Sustainuance - November 2012

*Considering that harmful chemicals are used in the printing process, SustaiNuance decided to go green by using none. Presentingthe first fully green cover ever!

A Saaga Interactive Publication

Volume 01 • Issue 04 • Mumbai • 68 Pages • November 2012 • Price `100

www. sustainuance.com

India’s First Corporate Sustainability Magazine

Like our ‘green’ cover?Am sure you didn’t!

ED’s Note

Honestly could there be an eco-sensitive car? A green airline? A green diaper? A green air-conditioner? A green burger? And a green cigarette? Apparently yes. All of these can be green, environment-friendly or eco-sensitive, just like the cover of this issue – which by the way is anything but green and is actually symbolic of all such greenwashing.

Greenwashing is mostly used as a marketing and PR gimmick by com-panies to peddle their services as green or environment-friendly.

Consumers across the globe – battered by the dour prognosis of melt-ing artic ice and rising ocean levels – are increasingly receptive towards companies or products that have a green sheen. So when a cola company talks about positive water balance in the water used in the production cycle, while not bringing into discussion the actual overall usage of water, they are attempting to project themselves in a ‘green’ light. Now, from an absolute perspective it is indeed an act of telling a green lie. If one agrees to take one cross-section view at a time though, it becomes a ‘noble truth.’

Or does it? It’s not easy for the ‘green’ buyer to find an easy answer, especially

because from a company’s perspective green is a continuum of shades and each shade is a milestone in a long journey.

How does a buyer then make a ‘green’ buying decision?Marketers have a very critical role to play here, in helping the buyer to

take an informed decision. For instance, it would help to let buyers know what part of a product making process was green and how. Customers would appreciate and prefer that small piece of communication rather than seeing a blanket statement that vaguely states the product to be green. It is equally important to communicate where the company is in its green journey and where it aims to be after a period of time.

The road to green is a long and deliberate one, where commitment and resolution come much before than marketing and publicity.

There already are some companies out there that are genuinely invest-ing and working at making a difference to the community at large, and have been genuinely chipping at processes within and outside to reduce the carbon footprint.

Within the pages inside, we will delve in detail on the issue of green-washing. And since it entails advertising, we spoke to some well-known advertising gurus— Piyush Pandey, Alyque Padamsee and Gautam Shenoy for their expert take on the subject.

Yet, let’s be honest, the topic of greenwashing needs much wider delib-eration than a few well-designed pages that this issue can afford. Over time, we will revisit the issue, with the understanding and acknowledge-ment that much water would have flown under the green bridge by then. As the world wakes up to raised eco-sensitivity, with the passing of a Sandy or a Nilam, there would be less chances of companies getting away with greenwashing.

Meanwhile, don’t forget to send us bouquets or brickbats in our mailbox, and let us know what you thought of this issue, and yes, of the innovative and gimmicky cover. Were we spot on? Let us know at [email protected].

Marketers have a very critical role

to play in helping the ‘green’

buyer to take an informed

decision.

Shashwat DC Editor -in-Chief

November 2012 Sustainuance 3

CONTENTS

1112

November 2012 • Vol. 1 Issue 4

13 Green IT Green IT and sustainability are emerging as important concerns for businesses, investors and technologists across industries and policymakers in India.

08 Long View Vision Communities can be valueable assets

20 Green truths, noble lies! It is time to get familiar with terms like greenwashing and green lies. Advertisers and marketing gurus smartly use the strong emotions of ‘fear’ and ‘guilt’ for promotions and subliminal messages.

06 Green Take Namita Vikas

16 Interview ”India can be a world leader in Bioenergy”

28 Alyque Padamsee “Companies shouldn’t hide behind faulty definitions”

30 Piyush Pandey “Companies should live up to what they say”

32 Anuradha Altekar “Self-regulation won’t work; enforcement is must”

34 Gautam Shenoy “To agree upon and fix a set of standards is paramount”

4 Sustainuance November 2012

54 FDI in retail Sustainable practices by large retailers can reach supply chains very beneficially

41 Why sustainability must be a value Shyamanuja Das

58 Smart grid can be Stupid Cyber security issues make IT hardening at various layers a necessity.

42 Culinary practices From chefs to diners to religious communities, people are waking up to the perils of food wastage.

66 Viewpoint Business models that do not take away from community and the environment

Chairman & Managing Director: Uday S SurveEditor-in-Chief: Shashwat DCPrinter & Publisher: Sameer P Gore

Consulting Editor: Deepak KumarContent Manager (Web): Jigna KhajuriaSpecial Correspondent: Pratima H Shikha Das ShankarSenior Correspondent: Saikat NandiCorrespondent: Desiree Lobo Sailee Karnik Neha Kumari Tanu Kaur

Design Director: Nirmal BiswasSenior Designer Graphic: Mahesh WalunjIllustrator Nitin D

Product Manager: Jiten DoshiSenior Manager Sales: Mahesh L ShettyAsst. Manager Sales: Shoaib ShaikhOnline Marketing Manager: Imtiyaz RashidAd Coordinator: Roshan Fernandes

Operations Manager: Rahoul TeliAccounts & Admin Manager: Gajpal RanaAssistant Manager (Subscription) Pooja Gondhalekar

Circulation Manager: Vishal LadkatProduction Head: Riken Manseta

Reproduction in whole or in part without the written permission from Saaga Interactive Private Limited is prohibited. The views and opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publisher. Copyright: All rights reserved.

Published and Printed by Sameer Pradeep Gore on behalf of Saaga Interactive Private Limited. Published at 510, Western Edge-1, Western Express Highway, Borivali (East), Mumbai - 400066. Printed at Amruta Print Arts, JR Boricha Marg, Opp. Kasturba Hospital, Mahalaxmi, Mumbai - 400 011. Editor: Shashwat Dinesh Chaturvedi

64 Be Bold Be transparent and aware to be successful


GREEN TAKE

With the government’s recent reforms blockbuster, the erst-while far-away decision on the

amendments to Companies Law on CSR reporting now seems like a nearer reality. If passed, it would be mandatory for compa-nies to explain their inability to contribute two percent of the three-year average profit towards CSR.

Changes in the global environment have put pressure on governments, regulators and stock exchanges across the world, to develop smart regulatory measures for non-financial reporting. Companies in India too are moving beyond CSR as a philanthropic activity to an integrated approach by embedding it into core operations.

National Voluntary Guidelines (NVGs) on social, environmental and economic responsibilities of businesses is a step by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs to help the corporate sector with its inclusive develop-ment efforts. Its principles aim to bring in an Indian approach based on the require-ments of this country. At the same time, it brings about harmony with international reporting standards and frameworks.

A large number of different terms have been established ranging from CSR, corpo-rate citizenship, corporate sustainability or social responsibility and business responsi-bility. All terms however seem to go in the same direction, with the main objective being a company’s social and environmen-tal footprint in relation to its stakeholders. Being responsible to stakeholders for the company’s outputs and its impacts not only meets shareholders’ interests but also cre-ates stakeholder value.

Sustainability in its wider sense is the purpose of business. Real sustainability would therefore lie in our collective ability to share resources equitably, accept that everyone has the same rights, and consist-ently act in the best interest of humanity. For India, evolving one common defini-tion and clear disclosure framework on

Banks need to continuously seek opportunities that create long-term values by addressing social and environmental aspects of business alongside economic risks

As intermediaries, banks can have far-reaching positive impacts by persuading and assisting businesses to manage their triple bottom-line goals

Namita Vikas

sustainability would be meaningful for businesses. Describing key focus areas for influencing financial flows towards sus-tainable development would also help the financial sector in a big way. Such guide-lines would help create a country-wide implementation of sustainability.

Banks play a central role in an economy by influencing economic outcomes, as they intermediate financial flows from deposi-tors, channeling them towards businesses. As intermediaries, banks can have far-reaching positive impacts by persuading and assisting businesses, to manage their triple-bottom-line impacts.

Sustainable banking is therefore all about good governance, effective risk management and proactive social and environmental intervention. Banks need to be alive to the undercurrents of sustain-able development and continuously seek viable opportunities that promote sustain-able finances, thus aligning businesses with sustainability principles. This should not be merely a ‘do-good’ strategy but rather a cor-nerstone of core operations that help miti-gate risk and gain access to new markets.

From a business point of view this would help create long-term value and manage social and environmental aspects of busi-ness alongside economic risks.

Banks’ commitment to mainstreaming sustainability would be through embed-ding sustainability with core operations, thus addressing the whole gamut from risk to opportunity. Responsible banking should be core to the strategy, in thought as well as in action. In the journey towards sustainable banking and triple bottom-line accounting, banks should strive to include wider economic, environmental and social objectives that are met by creating new market opportunities through innovative products and services.

Namita Vikas is President and Chief Sustainability Officer at YES Bank

Sustainability-inspired banking


LONG VIEW

The problem with all innovative ideas and movements is that the initial exuberance soon fades and

organizations find it difficult to sustain and grow new initiatives. Corporate his-tory is replete with tales of reported and unreported ideas that delivered nowhere near potential. Companies that embraced total quality management, business pro-cess reengineering, knowledge manage-ment and other ‘great white hopes’ of the last century, have often failed after get-ting off the starting blocks. And there is a real danger that the sustainability move-ment too can meet this fate if we don’t pay adequate attention to the process of achieving scale.

One example I can provide of a truly innovative idea that has been led to scale across two organisations I had the privilege to lead in the last two decades, is the innovative strategy and employee commitment movement called vision communities (VCs). These were born at times of adversities when we decided that strategies for revival and growth would have to be conceptualized, articulated and implemented bottom-up rather than taking up prescriptive initiatives that emanated from the board rooms.

Vision communities are purely vol-untary movements where anybody with an idea and a will to participate and col-laborate, rather than just comment from the sidelines, is given a chance to lead an initiative to success.

Vision communities may be credited of over seventy percent of our strate-gies and creative breakthroughs – in products and services, technology and even human resource management and corporate social responsibility. In the

Their success lies in the enthusiasm with which hundreds of associates put in time and effort in making initiatives a success

process of germinating this innovative approach, it would have been all too easy to let vision communities die out once the initial problems were solved and the organisation moved over the hump. But in our journey of over a decade from a four hundred person start-up software firm to a seven thousand professional and two thousand crore rupees global enterprise, we have had active vision communities every year. The ‘vision com-munity’ idea was written up as a case by the Harvard Business School two years ago and is today a hot topic of discussion at Harvard, Columbia and even our very own Indian School of Business.

Our own movement in environment sustainability has seen great success. Initially we developed carbon calculators to track and push improvements in the carbon footprint of individuals, families, teams and the organisation itself, and recently through the fifty lakh invest-ment in developing a biodiversity park in the vicinity of our campus. For us the success lies not just in the contribution we make to the city and its environment, but the enthusiasm with which hundreds of our associates have put in time and effort in making the initiatives a success. Scaling any innovation needs attention from senior management, explicit and tacit support from functional leaders, and motivated people who will channelise their energies towards a common good – and it’s important to have all three in abundance!

Dr. Ganesh Natarajan is CEO of Zensar Technologies Ltd . Ruchi Mathur heads CSR and organizational development

They have ideas, but more importantly the will to participate and collaborate, rather than just comment from the sidelines

Ganesh Natarajan & Ruchi Mathur

VCs of a different genre


6% solar purchase must for large-scale users in TN

Acute power shortage has pushed Tamil Nadu government to make it mandatory for large-scale power consumers to meet 6% of their energy needs from solar power by 2014.

As per the policy, it will be mandatory for large-scale users in SEZs, IT parks, telecom towers, colleges and residential schools, industries guaranteed with round the clock power supply and buildings with 20,000 sq mt built up area to abide by the 6% Solar Purchase Obligation (SPO).

“The state will mandate 6% SPO (starting with 3% till December 2013 and 6% from January 2014),” the policy note said.

However, domestic consumers, huts, cottage and tiny industries, powerlooms, LT industrial and agricultural consumers are exempted from this obligation. Instead, domes-tic consumers would be encouraged to put up roof-top solar installations.

The state electricity board said that consumers can meet their SPO by generating cap-tive solar power or buying equivalent to or more than their SPO from third party develop-ers or purchasing power from Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Ltd (TANGEDCO) at solar tariff.

Tamil Nadu’s new solar energy policy envisions production of over 3,000 MW of exclu-sive solar power in the next three years.

“A generation-based incentive of Rs 2 per unit for first two years, Re 1 per unit for next two years and Rs 0.50 per unit for subsequent two years will be provided for all solar and solar-wind hybrid rooftops being installed before March 31, 2014. A capacity addition of 50 MW is targeted under this scheme,” the policy notes.

‘Green roads’ in Assam soon

Dssam can boast of becom-ing one of the greenest and cleanest states in the

country, what with green buildings to green environs, and now green roads.

Using cold mix technology, in which natural rubber latex is blended with bitumen emulsion, Assam is a pioneering state in the country to have used this method in rural road construction. About 1500 km or roads has been built using the new technique until now, said state PWD Minister Ajanta Neog.

The main plus point of the cold mix technology is that precious fos-sil fuels are saved. It saves around 1500 liters of diesel per kilometer, so if over 1000 km of roads are con-structed every year in each state, it would lead to huge benefits. Factors like heavy rainfall often delay the construction and maintenance of roads. At such times, the cold mix technology is a good option to solve the problems of road connectivity.

The Assam Public Works Roads Department launched this unique Green Roads Mission in association with the Central Road Research Institute and Bitchem Asphalt Technologies Limited, Delhi.

The Mission aims at achieving sustainable development. With this technology, people can utilize the socio-economic and environmental benefits for rural roads and state roads. It can also indirectly help the country earn carbon credits.

NEWS


Indian pilgrimage cities to go green

Think of India and you’d think of many things. But the most prominent among those things would probably be reli-gion. The country is easily associated with spirituality and

renowned pilgrimage centers.It was only wise when eleven major Indian pilgrim centers

joined a global initiative for green pilgrimage. This initiative aims to ensure that the activities of the pilgrims and locals make least negative impact on the environment. Towns like Amritsar, Guntur, Howrah, Visakhapatnam, Shirdi, Ujjain, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Varanasi, Bodh Gaya, and Ladakh region have joined this network.

The International Green Pilgrimage Network (GPN) launched its India chapter recently, organized by deputy director of Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC) along with Local Governments for Sustainability. The organization felt that India needed a sepa-rate branch of GPN as no other country has such a large number of pilgrim centers of all faiths. GPN will help various faiths to make their holy cities as environmentally sustainable as possible, based on their religious beliefs.

“Every day millions of people around the world go on pilgrim-age. The goal of the network is to encourage pilgrims, and pilgrim

cities of every faith throughout the world to become models of care for the environment,” an official from GPN said.

The network will try to work in partnerships. From transport providers to solar power experts to local NGOs, local authorities, academic institutions and environmental organizations will be encouraged to discuss and partner with religious groups to imple-ment all facets of greening the pilgrimages.

ARC and WWF (World Wildlife Fund) have been working on the environmental front of the holy sites and pilgrimage routes for more than 20 years.

