Books in the DoShorts series

As business risks associated with water intensify ΓÇô for example risks to oeprations, supply chains and reputation ΓÇô many corporate sustainability professionals are seeking practical tools to help them understand and assess these risks. Water Footprint Assessment tools developed primarily by the research sector are gaining attention in this context. However, there is debate among experts and non-experts about the merits of this approach. Water Footprint Assessment: A Business Guide is a concise and comprehensive digest of emerging concepts, tools and arguments around water footprint approaches. Specifically aimed at business audiences, this definitive short guide to the issues distils the latest in scientific and policy literature, helps sustainability leaders understand what they can, and can''t do with water footprint tools, includes practical experience and case studies and outlines the pros and cons of using Water Footprint Assessment and similar approaches.

The vast majority of invested assets (approximately US$150T) do not consider environmental, social or governance (ESG) factors. Socially responsible investing (SRI) emerged to address these challenges, but it remains largely deployed in 'negative strategies' such as sector screening, and continues to be a small investment niche, largely due to perceptions about potential underperformance. Sustainable investing is a new, more positive investment construct, described as "an investment discipline that explicitly considers future social and environmental trends in financial decision making, in order to provide the best risk-adjusted and opportunity-directed returns for investors. By anticipating these trends ahead of the market, sustainable investing seeks to identify 'predictable surprises' that can help maximize value over the long term." This concise guide by one of the sector's leading experts: . Disentangles the terminology around SRI and describes a new, positive, opportunities -oriented paradigm for sustainable investing . Showcases funds and strategies that are delivering outperformance within ecological limits . Sets out the key megatrends and scenarios which investors need to consider, and . Offers a practical guide to constructing a sustainable portfolio. This is absolutely essential reading for investors, fund managers and analysts who need to get up to speed on sustainable investing.

The First 100 Days on the Job is for sustainability leaders ΓÇô in organizations of any size or sector ΓÇô who want to make an impact in their first one hundred days on the job, and set themselves up for long-term success. In the absence of complete and perfect information you will be expected to lead and to act, often in partnership with other businesses, government and civil society, and almost certainly by building relationships across functions, departments and geographies within your own organization. It is the timing of your decision making that will set you apart.This short guide offers: 1) A process to make the most of your first 10, 60, 90 and 100 days 2) Some practical tools you can use to set priorities and manage your programme 3) Sources of research and information for measuring the impacts of your organization 4) A heavy dose of realism about what can be done, to keep you sane ΓÇô and links to some practical support and inspiration.

Sustainability for SMEs offers a comprehensive introduction to sustainable business for small and medium-sized enterprises. It offers: the first ever guide to sustainability reporting for SMEs, including tips for using sustainability reporting to gain customer loyalty and build a brand; a collection of airtight arguments and business cases for putting sustainability at the heart of an SME; and a practical guide to lowering environmental impact through improved energy usage, sourcing or generation.

Why do award-winning 'green' buildings so often have higher energy bills than ordinary buildings? Why do expensive refurbishments deliver outcomes that are far from the promises of improved sustainability? Why does your building have high running costs and still the occupants complain about being too cold or too hot and are otherwise dissatisfied? The failure of many countries to produce buildings that are comfortable with excellent energy performance is a scandal. Achieving low energy buildings does not involve learning rocket science: just some basic building physics, a clear language for talking meaningfully about energy-efficient outcomes with all those in the buildings cycle, and an outlook that casts a new low energy perspective on old problems. This book provides that common language. It outlines a path towards understanding what makes for a good quality low energy building, the stakeholders that need to be engaged, and encourages new ways of thinking about how to reduce energy use and costs.

The major environmental impact of most businesses derives from energy usage. The upside of this is that using energy more responsibly improves profitability. A business's cheapest unit of energy is also the one which is least damaging to the planet: the unit you don't use. There are many ways to make your organization's energy usage more sustainable. In Sustainable Energy Options for Business Philip Wolfe outlines the best available options for (1) reducing energy use and (2) improving the sustainability of energy supply. After an introduction to regulatory drivers and management issues, Wolfe looks at energy opportunities in five key areas: Saving on energy usage; Finding more sustainable sources of energy; Generating renewable electricity; Producing renewable heat; Indirect energy sustainability options. Also included: An 'energy checklist' to help identify your best options and important quick wins, plus a handy reference list, signposted from annotations in the text.

