In the United States, at least, the year 2020 was not only the year of the Pandemic, but also a cry for more equality, racial and gender justice, and in general, more respect for one another.
Many experts say that COVID-19 exasperated these issues by bringing much of the disparity to the fore because so many were out of work for so long.
What takes place on the political and social front, is naturally reflected in the workplace.
This is seen in many of the topics covered by the State of Green Business 2021 report by Joel Makower and the editors at GreenBiz
Manjit Jus, in his article, “The ‘S’ in ESG Gains Currency,” writes “Companies are making progress in disclosing their environmental impact and governance standards, but social factors have not been given the same attention — until now.”
However, this can be hard for corporations to quantify. Jus quotes from the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment: “The social element of ESG issues can be the most difficult for investors to assess. Unlike environmental and governance issues, which are more easily defined, have an established track record of market data, and are often accompanied by robust regulation, social issues are less tangible, with less mature data to show how they can impact a company’s performance.”
Yet, both investors and consumers are demanding that companies step up to the plate, especially in the areas of gender equality and human rights.
And not just within corporate boundaries. But stakeholders and the public are asking what are companies doing for their communities?
John Davies examines this issue in his article in the GreenBiz report, “Community Investments Pay Dividends”. Corporations are no longer expected to serve just stakeholders, or even consumers.
In a 2020 survey of 2,511 registered U.S. voters, conducted by Real Clear Opinion Research, 77% of respondents agreed: “The purpose of a corporation is to maximize financial returns for its shareholders, but also to deliver value to customers, invest in employees, deal ethically with suppliers, and support the communities where they work.”
Tyson Foods took this to heart. The company’s plants are predominantly in rural areas with limited labor pools. Also, many of their front-line employees are recent immigrants. So they began offering free classes such as: English as a Second Language, High School Equivalency, U.S. citizenship, financial literacy and digital literacy.
Although the program is still in its infancy, there are signs the endeavor is paying off in “terms of employee engagement and retention, and leading to a stronger local community.”
Circular Economy Gets “Human”
Let's not forget the circular economy movement! In “The Circular Economy Shows Its Human Side” in the GreenBiz report, Lauren Phipps writes: “…as companies, cities and countries alike adopt a more holistic lens and embrace circular principles, they are recognizing the opportunity to drive social change in lockstep with an economic transformation that puts people at the center.”
The article discusses how in a circular economy, companies must ensure that all aspects of a product cycle are humane and respectful to employees, customers, and consumers.
For example, HP Inc. offers what the author refers to as “a now-iconic example of meaningful downstream collaboration in Haiti.”
In 2019, the company invested $2 million in a new plastics washing line in Port-au-Prince. With the help of First Mile Coalition, a non-profit division of Work, HP organized various ocean-bound plastic waste-collection communities. The company buys the plastic back from local businesses and reuses it for their laptops and ink cartridges.
In addition to creating more than 1,000 new jobs in Haiti, HP now has a steady source of post-consumer plastic, allowing it to wean itself off of virgin material.
In Europe, a policy framework is in place, Europe’s Green Deal, that plans to bring the European Union to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 while decoupling economic growth from resource extraction and “leaving no person or place behind.”
By using this integrated approach to circular value chains, the EU is promising 700,000 new job opportunities by 2030.
Today, companies are expected to look both upstream and downstream of a product’s life cycle to maintain transparency and traceability not only for the good of the planet, but for all of its inhabitants as well.
So as you integrate ESG factors into business processes, be sure that the ‘S’ gets the attention it deserves!
Information included in this post is © 2021 GreenBiz Group (www.greenbiz.com)