The member Indian cities will meet every year, share sustainable solutions for their cities and discuss topics like greening waste, san-itation, buildings, transport, food and accommodation. They will try to leave a positive footprint, which means the pilgrims will try to leave every place more beautiful than it was when they arrived. To put it simply, the pilgrims can help by taking away their own lit-ter and other people’s; avoid buying bottled water; choosing tourist agencies with a sustainable ethos; eating locally available, organic and free-range food; buying only sustainably sourced souvenirs; walking rather than driving etc.

On a broad and more ambitious level, it can mean engaging voluntarily with social and ecological programs during your pil-grimage; financially supporting these programs; sharing ideas and inspiration with other pilgrims and city residents; returning home with a greater sense of responsibility towards the nature, and doing something active to protect their own hometown.

NEWS


Solar prisons in Kerala!

Considering frequent power outages and short-age in the state, Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation (Keltron) will foray

into solar power by manufacturing solar power invert-ers and power conditioners.

The corporation supports ‘Solar India’ concept of Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission for imple-menting solar projects in all jails. The project is exe-cuted at the Central Prison in the state, by the initiative of Kerala State Prison Department. It has assigned the implementation of 665 KW solar plants to Keltron for a total order value of Rs 22 crore.

The initial power conditioning unit developed by Keltron with a technical tie-up with IIT Kharagpur is expected to be commissioned within two months. The Rs 7.9 crore solar photovoltaic power unit will generate nearly 229 KW of power.

All lighting inside the jail complex, lighting and fans of all cell blocks, steam cooking, chappathi mak-ing unit, water pumping unit, Superintendent Office and DGP Office will be powered by this solar energy. In future, other facilities inside the jail, such as cutting stones, making bricks, will also be powered with solar energy by Keltron.

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has approved the project and 30 percent subsidy is also sanctioned. Based on the order, solar power plants will be further implemented in Central prison- Kannur; Central Prison- Viyyur; Open Prison- Nettukaltheri; Open prison annex - Thevamcode; District Jail-Thiruvananthapuram and Special sub-jail - Thiruvananthapuram. All these projects are expected to be completed by February 2013.

CO2 tariffs alone not enough to reduce global emission

A new report suggests that steadily growing world trade leads to a substantial transfer of CO2 from one country to another. Limiting this trade through policies like CO2

tariffs will not lower global emissions as much as needed, warns the report.

The traded goods essentially contain greenhouse gases, as they originate during production by using energy.

“Typically, in the West we import goods whose production causes a lot of greenhouse gas emissions in poorer countries - and it is a contested question to which countries these emissions should be attributed,” explains study co-author Michael Jakob from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), Germany.

Many Western countries aspire to reduce emissions and have set targets. But simply shifting emission-intensive industries to third world countries in order to achieve these goals does not serve the purpose of climate protection, states the PIK statement.

“We can show that of the total CO2 flowing into the US in the form of imported goods, almost 50 per cent are due to the American trade deficit alone,” Jakob explains.

The US emits less CO2 in the production of its exports than is contained in its imports, simply because it imports more than it exports.

NEWS


Nuclear power not necessary to meet energy needs: Study

India does not need to rely on nuclear energy to quench its ever increasing demand for power. This can be easily met by solar and other renewable sources, suggests a new study.The report, which adds fire to the on-going antinuclear protests

in the country, is prepared by Hiremath Mitavachan and Jayaraman Srinivasan of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore.

The study disputes the notion that nuclear power is vital for India because the country does not have enough land to utilize the full potential of solar power. The researchers compared the land-use pattern of three primary energy sources - coal, nuclear and hydro - with solar energy. They then calculated the percentage of land area that would be required to meet the estimated energy demand in future.

The authors note that coal power plants transform the land around the unit and also require land for mining coal and its

upstream processing. An average dam displaces 31,340 persons and submerges 8,748 hectares of land. The direct land usage of a nuclear power plant includes power plant area, buffer zone, waste disposal area and the land that goes into mining uranium.

“Our study shows that solar power plants require less land in comparison to hydro-power plants and are comparable with coal and nuclear energy power generation when life-cycle transforma-tions are considered,” Srinivasan said.

According to the professors, 4.1 percent of the total uncultiva-ble and waste land in India is enough to meet the projected annual demand of 3,400 terawatt-hour (TWh) by 2070 by solar energy alone. The space required can further be reduced to 3.1 percent if other potential renewable energy sources of India are brought into picture, they claim.

They say their calculations are based on current-day solar pho-tovoltaic (PV) technology and have not included more efficient new solar cells. Neither have they yet considered the roof-top PV sys-tems that can be set up without any need for extra space.

The nuclear and fossil fuel-based technologies alter the land they exploit to extract fuels or dispose of the waste. That is elimi-nated in case of solar plants. The same land used for PV solar power plants can be utilised for other purposes like grazing.

NEWS


FOCUS

That India’s spending on green IT and sustain-ability initiatives will double from $35 billion in 2010 to $70 billion in 2015 does not come as a

surprise, given that India is considered a prime destina-tion for global sourcing of information technology (IT) and IT-enabled services (ITeS).

According to IT research and advisory firm Gartner, green IT and sustainability are emerging as important concerns for businesses, investors and tech-nologists across industries and policymakers in India. Gartner’s recent report, Hype Cycle for Green IT and Sustainability in India, 2012, emphasizes that adoption of green IT and sustainability solutions by Indian enter-prises will be mainly driven by government policies.

The information and communication technology

(ICT) industry will be the early adopter of green IT and sustainability solutions in India. The report describes and analyzes some of the emerging IT and operational technology (OT) related solutions and adaptations of existing technologies that can deliver value to Indian businesses.

It is an encouraging sign that business enterprises are quite aware of green IT. Close to 69 percent of the respondents in a survey said that they were aware of it. Not surprisingly the awareness levels were higher in the MNCs with some 77 percent saying they knew about it. But it is also significant to note the high awareness levels among the PSUs, with around 76 percent of the PSU respondents saying they were aware of green IT. Another noteworthy aspect was that the awareness

Spend outlook on green IT for the coming years is as healthy as the awareness levels, across India Inc.

By Jigna Khajuria

Dataspeak: Reality overtakes hype!


FOCUS

levels were the highest among companies with annual revenues of Rs 50-100 crore, at around 79 percent. Larger companies with annual revenues of over Rs 500 crore came next.

Green IT essentialsThanks to so much talk about the environment nowa-days, there is an earnest debate as to what is the driv-ing factor behind the rising awareness levels for green IT. There are basically two schools of thoughts on this matter. According to one, it is the economics that is driving up the awareness as well as the adoption, while the other bats for social responsibility as the primary driver.

It would be interesting here to understand what green IT means and constitutes. Is it putting new blade servers in the data center, or going in for virtualization, or configuring desktops to go to sleep mode, once they are no more in use? While there may not be consensus on any one definition of green IT, experts agree that green IT is more of a journey than a destination; a jour-ney that makes an organization more efficient and agile.

A green data center is a kind of warehouse for the storage, management, and dissemination of data in which the mechanical, lighting, electrical and com-puter systems are designed for maximum energy effi-ciency and minimum environmental impact. It helps businesses to gain insight into how their organizations can use IT to address business challenges and improve operational efficiency.

IT industry continues to remain a growth driver for the Indian economy. This sector is marked as the big-gest employment generator. Direct employment within the IT-BPO sector was expected to be 2.5 million in 2010-11. It is necessary for businesses to adopt IT to improve productivity and drive growth. However, the increasing invasion of ICT infrastructure during the past decade, and the resultant energy consumption, has led to more carbon emissions. No wonder companies are taking green initiatives in areas of power saving, cooling efficiency and server virtualization.

IT sector is taking green steps“For the first time, a chapter on sustainable develop-ment and climate change was introduced in the govern-ment’s annual Indian Economic Survey, 2011-2012. The survey has suggested making lower-carbon sustain-able growth a central element of India’s 12th five-year-plan,” said Ganesh Ramamoorthy, Research Director at Gartner.

This move sets the foundation for future policy initiatives and regulatory measures by the Indian gov-ernment. The aim would be to implement some tech-nologies like advanced metering infrastructure, carbon capture and sequestration, intelligent transportation system, solar energy technology, building integrated PV systems, eco-labels and footprints, combined heat and power technology, e-waste, distributed power gen-eration, and water management across the country. All these measures are deemed necessary to lead towards low-carbon sustainable growth.

Green IT awareness

MNC

Yes No

77.4%

22.6%

65.1%

34.9%

24%

76%

31.3%

68.8%

Indian Private Limited

Company

PSU Govt/Institution

Gartner survey sees more than 75 percent awareness not only among respondents at MNCs but also at PSUs


IT sector is taking steps to help businesses become more environment-friendly. Green IT, web conferencing and tele-presence have helped organiza-tions reduce travel and carbon emissions and adopt greater sustainability with increased productivity.

Measures for betterment of the environment have been adopted by com-panies through both internal business practices as well as community activi-ties. The IT sector has taken a lead in ensuring that the IT parks, complexes and buildings conform to the certified energy conservation measures and have the potential to earn carbon credits in future.

Other potential adoptersApart from the ICT industry, the bank-ing and financial services, hospitality, manufacturing (such as automobiles), pharmaceuticals, and other industries that have significant exposure to the export markets, will also join the green IT and sustainability trend early in India. Among other industries, address-ing energy, carbon, resource efficiency and sustainable economic development is currently still in the early stages.

The need of the hour is to implement integrated solutions through resource-efficient materials and operational tech-nologies in urban areas and smaller cit-ies. This will pace up the development of sustainable processes and infrastructure in the future. “Many Indian organiza-tions still lack the strategic focus that comes with a clear understanding of the core issues and key technologies that bring about real change in the vision for sustainability and green IT in an organi-zation,” said Ramamoorthy.

In its report, Gartner presents views on the state of adaption of some of the most innovative and significant technologies and busi-ness models relating to green IT and sustainability in India.

“While awareness of green IT and sustainability issues is quite low in Indian organizations, the increas-ing global focus on energy efficiency, energy security, green IT and sustainability issues is now causing the executive leadership in the technology sector to track, report and manage sustainable and resource-efficient business practices,” Ramamoorthy said.

Looking at the growing demand for IT, Indian gov-ernment has taken various steps to further boost the sector’s growth. The Constitution of the Technical Advisory Group for Unique Projects (TAGUP) is an example of that to develop IT infrastructure in key areas.

“The operational cost of making energy-efficient resources available is pressuring CIOs in Indian com-panies to develop strategies to optimize ICT utilization, including companywide energy management, while not compromising on the growth or deployment of newer technologies,” Ramamoorthy said. “We are already beginning to see the use of energy-efficient technology in data centers, manufacturing facilities and public buildings in India. While home energy management solutions in residences are still in the very early stages, they are increasingly tested in newly-built urban areas and gated communities.”

As India moves towards a low carbon economy, a strategic change is needed to ensure that corpo-rates continue their growth, while at the same time follow sustainability within their premises and in supply chains.

“The survey has suggested making lower-carbon sustainable growth a central element of India’s 12th five-year-plan,” Ganesh Ramamoorthy, Research Director, Gartner


“Pongamia grows well on marginal lands, and being a legume tree, doesn’t need chemical nutrients. It is eco-friendly, enhances soil fertility and is unaffected by biotic stresses. Best, it offers yield sustainability and high seed oil content.” – Dr. MVR Prasad, Chief Scientist and V-P – agriculture, VayuGrid Marketplace Services

IN CONVERSATION


Dr. MVR Prasad is an internationally recog-nized leader and agricultural scientist with spe-cialization in plant genetics and breeding. He has contributed over 40 years of research and development towards resolving problems of dry land agriculture with special reference to the improvement of oil seed crops. He was earlier Director of the Directorate of Oilseed Research in Hyderabad and worked with the African De-velopment Bank and World Bank sponsored pro-jects in Africa and IICA/OAS projects in South America.

He has developed upstream technologies for Va-yuGrid’s bio-energy program including leading genotypes of biofuel trees, nursery technologies for reproduction of those genotypes, and estab-lishment of productive clonal plantations for bi-oenergy. He also drives VayuGrid’s inter-institu-tional collaborative researches in biofuel based product development. In an in-depth email in-terview with SustaiNuance, Dr. Prasad details the revolutionary potential that bio-fuels hold to address India’s energy problem.

“ LIKE IN SOLAR, INDIA CAN BE A WORLD LEADER IN

”BIOENERGY

CHINA


hat plant species have you found to be the best solu-tions for biofuels and why?

Over 25 years ago, before many people were thinking about the ideas of biofuels and

renewable energy, my team at the Department of Oilseed Research (DOR) began a project on oil bearing trees. Central to this project, we set out to identify the best plant species for biofuels based on a number of criteria including impact on food supply, yield per acre, and the potential to develop the crop at a large scale. We evalu-ated over 60 different species in this project to arrive at our conclusions.

The first factor we considered was to avoid the food vs. fuel conflict, therefore we eliminated species yield-ing edible oil, e.g. oil palm and rapeseed-mustard, and carbohydrates like sugarcane, sweet sorghum and corn etc. From there, we ranked a wide range of oil bearing perennial plant species for biofuels based on yield and crop potential with the top seven being Pongamia pinnata, Calophyllum inophyllum, Melia aadirach, Madhuca spp, Azdirachta indica, Ricinus com-munis and Jatropha curcus.

We found that Pongmia pin-nata offers the best solution for biofuels as it has high oil yields per acre – two to three times that of other species. It is highly tolerant to a variety of climatic conditions – both dry and wet – and is highly resistant to pests and diseases. The Pongamia tree grows well on mar-ginal lands, and being a legume tree, does not need chemical nutri-ent application. It is an eco-friendly and inclusive plant species that enhances soil fertility without being affected by biotic stresses. And most importantly, it offers yield sustainability and high seed oil content.

What can be done to maximize the productivity of Pongamia and what yields can be expected?

As India offers a very impressive genetic variability and diversity for Pongamia, VayuGrid launched a program of developing a library of elite genotypes of Pongamia possessing productive canopy frame promising higher seed kernel yield, higher oil content, and needed fatty acid profile. VayuGrid also launched a project on genetic improvement of Pongamia for the above characteristics through hybridization of desirable parental genetic com-binations without genetic modification.

The current yield levels of elite Pongamia are in the range of three to four tons of oil per acre at maturity, which is already three to four times an average Pongamia tree. VayuGrid envisages further developing the produc-tivity to even doubling the yield levels through comple-tion of the on-going research and development.

You talked about avoiding the food versus energy conflict. Could you elaborate on that…

A serious blunder was committed by some employing crops that yield food grade carbohydrates and edible oils for producing biofuel which in turn started the food vs. fuel debate. For a sustainable bio-fuel program, it is imperative that the plant species must not be drawn from the food group. These must necessarily be the non-edible oil yielding plant species that offer good yield stability and good oil content over the years without taking from the food supply.

Furthermore, these biofuel ready plant species must be suitable to be grown on marginal lands that are unfit for regular food crop production. The plant species to be grown for biofuel must be eco-friendly and of inclusive nature. Thus in these ways it is possible to avoid encroach-ment of biofuel crops in the domain of arable crops for food.

