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aspects in their purchasing decisions. The
same applies to investors who consult
sustainability rankings when looking
for viable investment options.
Preparing a sustainable future
Using fuels and other natural resources
in amore sustainable way is critical, both
for ensuring a better future and enabling
the long-term success of Deutsche Post
DHL. This focus on the long-term and
concern for a sustainable future is also
the driving force behind our ground-
breaking series of publications called
Delivering Tomorrow. With this series,
the company is fostering a dialogue on
key issues that will shape the world over
the coming decades.
The Delivering Tomorrow series was
launched in 2009 with an examination of
customer expectations in 2020. This Del-
phi study shed light on pertinent trends
in the economy, technology, and society
up to the year 2020 and beyond. A year
later, we delved into another important
development of the future – the shift to
more sustainable logistics. The findings
showed that the pursuit of sustainabil-
ity will transform the logistics industry,
both in terms of its business model as
well as the range of advanced solutions
and technologies that will be used by
logistics service providers going forward.
We then rounded out the series in 2012
with the logistics 2050 scenario study.
This in-depth look into imaginative fu-
ture scenarios reveals how, while wemay
not be able to make precise predictions
in our interconnected world, thinking
about the future can help us anticipate
and prepare for change.
Visionary thinking
What types of trends and developments
should we prepare for in the future?
Could “green” growth help avoid the cli-
mate crash? Will mass consumption pre-
vail everywhere? Will nations cooperate
more closely, or will the world become
more fragmented and protectionist?Will
the drive toward ever-bigger economic
efficiency be forsaken for more resilient
supply structures? And, what new tech-
nologies will deliver the everyday goods
of tomorrow?
These are just some of the questions
explored in “Logistics 2050 – A Sce-
nario Study.” Based on astute observa-
tions from a large, multidisciplinary
range of prominent experts, the study
outlines how the world and logistics
could change in the next four decades.
In presenting alternative visions of the
Deutsche Post DHL
Counting carbon
DHL Express in the United States
has launched two new carbon-
reporting services for customers
looking to monitor and reduce
their climate change impact.
By expanding its GoGreen Carbon
Estimate and GoGreen Carbon
Footprint carbon-reporting
services to the United States,
DHL Express is responding to the
growing priority many businesses
are putting on being environmen-
tally responsible.
Scenario 1
shows a world that revolves around
growth, unchecked materialism, and mass con-
sumption. This unsustainable way of life is fed
by the relentless exploitation of resources, which
stokes climate change and spurs escalating
natural disasters, thus leading to supply chain
disruptions.
Delivering tomorrow
To learn more about future
trends in logistics and to access
the studies in the Delivering
Tomorrow series, go to:
In
Scenario 2
,
sustainable megacities emerge
as the world’s power centers amidst a paradigm
shift to “green” growth, where institutions and
companies collaborate to cater for urbanites
and create efficient logistics solutions – from
underground cargo transport to a sophisticated
high-tech infrastructure.
Future imperfect –
Five scenarios for
the world in 2050