for water consumption in the rural communities and increase the dependency on safe and clean drinking water like that of iJal. For the above mentioned, consumer activation and awareness programmes are held too. Complete eradication of water borne diseases is wished for through the initiative.

In a bid to encourage and build a sustainable green eco-system, Volkswagen urges customers to book an appointment for a unique waterless car wash, a special service initiative from the brand to assist in water conservation.

Other than water conservation, reducing the carbon footprint is another issue that needs attention. Ola, India’s leading and one of the world’s largest ride sharing companies, announced the return of#FarakPadtaHai (#FPH), a national movement against traffic, carbon footprint, and resulting pollution through the adoption of shared mobility on the occasion of WED. For the second year in a row, through this initiative, Ola calls its customers and communities at large to switch to shared mobility solutions.

Among their initiatives for the WED, EY, the leading global professional services organisation has adopted measuring their carbon footprint by collecting and analysing data on energy consumption in their offices and business travel. The organisation has also pledged to make their meetings more environmentally friendly by reducing the need to travel through video and teleconferencing.

WED 2018, has brought many commitments and initiatives from various entities to work towards environment sustainability. We can only hope these declarations aren’t forgotten after the day is over and the efforts made towards environment conservation deem successful.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Subscribe

Be Better People For A Plastic-Free Planet Earth

By

Neha Bilandani

-

June 5, 2018

Be Better People For A Plastic-Free Planet Earth

World Environment Day is a time to become more aware of how we-as individuals, corporations and businesses are affecting our planet. As per the Green Industry Analysis 2018, going green is becoming attractive as a business strategy. Recognising the importance of our planet’s declining natural resources, many companies work to minimise both the use and production of harmful chemicals and waste byproducts in their goods. This year, India is the global host of 2018 World Environment Day with “Beat Plastic Pollution” as the theme in order to combat single-use plastic pollution. There are a variety of sustainable ways to grow, which corporate are implementing and simultaneously protecting our planet and the resources we have left for our upcoming generations.

Pitney Bowes started its product take-back program fifty years ago, and since then recovered millions of pounds of equipment and components for reuse and recycling. Today, 95% of the mailing equipment parts are recyclable. LG Electronics India today concluded a clean-up drive near its Greater Noida facility in line with United Nation’s ‘Beat Plastic Pollution’ global initiative.

This year the Mahindra Group is aiming to double its annual commitment by completing 2 million saplings plantation. Today the company is looking to plant 15 million trees under the aegis of Mahindra Hariyali program. In the rapidly developing world today, lack of green cover is impacting the oxygen level in the air at a basic level.

The Beer Café is inviting customers to bring their empty pet plastic bottles of 500 ml or more to any outlet to be recycled between 5th and 12th June 2018, and avail attractive discounts in return.

“It’s sobering to think that a plastic bottle, which we use for barely 10 minutes, can be a family heirloom for 10 generations. We are the first generation to truly recognise the impact of plastic pollution, and the only generation which holds the power to make an effective, lasting impact on the fate of the environment as well as our future generations,” remarks Andrew Almack, CEO, Plastics for Change.

According to The World Economic Forum, India annually generates about 56 lakh tonnes of plastic waste and contributes an astounding 60% to the amount of plastic waste dumped into the world’s oceans every year. The struggles that major cities face in dealing with their plastic waste have been well documented over the decades. With no strong laws and regulations in place to curb the growing plastic menace, the initiatives from all stakeholders can be of significant impact.

Marico’s study on prevalent farming practices & best cultivation methodologies highlights that farmers can produce 25% more in their fields by adopting the correct practices with no or negligible increase in costs. In order to make a difference in the lives of farmers, Marico took up the task to educate the coconut growers and help them increase the productivity, thus creating long-term crop sustainability and higher returns. Farmer training sessions were organised along with awareness on coconut cultivation, automation of processes, innovative solutions to local challenges, management practices, and soil testing, among others.

While speaking to Sir Dr. Huz, CEO and Trustee, Wockhardt Foundation, he says “Environmental issues in today’s time, is something that needs to be addressed with utmost urgency. As the government focuses on the ban of plastic bags in India this year, it is a great start towards a better environment. We as individuals and businesses need to put in our best efforts and support this initiative, which will serve as a symbol of our commitment to the environment. Man must realise that if he wants to take something productive from the earth, he must do so with full consciousness and awareness in a responsible way. The earth is where he lives. He must learn to nurture the nature. Caring about him alone is not enough.”

The green industry is seeking to meet the demands of today without compromising the needs of tomorrow. Being green must be part of every brand’s identity because taking care of our environment is our responsibility.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Subscribe

Renewable Energy Sector Appealing Among Job Seekers

By

Hency Thacker

-

June 4, 2018

With depleting resources in the world, energy crisis have begun to hit many parts of India as well as the world. This has led many countries to research and develop technology as well as infrastructure to enable production and usage of renewable energy.