What are the applications of Pongamia oil for energy and who is doing it? :

Pongamia oil has been used as a fuel source in India for thousands of years. It has been a traditional source for lighting, cooking and heat-ing. Around 70 years ago, Pongamia oil was exported from India to other parts of the world for fuel, even to Saudi Arabia before they discovered large reserves of petroleum under-ground. Moreover, the first time a diesel engine was demonstrated at the world fair in Paris in 1900, it ran on peanut oil. Thus the idea of run-ning diesel engines on vegetable oil is

not a new concept.Today, Pongamia oil can be found in use for ground

transportation, power generation, and even as jet fuel. In Karnataka, state run buses are currently running on a mix of 10 percent Pongamia oil which soon will be increased to 15 percent. Several villages, across India, including Padarwadi, a village near Pune, Maharashtra, are run-ning power generators on Pongamia oil from seeds the villagers collect from trees around. And jet manufactur-ers, including Boeing and Airbus have studied Pongamia oil as a jet fuel for years, and today airlines in Europe are starting to use Pongamia oil converted to jet fuel as a green energy source.

What is the carbon footprint of a diesel engine run-ning on Pongamia oil?

The three ways in which Pongamia oil will reduce the car-bon footprint are by reduction of carbon emissions, elimi-nation of chemical fertilizers, and carbon sequestration.

On carbon emission reduction, lab test show that a 10 percent mix of Pongamia oil will reduce the carbon emis-sions output by 15 percent.

“Jet makers, including Boeing and Airbus have studied Pongamia oil as fuel for years, and today airlines in Europe are starting to use the oil converted to jet fuel as a green energy source”


IN CONVERSATION

Next, Pongamia being a legume tree does not require chemical fertilizers to enhance tree productivity. Chemical fertilizers are a large producer of carbon foot-print, therefore eliminating the fertilizers also eliminates a large source of carbon emissions.

Carbon sequestration is achieved as the legume tree fixes nitrogen in the ground and encourages plant and other microorganisms to flourish around the tree which capture carbon in the ground. A Pongamia plantation will sequester about six tons of carbon per acre per year through these methods.

The net result is that Pongamia oil is a carbon-neutral power source for transportation, electricity, and mechanization. As proof of the international acceptance, Powerguda village in Adilabad district of Andhra Pradesh in India is already selling carbon credits for Pongamia power to Europe based on the usage.

What lessons can we learn from early bio-fuel sources such as Jatropha?

The key learnings are the need for a clear diversification of feedstock portfolios that can survive in multiple regions, under diverse conditions, have a low need for irrigation to be productive, have a clear business model of upstream to downstream integration and a crop portfolio with a clear demonstrable triple bottomline of social, environmental and economic.

How can India take a leadership role for the world in biofuels?

India, already being the world’s largest producer of oil-seeds and a native home to the Pongamia tree, is well suited to be the global leader in biofuels. This includes both in the production of oilseeds for biofuel as India has for other oilseeds, as well as owning the technology which the world uses for biofuels.

This is India’s real opportunity to lead the world in bio-energy as a portfolio of renewables such as what Europe has done in wind and China in solar. The IP is the chal-lenge and as a company we have solved this to drive two key parameters for the creation of an industry around elite Pongamia—productivity and predictability. With the scale of marginal lands in India that are unproduc-tive for food crop production, this can create an industry that can contribute to the GDP directly. The opportunity is three fold—saving precious foreign exchange; getting into a production mode with a futures in bioenergy, and employment generation. It can enable local industry compete in the global carbon economy by offsetting their consumption with bioenergy and carbon sinks from plan-tations, enabling a Perform and Trade (PAT) regime as envisaged by the government of India.

Critical sectors to the GDP in India such as mining, telecommunications, manufacturing, energy and others can benefit with a sound business model of futures in energy contracts and carbon offset making a stronger RoI for their stakeholders and business.


Is greenwashing an outright no no? Or does it still have a role in building a basic level of awareness? What do marcom and PR specialists say?

By Pratima Harigunani

Greentruths,

noblelies!Doesn’t an ‘eco-friendly cigarette’ sound like an obvi-

ous paradox galumphing its way into a shopping aisle?

As surreal as they may sound, such ‘labels’ catch our eyes and claw up slyly over our wallets. There indeed were ads from American Spirit cigarette that suddenly started light-ing up a claim that the brand was eco-friendly. Claims were grilled on the premise that products became ‘organic’ when the manufacturing process used hybrid vehicles and renew-able energy. It didn’t just tickle many anti-cigarette activists


COVER STORY


in 2011 though. It provoked them. There also was a Barbie offering for eco-conscious

girls. It was supposed to be made of stuff that would otherwise be discarded, offering a way to make an environmentally-friendly fashion statement with cool, patchwork-style accessories.

As Richard Dickson, senior VP, Marketing, Media and Entertainment, Mattel Brands was heard saying after a press announcement: “Barbie is always a reflec-tion of current trends and issues, and girls are increas-ingly aware of making a green statement.”

If this may seem like a plastic surgery of enormous proportions, then consider this: Exxon-Mobil, an oil giant so far in news for not so pleasant environmental contributions, earned the title of “Green Company of the Year” in Forbes’ list of 2009.

Feasting on fear?Guilt and fear are two very strong and oft-used appeals in many an advertiser’s dictionary. They are two high-ways that work as great short-cuts for the promotions. Anyone who has traipsed a bit in the psycho-cognitive lanes cannot help but appreciate how smartly brand-smiths use the weak spots of ‘id’ state of mind along with the ‘ego’ and ‘super-ego’ states.

Primitive instincts like biological desires have been deftly layered as subliminal messages in many cam-paigns for decades, but the way ‘guilt’ has been sold by marketing whiz kids is really worth tipping a hat to. Their recent cart runs on really round wheels – fear of global warming and climate change.

The fear factor is not so subliminal. A corporate communications manager with seasoned years of working in research and IT industry picks out the green consciousness rub-off as a big force in corporate corridors now. “From saving on paper, cutting down unnecessary printing and saving energy wherever pos-sible, to a whole new green thought around everything, it’s palpable.”

Is that the reason why marketers are making their roofs while the sun shines? Converting the zeitgeist into a green blitzkrieg of sorts? Molding this conscious-ness into loud brochures?

A US Magazine’s list of world’s top green companies has featured Indian names like Wipro and TCS. Nine other Indian companies made it to these annual global rankings. Wipro notched the second spot with a green score of 85.4. Products like green data centers that con-sume 10-12 percent less energy, and eco-energy green infrastructure solutions and consultancy pieces for buildings and green factories show the kind of big rejig its portfolio has undergone so far.

The bandwagon is only growing. What do commu-nications and PR specialists have to say?

Vishak Gopinath, Head – Public Relations, India & Saarc, Cisco tells that green-labeled products are fairly common today. Consumers and businesses see ‘green’ as a societal and environmental obligation, and this is the primary reason for the greater proliferation and adoption of this trend.

Interesting Enough!A paper in Nature Climate Change called “Climate change and moral judgment,” by Ezra Markowitz and Azim Shariff (University of Oregon Psychology and Environmental Studies departments) listed down six reasons why climate change poses significant challenges to our moral judgment system; thus making it and its threats difficult to engage with and appreciate. Have marketers counted their chickens too soon then?

1. Abstractness and cognitive complexity: Climate change is tough to understand.

2. The blamelessness of unintentional action: Well, people treat intentional harms much more severely than they do unintentional harms.

3. Guilty bias: When individuals and communities feel incapable of meaningfully responding behaviourally, they resort to biased perceptions to avoid guilt feelings.

4. Uncertainty: Let’s face it: It’s not clear exactly how, when (exactly), where (near me?) climate change will play out so it’s hard to blame people for being optimistic.

5. Moral tribalism: It’s easy to be morally hostile to something that does not match our erstwhile value system and lifestyles probably.

6. Long time horizons and far away places: Victims of climate change are often viewed as far away in space or time, and hence in a comfortable oblivion for now.

November 2012 Sustainuance 21November 2012 Sustainuance 21

“While the increase in awareness and consciousness is good, I believe that both con-sumers and businesses do not do enough to truly imbibe these virtues. Customers are content

to merely see that the product they’re purchasing is a ‘green’ product, but do not make the effort to under-stand the specific ‘green’ elements of the products. Businesses are also happy to brand their products as ‘green’ based on one or a very limited set of features.”

He feels that regular decision makers could be mis-led due to the lack of clear standards to help guide their decision making process.

It doesn’t surprise customers though when they are exhorted to use mobiles for the sheer reason of saving paper, as Ideas Cellular ads insist. If it is using fuel-powered telecom towers then at least someone is walk-ing the talk for some footsteps.

Many corporates are trying to get pally with a green handshake in India in other sectors. A wind turbine maker started making PALS out of users through the Pure Air Lovers Society campaign.

If that doesn’t catch the right wind with you, may be saving two buckets of water by using Surf Excel will keep another mega-firm HUL happy.

Where to draw the line?The question, which many skeptics have started putting out is not that white though.

Brands attempting to touch new eco-nerves with customers is fine. But this ‘noble’ idea often catches them on the wrong foot, especially when the same com-panies beating their chest about environmental issues are alleged of mercury pollution, tampering with natu-ral resources or seizing tribal lands.

‘Planet ke rakhwale’ needs a really strong proposi-tion on the backstage as well if they want to dial tall claims. That’s where your ad agency’s clout, your copy-writer’s wit and PR livewires won’t be able to help unless the corporate in question actually follows the tagline inside-out.

Companies need to wake up to the fact that today’s consumers are becoming increasingly cynical. Sifting out real intentions from gimmicks is not so tough now.

Gopinath avers that ‘green’ has evolved to become a hygiene factor in most marketing campaigns but this doesn’t always and necessarily translate in increased sales of the product since it is no longer a major prod-uct differentiator. “True innovations leading to greener features is what informed customers are looking for, as part of their decision making process.”

Green is a selling tool for sure and the salespersons can have good intentions about it, contends another PR professional who has juggled many technology brands with poise for over five years now. But as he rightly adds, the idea of sustainability as a branding pitch runs the risk of overkill.

“In the long-term green-selling may not be a good idea from a client’s perspective as well. The overkill is going to happen soon. Since everyone wants to talk green, milking the trend too much can run a danger. At this rate, the bandwagon may kill itself out soon.”

What he is hinting at is more than guesswork. Advertising history is replete with examples of how even well-entrenched brands have hit the wrong walls of commoditization, fatigue, consumer-backlash and irreversible positioning gears.

Anish Bangia, another PR professional is of the opinion that green-selling enables a society-connect for many corporates. “It can be a small component in the product or a few constituents but at least it does its small part in the big picture. If automobiles that have long been only identified as synonymous to petroleum can get a chance to renew their brand image with opportunities like CNG, what’s wrong with that?”

Green-selling is not necessarily a big lie as the PR expert emphatically argued. In fact it has started becoming more of a business imperative than a con-science factor, as he explained. “As a public relations person, we have seen it’s easy to bend perceptions and we often do not dig the surface. When clients want to say something, we can only help or advise to a point on the ‘what’. Our job is the ‘how’.”

“While customers do not make the effort to understand the specific ‘green’ elements of the products, businesses are also happy to brand their products as ‘green’ based on one or a very limited set of features.” – Vishak Gopinath, Head – Public Relations, India & Saarc, Cisco


COVER STORY


But as a consumer, he certainly feels the same risk – the risk of overdoing it. While, in that vein, it was tempting to ask him: if he would pay a premium for a ‘green’ label? He nodded affirmative and feels confident that there are many people who would pay an extra penny as long as it makes one feel good about some-thing. It differs from person to person though, he noted.

Yes, it differs from person to person. Some pay pen-nies, some splurge pounds.

Green for all pockets?There are billionaires who don’t mind paying some half a million dollars for aTrek Madone bike. Artist Damien Hirst’s design purportedly used world’s best carbon craftsmen in this bike with meticulously built frames from their proprietary OCLV Carbon in US manufac-turing facilities. Oh, and yes, it’s made with real butter-fly wings, if you were still waiting for the ‘green’ word.

The word floats as luxuriously in blue waters, thanks to super yachts like those of Palmer Johnson World.

“It can be a small component but at least it plays its small part in the big picture. If automobiles that have long been only identified with petroleum renew their image with CNG, what’s wrong with that?” – Anish Bangia, PR professional

The green paint is wet

1. Only 16 per cent of consumers said they believe most or all businesses “are committed to ‘going green’ as per a 2011 poll.

2. Just 29 per cent Executives at Fortune 1000 companies expressed agreement that most or all businesses are committed to going green. Hear the ‘why’ part now: 71 percent of the survey’s executives cited “consumers’ unwillingness to pay a premium for green products or services.” Hence the ‘No ROI’ argument as 78 percent of the executives cited therein.

3. In 2012, the study found 21 percent of Americans believing that the majority of businesses are making efforts toward sustainable development.

Courtesy: Gibbs & Soell Sense & Sustainability Study


the issue of battery packs haunts these cars’ dashboards now.

A hybrid car’s light-weight components do increase the fuel economy of a vehicle, but there is also that extra carbon dioxide and other gases released in their making, as per some skeptics. Another study by CNW Marketing Research, Inc. which attempts to work out the total amount of energy used in the lifetime of many cars from their design to their eventual disposal said that some SUVs have a smaller footprint than the Prius.

Prius then, may have an average life of 109,000 miles whilst a Hummer gets 379,000 or 3.5 times the life of a Prius.

This somehow rings familiar when juxtaposed with many cloudy assertions by technology vendors. The whole area of cooling costs, scary numbers of Fahrenheit’s and energy guzzled by data centers is kept backstage while many companies put the spotlight on ‘environmental-friendly’ or ‘cheap’ technologies.

Green consumer a moron, or an oxymoron?It was just 20 months after its massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill; BP started drilling a slick nationwide public relations campaign into the US to persuade Americans that the Gulf region had recovered. As reported in a media critique, the campaign reeked of sparkling beaches, booming businesses, smiling fishermen and waters bursting with seafood and was immediately

Why not, if it uses the latest diesel-electric propulsion package from Rolls Royce, resulting in lower fuel con-sumption and reduced greenhouse gas emissions? An eco-friendly luxury for anyone with thick pads of green currency in the pocket?

Unless one wants to spend it on the $980,000 Rimac Concept One sports car, of course.

For the lesser mortals there is no need to bawl yet. There are ‘Pure & Natural’ diapers from Huggies, don’t you worry. The company realized how disposable dia-pers are a huge tax on the environment, adding some 3.5 million tons of waste to America’s landfills annu-ally. Not to forget, the issue of chemicals including carcinogens like dioxin, and hence an eco-friendly line of diaper with a small piece of organic cotton, that won-derfully enough, doesn’t even come into contact with baby’s skin – it’s on the outside of the diaper.

If poop-matter is not your grey matter and you still don’t have those billion dollars; there are toys avail-able for this genre of consumers as well. But even these might be a little expensive. Green is often not a cheaper choice.

