Reference Articles

29 Jul 2010 – ShapeNZ research commissioned by the Business Council features in the official report summarising public consultation on proposals to remove areas from Schedule 4 conservation areas for exploration and mining. more »

2 Jul 2010 – A new report says addressing ICT competence within the workforce would potentially bring about a productivity gain of up to $1.7 billion a year for New Zealand. more »

30 Jun 2010 – A new brief explains why an unprecedented number of businesses support passage of national clean energy and climate legislation in the United States. more »

6 May 2010 – Leading firms that give greater attention to energy efficiency report billions of dollars in savings and millions of tons of avoided greenhouse gas emissions, according to the new report. more »

6 May 2010 – A field central to national prospect and security is being neglected, according to this op-ed authored by Bill Gates of Microsoft and former DuPont CEO and chairman Chad Holliday: It's energy. more »

22 Apr 2010 – The United States has set its first-ever national greenhouse gas emissions standards and will significantly increase the fuel economy of all new passenger cars and light trucks. more »

2 Apr 2010 – A potential source of nitrogen pollution in New Zealand's lakes and waterways has been identified and measured by a leading water and soil quality scientist. more »

26 Mar 2010 – Low carbon technology can help achieve climate change goals and also create new jobs, boost economic growth and help improve the lives of those deprived of energy access, according to this new report from the Global Climate Network of research organisations. more »

28 Jan 2010 – On January 20, 2010, sixty corporations began measuring the greenhouse gas emissions of their products and supply chains by road testing a new global framework that is part of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Initiative. more »

16 Dec 2009 – A new study shows the European Union's emissions trading scheme is making power companies alter their investment focus to include more low carbon technologies. more »

2 Dec 2009 – Denmark has produced a new 12 point sustainable development charter to guide business. more »

25 Nov 2009 – A report on how Kiwi culture can translate into creating successful and
internationally competitive business models has just been released by NZTE. more »

18 Nov 2009 – This Futerra study includes a guide for businesses on how to avoid making potentially damaging green claims in marketing and communications. more »

6 Nov 2009 – The net benefit to New Zealand from comparing no uptake of electric vehicles to the expected market demand is $8.2 billion over a 50 year analysis period. This figure is in a new research report funded by the Meridian and Contact energy companies. more »

26 May 2009 – Goldman Sachs has assessed the climate change-reponse performances of 800 global companies, with a market cap over US$3 bn. This report ranks corporate leaders on the issue. more »

29 Apr 2009 – Geneva, 7 April 2009 - The WBCSD's new publication, "Towards a Low Carbon Economy", aims to share business experience in technology development and deployment, finance and carbon markets, cooperative sectoral approaches and adaptation and proposes policy recommendations for a future agreement. more »

18 Mar 2009 – Governments are facing a triple crisis of economic downturn, energy insecurity and climate change. In this report HSBC has analysed more than 20 economic recovery packages and finds governments have allocated more than US$430bn in fiscal
stimulus to key climate change investment themes. And this is just the beginning... more »

27 Feb 2009 – Almost 70 percent of 5000 respondents in a2008 Global Utility Consumer
Survey, including New Zealand, are willing to experiment with how they interact with energy providers.Many consumers have specific visions of what they want – and how much they will pay for it. more »

18 Dec 2008 – Current global consumption patterns are unsustainable, according to a new report by business leaders. Efficiency gains and technological advances alone will not be sufficient to bring global consumption to a sustainable level; changes will also be required to consumer lifestyles, including the ways in which consumers choose and use products and services, acording to this new World Business Council for Sustainable Development Report. more »

9 Dec 2008 – Moxie Design Ltd and ShapeNZ have updated nationwide research on the "Solution Seeker" market in New Zealand. This presentation to the Business Council's second annual Top 40 advertiser Briefing at Auckland on December 5, 2008, details recent market research. It also lists the four steps businesses can take to capture this important group of early-adopter consumers who want business to help them meet their sustainabiloity concerns. more »

9 Dec 2008 – Poznan, 8 December 2008 - A group of CEOs from some of the world's best-known electricity companies has released a detailed report showing that enough low-carbon technologies exist to help the world avert damaging climate change, but that strong policy is needed to support their rapid deployment. more »

26 Aug 2008 – The WWF has published a major new report looking at the impact the UK's food and fibre production has on global water resources. The full report is here more »

20 Mar 2008 – This issue of eJournal USA delves into what those familiar with the history of the environmental movement in the United States might see as a surprising trend — the way U.S. corporations in recent years have embraced environmentally friendly ways of doing business. What prompts a corporation to “go green”? more »

22 Jan 2008 – This World Business Council for Sustainable Development report focuses on the issue of Water - providing an update on the WBCSD project and examples of companies' best practices in water management. A full copy is here more »

17 Dec 2007 – Trade Minister Phil Goff has released new report into consumer and retailer attitudes in the United Kingdom to food miles and sustainability related issues. The report by Fishburn Hedges, a UK based consultancy, finds about two thirds of the population is now aware of the the food miles concept, though about half of shoppers say they are unconcerned which country their food comes from. Factors such as freshness, quality and price remain over-riding concerns. more »