There has been a lot of innovation in the renewable energy sector. Presently, with the Central Government’s focus on renewable energy as a key aspect of its agenda, the Indian industry is at the forefront in adopting and promoting the latest energy efficient tools and technologies. This bodes well for the ecology and the economy, and with a structured approach to policy implementation, the sector holds the potential to emerge as the foremost sunrise industry in the country.

According to a study by Indeed, the world’s no. 1 job site, there has been an surge of interest in jobs in the renewable energy sector in India, with the solar energy sector leading with an increase of 76% in the number of job searches between October 2014 and October 2017. With the introduction of the Central Government’s Scheme for the Development of Solar Parks in December 2014, various parts of India have seen the installation of solar plants, making the solar energy sector account for one of the highest generation capacities in the Indian electricity grid.

In recent years, India’s increasing efforts towards the expansion of renewable energy have led to a substantial increase in solar power generation, through the setting up of several solar parks and solar power projects. In 2017, India saw its solar power generation capacity cross 21.5 billion units (BU) of electricity. At the same time, there has been an increase in job searches for solar design engineers by 404%, solar project engineers by 332% and solar electrical engineers by 169% between October 2014 and October 2017.

Incidentally, the wind energy sector, which is largely complementary to solar in India, saw only a 28% increase in the number of job searches during the same time period.

Mr. Sashi Kumar, Managing Director, Indeed India, said, “India has witnessed substantial growth in the renewable energy sector since 2014, which has led to the rise in the number of job seekers looking for work opportunities in the field. India has also taken the lead in demonstrating its commitment to the environment, with initiatives and policies such as the International Solar Alliance (ISA), which was founded in 2016 towards the promotion and development of solar technologies, especially to poor and remote regions.”

Initiatives such as the Solar Cities Programme, the launch of an Indian satellite to monitor greenhouse gases, and the Indian Network for Climate Change Assessment (INCCA) have opened doors for employment for skilled professionals in India. With the increased participation of women in the renewable energy sector, India can safely hope to achieve the projected target of employing over 300,000 people in the sector by 2022.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Subscribe

CSR: Drought Hit Villagers Of Odisha Await Solutions And Relief

By

The CSR Journal

-

June 4, 2018

Water is one of the most critical elements for all living beings on earth and its absence has adverse effect on the overall environment, well-being and the economic stability of the affected region. India is facing one of the worst drought conditions ever seen over the past century with the water tables dropping to lower levels than normal. Some of the worst hit regions include remote districts in the Western part of Odisha like Balangir & Bargarh. For over a decade, these regions have experienced extreme drought conditions year-on-year, with no respite, thereby leading to a severe drinking water crisis, crop failure and distress migration. In addition, villagers in these regions face extreme health hazards due to high levels of fluoride contamination in the limited drinking water resources left with them. The water quality testing by the Department of Water Resources & Sanitation reveals that the fluoride content in water is far more than the acceptable level of 1.5 ppm recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Rise Against Hunger India (RAHI), an international NGO, in collaboration with a local NGO, Ahinsa Club identified these issues disrupting lives in the region and introduced ‘Project Jalseva’, to cater to the needs of the villagers and provide them solutions to overcome the issues of water scarcity, fluoride contamination and water treatment. The aim is to ensure access to safe and potable drinking water for 4,517 families from 20 villages in 3 blocks of Balangir and Bargarh districts during the peak summer months i.e. April to July 2018.

Water counters have been deployed at critical road points to enable the community around the villages to get drinking water. A water committee is set-up within the project to monitor and to ensure that there is proper maintenance, testing & treatment of water and proper utilisation of the available water resources. A water reservoir called the ‘Chahala’, is being created, which in the long run will be a sustainable solution providing clean, fluoride-free drinking water to the villagers as well as the cattle.

Kidney failure, joint pain disabilities are some chronic health ailments, which have led to mortality in these districts in the past and continues to haunt villages in the region. With no alternate source of water, the villagers are forced to drink from the existing fluoride contaminated tubewells and open dug wells, thus risking their lives further. With very little awareness, resources, infrastructure, relief and support over the years, people of these regions are still waiting for sustainable solutions, which could address their issues and concerns.

“Drought has been a major issue in the remote districts of Odisha and over the years, we have noticed the conditions deteriorating in these regions. While working on the plan to provide potable drinking water, we also realised that out of the limited water resources, more than 80% were contaminated with fluoride, which led to extreme health hazards among the villagers.” Said Dola Mohapatra, Executive Director, Rise Against Hunger India.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Subscribe

NewsWeekPRO

THECSRJOURNAL .cls-1{fill:#be0000;}.cls-1,.cls-2{fill-rule:evenodd;}.cls-2,.cls-3{fill:#fff;}

Hindi Manch

Editor's Pick

THECSRJOURNAL