Press ink has been hot in recent months in a new shade when it comes to Toyota’s maven hybrid car icon for instance. Critics have lambasted the higher manu-facturing carbon footprint of such cars without green-envy. Hybrid icons have been mocked for more carbon contributions than even larger vehicles. More parts, more copper or aluminum in electric drive systems and


COVER STORY


dismissed by many as BP propaganda.In 2011, only 16 percent of consumers said in

response to a survey they believed most or all businesses were committed to ‘going green,’ that is, improving the health of the environment by implementing more sus-tainable business practices or offering environmentally friendly products or services. When asked to identify the barriers, if any, to that, 71 percent of the survey’s executives cited “consumers’ unwillingness to pay a premium for green products or services.”

That translated well into “not enough return on investment,” as cited by 78 percent of the executives, in the same study in 2011.

“While surveys consistently show consumers have a preference, and even a willingness to pay a premium, for green products, the question is often asked without the full context of performance and convenience,” as Ron Loch, Senior V-P for green-tech and sustainability at Gibbs & Soell, the firm that conducted the study, noted.

In 2012, the number notched up a tad. Some 21 per-cent of Americans were found to believe that majority of businesses were making efforts towards sustainable development.

Another report sketches a similar picture. People care less about the environment or green marketing claims than they did a few years ago, according to the new Green Gauge Report from GfK. May be that’s why they’re also less likely to doubt marketers’ green claims or motives. A 2011 study by GfK highlights only 30

percent of people, a figure correspondingly much lower than 36 percent in a similar period for 2008.

The Green Gauge report also found 39 percent of people say business claims about the environment aren’t accurate.

Christine MacDonald, the author of a book Green, Inc.: An Environmental Insider Reveals How a Good Cause Has Gone Bad cited a brilliant example in a post. Eight years ago Environmental Defense Fund teamed up with Federal Express to develop a hybrid truck that was hailed as ‘revolutionary’. As per this initiative, FedEx promised to have 30,000 low-carbon vehicles on the road by 2013. So far, FedEx has about 170 or so of those vehicles on the road, less than one per cent of its fleet of 80,000 ground vehicles. What’s interesting is that FedEx and EDF continue to paint this as a ‘success story’, nevertheless.

Ian Yolles, the chief sustainability officer of RecycleBank, a green rewards program that works with companies and brands such as Procter & Gamble, Kashi and Naked Juice to mobilize and reward consumers for taking environmentally preferred action while creat-

ing sustainability initiatives, urged corporates not to let green washing accusations hold them back.

“Accusations of green washing are rampant right now, and many are well-founded. Research shows

The Green-shopper Eh?

1. Of some 2000 respondents surveyed, 41 per cent of people agreed with the statement “first comes economic security, then we can worry about environmental problems

2. Only 30 per cent of people this year said they’d bought a “green” or environmentally responsible version of a product in the past two months, down from a high of 36 per cent in 2008

3. About 63 per cent said they now use tap water instead of bottled water

4. There were 39 per cent respondents who said they use reusable shopping bags

5. The report found 39 per cent of people say business claims about the environment aren’t accurate

6. The proportions of consumers who factor environmental protection into their purchase decisions grew six percentage points in China and five points in Brazil, compared to 2011. Yet six in 10 consumers globally feel that environmentally friendly product alternatives are too expensive – roughly the same proportion found in 2011

Courtesy: Green Gauge Report from GfK, 2012


that consumers are more likely to purchase products from a brand perceived to be more ‘sustainable’; that is, if faced with a choice and price being relatively equal, they would select the ‘greener’ product. To capitalize on this green trend, some companies have cobbled together feeble marketing programs that have gotten them called out for green washing.” Yolles notes in a post in Jan 2011.

“I wonder if the fear of being labeled a green washer is preventing brands that are earnestly looking to do something positive from doing so for fear of a massive backlash. …….there’s no such thing as a truly green or truly sustainable product or company. It’s about a journey, a continuum. Two ingredients can help. Take action. Make that action measurable and trackable.”

Green paint, black brush?Times are changing. Regulatory watchdogs are getting as much as irked as consumer-groups when it comes to subtle conning of people with eco-friendly claims. Green is a great garb to cajole shoppers, but for how long will it be the invisibility cloak is anyone’s guess when one finds so much activism against these spiel-mills.

Wheedling shoppers won’t be as easy in certain places and in near future. New industry guidelines from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the US, for example, would soon ensure marketing campaigns are authentically driven and are not misleading. The brand-sirens will go off as FTC cops crack down on marketers that mislead consumers with puffed-up green market-ing claims. The FTC has already announced the final revisions to its ‘Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims,’ commonly referred to as the ‘green guides.’ These guides help marketers and advertisers avoid making deceptive, sweeping eco claims without proof or qualification; and they were last updated in 1998.

The new guidelines cover many new areas like carbon offsets, free-of and non-toxic claims, made of renewable and energy materials claims, the use of green certificates and seals of approval. They highlight how a marketer should avoid making broad, unqualified claims that a product is environmentally friendly or eco-friendly because consumers interpret those claims as far-reaching. Also, any marketer claiming it is ‘green’ or ‘eco-friendly’ must be qualified. Certifications and green seals of approval are a fresh addition that would help as well.

What’s happening in India?Car manufacturers, for instance, have touted the outstanding fuel economy of their vehicles, however almost no manufacturer provides clear guidelines as to how their customers can achieve such phenomenal economy levels, as Gopinath points out.

“This is the case even with other product categories such as electronic goods where manufacturers high-light the energy efficiency of their products but fail to mention that in many cases, it is the correct use of the product that actually produces such efficiency levels. In the above mentioned examples, the manufacturer as well as the customer are mutually responsible to ensure the product functions are as per the stipulated stand-ards,” he notes.

The good thing is that some of these measures are being put in place, albeit in only a handful of cases.

Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) upheld a complaint in August 2011 against General


COVER STORY


Following its marks, Panasonic launched the Econavi range of air conditioners and a new range of LCD screens

Green trivia

The Indian cricket team’s jersey by Nike was made out of recycled products.

Reebok launched the ‘Urban Metro’ organic range in 2009.

Voltas from the Tata Group launched its first ‘Green’ range of air-conditioner in 2007

Volkswagen launched the ‘Blue-motion’ technology with Passat

Green triviaAmericans are the the least likely to suf-fer from “green guilt” about their environ-mental impact. Con-sumers in India, China,

and Brazil lead the pack, with Greendex scores in the high fifties. Many Indians, Chinese, and Brazilians reported feeling the most guilt about their environmental impact and had the least confidence that their individual actions can help the envi-ronment. Despite their relatively light foot-prints as consumers, there seems to have been some internalization and a sensitiza-tion to environmental issues in places like China, India, and Brazil.

(Greendex report, conducted by the National Geographic Society and the research consul-tancy GlobeScan, 2012)

Motors for a tagline ‘India’s most fuel-efficient car.’ When drilled deeper, it was found that the claim was not backed by ARAI data and hence not substantiated. The ad had to be modified thereafter. In November 2011, another advertiser was taken to task for making a claim that aluminum cookware was not safe and hence its appliances were better. Glen Appliances (Tri Ply stainless cookware) had to provide sufficient research and citations to back its pitch.

While dolls and cars and diapers might have to do some serious internal reflection before wooing the elusive consumer with green ribbons, there’s an out-door outfitter that prefers to print ads of jackets with a strange tagline, on a Black Friday. It asks people to buy less—of everything, including its own products, when it shouts in the ad: “Don’t buy this jacket,” alongside an R2 coat.

“To make it required 135 liters of water, enough to meet the daily needs of three glasses a day of 45 people. Its journey from its origin as 60% recycled polyester to our Reno warehouse generated nearly 20 pounds of carbon dioxide, 24 times the weight of the finished product. This jacket left behind, on its way to Reno, two-thirds its weight in waste. ……There is much to be done and plenty for us all to do. Don’t buy what you don’t need. Think twice before you buy anything. Go.”

Companies like Patagonia may sound stupid with such suicidal advertisements. Its peers and rivals may find the idea too weird for now, unless they heard what FTC chairman Jon Leibowitz’s said during a press conference.

“If enough deception or uncertainty surrounding environmental claims creeps into the marketplace, consumers will tune them out altogether.”

Green-washing may look like child’s play. But this doll is called hara-kiri. Play safe.


“COMPANIES SHOULDN’T HIDE BEHIND FAULTY

”DEFINITIONSAlyque Padamsee is an Indian theater person-ality and ad film maker. Padamsee is CEO of AP Advertising Pvt. Ltd., the well-known image and communications con-sulting that has provided consultancy services to a number of national and

multinational companies. For 14 years, Padamsee was the Chief Executive who built Lintas India to be one of the top agencies in the country. He went on to become the Regional Coordinator of Lintas South Asia. He is known as the Brand Father of Indian advertising and has built over 100 brands. Padamsee is also the guru of the English Theatre in India and is famous for his Theatre productions like Evita, Jesus Christ Su-perstar, Tuglaq, and his latest, Broken Images. Desiree Lobo catches him in a free-wheeling chat.

Is greenwashing acceptable? Can companies get away with it?

Greenwashing is not very different from whitewashing. The thing that differentiates the two is that greenwash-ing is lined to the ecology. How can anyone who makes use of deceptive tactics get away with it? It is disgraceful and companies should stay away from this kind of false marketing.

Greenwashing increases the revenue of the com-pany or product. How can companies stay away from greenwashing and yet increase profits?

Companies need to be straight forward with the con-sumers and not hide behind faulty definitions just to rake in profits. The truth always does come out. How long can this deceptive marketing go on? Companies should instead practice what they preach and have faith that the consumers will buy the product.

Do you know of any Indian brands that have made use of greenwashing?

Thankfully I do not. As far as my knowledge goes there are a number of brands that are doing good work on the sustainability front. If this continues, we can eradicate faulty practices like greenwashing.

Is greenwashing necessary for developing country like India? Can it instill a sense of consciousness about the environment?

There are so many ways to increase awareness about the environment. The media in this way plays an incredibly important part, by publishing information about the environment, introducing new ways in which people can be conscious about their surroundings and thereby increase the necessity to be environmentally conscious.

Why do you think greenwashing attracts market-ers, specially well-entrenched big corporates?

If it does, then it doesn’t say very much about us as a society. I think the reason as to probably why green-washing attracts marketers is because it’s an easy way to make money. Another reason for this could be because they probably think that no one will find them out. But that is just stupid. We live in a world where information is very easy to get. People are always suspicious and will not believe just about anything.


COVER STORY


September 2012 Sustainuance 31

Piyush Pandey is an icon of Indian advertising industry and the Executive Chairman & National Creative Director at Ogilvy & Mather. He is a well-known media figure and is the only Indian to have won three Grand Prizes at the Lon-don International Advertising Awards. Desiree Lobo tries to capture his creative genius that has won him over 600 awards for advertising from all over the world. It is under his leadership that Ogilvy & Mather has become the third largest advertising agency in India and is ranked among the most creative offices in the entire Ogilvy network. More recently, one of his ad cam-paigns was under criticism, particularly in the social me-dia. The campaign “Creating Happiness” came under envi-ronmentalists’ scanner for de-pleting the natural resources and destroying and dividing the local economies and frag-ile ecosystems such as those in the hills of Niyamgiri in Lajigra, Odisha.

“COMPANIES SHOULD

LIVE UPTO WHAT THEY SAY”

“All the activities that a company is involved with on the

environmental front need to be made public and substantiated

with enough research, facts and figures. This makes it easier to

refute criticisms.”


COVER STORY


What can you tell us about greenwashing? How has it affected the Indian society?

Greenwashing to my knowledge is hogwash. It is very similar to what brainwashing is. The only difference is that it is linked to the ecology. It is difficult to say whether or not greenwashing has plagued the Indian society as the concept of “going green” is still very new and is in its developing stages. However “going green” as a concept is an incredibly good concept. It will help establish an environmentally conscious society.

Why is it that not many have heard about green-washing? Is it lack of awareness?

Sustainable development is a very nascent concept in India and in most developing countries. Ever since the G8 summit, India has just begun to talk about its carbon credits and its impact on the society. It should therefore come as no surprise as to why many are oblivious to the concept of greenwashing. However, just because people are ignorant, companies should not take advantage and deceive them. It is important that companies stick to whatever their claims are.

Greenwashing has graduated from embellished self-promotion to flimsy certification programs that offer an official green status. What motives drives these organizations to engage in greenwash-ing and how does one deal with that?

There are a number of things that motivate organiza-tions to take such steps. Have you ever heard of the phrase “money makes the mare go round?” That should explain everything. Everything is dependent on sales and profits. How much can I sell and how much profit will I make? These are the questions that companies are constantly asking themselves when they decide on a product. A company cannot live on love and fresh air. It needs to sustain itself. Indians today are becoming envi-ronmentally conscious by the second. Companies want to tap on the trend and look like they care even if they do not. However, greenwashing should not be practiced if the company cannot live up to what they are saying. It is important that companies are conscious of their deci-sions before they decide to implement them

What are the most obvious signs that a company is greenwashing the public with false claims? What words and phrases should raise a red flag?

You know what they say, “Too much of anything is bad”. When companies tend to overdo something, more often than not they are just making claims. I’m not saying that all companies are lying and making claims for the heck

of it; just that some of them tend to go overboard with things. It is good to know that in India companies stick to their words and live up to what they claim. What can companies do to promote what is genu-inely green?

All the activities that a company is involved with on the environmental front need to be made public and sub-stantiated with enough research, facts and figures. This makes it easier to refute the criticism of those who think otherwise. Maintaining effective public relations and a positive image with the public are important parts of doing business. This can help win the trust of consum-ers and avoid unnecessary criticisms. Greenwashing is known to be deceitful, but is it necessary? Does it force society, companies and individuals to think about being environmentally conscious?

In one way it does. But as I mentioned earlier, anything that is deceitful can never truly bring about a change. People are not stupid to know what is wrong or not. They can easily get the information on the product, do a little inves-tigation and find out for them-selves whether the product is truly what it says it is. The problem with the word green and sustainability is that there is no clear defini-tion. Do you think that be-cause of greenwashing we can establish what is green by establishing what is not?

Yes, I do think that is one way of finding out the needle in the haystack. Something bad always helps to lay down parameters for what is good. And if it does, then it will help build a robust model for sustainable development.

With the criticism that Vedanta has received in terms of exploitation of the resources, do you see Vedanta as an example of greenwashing?

When people decide to criticize something, it is impor-tant that they check the facts before jumping the gun. Since I am associated with the project I am aware of the good work that is being done. People can have their opinions, but I do not agree with the criticisms.

“India has just begun to talk about its carbon credits and its impact on the society. It should therefore come as no surprise as to why many are oblivious to the concept of greenwashing.”


“ENFORCEMENT

SELF-REGULATION WON’T WORK;

”IS MUSTSaikat Nandi interviews Anuradha Altekar, Partner and Head –Sustainability Strategy, Ubiquus


COVER STORY


What motives drive organizations to engage in greenwashing and how does one deal with that?

The motive for greenwashing is purely business: a per-ception of doing good is seen by a company as enhanc-ing its reputation with its stakeholders. Greenwashers know that a ‘green’ perception allows you to charge a premium on products, garner political and media sup-port, and keep environmental activists and regulators at bay.

