Innovation Forum Podcast

This week: Veronique Bovee, senior project manager, and Mila Nuh, southeast Asia regional landscape coordinator, at Proforest, talk about why preserving forests and ecosystems can mean adopting taking a pragmatic approach in working landscapes. They discuss some of the challenges encountered at projects in Indonesia, the importance of collaboration with indigenous communities and how to ensure transparency to maintain trust. And, comments and insights from the future of plastics and packaging forum in Amsterdam with the Consumer Goods Forum’s Ignacio Gavilan, Nestlé’s Jodie Roussell, and Camiel Steffanie and Sofie Vergucht from Eastman.   Host: Ian Welsh  

Innovation Forum and Everland present a podcast focusing on the Wildlife Alliance Southern Cardamom REDD+ Project from the recent webinar, How REDD+ is working to save Cambodia's forests.   The project is located in the Cardamom rainforest landscape, one of the last unfragmented rainforests remaining in southeast Asia and is a critical part of the Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot. We’ll hear about the unique ‘boots-on-the ground’ enforcement partnership between the project, Cambodia’s Environment Ministry and the Cambodian military that prevents more than 3,000,000 tons of carbon emissions annually and protects 497,000 hectares of tropical rainforest in South-West Cambodia.   Tune into over conversation with the panel moderated by Innovation Forum's Ian Welsh: Suwanna Gauntlett, CEO, Wildlife Alliance, Southern Cardamom REDD+ project Sophany Touch, livelihoods manager, Wildlife Alliance, Southern Cardamom REDD+ project

Renata Nogueira, South America sustainability lead at Cargill, talks with Ian Welsh about partnering with farmers in Brazil in developing the sustainable agricultural practices necessary for the company to become deforestation and conversion-free by 2030. They discuss how farmer-driven programmes and collaboration benefit all stakeholders within food value chains, with environmental regularisation, restoration of degraded lands and protection of native vegetation.

This week: Sarah Laidler and Juliet Ermer from the Carbon Trust talk about the evolving impacts of packaging, what good policy looks like, and potential routes to packaging decarbonisation. They also discuss the significant challenges that remain preventing plastic packaging moving to truly circular reuse and recycling models.    Plus: CEOs expect recession in 2023 and contemplate pausing ESG programmes, according to KPMG report; Nestlé halts sourcing palm oil from Indonesian supplier accused of land and human rights abuses; how better waste management could enable net-negative emissions for cities; and, Tesco’s plans to halve food waste in operations by 2025, in the news digest, compiled by Bea Stevenson.   Host: Ian Welsh

Rhett Butler, founder of Mongabay, and Innovation Forum’s Toby Webb talk about the latest trends in tackling deforestation in the world’s tropical forests. They discuss the increasing focus on nature-based solutions and the necessity for indigenous communities to be involved in conservation projects. Butler also explains why the move from simply thinking about tree planting to sophisticated ecosystem restoration is the sort of game-changing focus shift to be celebrated. More from Rhett Butler on why the Amazon forest’s future could depend on the Brazilian presidential election available here.  

This week: Leah Samberg, Rainforest Alliance's lead scientist, global policy, and lead on the Accountability Framework initiative, and Pete Garbutt, sustainability director, nature and climate, at McDonald’s, discuss just-released guidance developed by AFi in partnership with the Science Based Targets initiative and Green House Gas Protocol. They talk about how the guidance can support companies in aligned target setting, accounting and disclosure for deforestation, ecosystem conversion and land use change emissions.  Plus: Chatham House urges the forest sector to prioritise establishing more resilient land and forest economies; seven German citizens suing the federal government over air pollution; and, EasyJet to halt all carbon credit use, in the news digest. And Innovation Forum's Emily Heslop gives an update on the future of plastics and packaging conference coming up on the 11th and 12th October in Amsterdam. Host: Ian Welsh   The new  AFi, SBTi and GHG Protocol land use change guidance is available her

Tiphaine Aries, consultant at the Carbon Trust, talks with Ian Welsh about how companies are responding to the pressures from stakeholders to plan for net zero emissions, set targets and be transparent on progress. They discuss the new Route to Net Zero Standard from the Carbon Trust, the specific challenges tackling scopes 1, 2 and 3 emissions and some pointers to look for that demonstrate success in terms of progress over the coming years.

All materials have impacts. Whether it be fossil fuel inputs, land and chemical use, or human rights issues, brands are keen to show verifiable, data driven improvements in their sourcing choices. There are emerging solutions, and materials with lower impact coming on the market at scale today. Presently, we need a more honest conversation about the factors driving brand choices, and the circular solutions that exist in the global market place. This webinar discussed how brands can make the right impact driven choices to separate true circular from recycling. The expert panel also looked at: Why choice and design matter so much, in terms of choosing the right materials to lower brand and supply chain impact fastest How sourcing companies can communicate with apparel designers around the true impact of material choices Whether communicating a full production narrative showing real, verifiable impact enable greener customer choices Panel members: Lucita Jasmin, director of sustainability & external affair

This week: Insight from Rahul Raj, co-CEO of Indian vegetable supplier Sasya Produce. The company specialises in high quality packaged products and is working to integrate regenerative agriculture techniques with smallholder farmers in its vertically integrated supply chain. Plus: new International Energy Agency and International Renewable Energy Agency report into decarbonisation rates; the EU’s 153m tonnes of food waste problem; Primark to pull back from sourcing in Myanmar following Ethical Trading Initiative report; and, Barry Callebout on track to reach full direct traceability by 2005, in the news digest. And Innovation Forum’s Hanna Halmari gives an update on the sustainable landscapes and commodities conference, coming up on the 1st and 2nd November in Amsterdam Host: Ian Welsh  

Goetz Martin, director for sustainability and strategic projects at Golden Agri-Resources, discusses with Ian Welsh why companies are now really taking emission reductions seriously. They talk about  the role of monitoring and carbon pricing in tackling deforestation, what good collaboration looks like, and why working with indigenous communities is essential for impact on tackling deforestation and emissions reduction at scale.

