The Sustainability Learning Forum

Audi Future Energies – Balancing Business and Environmental Concerns

Dr Peter F. Tropschuh, Audi AG
Elise Pham, Audi AG
Audi AG

Sustainability is a guiding principle at AUDI AG. Sustainability helps us retain our competitive edge and economic efficiency as well as protect the environment and ensure a decent future for generations to come. A primary objective concerns comprehensive CO2-neutral mobility. To this end, Audi is looking far beyond emissions from vehicle exhaust systems. Besides the actual usage phase, the company is also examining vehicle manufacturing and recycling processes as well as the upstream fuel supply chain that is increasingly gaining in importance. more[...]

The Author

Audi Future Energies – Balancing Business and Environmental Concerns

Dr Peter F. Tropschuh, Audi AG
Elise Pham, Audi AG
Audi AG

Sustainability is a guiding principle at AUDI AG. Sustainability helps us retain our competitive edge and economic efficiency as well as protect the environment and ensure a decent future for generations to come. A primary objective concerns comprehensive CO2-neutral mobility. To this end, Audi is looking far beyond emissions from vehicle exhaust systems. Besides the actual usage phase, the company is also examining vehicle manufacturing and recycling processes as well as the upstream fuel supply chain that is increasingly gaining in importance. more[...]

The Author

EU greenhouse gases in 2011: more countries on track to meet Kyoto targets, emissions fall 2.5 %

European Environment Agency (EEA)

Emissions of greenhouse gases in the European Union (EU) fell on average by 2.5 % from 2010 to 2011, although several countries increased emissions. Almost all European countries are individually on track towards their commitments under the Kyoto Protocol compared to last year, according to two reports published today by the European Environment Agency (EEA). The report ‘Approximated EU greenhouse gas inventory: early estimates for 2011’ gives early estimates of greenhouse gas emissions in the previous year and provides a key input to the report on ‘Greenhouse gas emission trends and projections in Europe 2012’, which assesses progress against the EU’s commitments under the Kyoto Protocol. more[...]

The Author

US ruling on oil, gas and mining companies will make them more accountable

Chris Sanders, Transparency International

On 22 August 2012, more than two years after the orignal legislation was passed, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted by a 2-to-1 majority to adopt robust rules implementing section 1504 of the Dodd-Frank Act. In an effort to curb corruption, this landmark ruling will require oil, gas and mining companies listed on US Stock Exchanges to publish the payments that they make to governments. more[...] login_required

The Author

New Report Examines the Geopolitics of Natural Gas

Prof. Meghan L. O’Sullivan, Harvard Kennedy School

A new report co-authored by Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) Professor Meghan L. O’Sullivan explores the potential for new quantities of conventional and unconventional natural gas to reach global markets in the years ahead. The report is part of an on-going two-year study on the geopolitical implications of natural gas co-directed by O’Sullivan, who heads the Belfer Center for Science and International Affair’s Geopolitics of Energy Project, and Amy Myers Jaffe, director of the Energy Forum at Rice University’s James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy. more[...] login_required

The Author

Expanding Biofuels May Increase Global Poverty and Decrease Income Inequality

World Bank

In a new working paper, Caesar B. Cororaton and Govinda R. Timilsina analyze the impact of large-scale expansion of biofuels on global income distribution and poverty. A global computable general equilibrium model is used to simulate the effects of the expansion of biofuels on resource allocation, commodity prices, factor prices, and household income. A second model based on worldwide household surveys uses these results to calculate the impacts on poverty and global income inequality. more[...] login_required

The Author

The Future of Cities

Wolfram Haller, Siemens
Siemens

Today more than half the world’s population lives in cities, which emit 80 percent of all greenhouse gases and use 75 percent of energy – figures rising. It is thus with the cities that we must start if we want to manage population growth, increasing energy demand and climate change. Many solutions are already available, including environmentally compatible energy supply, highly efficient building, transportation and water supply systems and affordable financial models. These improve climate protection, increase the security of supply, enhance the quality of life and reduce costs. For world wide success, however, cooperation on a global basis is needed, for example in United Nations programs. more[...] login_required

The Author

The Future of Cities

Wolfram Haller, Siemens

Today more than half the world’s population lives in cities, which emit 80 percent of all greenhouse gases and use 75 percent of energy – figures rising. It is thus with the cities that we must start if we want to manage population growth, increasing energy demand and climate change. Many solutions are already available, including environmentally compatible energy supply, highly efficient building, transportation and water supply systems and affordable financial models. These improve climate protection, increase the security of supply, enhance the quality of life and reduce costs. For world wide success, however, cooperation on a global basis is needed, for example in United Nations programs. more[...]