Investors, employees, regulators, the news media, and the judiciary should keep on eagle eye and take punitive steps against businesses, marketers who indulge in greenwashing.

What are the most obvious signs that a company is greenwashing the public with false claims? What words and phrases should raise a red flag?

Greenwashing is far more likely to occur in companies that do not value attention to detail, transparency and honesty. The size of the organization does not matter.These are some red flags:❱ A sudden rise in ‘green’ and ‘social’ advertisements

across print, TV, and online media showing smiling faces, animals, springs, beautiful flora and fauna

❱ Editorials, blogs, social media comments, studies, and statements from ruling politicians that say similar positive things about a project

❱ If the business has a history of litigation against the news media and NGOs

❱ Products claiming to be ‘100 percent natural’, ‘nature-identical’, ‘recyclable’ (versus recycled), ‘zero-choles-terol,’ etc.

What happens to companies that practice green-washing? Are there any penalties?

I’m not aware of specific laws against greenwashing in India, but under the Consumer Protection Act 1986, any goods or services that are advertised should not have any defect or deficiencies of any form.

Australia, Canada, US, and Norway have taken the lead in anti-greenwashing legislations. Perhaps we could learn from their examples.

What can companies do to promote their genuine ‘greenness’ if there’s general public mistrust?

It’s not that difficult if companies just ensure that all their communications should conform to the reputa-tional framework of credibility, trust, responsibility, and consistency. Companies would have to consciously choose long-term sustainability goals over the tradi-tional sales-oriented mindset that values and rewards short-term profit goals. One way of getting it moving is by weaving sustainability metrics into the top and mid-dle executives KRAs and into the business objectives.

If you go by history, self-regulation will not work: the only way forward is to enforce corporate behavior and compliance through law, with monitoring by regulators and public watchdogs.

Will greenwashing soil people’s enthusiasm for green products beyond repair? What tools or knowl-edge does one use to know things are truly green?

The demand for green products will never go down. A bigger worry would be the spreading culture of resigna-tion and acceptance of green doublespeak that we must necessarily put up with.

Is it possible to put together information about a product’s greenness that has both the detail that’s really needed, and is at the same time simple and clear? And how can we get governments to advise people on green purchasing, in the way that is most fair to commercial interests?

Labels should list specific ingredients, facts, or links to more information. Only those certifications accepted by our national bodies (perhaps BIS) should be allowed to be marked.

Foods containing GM ingredients (even derivatives such as meats) should be labeled as such. Fruits and vegetables should mention all chemical inputs that have gone into producing, preserving, and storage.

Why are green products often more expensive than ones that don’t say they are green or environmen-tally friendly? Is it just because green has become a new form of ‘premium brand?’

One reason why green products are expensive is that green products need certifications while non-green products don’t need any! Are you ever told by a green-grocer about what fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, and other chemicals went into growing, preserving, storing and transporting the fruit or vegetable? Second, non-green businesses are actually subsidized when they get land at cheap rates, are assured prices as in the case of chemical fertilizers, and are not forced to cough up the costs of polluting the air, soil, and water, as also the destruction of flora and fauna.

In light of many large corporations ‘green washing’, the higher costs of many ‘green’ or ‘sustainable’ products, and the fact that a recent survey found that most ‘green’ products really aren’t, do you feel the ‘sustainability’ trend will fizzle out? Is green or sustainable technology a bubble?

Sustainability is a not a trend or slogan. The increasing popularity of courses and debates on sustainability is proof enough that we are taking the issue more seri-ously than ever before. The rise in awareness is a posi-tive indicator.


“TO AGREE UPON AND FIX A SET OF

IS PARAMOUNT”STANDARDS

Gautam Shenoy is a creative director of Saatchi and Saatchi. He is known to exceptionally en-joy his work and is ever ready to meet deadlines “How can it be work if you enjoy what you are doing”, he says. He has worked on a number of brands like Olay and Air India. In a candid chat with Desiree Lobo

Are companies forced to indulge in greenwash-ing because they feel it might add value to their product and brand?

The motivations for engaging in greenwashing are quite simple actually. Look good, look like you care for the envi-ronment (even though you may not) to create a positive image in the minds of consumers – and turn this positive image into profit. Another big reason why companies are engaging in greenwashing is that in a world that is getting increasingly aware about things like climate change, and becoming increasingly aware of its environmental obli-gations, you just can’t go around looking like you don’t care. Operative word: Look. It doesn’t matter whether the claims companies put out can be verified or real, all that matters for organization that purposefully engaged in greenwashing is that they ‘look’ like they care. Another factor that has ironically accelerated the use of green-washing is the rise of environmental activism.

How does one distinguish the truth from the lies?

With the proviso that not all companies that claim to be environmentally responsible are greenwashing but are engaged in genuine efforts and ‘walking the talk,’ when any product talks about being ‘carbon neutral’ or very

prominently publicizes its eco-efforts that should be a red flag enough.

Of course, another handy guide are six sins (or patterns) of greenwashing, which TerraChoice Environmental Marketing has identified:

1. Sin of the hidden trade-off2. Sin of no proof3. Sin of vagueness4. Sin of lesser of two evils5. Sin of irrelevance6. Sin of fibbingThat said, it is heartening to see that the number of

companies and brands that are genuinely doing some-thing for the earth and the environment is on the rise.

Can companies be condoned for indulging in green-washing based on the fact that it is not legally but only morally wrong?

If you go by the economist Milton Friedman who said, “The business of business is business,” then greenwashing as a tool to create a positive image and turn it into com-petitive advantage and profits is well justified. However, with more and more companies incorporating social welfare and environmental responsibility as part of their strategy, I am optimistic about the future, because genu-ine ‘green efforts’ can be communicated as such without having to resort to adding a fake sheen of green to it.

Is it possible to put together information about a product’s ‘greenness’ that has both the details that are really needed, and is at the same time simple and clear? What should governments do educate people on green purchasing?

The first step would be to agree upon and fix a set of stand-ard, measurable parameters that detail out a product’s environmental impact and carbon footprint. This would bring in a semblance of standardization. This could take the form of government regulation or self-regulation.


COVER STORY


SustainuisanceA modest take on all things not so mundane...

By Rohan Chakravarty


GREENGizmos

Rollable Solar ChargerThe waterproof solar charger can provide electricity for everything from laptops to car batteries. This product by PowerFilm Integrated Solar Panels is developed and manufactured with a proprietary roll-to-roll process. The cadmium-free solar cells are mounted on a thin film, allowing you to roll it up for easy packing. It performs well in diverse environments, including hot sun, and does not suffer from wasted over-voltage.

Giving or receiving gifts is al-ways a pleasure. And when buying those specially made gifts helps sustain the environ-ment, it is an even more satis-fying experience. This festive season go for the green tech, that is, everyday gadgets that are made from eco-friendly ma-terials and latest technology.

Following are a few gadgets that promise to surprise your clients as well as serve the purpose of ecological balance. Here are some unique products with brilliant design, advanced technology and superb perfor-mance. And oh, not to mention, you’ll be doing your bit to pro-tect the environment as well.

PHOTO-FEATURE


Eco-friendly TVA green TV would have an on board light sensor that monitors ambient lighting and adjusts the LCD’s backlight accordingly. The brighter the room, the less power the backlight draws. This eco-friendly TV by Philips delivers powerful performance while conserving the nature.

Solar Power Bag Uses solar panels to recharge a notebook PC, using only a day’s worth of sunlight. It can also charge gadgets such as phones and MP3 players via the included adapters, USB port or integrated car charger. The Array Solar Backpack by Voltaic Systems both carries and charges your laptop. It will also charge cell phones, tablets and digital cameras.


Bamboo BikeThis tough and durable hand-made bicycle is crash tolerant. Bamboo, though very light, is a resilient wood. The bamboo is heat-trained and coated with oil for a sleek, protective seal.

Water Powered ClockAttractively designed, this clock runs on water. The water clock will display the time and date on the monochrome LCD in clear numbers just moments after you fill the liquid reservoirs in the back with water. The internal converter simply extracts electrons from water (or other liquid) molecules and provides a steady stream of electrical current acting as a fuel cell to generate power to the clock. It can go for weeks without a refill.

PHOTO-FEATURE


Wind-powered ChargerChargers come in all shapes and sizes, but very few can boast to power your batteries using air, or more precisely – wind. Dutch designer Tjeerd Veenhoven has come up with such a charger where Apple device slides into the soft rubber outer skin and fan blades capture energy from the wind, which tops up the battery.


Recyclable SpeakerThese recyclable, foldable speakers from OrigAudio would make a great gift for any music-lover on your list. These stylish and fully customizable speakers are recycled for iPod, iPhone, and any standard 3.5mm jack. The speakers start out flat and pop together for music anywhere. They do not require batteries or additional power and are made from recycled material. Very portable and handy for travel, beach, camping, dorm room, and around the house.

Solar Light CapThis three-in-one product by ‘2C Light Company’ is a stylish cap which you can wear. It is a superb product that provides you safety, independence, and enjoyment during your adventures. It is a hands free light that doesn’t need batteries. An integrated, high performance solar rechargeable headlamp, it works brilliantly for your solar camping lights or as part of your outdoor survival gear or as a night fishing light. It proves to be a money saver as it will give you years of free light - no batteries to buy or dispose of.

PHOTO-FEATURE


COUNTER POINT

Values can build belief systems and breed cultures that ensure continuous commitment

By Shyamanuja Das

Why sustainability must be a value

In the last issue, I wrote about how too much meas-urability is diluting sustainability efforts in cor-porates. Some interpreted it as my opposition to

measuring. Far from that! I clearly argued that efforts towards attaining sus-

tainability can and must be measured. What I argued against was the assumption that outcomes of all sus-tainability efforts can be measured within a span of a couple of years. I also expressed my concern about some areas where outcomes are difficult to measure in a short span.

However, all these arguments and debates are not even necessary, if we fundamentally change the way we look at sustainability. Rather than looking at sustain-ability efforts as a task and working backwards—the way we do today—if only we could start looking at sus-tainability as a value and then proceed forward!

Let us take an example. Many companies explicitly include integrity in their value statement; some even included it in their vision. Yet, no organization tries to create measures for integrity. It is achieved by, of course, announcing it as value, but that is the starting point. It requires a continuous commitment.

Sustainability probably needs such an approach. Today even governments and the United Nations do not have that approach. The United Nations and its associ-ate multi-lateral agencies have taken many laudable steps to promote sustainable practices and sustainable development. But what would have done absolute magic is if they would have included sustainability in some form in their charters. Similarly, close to 100 nations have recognized the ‘right’ to a healthy environment, yet, not even five nations have integrated sustainability with the basic preambles of their constitutions.

One of the best ways to do this is by integrating it into the basic education. Ask any average school child who Einstein was or for that matter, who Alfred Nobel was and you will get the answer. Ask them who Rachel Carson was and I am not sure how many would even recognize the name!

Last month was the 50th anniversary of publication of her book, The Silent Spring, which way back in early 60s started an awareness campaign, taking a coura-geous stance, which arguably started what is today a global revolution. The social media was almost silent on this on the day, 27th September. I am not urging here

to celebrate history; this is just an example to illustrate the point that we need to give sustain-ability its rightful place beyond a set of tasks!

The most essential thing about a value is that it has to be nurtured. If sustainability has to be a value, there has to be a continuous commitment to see what (more) can be done to make the future world a little better place. It is not defining a set of activities and then focusing just on completing them.

The philosophy of “what more” is very differ-ent from the philosophy of “how to do”. It requires a proactive exploratory approach, not closing eyes to what is uncomfortable or a little difficult to make sense of.

Shyamanuja Das, is a renowned journalist, editor and social commentor. His current designation is Director, Analyziz Advisory and he can be reached on [email protected]

Rachel Carson was a marine biologist and con-servation-ist whose book Silent Spring is credited with ad-vancing the global environ-mental movement.


FEATURE

A renaissance in the chefdomEateries of the world are finally warming up to sustainability-guided culinary practices baked by a handful of traditions

By Pratima Harigunani

One thing is strikingly common to the langars at Gurudwaras and the restaurants in Italy—both have long-standing customs that lay

utmost emphasis on not wasting any morsels of food that’s been served.

All Gurudwaras observe the strict rule of ‘not leav-ing even a bite on the langar plate.’ From the way por-tions are served politely but discreetly by the volunteers to the strict glares of the elderly walking around and supervising the community dining, and the way chil-dren are admonished by their mothers for wasting small morsels to the instructions written and announced at all possible points, it’s a clear, non-negotiable, no-words minced rule.

Many thousand miles away, the epicureans’ para-dise of Italy exudes an equally-strong hatred for food wastage. Gourmands eating their pastas or godfathers taking their cannoli know the Fare la scarpetta rule without a doubt. Custom says that one has to use the last piece of bread to mop up everything–every drop of sauce on the plate. One cannot, or rather should not possibly leave anything behind.

A true foodie may find it very hard to imagine why would anyone leave any bite of a delicious langar di daal or scrumptious fettuccine uneaten on the plate!

“Some hotels are dealing with wasteful breakfast buffets by having a breakfast chef to cook portions on demand for guests; it’s simple really.” – Duncan O’Brien, Ethical Eats, UK


unused bread crusts or ingredients rejected for cos-metic reasons.

“Some hotels are dealing with wasteful breakfast buffets by having a breakfast chef to

cook portions on demand for guests; it’s simple really. In other instances, wastage could be avoided by offering a doggy bag.” The SRA has created the ‘Too Good to Waste Doggy Box’ to help restaurants reduce their food waste by offering the customer an option to take any food home they didn’t finish. The boxes are supplied at no expense to the restaurant, but there isn’t an infinite stock holding so the project may only be for a short term.

It’s clearly time that more such actions are taken. Ethical Eats has started to educate restaurants and

chefs alike to help them avoid the staggering amount of food wastage through peer-led workshops. Examples include helping them revisit their menus, getting peo-ple thinking more about portion sizes and how to use food scraps in the kitchen for the creation of other reci-pes as well as improving skills for getting the most out of ingredients.

The SRA really led the charge on food waste reduc-tion in the industry, and now more organizations are seeking to gather more accurate data and develop more tools to influence in this area.

The organization is part of a European project called Green Cook. Another advocate working strongly in this

But looking around, it’s not uncommon to see how much food we waste on a daily basis. Take an honest peek into your lunch-box or dinner-plate or a quick look at your friend’s or colleague’s plate, or simply, just sit back and see the outlandish extras spilled out around while ordering the next time you eat out at a restaurant!

How wastage occursFood wastage is happening, right now and everywhere, and many of us are, knowingly or unknowingly part of this abysmal offense. Sandwich this reality with the fact that India ranks 67th in the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFRI) Hunger index while the percentage of undernourished people in India hov-ers at around 19 percent as per Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) statistics.

Ethical Eats, an alliance of London restaurants for better food and farming, reckons the state to be more dismal, though research on this has so far been rela-tively scant. The Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) report ‘Too Good to Waste’ in 2010 discovered that across the 10 restaurants surveyed, 59.8 kg of food was wasted per day, on an average. Extrapolated, this amounts to a staggering 21 tons of food wasted annu-ally. It was also found that almost two-thirds of this wastage came from food preparation, while nearly one-third came from the customer’s plate and only 4.5 percent is due to spoilage.

