Sustainable and socially responsible procurement should not only be the responsibility of the procurement or purchasing department of an organization. In order to make a strong and lasting impact on the supply chain and on the business sector, the whole organization must be involved in the practice of sustainability. For this reason, the international guideline ISO 20400 has been developed. What is the ISO 20400? And how can organizations re-enforce their contribution to a green economy by using both the ISO 20400 and the CO2 Performance Ladder?
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) consist of 17 objectives that according to the United Nations ‘will make the world a better place by 2030’. These SDG’s concern issues such as the fight against climate change, poverty, and the development of sustainable cities. How can organizations contribute to these goals? And how does the CO2 Performance Ladder play its part?
For the Dutch construction company Martens en Van Oord, sustainability is an essential part of business. The company implements the CO2 Performance Ladder as an answer to a growing market demand of sustainability practices and CO2 reduction. However, in order to win the battle against climate change, more concrete action needs to be taken. In this interview, Madeleine Schenk, team leader KAM (Quality, Business and Environment) at Martens en Van Oord, talks about the ladder and sustainable practices that tackle climate change.
Preventing rail disruptions instead of repairing them. This sounds like the future. However, the Dutch company InTraffic brings prevention a step closer to the present with Big Data. The software system that the ICT firm developed, enables the Dutch railway operator ProRail to discover the cause of disruptions to the railway infrastructure. Thanks to Big Data solutions, ProRail can undertake action to prevent potential disruptions.
With the implementation of the CO2 Performance Ladder, TBI Infra aims to conduct its business in a sustainable and ecological fashion. The Dutch construction company reduced its CO2 emissions by 35 percent within three years. Due to measures of CO2 reduction, TBI Infra has managed to gain award advantages in certain projects. Jeroen Ritzer – van Dinther, coordinator of Sustainability at TBI Infra, talks about his experiences with the CO2 Performance Ladder and how the management system has to be integrated within the project and the company.
More than 1.700 scientists worldwide have co-authored a paper in 1992 in which humanity is warned against the disastrous effects of climate change. The scientists have recently looked at what has been done in the past 25 years to mitigate climate change and prevent the disastrous forecasts from affecting society and environment. Based on this recent activity, more scientists are supporting the claims that were made in the ‘World Scientst’ Warning to Humanity’.
During the second day of COP23 in Bonn, which took place from 7 to 17 November, Syria ratified the Paris Climate Agreement. This means that the USA is the only country in the world that has not ratified the Paris Climate Agreement. The Climate Conference in the German city was mostly meant to further go into details and to make practical agreements to ensure realisation of the goals. Nothing spectacular was expected from this COP, but what did it deliver?
The climate conference in Bonn, that takes place from the 7th till the 17th of November, is in full swing. Not that many people will be particularly concerned by this event, however it is quite interesting. The conference, also known as the COP23, is organized by the United Nations. Ministers that have signed the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015 gather here to discuss the climate goals. Practical agreements to ensure compliance of the objectives will also be developed during the conference. The COP23 will not lead to spectacular results, but to realize the climate deal, the details should not be left behind.
A banner of the CO2 Performance Ladder greets you at the construction site of the Rotterdamsebaan, a project in which BAM and VolkerWessels collaborate within the consortium of Combinatie Rotterdamsebaan. During the development of this project, sustainability is taken to a higher level. The project consist of the connection between a highway junction and the innercity of The Hague and the most sustainable tunnel of the Netherlands. The tunnel will be named after an artwork by the famous Dutch artist Piet Mondriaan, The Victory Boogie Woogie.
Trees capture CO2. For the Dutch tree and plant nursery M. van den Oever, this means that the company can capture even more CO2 than it causes with its activities. But, in order to remain a frontrunner in sustainability, there is more work to be done. Managing director Marwin Dekkers and CSR manager Joost van den Oever at M. van den Oever tell their story about CO2 reduction in the tree and plant nursery. At SKAO, we are discovering more about the ambitions of this company to strengthen its focus on sustainability and CO2 reduction.
ABB Benelux works hard at reducing its CO2 emissions. For this reason, the Swiss energy and automation company sees opportunities in the implementation of the CO2 Performance Ladder to structurally keep its CO2 footprint at its lowest, and to encourage its supply chains to reduce carbon emissions.
Dutch infrastructure company Krinkels recently announced in its annual sustainability report, that it had been awarded with eleven projects, in which the award advantage was granted through the CO2 Performance Ladder. The secret to this success? To go beyond achieving sustainability objectives with the help of the CO2 management system.
The implementation of the CO2 Performance Ladder does not limit itself to the infrastructure sector. The waste sector also takes advantage of the management system to reduce its CO2 emissions in the atmosphere. AVR is one of the companies that benefits from the CO2 Performance Ladder. The waste-to-energy concern has implemented the Ladder to strive for its ambitions in sustainability and CO2-reduction.
In august of this year, the 800th CO2 Performance Ladder certificate was awarded to the Dutch energy organization Pure Energie. This confirms that sustainability and awareness of CO2 emissions are gaining more relevance in business practices. Five questions were asked to Gijs Termeer, manager of the CO2 Performance Ladder, about how this milestone was achieved and what we all can expect from the CO2 management system in the future.
On August 1st, a feasibility study of the CO2 Performance Ladder has started in Australia. To be more precise, it focuses on the city of Melbourne and the surrounding cities of Moreland, Philip and Yarra, in the state of Victoria.
The renewal of Utrecht Central station and its surroundings is taking place at full speed. The ocean of construction works in the area of Utrecht Central will soon be replaced with a lively environment, in which sustainability plays a central role. One of the projects in this masterplan is the Forum Zuid. This project contains the construction of an underground bicycle storage space combined with a square that is raised to about 7,5 meters above the ground.
In 2016 the amount of electric vehicles (EV) used rose to 2 billion worldwide. However, the total share of electric cars amounts to 0,2 percent of all vehicles that were sold worldwide in that same year. The road to a significant share of EV’s that contribute to the fight against climate change is still long.
Eighteen percent lower greenhouse gas emissions than in 2015, a certificate for the CO2 Performance Ladder and the winner of the Procura+ Award for the sustainable tender procedure with the A6 highway in Almere. The 2016 Sustainability report by the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment shows that all parts of this organisation are operating more sustainably than the year prior. Reasons include the focus on energy savings and the recycling of raw materials.
Gifts come with a story at Brandwijk Kerstpakketten. A story that is preferably sustainable. From fleece blankets and PET bottles to biodegradable ponchos.
Renkum is the first municipality in the Netherlands to hold a certificate for the CO2 Performance Ladder. SKAO spoke with Councillor Wendy Ruwhof and policy advisor Melanie Hutting about the green ‘treasures’. “CO2 reduction pays. That will win over even the biggest pessimist.”
Quite paradoxically, Annelies Hermens has only been travelling more and more since she got involved in the environment and sustainability for Capgemini. Her goal? To get Capgemini certified worldwide. Her way? Making clear that sustainability is good for your disposition. And your wallet.
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