The Author

Systematic and Holistic Program for a Balanced Industrial Ecology

M Bhaskar, TÜV Rheinland Group
Dagny Buehler-Thierfelder, TÜV Rheinland Holding
TÜV Rheinland Holding

In Karnataka, one of the fastest-growing states of India, officials have become aware of the increasing pollution and exploitation of natural resources by the major industries and the growing population. Indian energy production has risen over 20 percent since 2000; during the same period, CO2 emissions went up by nearly 30 percent. The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has identified 118 companies – the majority small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – from all the main industries that are using resources inefficiently and are polluting the environment. More than half of the companies are located in the district of Bangalore and are a constant threat to the ecological balance of the region. more[...] login_required

The Author

Systematic and Holistic Program for a Balanced Industrial Ecology

M Bhaskar, TÜV Rheinland Group
Dagny Buehler-Thierfelder, TÜV Rheinland Holding

In Karnataka, one of the fastest-growing states of India, officials have become aware of the increasing pollution and exploitation of natural resources by the major industries and the growing population. Indian energy production has risen over 20 percent since 2000; during the same period, CO2 emissions went up by nearly 30 percent. The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has identified 118 companies – the majority small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – from all the main industries that are using resources inefficiently and are polluting the environment. More than half of the companies are located in the district of Bangalore and are a constant threat to the ecological balance of the region. more[...]

The Author

The TMS Group’s Green Campaign

Jeffrey Revels, TMS Group
TMS Group

In 2009 The TMS Group launched an ambitious program entitled the TMS Green Campaign, which is designed to create awareness of significant environmental and energy conservation issues by promoting the “glocal” concept of “think globally and act locally.” Furthermore, the objective is to transform the awareness into actions and encourage employee-driven conservation practices within their workplaces, homes, and at the grassroots level in their communities. more[...]

The Author

Climate Protection throughout different Process Chains

Editorial Team

The Linde Group is a world-leading gases and engineering company with almost 48,000 employees working in around 100 countries worldwide. In fiscal year 2009, it achieved sales of €11.211 billion. The Group comprises two main divisions: Gases and Engineering. The extensive portfolio of the Gases Division ranges from the production of industrial gases to the delivery of processes, plants, equipment, and services for the widest scope of gas applications. We supply many different industries in almost 100 countries across the globe. Our Engineering Division builds plants to process and convert raw materials, also applying its wealth of process know-how to advance the field of renewable energies. more[...] login_required

The Author

The Linde Group - Climate Protection throughout different Process Chains

Dietlind Freiberg, McDonalds Germany
The Linde Group

The Linde Group is a world-leading gases and engineering company with almost 48,000 employees working in around 100 countries worldwide. In fiscal year 2009, it achieved sales of €11.211 billion. The Group comprises two main divisions: Gases and Engineering. The extensive portfolio of the Gases Division ranges from the production of industrial gases to the delivery of processes, plants, equipment, and services for the widest scope of gas applications. We supply many different industries in almost 100 countries across the globe. Our Engineering Division builds plants to process and convert raw materials, also applying its wealth of process know-how to advance the field of renewable energies. more[...]

The Author

“We’re not just chasing windmills.”

Editorial Team

SKF technical development focuses not only on wind turbines as tomorrow’s clean energy source, but also on helping the traditional power generation industries reduce their impacts on the environment. It’s a balanced approach enabling new low-carbon technologies to develop while providing energy-saving processes, parts, and services to help today’s plants and equipment become more efficient. An interview with SKF CEO, Tom Johnstone. more[...] login_required

The Author

Climate Protection – For the Customer and in the Factory

Editorial Team

Climate protection is a global challenge. To meet it, responsible industrial companies must take a holistic approach that combines innovative products for their customers with eco-friendly systems at their own production facilities. A look at Tangier, Morocco, and Regensburg, Germany, shows how this approach works in practice. more[...] login_required

The Author

Advanced Search