Wafu, a responsible and strongly sustainability-ori-ented eating concept restaurant in Australia is another place whose founder sums the situation as a grave one. The food shortage resulting from the problem of morals and obesity is more serious than the climate issues, she warns strongly.

A bitter taste? Here, try this new sauce and the sand-wich might get palatable.

Restaurants, at least a few prudent ones, are not only becoming cognizant of this state of affairs and their roles in curdling the matters but have also started whipping a new recipe to ease out the thick crust.

The first step is to face the mess candidly!

Awareness building exercisesVimal Dhar, a chef with experience at sands and seas alike, having worked at Lake Palace, HRH, India and also at Caribbean cruises across Barcelona and Brazil, is now running his own chain, Innovating Hospitality. He peels off some myths about restaurants and food wastage.

In kitchen, through the first set of lessons of culi-nary world, any chef is taught about the knack of using even the roots or skins of vegetables in as many ways as possible. “Even coriander roots or cauliflower stems are used in stock or Thai curries.”

And yet, kitchens are the places with shovels rather than forks!

Duncan O’Brien from Ethical Eats in UK, a network of London restaurants and catering businesses that care about sustainability, gives a bare glimpse of the kind of food wastage that actually happens in a typi-cal restaurant’s kitchen, like in the form of trimmings,

The Sustainable Restaurant Association in the UK has created a doggy box, offered by restaurants to customers to take any food home they didn’t finish


FEATURE

area is Tristram Stuart, a UK food waste campaigner that has had a profound impact in terms of motivating people to pay attention to food wastage.

“Where restaurants often have difficulties with food waste such as buffet where most patrons’ eyes are big-ger than their stomachs it may become more widely accepted to charge diners for contributing to food waste.” O’Brien appetizingly adds.

Fine-dining, or fine-based dining?Wait a minute! Is levying fines or aggressively urging customers in other ways a good idea to address wastage?

One restaurant that offers buffets has taken to fin-ing its customers that do not finish food on their plates. Its disclaimer states: To avoid food wastage, we rec-ommend you do not unnecessarily overfill your plate. Please take only what you can eat as wastage will be charged at £20. But as O’Brien suggests, there should almost always be an option to take leftover food home.

“Traditionally, in restaurants you would receive your leftovers in a tin foil swan. This was a widely spread practice but one that seems to have become less com-mon and not thought about in today’s society. Having information on the menu saying that you can take lefto-vers home would help reduce food wastage.”

However, since most of the wastage comes from the preparation process the consumer doesn’t make the best target in this battle; it’s a systemic problem.

Messages for diners can often be a good way. If you had a chance to eat at Yukako Ichikawa’s restaurant, it will not be uncommon to find such messages. May be it is not as fashionable as Sushi, but Yukako has ensured that a message is something that her restaurant will give out strongly to its patrons when it comes to respecting food. That’s why you would see slogans all around, like: ❱❱ Good eating manners are an important aid

to digestion. ❱❱ Share meals.

❱❱ Say “itadakimasu,” when served first meal at a Japanese place.

❱❱ Never waste any food.❱❱ Consider others when in public.❱❱ Never waste any food container. ❱❱ Don’t rush your meals. Ensure each plate of food is

balanced.❱❱ Order only foods what you need to be 90 percent full.❱❱ Think yourself fortunate. Be thankful for your wealth

while thousands starve every hour. You are lucky to have more than enough to eat! How can you share this luck with others?

Messages more effective than fines?However rebelliously charming the idea may sound, would fining people for wasting food really work? Can people be forced to finish food on their plates? What if they think that eyeing their plates is offensive or in bad taste?

O’Brien concedes that this is a rather complex area. “Sociocultural treatment of food is complex, as you must know from an Indian perspective!”

O’Brien explains further that while we can see gen-erational patterns in what is considered offensive and acceptable – say for instance in attitudes towards offal in the UK – cross-cultural attitudes towards food vary massively. “One well-trodden example is that in China it’s considered rude to clear your plate when eating as a guest, while in some countries it’s the opposite. The point is we have to overcome habit and motivate people to feel that wasting food is offensive, this will become

An exercise in awareness buildingHabits are hard to break and unlearning careless behavior is difficult, but practical engagement has been shown to be effective.

While weighing food wastage can be deceptive, as a much greater amount of energy is used in producing a kilogram of red meat in terms of animal feed, water cost or transportation, compared to pro-ducing, say, a kilo of bread, early results from one of the Green Cook partners have shown that measuring itself has a long-term impact on peoples’ behavior.

They’ve been conducting a food waste measuring exercise in French school cafeterias, and have shown an overall long-term reduction in food wastage where pupils are involved in the measur-ing. In those schools where there were lessons and posters about reducing food waste but the cafeteria staff was doing the measur-ing, the decrease was significantly less.

(Source: Duncan O’Brien, Ethical Eats, UK)


clear to diners if they know more about the effort that’s gone into producing, transporting, and preparing food.” Customer reactions vary from the politely neutral and offended to even positive ones. Restaurants who have tried doggy boxes have experienced very positive reac-tions from customers. “You catch more flies with honey than vinegar,” as O’Brien rightly garnishes.

“Nobody wants to pay for a restaurant experience and be berated by the front of house staff for leaving food, but positive communications between servers and diners can go a long way. We encourage good com-munication about the provenance of food served in the hope that diners consider their meal – and conse-quently waste less.”

Fining is too harsh an idea, as Dhar seconds too, “Slogans and table-stand messages about respecting food are better ways.”

Atul Kochhar, a twice-Michelin-starred chef who is dedicated to re-inventing Indian cuisine and is known for Benares Restaurant in UK, finds sustainability to be an extremely important factor.

The avowed chef who has been invited to meet the Queen and to also cook for Prince Charles at St. James’ Palace, finds his sharp focus on the table of zero waste.

Executive PA, Bryndal Bennett, Benares Restaurant, elaborates that in everything that the team does, the idea is to try to make the most out of all ingredients and see how waste in the kitchen and in the main restaurant can be reduced. “We were awarded three stars from the Sustainable Restaurant Association and we pride our-selves with only using local or sustainable products.”

Indian restaurants are following suit, in their own ways.

“We do strict briefings with our staff and that includes the stage of waiters taking orders. Like cross-selling and educating customers around food wastage mindset, while they are ordering food.” Dhar illus-trates.” They are told how big a portion size would be to enable them to decide prudently.”

How about the big fat wedding spreads?Like any Indian who is witness, and often culprit of wasting enormous platefuls at wedding buffets, most chefs nod along at the very thought of a wedding spread. Plates and bowls full of untouched food, served only to taste for the sheer variety, are thrown in buck-ets, right before our eyes. Ironically, that doesn’t strike glaringly sinful at all, neither to the guests, nor to the extra-hospitable hosts.

“Our plate should be laden as per the size of a palm, which is actually the size of an average tummy.” Dhar notes. Hardly 250 grams, so to say, but the way money is spent and the flaunt-factor is dipped generously in the gravy of wastage at any typical Indian wedding is a common sight.

“Indian society needs variety, extravaganza and lavish fares, as opposed to typical weddings abroad,” Dhar comments. Strict portion sizes are still not as acceptable in Indian wedding feasts as abroad, he adds. “But thankfully, even in India, you would find some communities that are strictly against wasting food.”

Re-imagining food ingredients is essential to reducing food wast-age during the food preparation process. Chefs, in O’Brien’s opin-ion, need to be able to use their ingredients to their full capacity; they should become more aware of

what they can do with the ingredients they have.

“One example would be meat preparation and the nose-to-tail technique of butchery, using every part of the animal including the offal to create delicious meals. These techniques are some-times seen as traditional and aren’t widely practiced among the

newer generation of chefs. This really needs to change. It’s hard to say if different restaurant models produce more or less food waste as there isn’t any evidence to show which sector is the most wasteful.”

“Strict portion sizes are still not as acceptable in Indian wedding feasts as abroad. But thankfully, you would find some communities strictly against wasting food.” – Vimal Dhar, veteran chef.

Re-imagining food ingredients is being seen as a vital step to reducing food wastage during the preparation process


FEATURE

The last supper“I do not imagine fining customers to be a practi-cal way forward for businesses,” O’Brien advises. Through smart inventory and supply chain manage-ment and the just-in-time strategies, food wastage can be reduced and customer satisfaction enhanced. Cooking food that is in-season, and if possible grown locally, cuts down on waste even before the ingredients make it to the kitchen, and diners are guaranteed to appreciate the freshness.”

The Ethical Eat team is, for instance, starting to work with a smart inventory management provider to see if they can incorporate some food sustainabil-ity criteria, but this is in the very early stages.

One cannot help wondering if we can we take analogies from other industries or tow concepts like carbon-credits for balancing out food wastage. Waggeningen University has done some research on carbon labeling the menus. They have an advanced research facility in the form of a restaurant where there are cameras that detect eyeball movements; sensors that analyze weights, customer purchase history and even do discreet urine analysis.

O’Brien says the result was that carbon labeling on food was not helpful, but direct communication from knowledgeable staff was. “So holistic staff train-ing is important, as it should be across every indus-try. We may not be able to take direct examples from other industries, but we can certainly take examples from other countries in terms of policy. ‘Love Food, Hate Waste’ campaigns in Scotland and Wales have targets to have zero food wastage by 2025.”

It turns out they are also incentivizing the cater-ing industry to separate their food waste from other wastes in order for it to be processed for anaerobic digestion. If this waste isn’t separated, the compa-nies would be fined.

On another extreme, compliance needs to get into microwave again. Regulatory bodies lack the right teeth that this space needs to be bitten with. Dhar cites how food inspectors in India can be a lit-tle more strict when it comes to auditing fly-by-night restaurants on hygiene or food licenses. “Anyone can start a food joint easily. But that should not mean it’s at the cost of safety. Necessary issues are to be taken care of.” The Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system operates as a certification abroad for many restaurants where operations, safety and wastage issues are taken stock of, Dhar adds.

Fines, kitchen-strategies or whatever works, it’s always good to come up with new recipes for tack-ling the tricky fat of food wastage. But, it should not take a Michelin star—a hallmark of fine-dining—to realize that. The problem is quintessentially all about wrong habits. If someone has to fine or scold us for leaving food on the plate, that’s perhaps the most unpalatable irony of it all. To say, “Better cut the pizza in four pieces because I’m not hungry enough to eat six,” may be a good humor but can’t be a good practice.

The way of Wafu1. Be prepared: Think ahead. Remember to bring a small container with you to every restaurant or takeaway shop you visit so that takeaway and lefto-vers may be safely stowed and eaten later.

When cooking, consider future meals and plan for useful lefto-vers. Understand how to keep leftovers and incorporate those into future meals. Before you throw something away ask yourself: Can I do something productive with this?

2. Love chewing:Practice the art of chewing. The process of chewing is a vital com-ponent of the digestive process and it aids in the proper transport of nutrient to your body. Chew mouthfuls at least 30 times. But for the full benefit you should chew each mouthful 100 times. Your whole body will thank you.

Chewing also helps your brain, by practicing counting and mind-fulness. Another possible thrill is the discovery of new tastes that come only after chewing.

3. Mind manners:Good eating manners are an important aid to digestion. Wait to be given permission before you sit down. Sit up straight and relax.

Rest chopsticks and cutlery after moving food into your mouth and while chewing. Never ‘play’ with table settings. Only pour the amount of soy sauce that you need and don’t pour it over your food. Never waste rice or sauce or any food. If not required, request no garnish, wasabi or ginger be served. Share meals.

Say “itadakimasu,” when served first meal at Japanese place. Consider others when in public. Never speak loudly on your phone.

Never waste any food container. If you break an item, apologize and offer to pay for the replacement.

4. Maintain balance:Check the menu well before you order at restaurant. Order only what you need to be 90 percent full.

Don’t rush your meals. Ensure that each plate of food is balanced.Carbohydrates are our friends. They are part of protein-rich

grains. Eating meat is unbalanced, and requires extra grains to restore balance. Food should be organic; nature knows best.

Eating in a balanced manner at every meal is the way of sharing.

5. Embody gratitude:Think yourself fortunate. Be thankful for your wealth while thou-sands starve every hour. You are lucky to have more than enough to eat! How can you share this luck with others?

You can start by taking the Wafu way into your every day of your life, take small actions and together we will have a big impact. Thinking omoriyari expresses gratitude to the earth.

6. Value our earth:The health of our bodies and the health our earth is our real wealth. We must live more simply and mindfully and value this earth that sustains us. No commodity can be exchanged for the environment.

Exchanging unsustainable financial growth with personal growth will create a richer world.

Courtesy: Yukako Ichikawa


OPINION

Rising solar-power capacity is indicative of Solar Mission’s success so far, but building financiers’ confidence holds key to accomplishing long-term goals

By Daman Dev Sood

Mission 22! So far so good

Slow and steady wins the race, says the adage that epitomises consistency and hard work. The National Solar Mission or The Jawaharlal Nehru

National Solar Mission has been steady and not neces-sarily slow.

Conceived in 2010 as an integral part of the National Action Plan on Climate Change, The mission has made commendable progress coming across as a ray of hope in times when we are desperately in search of sustain-able alternative sources of energy to suffice the com-mercial demand. The National Solar Mission aims at deploying 20,000 MW of grid-connected solar power by 2022 and is centred around considerably bringing down the cost of solar power generation in the country.

The progress so farThe major objectives of the mission as evident were stated to be achieved in three phases to be accom-plished during the periods of 2010-13, 2013-17 and 2017-22. The progress so far has been quite satisfactory with the implementation of the first phase managed by a subsidiary of National Thermal Power Corporation, the largest power producer in India. The subsidiary, NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Ltd (NVVN), laid out guidelines for selection of developers for commission-ing grid connected solar power projects in India.

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy which plays a pivotal role in formulating guidelines and overseeing the progress of the mission has already


sanctioned 802 MW capacity of grid-connected solar projects and 36 MW of off-grid solar projects. Also, six major research projects have been granted consent, one of which includes setting up of National Centre for Photovoltaic Research and Education at IIT-Bombay.

As of now the total installed capacity of solar-gen-erated power in the country stands at 503.9 MW. The total investment, as estimated by the ministry is about Rs 6,000 crore. The new batch of sanctioned projects if realised by the end of the first phase of the mission can spell magic for the energy demand of the country and aid the establishment of grid tariff parity for solar power.

NVVN came out with proposals for equal number of projects on solar photovoltaic (PV) and solar thermal, particularly concentrating solar power (CSP) technolo-gies. The first batch of projects allotted to the private players included 150 MW of solar PV and 470 MW of CSP. The second batch has 350 MW of solar PV projects and 98.05 MW of rooftop PV and small solar genera-tion program (RTSSGP).