Most companies do not yet recognize what it means to adapt to future climate change, and do not yet see it as a business priority. Adapting to Climate Change tackles two key questions facing decision makers: 1) Is adaptation worth it to me? and 2) If it is worth it, can I really tackle it? If a company has reason to worry about the potential impacts of weather on its operations and supply chains, it probably has cause to worry about climate change. However, "adapting to the weather" is not the same as incorporating climate change adaptation into corporate planning. In the former a company is managing conditions they are already experiencing. The latter involves preparing for forecasted impacts of climate change. Focusing on today's weather and not tomorrow's climate leaves a lot of risk on the table, especially if the climate continues to change faster than many climate models have projected. The uncertainties associated with forecasting climate change on a timeframe and at a scale that is relevant to corporate decision making can appear daunting. It is not necessary, however, to have perfect information to advance corporate preparedness for and resilience to climate change. Companies can improve their ability to make robust decisions under conditions of uncertainty without perfect information. A Bayesian approach to reducing uncertainty over time can cost-effectively support companies in understanding and managing many potential climate risks and can avoid the need to depend on future predictions. Instead, initial effort can focus on where a company will have confidence in its analysis and the ability to influence its level of risk, namely in assessing its exposure and vulnerability to climate hazards. As the hazards themselves become more clear, risk management strategies can be quickly adapted.

Sustainability in the Public Sector is a quick-start guide to the sustainable development challenges facing the public sector, and the political backdrop to this agenda. By the time you've finished this short book you'll know: - the realities of the politics behind the sustainable development agenda, and the most important responses of successive political administrations - the history of the term 'sustainable development' and basic sustainability theory - how sustainable development is addressed in local government -- and the contribution of local governments to the UK's 2050 carbon reduction targets. This is an essential, high-value 90-minute read for a wide variety of public sector stakeholders, such as local authorities, councillors, officers, members of Local Enterprise Partnerships, Local Nature Partnerships, scrutiny panels and other forums.

The world of corporate responsibility standards is large and confusing. There are so many standards of different kinds that it is bewildering for someone trying to find an appropriate sustainability standard for their company or organisation. This short book cuts through the confusion. It explains: 1. The pros and cons of using standards to improve sustainability performance 2. The variety of standards out there 3. A map showing how some of the most prominent sustainability standards relate to each other 4. A decision tree to help with choosing the type of standard that may be most helpful to you 5. For some of the most influential standards, a thumbnail description of what they are actually about 6. Some tips for putting standards into practice.

Sustainability reporting can help companies make more money. Sustainability Reporting for SMEs shows you how. Reporting, done well, requires a company to make public a set of promises that bind the company to its sustainability commitments. By adopting a transparent approach to both business practice and reporting, SMEs can gain significant business advantage, both in terms of more effective internal processes and in terms of reputation and business-building. Elaine Cohen provides guidance and tools for actual actions that will improve the sustainability impacts of your company, and a process for reporting that adds value which is much greater than the printed or online report itself. This book will help SMEs develop 'the transparency habit' so that they both make more money and contribute more proactively to the sustainability of our society and economy. It is vital reading for SME owners and managers, entrepreneurs, business and sustainability students and teachers, and consultants. Sustainability managers in larger organisations will find this book helpful in assisting their organisations manage their supply chains which undoubtedly include several SMEs.

Virtually unknown just a few years ago, gamification is fast emerging as a user engagement and behaviour change tool that succeeds where other tactics and strategies have failed. It's the new 'business tech trend to watch', and is already being tested in a diverse range of sectors. Not only useful for strengthening communication and engagement and as a potent behaviour change agent, it is also being advocated as a uniquely effective tool for stimulating innovative thinking and new ideas. In the environmental sector, 'eco-gamification' is showing early promise in sustainable transport, employee engagement, energy and recycling, and its potential for other sectors is clear. This DoShort contains all the information businesses and other organisations need to make an informed decision about whether to adopt gamification as part of their own business and sustainability strategies -- and the tools to get started. Owen's expert investigation outlines the latest theory, tactics and strategies, draws together emerging best practice and points to stand-out successes in the health and fitness, medical research, and financial sectors, as well as early successes in 'eco-gamification'. Whether the people you are engaging are customers, citizens, employees, shareholders, executives or board members, if you're an organisation concerned with enhancing environmental sustainability, and you want your efforts to make a real and lasting difference, this book is for you.