7 Nov 2007 – A new cap-and-trade program that auctions 100% of permits alongside investments, to move the USA on the path towards energy independence, is announced in this major energy future policy release by Hillary Clinton, candidate for the US Democratic Presidential nomination. more »

6 Mar 2007 – Living in a safe and healthy society ranks as the top sustainability priority for New Zealanders, according to new research released by Nick Jones & Associates Ltd. Over half the population (55%) ranked social issues such as personal safety, health and wellbeing and education as the highest priority for the next five years. Only 24 percent believed environmental sustainability was an immediate priority with economic issues (20%) and cultural issues (1%) following. more »

5 Mar 2007 – New research from Moxie Design Group shows the number of environmentally driven consumers in New Zealand has increased significantly to 32%, up 6% on the same survey done two years ago. Links to Moxie’s media release and research report are below. more »

2 Mar 2007 – London has launched by far the most radical green initiative yet - a climate change action plan that aims to reduce the City’s emissions to 60% below 1990 levels. more »

13 Feb 2007 – A copy the Prime Minister's Opening Speech to Parliament can be read here more »

13 Feb 2007 – Herald Dialogue column more »

1 Feb 2007 – The Government’s new call for sustainable economic development to manage climate change and protect the country’s trading position enjoys overwhelmingly strong support among business decision makers, according to a new ShapeNZ poll published by Management Magazine. more »

18 Jan 2007 – A new group, calling itself the 3C Initiative - for Combat Climate Change (www.combatclimatechange.org) - formed on January 11 in Brussels. It began its life with 18 major corporate members, many from the energy sector, including both power companies (Duke Energy, Endesa, Eskom, PG&E, Suez, Vattenfall) and manufacturers of power-generating equipment (ABB, Alstom, GE, Siemens). The group has issued an "urgent request to the global community and all its representatives" to join in. The goal, says 3C, is: more »

17 Jan 2007 – Scotland's local authorities are set to be amongst the first signatories to a new Declaration on Climate Change, it has been announced. more »

13 Dec 2006 – New Zealand’s only aluminium smelter is saving about $10million a year after setting out to lower its carbon consumption. more »

13 Dec 2006 – The Accor Hotel Group knows the business case for sustainable procurement. more »

13 Dec 2006 – Geothermal energy – literally heat from the earth – has been harnessed to generate renewable electricity in New Zealand for nearly 50 years. But geothermal heat is also providing an incredibly valuable and environmentally sustainable alternative energy source for industry. more »

13 Dec 2006 – New Zealand needs to go green to protect its trading position in the world. Yet about 95% of the country’s 342,000 registered companies are locked out of doing business in a sustainable way, or have no incentive to. more »

13 Dec 2006 – The World Economic Forum’s agenda features the topic “Greening supply chains” in 2007, and the British think-tank SustainAbility concludes with the slogan to “Rattle your supply chain” in its recently published benchmark of corporate sustainability reporting. These are merely two examples that demonstrate the growing relevance of environmental and social aspects in supply chain management. more »

27 Nov 2006 – The provocatively titled report from UNEPFI — Show me the money— finds a link between ESG factors and financial value by analysing the 12 broker reports submitted by mainstream brokers. more »

24 Nov 2006 – GLOBE-Net, 20 November 2006 - Green spending is on the rise and is changing everything in our daily lives. Environmentally conscious and well informed consumers are driving the demand for sustainable products and services, and the power of their spending choices is changing not only the way companies operate, but also what they bring to the marketplace. more »

8 Sep 2006 – Accor Hotel Group knows the business case for sustainable procurement. more »

8 Aug 2006 – New Zealand decision makers overwhelmingly expect businesses not only to generate the highest possible returns for their investors - but also contribute to the broader public good. more »

1 Aug 2006 – The UK has published a pocket book reporting on 68 national sustainable development progress indicators. more »

24 Jun 2005 – In March 2005, Medi-Chem Waste Services Ltd. introduced a NZ-first ‘zero to landfill’ nationwide recycling service for all forms of mercury lighting including fluorescent tubes and high-intensity discharge (HID) lamps. more »

21 Apr 2005 – Market forces could prove the environment's best friend—if only greens could learn to love them more »

3 Mar 2005 – Prof Daniel Jones is Chair of the UK’s Lean Enterprise Academy. His article which featured in the Harvard Business Review, together with his presentation to the Business Council on 24 February, can be read here. more »

17 Jun 2004 – Having committed your organisation to the principles of sustainable development, do you ever wish you could find film resources to help you explain the importance of this commitment or further enlighten or inspire your shareholders, customers, staff or suppliers? more »

26 Feb 2004 – Jo Hume was awarded a 2003 Winston Churchill Fellowship to assess and communicate findings on international consumer demand for sustainably produced goods. Jo's report can be read here. more »

20 Jan 2004 – Sustainable Development Reporting is a key tool for businesses committed to achieving the triple bottom line of environmental and social as well as economic performance. The recently concluded series sponsored by the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development proved highly stimulating for its participants and generated some interesting insights into the process of developing sustainability in New Zealand’s larger, more progressive companies. more »