CSP versus solar PVGlobally, CSP is a buzzword and is growing with each passing day but the fact is that it’s still in its nascent stage and needs to mature before it can be imple-mented on an industrial scale. In the Indian context, the patrons of the project have projected a desire to change the technology from CSP to solar PV, and subse-quently they were advised by the Ministry for New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) to submit a revised project

plan for approval.The ministry claims that six out of the seven CSP

projects sanctioned are on track. Across the world, solar CSP projects have faced a lot of difficulty in financial closure primarily because the costs for this technology have not fallen as in the case of solar PV technology. That has given rise to a global situation where a number of developers in both US and Europe have re-appealed to the regulators for permits to change their projects from CSP to PV technology.

Solar PV technologies and projects are light on the budget and thus preferred by independent players due to increased profits and much less efforts in procurement of finances. PV modules based on crystalline silicone are cost effective than CSP. Thin-film PV technologies like amorphous silicon, CIGS and CdTe are perceived to be more suitable for temperature conditions in India. In recent years, there has been a sharp decline in capital costs for solar PV plants. PV module prices have fallen a sharp 80 percent in the last five years and 30 percent during last year alone. The solar PV technology is rap-idly increasing its foothold in the country with both global as well as local equipment manufacturers flexing their muscles.

NVVN put a cap on the project allotted to every independent power producer (IPP) to avoid the one-sided flow of the production capacity to a handful of corporates. As a matter of fact, the guidelines required no two projects to have the same parent company or common shareholders. In case of over subscription, a reverse bidding process was used to select the final IPPs


OPINION

in place. In fact, solar has already taken over diesel as a cheaper form of energy and several telecom towers are now being run on solar power. This is referred to as ‘grid parity,’ an industry jargon that implies that the cost of producing power is competitive with that of generation of electricity from other sources of power like coal, water and wind.

JNNSM has been successful so far but only a slice of the pie has been served. It has been slower than what one would have expected. The main objective is yet to be realised in the second batch of first phase and in the two consecutive phases thereafter. It is imperative for the eventual accomplishment of the goals that there is an encouraging and conducive financial environment that enables the industry to flourish.

According to a report by United Nations Environment Programme and the Renewable Energy Policy Network, JNNSM has helped the country spur an impressive 62 percent increase in investments to $12 billion during the current year, the fastest investment expansion of any large renewable market in the world.

The government took an initiative worth Rs 1,500 crore over a period of two years 2011-13, for banks and finance companies to lend money to solar energy pro-jects at a generous 5 percent interest rate. The money would be lent to small solar projects adding up to 200 MW by companies like SIDBI, NABARD and National Housing Bank. This is definitely a welcome step but the government should also take measures to educate financiers about the technical know-how of the projects so that their confidence on feasibility can be consoli-dated. There is also an urgent need of pellucidity and periodic review of the plan’s progress at each level by the government so that a yardstick of accountability is established, which in turn would help in the ultimate realisation of the objectives.

A strong policy on solar PV and solar thermal tech-nologies and stringent guidelines regarding domestic and international component manufacturers is another critical aspect that would govern the mission’s roadmap in the subsequent phases.

Daman Dev Sood is CIO and Head – Sustainability Practice, and Akash Bhardwaj is Research Analyst at Continuity and Resilience. They may be reached at [email protected]

Targets at National Solar Mission

Application segment Targets for Phase I (2010-13)

Targets for Phase II (2013-17)

Targets for Phase III (2017-22)

Solar collectors 7 million sq meters 15 million sq meters 20 million sq meters

Off-grid solar applications 200 MW 1,000 MW 4,000 MW

Utility grid power including roof top 1,000-2,000 MW 4,000-10,000 MW 20,000 MW

based on lowest tariff they offered. The capacity binding was 5 MW for solar PV and 100 MW for projects based on CSP.

Approaching grid parityIt is too early to come out with a verdict regarding the Solar Mission but what is significant and is borne out of the statistics is that the plan is definitely in tandem with the idea of large-scale production of sustainable energy. The cost of power from solar is now at par with the cost of power from new coal-based plants.

Solar power needs only a one-time investment in the form of land and PV panels. Its fuel, which is sunshine, is free unlike coal and other exhaustible sources that are expensive and have limited scope of availability in the years to come. Moreover, their excessive use inevi-tably hampers the Nature’s equilibrium.

The cost of generating a unit of solar energy was around Rs 18 a few years back when the plan was put

Solar PV module prices have fallen 80 percent over five years and 30 percent last year. The technology is rapidly increasing its foothold in the country with both global as well as local equipment manufacturers coming up.


friendliness in the architectural patterns of the past vis a vis the present was offered by Shashwat DC, Editor-in-chief, SustaiNuance. According to him, visiting the past could offer us a glimpse of how the architecture earlier was greener and how sustainable we were then than today. “Recent deviations from our nature have made us unsustainable in the present,” he lamented.

Safety at the worksite and proper training on machinery and instruments was another important aspect that was emphasised at the event. Eric Vega, Country Manager, EHS Slumberger, said, “It is always good to follow safety instructions which are there in the product manual and at the same time be vigilant and check if co-workers around you are working properly on instruments or not. If they are not, then share your experience with them. This helps the co-worker to learn and at the same time a major accident can be avoided.”

Accidents, disasters and occupational ill-health are global phenomena that could occur at any time. The identification of and preparedness for these accidents would either prevent their occurrence or mitigate the impact in the case that they do occur. The major stake-holders in Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) could be identified as (a) the state (b) the business/organisa-tion (c) employee(s) (d) environment/society. Therefore, there are moral, legal and business implications to health, safety and environment practice.

Also discussed was how the sustainability poten-tial could be further tapped by involving the thus far unexplored ‘bottom of the social pyramid’ – the poor in the exercise. The real market opportunity lies not just with the wealthy few, but the vast number of aspir-ing poor who would be joining the market economy for the first time. Dr P Ram Babu, CEO General Carbon, said, “There is a huge potential in the bottom of the pyramid and one needs to harness it. A huge opportu-nity lies in breaking this code–linking the poor and the rich across the world in a seamless market organised around the concept of sustainable growth and develop-ment.” Raising the poor, however, would require radical innovations in technologies and business models, Ram Babu warned. It would require a re-examination of the “price–performance” relationships for products and services and demand a new level of capital efficiency. Such an inclusion would create a new parameter for measuring financial success and would quicken the penetration of disruptive new, environmentally sus-tainable technologies, he added.

Sustainable SolutionsA two-day seminar in Mumbai on vision for the environment threw up a host of

actionable solutions on how life on the planet in general, and at the workplace in particular, could be comfortably sustained, and the current perils vastly reduced

By Saikat Nandi

Mobility, which brings access to primary ser-vices and leisure, is the fundamental need of 21st century living. However the emerging

patterns of provision – and indeed consumption – of that vital human attribute around the world are very clearly unsustainable. Global cities suffer from high levels of traffic related congestion, pollution and the degradation of communities and social dysfunction.

Ergo, how do we live and prosper on what appears to be a finite planet, thanks to the environmental clock fast ticking away towards possible apocalypse?

Sustainable development, which recognises that the three ‘pillars’ of the economy, society and the envi-ronment are interconnected, is the buzz word today. Organisations are increasingly initiating various pro-grams to support this concept.

‘EnVision’ a Carbon Neutral event, was organised by the National Institute of Industrial Engineering, Mumbai (NITIE) on 18th and 19th October with SustaiNuance being the official media partner for this event. Attended by officials of big companies, associa-tions, and students from other management institutes, the two day event had panel discussions on environ-mental safety and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives.

The event saw participants talking about how com-panies have taken to adoption of sustainable practices at the work place. Awareness about the subject has risen as more and more companies are adopting sustainable principles.

Alok Dayal, Senior Director, Credit and Finance, IDFC dilated on the parameters followed by his organi-sation before funding any project. The main aim of his firm, he explained, was to promote projects that are sustainable in nature and to put a check on those that didn’t qualify on the parameters.

Among the crucial issues participants discussed was how the term ‘Green’ was often used loosely on products on industry demonstrating both lack of understanding and seriousness. The end result was that consumers were often misled. Anuradha Altekar, Partner and Head - Sustainability Strategy, Ubiquus was led to say, “There are various brands which are portraying their products to be green, but they are not. They are simply green-washing. These companies are willingly and knowingly taking advantage of your (consumer’s) misunderstand-ing of the words.”

A historical perspective of greater environmental


EVENT

IDFC’s E&S policy ensures that its lending is made to environmentally sustainable, socially acceptable and economically viable projects. Environmental and social risks are suitably addressed throughout the investment tenure. IDFC continually engages with its clients for imple-menting enhanced environmental and social safeguard measures.

Alok Dayal, Senior Director, Credit and Finance, IDFC

Safety culture has matured significantly in the oil and gas industry. Accident rates have declined substantially in recent decades and two important improvements can be observed. The first relates to the introduction of basic safety controls, the second to the development of more complex man-agement systems. The oil and gas industry and the health and safety community believe that the next step can be achieved through behaviour-based safety (BBS).

Eric Vega, Country Manager, EHS Slumberger

The number of companies issuing green claims over the last several years has increased dramatically as consumers and companies are paying more atten-tion to their environmental footprint.

Anuradha Altekar, Partner and Head Sustainability Strategy, Ubiquus

The bottom of the pyramid (people living in remote areas, poor) also needs to be tapped as it remains unexplored. There is a huge potential in it and one needs to harness it. A huge opportunity lies in breaking this code – linking the poor and the rich across the world in a seamless market organised around the concept of sustainable growth and development.

Dr P Ram Babu, CEO, General Carbon

Considering the vibrant history of India a couple of thousand years in the past, can we not draw lessons from it?Lessons that can be taken from the past can be logically compartmentalised in the following manner-- Architectural Conservation, Ecological Conservation, Everyday Innovation

Shashwat DC, Editor-in-chief, SustaiNuance


EVENT

Accidents, disasters and occupational ill-health are global phenomena and occur at any time. Accidents occur principally from interaction between human, technological and organisational arrangement. The identification of and preparedness for these accidents would either prevent their occur-rence or mitigate the impact in the case that they do occur.

Prasad Modak, Executive President - Environment Management Centre

BPO employees have long and odd working hours, which creates a lot of stress amongst them. Thus there is a need for a good healthcare policy which involves regular health-checkup of employees and this feature should be made compulsory. One needs to develop time management and other strategies so as to encourage healthy lifestyle habits of BPO employees, like, having proper sleep, preventing fatigue and stress, etc.

Dr Praveen Sarkar, AVP EHS - WNS Global

Environmental awareness is driving purchase deci-sions for physical goods and some services, and soon people will even begin to choose their telecom service providers based, in part, on environmental performance.

Dhananjay Vyawahare, OHS Head - Nokia Siemens Network

Employees should be rewarded for helping the management to identify mistakes or errors. This practice will encourage others to also participate in this process. More employee participation will help a company to reduce the number of accidents.

Sudeep Roy, GM EHS – Philips


However, when it comes to adopting sustainable practices, Indian retailers are still miles behind. Of the 40 odd Indian companies reporting their sustainable practices, not even one is a retail company. In contrast, some of the big names in global retail have also gained the reputation to be amongst the top sustainable com-panies. Target, Tesco, Sainsbury and Carrefour feature in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), while com-panies like Marks and Spencer have had sustainability savings of more than millions by adopting sustainable strategies like Plan A. While Wal-Mart has often been criticized for its poor labor compliance, it changed the dynamics of the supply chain by bringing in stringent supplier chain assessment, with the cascading effect of almost every supplier (who are powerful manufactures themselves) scrambling to follow sustainable practices.

Those who oppose the FDI reforms, often forget that some of the big brand foreign retailers have had their presence in India for some time now. They forget that India is a major global sourcing hub and many of the big retailers have already had their offices here dealing with the suppliers in India. According to news reports, Tesco sources about worth £320 million from India, while IKEA sourced nearly $450 million in 2011.

However, sourcing and supply chain are not the only expertise that the big retailers will bring in through

Change-of-code effect?Sustainable practices employed by large, organized retailers

can cascade deep into supply chains very beneficially

By Latha Sankarnarayan

So the Government of India has opened the flood-gates, allowing 51 percent FDI in retail. The nay-sayers are already painting a picture of the Goliath

crushing the smaller vendors and retailers.Only time would tell how fruitful the decision of

having Wal-Mart and the other large foreign retail giants tap into one of the sunshine sectors of India was.

If one looks at the brighter side, the Wal-Mart entry brings the possibility of many advantages to Indian retailers. Apart from bringing in financial sustainability and changing the market dynamics, the fact that some of the global retailers are also among the foremost in adopting sustainable practices is a critical factor to be looked at.

Indian versus global retailersThe liberalization of the economy in the 90s opened windows for the modern retail trade and the Indian retail sector was set on an exponential growth path. The size of the sector is estimated to be around US $450 billion, of which organized retail is only about 5 percent. While the impact of the recent FDI reforms in single and multi-brand retails will be hugely beneficial to the organized sector, bringing the much needed funds and technology transfer, it can also benefit the traditional smaller family run retail stores.


OPINION

entry in Indian retail. To cater to the growing demands and heterogeneous nature of the Indian consumer dynamics, most foreign retailers will prefer partner-ships with key Indian players. A few of these have already been in existence for some time now.

Supply chain efficiencies Bharti Wal-Mart Private Limited is a joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and Wal-Mart. Bharti Wal-Mart already has 18 cash-and-carry stores across India under the brand name of Best Price Modern Wholesale. The group is investing heavily in establishing an effi-cient back-end supply chain management operation by directly sourcing from the farmers and cutting down the middlemen. With the Direct Farm program, there is an aim to maximize the value for farmers, retailers as well as consumers. The supply chain operation supports farmers who have limited infrastructure and distribu-tion strength by introducing best farming practices and improve the overall quality of life of the farming community. For Wal-Mart, it cuts down the costs of operating a supply chain dependent on the middlemen and also creates an efficient supply chain system by minimizing the wastage of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Adopting similar sustainable supply chain strategies can hopefully minimize the food wastage and costs, especially in India where one-third of fresh produce rots and food inflation is high.

Better employee conditionsIn a country where about half of the 1.2 billion are under the age of 25, opening up the retail sector also opens up the opportunity for more employment. FDI in retail can bring in not just more jobs but also better employee benefits. The disadvantages of having a big unorganized sector means exploitation of labor, as most of the unorganized retail players do not pay healthcare and other benefits to employees.

As a sourcing hub, many foreign retailers had already established their sourcing centers in India, offering improved employment and earning opportuni-ties, including increased income for rural suppliers.

Tesco, the world’s third largest retailer, operates the Tesco Hindustan Service Centre (HSC), its global ser-vice center in Bangalore since 2004, employing 6,000 people. Target Corporation, too, has its global service center in Bangalore and employs about 2,100 people. When the retailers open their retail chains in India, one can only assume that employee strength would increase in greater numbers.

Retail establishments, due to the sheer size of stores and upkeep requirements for products, consume lot of resources like energy and water and generate huge amounts of waste. Most global retailers practice inno-vative and efficient eco-initiatives, which help cut down on waste as well as reduce the energy consumption.

Marks and Spencer has become UK’s first major carbon neutral retailer, reducing annual carbon diox-ide emissions by 158,000 tons in over five years, and employs a sustainability plan that contributed £105 m to its main business in 2011.