This book provides a detailed look at REDD+ business case studies and best practice and highlights the future of REDD+ in providing a promising mechanism for financing forest conservation while increasing the sustainability and profitability of forward-thinking companies. How can sustainability leaders reverse tropical deforestation? What exactly are payment for ecosystem service forest conservation projects, otherwise known as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+), and how can these projects contribute to business sustainability and profitability? Tropical forests are quickly disappearing - at a rate of nearly one football or soccer field every few seconds. REDD+ simultaneously offers a scalable conservation finance mechanism and a platform for business sustainability. This DoShort focuses on the nexus between tropical forest conservation projects and the sustainability practices of major global businesses. The book contextualizes the issues, defines REDD+ and focuses on its significance to business sustainability including: - the role of REDD+ in mitigating global greenhouse gas emissions while reducing business risk to a changing climate; - as part of a firm's philanthropic work; - a mechanism to increase consumer loyalty; - benefiting upstream local communities and ecosystem services; - enhancing corporate social responsibility image and upholding corporate principles; - and providing unique marketing opportunities and product positioning through private-sector support of charismatic REDD+ projects.

The term "Circular Economy" is becoming familiar to an increasing number of businesses. It expresses an aspiration to get more value from resources and waste less, especially as resources come under a variety of pressures ΓÇô price-driven, political and environmental.Delivering the circular economy can bring direct costs savings to businesses, reduce risk and offer reputational advantages, and can therefore be a market differentiator ΓÇô but working out what counts as "circular" activity for an individual business, as against the entire economy or individual products, is not straightforward.This guide to the circular economy gives examples of what this new business model looks like in practice, and showcases businesses opportunities around circular activity. It also: explores the debate around circular economy metrics and indicators and helps you assess your current level of circularity, set priorities and measure success; equips readers to make the links between their own companyΓÇÖs initiatives and those of others, making those activities count by influencing actors across the supply chain; outlines the conditions that have enabled other companies to change the system in which they operate. Finally, this expert short work sets the circular economy in a political and business context, so you understand where it has come from and where it is going.

The 'social licence to operate' began as a metaphor to bring attention to the need for companies to earn acceptance from their host communities. Today, it is a necessary management framework for complex times. A social licence strategy is essentially a stakeholder engagement strategy for navigating complex socio-political environments. This book provides the framework, tools and case studies a company needs to create a foundation for truly sustainable community development. This 90-minute guide will enable you to: * Define the social licence to operate * Make the business case for actively managing your social licence to operate * Measure the social licence to operate * Develop a step-by-step plan to restore, build, maintain and enhance your company's social licence, and * Report on your social licence. This book is for managers in any company facing rising social scrutiny due to unwanted social or environmental impacts. You may be working in natural resources, renewable energy, oil and gas, forestry, construction, manufacturing, retail, food processing, pharmaceuticals or any industry that is facing rising stakeholder expectations and increasing criticism.

Water is a resource under increased stress, with its management now cited as one of the greatest risks to business continuity and growth. This concise guide for professionals offers strategic steps for developing a corporate water stewardship strategy. It will enable you to: * define business water risks, and the opportunities associated with those risks * explore, through sector-specific profiles, risks associated with regulation, reputation, external response and engagement, and physical incidents * develop a clear plan and process for creating, managing and mainstreaming a corporate water strategy * identify several initiatives and new risk tools that your company can use to stay on top of best practice in water management. With the advent of risk tools, and a growing list of testaments around business risk from water, we are now able to respond more appropriately to how this resource is impacted by and impacts upon business. Use this book as your guide as you begin to build your company's strategy around water.

This DoShort explains, for a UK business audience, the technical, scientific and economic aspects of solar photovoltaics (PV) technologies. It is useful to anyone considering a business use of solar PV, whether an investor, potential purchaser, or thinking of setting up a company in the sector. It succinctly examines: their applications and how to assess them; the prospects and drivers for cost reductions and implementation; the role of PV in carbon offsetting;and the business case for and against investment. It will arm the reader with sufficient knowledge to talk to contractors or to compile a business investment case for senior management. PV is the sunrise sector for electricity generation; the renewable technology whose time has come. Clean, and with no moving parts to wear out, it interfaces neatly with other technologies, both digital and analogue. Cost curves are decreasing and installation curves exponentially rising. Although silicon-based cells are well-known, due to the Feed-in Tariff support they receive, within the next five to eight years, lowering production costs and technological innovations will mean that solar electricity will be poised to find even more widespread applications.

This book will show you how to build a sustainable reputation risk management framework and how to handle your next reputation risk crisis. It will help you identify ways in which reputation risk can impact bottom line, and then show you how to set up a framework for turning that risk into an opportunity for good, sustainable business. Reputation risk is a strategic risk and a potentially material risk, all the more so in the 'age of hyper-transparency'. This needs to be clearly understood by both management and boards of directors so that the people tasked with reputation risk have the support they need to align their reputation risk management with business strategy and planning. The Reputation Risk Handbook provides a clear framework to identify, manage and resolve reputation risk, including: A clear description of what reputation risk is and how it fits within the pantheon of corporate and institutional risk and strategic management A practical process for creating early warning systems and on-going management and monitoring of reputation risks Techniques for aligning reputation risk management with business strategy and business planning Several case studies, including examples of when reputation risk management has gone wrong Examples of how to manage specific reputation risks successfully or deal with a reputation risk crisis. The Reputation Risk Handbook is not just for practitioners - those who manage risk and reputation directly - but for those who have oversight of risk management - namely boards, their committees and the c-suite. In addition to a framework for practitioners, the book provides specific suggestions for boards, including questions to ask management and what to look for within their organizations.