This week: Owen Bethell, environmental impact lead, global public affairs, at Nestlé, talks about the company's decarbonisation strategy, and the need for corporate climate advocacy, working with governments, peer companies and suppliers. He argues that this collaboration is integral to bringing increased sustainability impact and making progress at scale towards Nestlé’s net-zero targets.   Plus: land conversion for agriculture remains the greatest driver for deforestation; indigenous communities calling for a new pact preserving 80% of the Amazon forest by 2025; tougher EU deforestation regulation on the cards; and, Patagonia's owner transfers company stock into charitable trust to tackle climate change, in the news digest.   Host: Ian Welsh

Britvic’s supply chain director Nigel Paine talks with Ian Welsh about how the £2bn soft drinks business goes about identifying its material impacts, setting targets to reduce them in collaboration with supply chain partners, and how net zero strategy should focus on efficiencies. They discuss how, for example, making bottles lighter can cut thousands of tonnes of plastic in packaging, and the importance of a balanced approach to counter unintended consequences of actions.  

Chiara Vitali, senior consultant at Robertsbridge, discusses with Innovation Forum’s Ian Welsh some new research into trends in patterns of meat eating and how consumer behaviour is changing in different markets. They talk about the environmental and healthy-eating concerns that encourage consumers to turn to more plant-based diets including meat alternatives, and the public and business policy levers that can drive change.   

This week: Renata Nogueira from Cargill discusses how to work with suppliers in Brazil to prevent land conversion and report degraded ecosystems. And Tiphaine Aries from the Carbon Trust talks about corporate net zero planning and a new route to net zero standard. Plus: Selfridges builds its resale, repair, rental and refill model; brands still have cotton sourced from Xinjiang in apparel lines; the impacts of Antarctic krill fishing; and, new carbon credit insurance scheme, in the news digest. And, Innovation Forum’s Emily Heslop gives an update on the future of plastics and packaging conference coming up on 11th and 12th October. Host: Ian Welsh   

Assistant professor of environmental policy at ETH Zürich Rachael Garrett and Musim Mas’s director of sustainability Olivier Tichit talk with Ian Welsh about their collaboration engaging smallholder farmer communities to deliver the data and traceability that palm oil buyers require. They discuss the importance of not divesting from higher risk sourcing regions and why there is still work to be done to ensure that due diligence regulation delivers the impacts intended.  

Environment and human rights expert Etelle Higonnet, formerly senior advisor at the National Wildlife Federation, talks with Innovation Forum’s Toby Webb about how environmental and human rights regulations are changing worldwide, in particular around procurement and importation of commodities and products linked with high-risk production regions. They discuss the pressing need for regulatory harmonisation, and how developing capacity in monitoring and enforcement can help get ahead of potential breaches, resolving them before they escalate.

This week: Goetz Martin, director for sustainability and strategic projects at Golden Agri-Resources, talks about how ambitious brand targets are now driving emissions reductions in palm oil supply chains. Investors and palm oil customers are asking lots of questions about the GHG impact of the commodity, and expect data verification and transparency.   Plus: new Diageo scheme to incentivise regenerative agriculture from east African smallholder farmers; further Qatar migrant worker abuses alleged as World Cup looms; and, ESG screening banned by state governor for Florida $228bn state pension funds, in the news digest.    Host: Ian Welsh

Krishna Manda, vice-president for corporate sustainability at Lenzing, the textile sector fibre manufacturer, talks with Ian Welsh about how the business has established a net zero strategy. They discuss the importance of board-level ownership and incentives, how to establish science-based targets, the need to signal to stakeholders that you are serious and the importance of near-term target setting to achieve long-term goals.  

This week: Insight from soft drinks manufacturer Britvic’s supply chain director Nigel Paine into the company’s carbon reduction and net zero strategy, developing better supply chain relationships. He talks about how Britvic’s brands are moving to lightweight recycled plastic bottles, and how to ensure that efficiencies in one area don’t cause greater impacts elsewhere. And Robertsbridge’s Chiara Vitali discusses some new research into plant-based meat alternatives and interventions that can effectively reduce consumption. Plus: supplier finance incentive scheme from Coca-Cola Europacific Partners and Rabobank, new EU ESG benchmark labelling scheme on the cards, the looming fertiliser supply crisis, and new water resource sustainability campaign for big companies and investors from Ceres, in the news digest. Host: Ian Welsh

Ian Suwarganda, head of policy and partnerships at Golden Agri-Resources, talks with Ian Welsh about how regulatory changes in the EU, US and elsewhere are impacting the palm oil sector. In particular, they discuss how well-meaning rule changes can in fact de-incentivise companies to encourage the changes they should at suppliers and, rather, encourages them to divest and source from markets with lower perceived social and environmental risks.