Socially Conscious Organisations

By Mollie Semple

When it comes to climate change and generally taking better care of our planet there is a lot of debate surrounding how much the individual can do compared with big corporations and organisations. In fact, according to one Guardian article in 2017 there are just 100 companies that are responsible for 71% of the planet’s CO2 emissions. There was another article in 2019 claiming that only 20 firms were behind a third of all carbon emissions. This can be incredibly disheartening because it means that when it really comes down to it, the changes that an individual can make are only small scale, even if many individuals made the same decisions. It can sometimes feel like big corporations are untouchable, protected by governments and those with financial interest. If these corporations are not held accountable for the environmental damage that they do what are we, as the “little people”, supposed to do?

I do believe that changes can be made when individuals and organisations come together. As much as it is always important to be vigilant about which companies use social campaigns for their own gain without making any difference at all, a game of smoke and mirrors you might say, there are companies with social campaigns that make a real difference when it comes to the environment. Research is always key, and when you come across responsible, truthful organisations you can make the conscious decision to support those that do attempt to make a real difference.

Before I introduce this list of successful social campaigns with products and services that propose to support action against climate change I think it is necessary to point out that this topic is far more complex than is possible to break down and understand in one blog post. I say this because whilst the individual can support genuinely game-changing organisations, and those organisations can work hard to make a difference, there are much bigger game players that mean big corporations can continue to create large-scale damage. It is still important to make conscious decisions as individuals, as we are all complicit in the damage being made to our planet, but greater, more radical change must take place on a global and corporate scale before we can truly make a difference with the environment.

Anyway, onwards with more positivity, here is a list of organisations that do make small but important changes to support action against climate change:

1. Ericsson: With this Swedish company’s new 5G products they are striving to have 10 times more energy efficiency than competing company’s 4G products. This might mean that you can buy smart phones that are more environmentally friendly.

2. HP: This company’s energy efficient equipment and hardware includes printers made from recycled plastic and ensuring that that services are provided to keep existing equipment working longer. This means that less waste is produced by the products that we throw away which effects both carbon emissions and landfill.

3. Siemens: The German industrials company has created business divisions that are specifically dedicated to energy efficiency and renewables. This includes areas such as smart grids, automated energy management technology and public transportation.

4. Alphabet Inc: Not all big corporations are ineffective or passive when it comes to making a difference to climate change. Google’s parent company Alphabet Inc has been named as one of the most eco-friendly. This is according to the 2019 Carbon Clean 200 list created by As You Sow, a non-profit organisation that promotes corporate accountability for sustainable actions. All offices and company buildings, including Google HQ in Silicon Valley are powered by 100% renewable energy, which removes an estimated 500 tonnes of CO2 emissions from the atmosphere every year.

5. IKEA: The furniture store is making a name for itself as a sustainable business. The company has pledged to create as much renewable energy as it uses by 2020, investing $665 million into green energy sources such as wind, solar and biomass. It has also pledged to only use recycled polyester, made from old plastic bottles and PET products, in its textiles by 2020.

6. Danone: The company we might know for its products such as Activia yogurts, Evian water and Alpro plant-based food and drinks has made big strides in its sustainability. In the US it has reduced soil degradation and helped dairy farmers reduce their water usage. It has also started using maize-derived poly-lactic acid (PLA) packaging for its Activia yogurts, reducing the use of hydrocarbons by 43% and reducing the packaging’s overall footprint by 25%.

So, it is not all doom and gloom when it comes to large organisations and their effect on the environment but we still have a long way to go. Companies can do much more to make themselves more sustainable and we have to hold them accountable for this. We are moving forward, but we have to keep this momentum going.