Many companies internalize the current stalemate over global climate policy into a perception that climate risk is no longer a critical issue. Business climate risks, however, include: *operational and supply chain (physical) risk * brand risk * market-driven structural risk * liability risk This DoShort will help business executives to: *Rethink their perceptions of climate risk* *Evaluate whether their company is effectively positioned* *Make informed and prudent business decisions about climate change risk in an environment rife with policy uncertainty* This book is for anyone who needs to assess and respond to climate risk, including business executives, risk managers, business lawyers, electric utilities, state utility regulators, and facilities and supply chain managers. The book has also been used as course material on a leading executive education course on business climate risk.

Promoting sustainable behaviour is a critical part of society's response to climate change. This short, practical book shows you how to build a sustainable behaviour campaign that works. There are more and less effective ways for businesses, NGOs and governments to encourage people to act in a more sustainable way, and some common pitfalls to avoid. By summarising 'what really works' and pulling out the most important take-home messages from the evidence base, this book contains all the tools you need to maximise the success of your sustainable behaviour initiative -- in households, when commuting, in the workplace and beyond. By looking beyond individual behaviours to people's sense of identity and values; by incorporating social signals that provide such important cues for our everyday behaviour; by pointing out strategies that attract (and keep) people's interest; and by understanding how to break bad habits and create good ones, this guide offers the best chance of making a sustainable behaviour campaign work, to create a lasting change in behaviour.

This book outlines a path towards a more practical era for 'corporate responsibility', where companies make real environmental gains based on hard facts, using lifecycle assessment (LCA) and environmental product declarations (EPDs). By the time you have finished this book you will be able to make the case for moving from corporate to product sustainability and propose a methodology for doing this, based on EPDs. In the past decade, thousands of companies have started the journey towards sustainability, leading to a huge supporting industry of sustainability professionals, lorry loads of corporate reports, and a plethora of green labels and marketing claims. Ramon Arratia argues that it's now time to transform this new industry by cutting out all the fluff and instead focusing on full product transparency (FPT). In the world of FPT, companies carry out LCAs for all their products and services, identifying their biggest impacts and where they can make the greatest difference. They disclose the full environmental impacts of their products using easily understood metrics, allowing customers to make meaningful comparisons in their purchasing decisions and providing governments with a platform to reward products and services with the lowest impacts. This book will help you put your company on a path towards full product transparency. This is a decision that can revolutionise and align consumer behaviour, supply chains, policy-making and reporting. It is no less than the path to the future of all business.

Sustainable Transport Fuels Business Briefing explains, for a global business audience, the latest developments in the world of sustainable transport. Not the vehicles or modes of transport themselves, but their means of propulsion. New technologies and players are coming and going with bewildering speed. Some observers are putting their money on electric vehicles, others on hybrids; some see electric vehicles as a mere stepping stone to hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles, already being seen on city streets. The mere mention of biofuels often provokes fierce arguments about their sustainability, yet they, too, are here to stay and will be filling more and more fuel tanks. By the time you finish this book, you will understand not only the pros and cons of all these technologies, the programs around the world furthering their development, and the players large and small, but also the catalysts for change, and the successful partnerships and innovative business models being employed. You'll be able to make informed decisions about investments, whether you're considering a new fleet, haulage or mobility of any kind, or whether to install an electric vehicle charging point in your property.

Business has recently woken up to the need to address environmental sustainability in a meaningful way. No longer is it sufficient to have an environmental policy or environmental management system - substantial changes to business practice are required. Culture change is widely regarded as the most vital and the most difficult element of this paradigm shift. The standard methods of 'switch it off' stickers, awareness presentations and proclamations from the top have proved incapable of delivering the shift in attitudes required. Green Jujitsu is a completely different way of looking at culture change for environmental sustainability. Instead of trying to correct your colleagues' perceived 'weaknesses', it focuses instead on playing to their strengths to get them truly interested and engaged. This principle is applied to the 'elephant model' of culture change: providing clear guidance, inspiring people emotionally and altering the working environment. These techniques are illustrated with case studies from the author's own experience of facilitating culture change on the front line in some of the world's leading organisations.