Author: Jim McClelland

Sustainable Futurist, Publisher, Editor and Journalist, Jim McClelland is also a regular Speaker and Chair on the events circuit, Strategic Media Consultant and the Curator at sustmememagazine.com. His interests include: Clean + Green, CSR, Built Environment, Smart Cities and Swarm Theory.

Sustainability: ‘Future of Packaging’ in The Times

New writing… Pleased to say I have had another article published in The Times newspaper, as part of a special Raconteur report on the Future of Packaging.

From wine through the post to sports drinks in seaweed, packaging is visibly going green. However, there is a secondary sustainability story behind your sugarcane insect spray or bamboo toothbrush that too often goes untold. Sustainable packaging talk tends to focus on the in-store retail experience and its impact on the more or less eco-conscious consumer.  Trade and wholesale supply chains, though, also generate volumes of secondary packaging waste and reycling. This secondary success story is not always obvious, but it is essential for delivery on sustainability goals.  In this piece, therefore, I explore the issues, the business opportunities and risks, plus showcase some of the innovators changing the game. To read the article in full, complete with expert insights, comment and analysis, please click the following link:

• ‘The race to sustainability starts in the supply chain’.

The full 20-page Future of Packaging report is available to view/download here.

 

SUSTMEME: Get the Susty Story Straight!

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Environment: ‘Business Risk’ in The Sunday Times

New writing… Pleased to say I have had another article published in The Sunday Times newspaper, as part of a special Raconteur report on Business Risk.

Plastic bag pollution in waterThe piece explores how, as the effects of climate change increasingly make themselves felt, successful companies are striving both to futureproof their business and to limit further environmental damage. At present, when it comes to the planet, the news never seems good: From Hurricane Katrina to bee-colony collapse, or city smog to ocean plastic, the environment keeps making the wrong kind of headlines. The impact is sometimes sadly fatal, often irreparably harmful, but always bad for business.

Stats on UK corporates' attitudes to reporting as reputation driverSo, for business, it truly is becoming a case of adapt or die; and there will be winners, as well as losers, in this battle against climate breakdown. Where there is business risk, there is also market opportunity and innovators are increasingly changing the game – whether it is dynamic young startups or enlightened established players, examples of companies and brands responding to the challenge are not just out there, but everywhere.

To read the article in full, complete with expert insights, comment and analysis, please click the following link:

• ‘Why caring for the planet is good for business’.

The full 12-page Business Risk report is available to view/download here.

 

SUSTMEME: Get the Susty Story Straight!

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Investment: ‘Future of Infrastructure’ in The Times

New writing… Pleased to say I have had another article published in The Times newspaper, as part of a special Raconteur report on the Future of Infrastructure.

The piece explores how rising interest in responsible investment, which considers environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors , has transformed the conversation in the infrastructure sector. For major projects seeking funding it pays to get ESG right – in fact, getting it wrong can prove highly problematic, maybe even fatal.  Whilst the importance of the new criteria might be clear in principle, the issue for infrastructure is understanding what actually constitutes ESG in practice. Positive engagement with the issues calls for more than just a box-ticking exercise, if values are to be truly aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To read the article in full, complete with expert insights, comment and analysis, please click the following link:

• ‘Infrastructure investors making ESG a priority’.

The full 16-page Future of Infastructure report is available to view/download here.

 

SUSTMEME: Get the Susty Story Straight!

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Collaboration: ‘Suppy Chain Innovation’ in The Times

New writing… Pleased to say I have had another article published in The Times newspaper, as the opening piece to a special Raconteur report on Supply Chain Innovation.

The article discusses how being faster, better and cheaper than the competition requires colleagues, partners and stakeholders across an entire supply chain to work together and collaborate. With supply chain management finally having made its way into the strategic arena of the Board Room, such collaboration is even more crucial to achieving joined-up sustainability goals which call for a more systemic approach. It is also key to attracting and retaining valuable talent in a competitive marketplace. Innovation is not, however, all about the tech. Whilst modern digital kit such as drones and robots might  be grabbing headlines and catapulting supply chain issues on to the front page, the shift is as much cultural as it is technological. Technology is undoubtedly vital, but much of it is behind the scenes and, in the short term, often more likely to take the form of process-oriented software than gadget-laden hardware. When it comes to responsible sourcing and ethical labour, digital innovation is also both an enabler and a potential disruptor, as supply chain visibility is empowering public scrutiny, at the same time as it is supporting transparency in brands and business. By clicking the following link, you can read the full article , which explores, in depth and with insight from a range of expert commentators, exactly how and why:

• ‘Collaboration is key for supply chain innovation’.

The full 20-page Supply Chain Innovation report is available to view/download here.

 

SUSTMEME: Get the Susty Story Straight!

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Risk: Wildfires, Hurricanes & Brexit

New writing… My latest piece for The Hub – the award-winning content platform curated by Mitsubishi Electric – looks at climate risk and extreme weather events, particularly as they affect business. In addition to the tragic loss of over 10,000 lives last year alone, the cost of natural disasters in terms of consumption ran to more than half a trillion Dollars. Furthermore, major ports worldwide are having to factor into their forward planning the threat of disruption from the effects of ongoing sea-level rise. To discover the scary and compelling statistics that tell the climate breakdown story, please read ‘Risk: wildfires, hurricanes & Brexit‘. (If you are interested in learning what business can do to help mitigate this risk, the second instalment in this two-parter – ‘Resilience’ – will follow on The Hub shortly… )

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