The same eco-efficiency can be brought home to India’s retail stores and products. While companies like Marks and Spencer already practice it at their stores in India, peer pressure would also rub-off on local retail stores, sensitizing them towards environ-mental sustainability. Shoppers Stop adopted an energy management policy in 2007, the results of which are over 35 percent reduction in energy unit consumption for the stores, translating also in huge cost savings. Considering the thin margins that most retail stores operate on, adopting such sustainable initiatives will help boost their overall profitability.

When modern trade emerged in the 1990s, many small mom-and-pop stores felt threatened, and to survive, quickly adopted means like efficient storage of products, pleasant lighting, and handy pick-up racks. With the FDI reforms, we will see similar adoption of eco-efficient practices, leading to further boost in smaller retail stores.

Other key benefitsThe biggest gainers of FDI reforms would be the con-sumers, as more the competition greater the benefits for them. Some of the key benefits would be better qual-ity of products, especially fresh produce and food, and rationalization of prices. But the most significant bene-fit would come in the form of access to better developed products and related lifestyles owing to the R&D and innovations done by leading foreign retailers.

Looking back, in the post liberalization periods, outcries were raised at global companies entering the Indian market in some other sectors as well. Most of the fears proved otherwise, as seen when the Cola Giants PepsiCo and Coca-Cola could not wash out the Indian brands, and Thums Up continues to be a leading Indian cola brand. While McDonalds’ became popular, so did the growing number of ‘Udipis’.

Yes, it is desirable that FDI brings in sustainable retailers who can influence the business karma of the Indian retail sector and not goliaths who wipe the smaller players out. It is important to encourage assimi-lation, the basis of success of the Indian culture. The foreign retailers could not only introduce newer ideas and innovations, but in turn also learn from the Indian kiranas the art of customer service.

Latha Sankarnarayan is COO and Co-founder at Green Evangelist – a sustainability consulting firm

Of the 40 odd Indian companies reporting sustainable practices, none is from retail, while big global retailers like Target, Tesco, Sainsbury and Carrefour feature in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index


Facts StatsNumbers

Facts, figures, statistics, datapoints galore for your presentations, or for conversations. Use them, quote them, or just be amazed.

Collated by Sailee Karnik

The energy saved from

one recycled aluminium can will operate a television set for

three hours.

Each day 50 to 100

species

of animals and plants are driven to

extinction by human influences.

Each year, the US sends 500 million tons of solid hazardous waste to landfills and adds 3 million tons of toxic chemicals into the air and water.

The energy saved from recycling

one glass bottle will light a 100-watt light bulb for

four hours.


CHEAT SHEET

Turning PCs off at night saves Dell

$1.8M/year.

A study by McKinsey & Company shows that

cutting carbon is highly profitable. Investing $2 trillion from now till 2020 would provide an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of

17%.

A staggering two-thirds of the energy from coal, gas and nuclear power generation in North America is wasted in the form of heat that’s vented up smoke stacks and cooling towers.

GE launched its ecomagination initiative in 2005 and by 2011 had sold

$70 billion of green products and services; $25 billion of that in 2010 alone.

A report by the World Resources Institute predicts a

300% rise in energy and material use as world population and economic activity increase over the next 50 years.

Denmark obtains

55% of its energy from cogeneration and waste heat recovery, the highest installation of

CHP worldwide.

In OECD countries, the building and construction sector (including production and transport of building materials) consumes

25-40% of all energy used (as much as 50% in some countries).

The International Energy Agency estimates that, on average,

one-third of energy

end-use in the developed world goes for heating, cooling, lighting, appliances and general services in non-industrial (i.e. residential, commercial and public) buildings.


ENERGY

’Cause a

smart grid can be as

stupid as a

weak link


As cyber security issues hawk the makeover of power grids into smart grids, IT hardening at various layers is an imperative

By Pratima H

Power grids are evolving into smart grids. But with this impressive transfusion, there might be a possibility of some side-effects as IT gets trans-

planted into energy systems. When information bleeds, situation gets all the more slippery.

Communication networks and the increasing technology integration points, as well as new device interfaces have raised the question of cyber perils for these grids. With growing incidences of attacks like Stuxnet worm, Night Dragon, Slammer worm and the fiasco faced by nuclear plants in Iran, the question of security of our critical infrastructures gets instantly switched on.

Just how sharp is the precipice for the smart genera-tion of grids has been a subject of curiosity and research for quite some time. In 2011, MIT researchers released a report titled ‘The Future of the Electric Grid’. The findings got some real spotlight as apprehensions over security leaks in modern-age pipelines were fuelled by many notable factors. It was reported, for example, how from a cyber-security perspective, vulnerabilities can snowball due to the sheer number and degree of inter-faces between so many different pieces of hardware and software components. The question of blending new and legacy hardware and software in the threat context also came up.

The most alarming part that was reported from this study was that vulnerabilities may not uncover until after they have been exploited by an attacker. The report noted that even with the most diligent nature of planning, the evolution of the smart grid will more than likely present vulnerabilities that can not be anticipated ahead of time.

Global gas pipelines have been in news to have got attack threats in attempts to take control of their systems. It’s not hard to imagine how a small breach in power utilities can halt an entire nation, specially the ones in developed countries. Hacking into an energy grid takes the entire day-to-day running of a nation hostage as well. It will mean a blackout in more than one sense. It’s more than just a plant being in jeopardy here.

Not long ago media reports in the US cited how the nation’s electric utilities were at a dangerous cusp just like financial and telecommunications industries a decade ago, attributing the concern raised by Andy Bochman, Energy Security Lead for IBM’s Rational divi-sion, which focuses on smart-grid security software.

In April another study on electrical utilities by McAfee, the computer security firm, and the Center for Strategy and International Studies in Washington, accentuated how utility industry executives from 14 nations found that things were getting worse.

A McAfee report cites some solutions in an effort to prevent vulnerability and mitigate attacks to control systems:

1. Dynamic White listing provides the ability to deny unauthorized applications and code on servers, corporate desktops, and fixed-function devices

2. Memory Protection ensures that unauthorized execution is denied and vulnerabilities are blocked and reported

3. File Integrity Monitoring mandates that any file change, addition, deletion, renaming, attribute changes, ACL modification, and owner modification is reported. This includes network shares as well

4. Write Protection means that writing to hard disks are only authorized to the operating system, application configuration and log files. All others are denied

5. Read Protection warrants that only authorized access to specified files, directories, volumes and scripts are allowed. All others are denied

Tackling vulnerability

A few months ago, an Ernst & Young report titled ‘Insights on IT risk’ mentioned how confidence into the smart-grid space was being affected. It stated that recognizing the industry’s almost zero-fault service expectation, companies are even more apprehensive about adopting new technologies.

The implications that it listed ranged from expensive metering infrastructure and inaccurate and unreliable data issues for the customer to high-level precarious situations in case of physical or logical tampering.

That’s why review of actual level of smart-grid hardening, numerous levels of review of an ICS envi-ronment, such as network architecture, information flow patterns and use techniques, and remote access management were highlighted. As the report had rightly argued, for utility companies to eventually get what smart grids promise, it is necessary to deploy smart-grid technology on a very strong foundation of security standards.

Vulnerabilities can snowball due to the sheer volume of interfaces between different hardware and software components


“

”

A SINGLE SECURITY AUTHORITY THAT OVERSEES ALL NETWORKS IS NEEDED

Even the invincible Achilles had a weak heel. Smart grids seem to be no exception.

Does that mean that every next step towards progress and technological evolution should be stalked with security worries? It’s always better to ask than to guess and who would be better equipped to answer than a business leader from McAfee, the IT security specialists. Pratima H interviews Rakesh Kharwal, Director, Government Business–India, McAfee Inc.

Recently McAfee, in conjunction with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), conducted a survey to assess the vulnerabilities of smart grids. The interview captures the key layers of the report:

INTERVIEW


“Smart grid systems will increasingly use common, commercially available computing technologies and will be subject to their weaknesses”

Is there a classic dilemma of automation turning into a Frankenstein?

Increased automation is an area to ponder upon. Communication networks will generate, gather, and use data in new and innovative ways as smart grid tech-nologies will automate many functions. Improper use of this data presents new risks to national security and our economy. It is evident that critical infrastructure—energy, transportation, telecommunications and finan-cial systems—around the globe is vulnerable to cyber security attacks. Recent attacks such as Stuxnet worm and Night Dragon show that critical infrastructures are in urgent need of protection. Vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure were introduced over time as the antiquated systems of, for example, power companies were connected to the Internet for such capabilities as remote management and reporting purposes. While these capabilities make the power companies more effi-cient, they also provide entry points for cyber attackers. Other critical infrastructures are exposed in a similar way.

How worrisome is this for India?

In a country like India, there are many critical infra-structures that are with public sector undertakings and hence are owned by the government. Because of their inherent economic importance, such assets make strong targets for political sabotage, data infiltration and extortion. Some key recent cases where we have seen government departments compromised include the widespread infiltration of government and private networks to extract significant amounts of confiden-tial information, and the ongoing slate of retaliatory attacks by hacktivists against governments and their contractors. The standard perimeter security solutions today cannot protect against the advanced persistent threats (APTs) directly targeting government estab-lishments and national critical assets. One needs to look at security more proactively, build more layers of security including database protection, critical server protection, and protection for SCADA systems with centralized integrated risk management and monitor-ing solutions. Today, it’s not only about detecting or defending an attack but also about the analysis post an attack to find out the intended target, the payload details and other attributes of the attack so as to con-stantly fine-tune the security solutions to provide resil-ient defense against these APTs.

So what can be suggested for plugging these gaps?

Indian critical infrastructures can follow a risk-based checklist to create a strong network control that will minimize such attacks. It is recommended that the key network areas—IT, operations and new smart grid pro-jects—be overseen by a single security authority that is

ere there any radical spots uncovered in this study? What would you pick as the highlights?

In addition to examining the current challenges facing critical infrastructure and key

resources, this report also identifies specific risks and vulnerabilities in the evolving cyber threat landscape. It analyzes the value and effectiveness of integrated security solutions necessary to support the national security mission. According to this report, the biggest challenge for critical infrastructure and energy sec-tor owners and operators is how to effectively secure their control systems within their governance and technical domains in an active and capable advanced persistent threat environment.

How vulnerable can energy sector, per se, be?

The report examined how emerging vulnerabilities of control systems con-tinue to accelerate. Additionally, it also examined the impact of new technolo-gies on the energy sector. As informa-tion and communication technology advances and becomes integrated into power system operations and planning functions, smart grids are created, which yield greater visibility into the state of the system and advancements in control to enhance system efficiencies. Despite the significant benefits of the dynamic nature of the power grid, it was not designed keeping cyber security in mind.

Can you interpret the findings in terms of the pre-cise areas of concerns for grids? How serious is the degree and scope of effects with attacks in this context?

The report has identified a lot of vulnerabilities to control systems environments. First is the issue of increased exposure. Communication networks linking smart grid devices and systems will create many more access points to these devices, resulting in an increased exposure to potential attacks. Secondly, how do we handle interconnectivity, because as communication networks will be more interconnected, exposure of the system to possible failures and attacks will rise? To add to that, the electric system will become significantly more complex as more subsystems are linked together. Common computing technologies pose another con-cern. Smart grid systems will increasingly use com-mon, commercially available computing technologies and will be subject to their weaknesses.

W


responsible for, and therefore can rec-ognize the interconnectedness and synergies necessary across all three as compared to a silo approach. A single security authority could enable holis-tic protection of the assets. Another requirement is a strong data govern-ance plan to be devised that classifies data as per its value. Post this, a rel-evant plan to safeguard vital data can be executed. Data can be at rest on the network, in transit within or to and from the network, and could reside in peripherals and mobile devices.

How crucial are vendor areas here?

Cyber attacks can also be instigated through a weak vendor network, as a result of which hackers can gain direct access to the critical infrastruc-ture. Vendors should be selected carefully and made to validate their security standards and when vendors notify of new patches or other urgent actions over a possible new threat, priority should be placed on the

vendor’s recommended mitigation steps. Daily vulner-ability assessment needs to take place to understand potential weaknesses especially when new devices or applications are added to the network. It is also impor-tant to maintain regular checks when the control sys-tem becomes IP enabled.

The report also mentions ‘white listing’ as a rel-evant approach?

Yes, there has been an increasing trend in the deploy-ment of ‘white listing’, a technology which blocks ‘all’ unauthorized executables or applications and obviates the need for regular ‘updates’ that require downtime on the network. It is also suitable for devices that are purpose-built such as control systems or those that run only limited applications such as servers. The freedom that white listing provides from regular ‘blacklist-ing’ updates include greater uptime on operational networks and improved security, since administra-tors don’t have to choose to skip important updates to minimize downtime. This technology is useful for control systems running electric grids, oil and gas networks, water systems, transportation systems, and mining operations.

“Vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure were introduced as power companies were connected to the Internet for such purposes as remote management”

INTERVIEW


MY STORY

There’s support and service available from the ven-dors. At times, even a bit of subsidy.

For the version I ride, there is no need of license, no helmet required and no traffic cops to be cautious about.

It’s not that accident-prone, so my parents are as carefree as I am.

The minusesNow turning to the grey side of it, well yes, if it gets stuck anywhere on the road, one has to either wait for the service staff for the rescue or as in my case, know a bit of DIY stuff with the circuits. Mostly checking the MCB does it. But if it gets a puncture-tyre situ-ation, it’s not the usual screw-and-jack routine. And that brings me to another important point. Not every mechanic will touch the bike, and only a few service centres would. Plus, it slows down if a pillion-rider is to accompany you.

If you are prepared for these minor hassles and are fine with the daily task of charging your bike and making sure you don’t leave house without a good charge, this bike is fun.

And the recommendationLike my senior colleague who has owned an electric bike for around nine years, and who was the one who initiated me into the world of alternative vehicles, I would also advise everyone to try and adopt this league of driving.

Everyone who is flexible to speed constraints and some cautions, will love the floating feel as I do daily. Not just at 7 am but also at 7 pm while driving back from work.

The roads won’t change much, but our bikes can. Drive safe, drive green.

Prity Soni works as Asst Centre Manager at Charisma Career Pvt Ltd, Baroda, Gujarat

Life on an electric bikeThere’s more to it than being the odd one out on a road strewn with petrol-guzzling vehicles. Let’s hear it from a horse-owner’s mouth

By Prity Soni

It may not have the power of a beast, but it is empowering in terms of money saved. Plus, the joy of contributing to the environment counts

It’s seven am in the morning. The roads are waking up to another day of horns, smoke, jams, signals, road-rage and fear of another hike in fuel prices. But

I am floating. Noiseless, smooth, slow; wafting like a carefree bird.

No, I’m not immortal yet…This spiritual bubble of peace I get in an oth-

erwise usual mortal’s typical hectic day is due to the electric bike I drive.

For obvious reasons - it gets me a great start to the morning by sparing me the trouble of looking for price hike in the newspaper. But the best part is not the money saved. Contrary to what other petrol-bike owners assume and contrary to even what I initially thought, it’s the feel of the bike.

The driving experience takes me back to childhood days. It’s like owning a toy—effortless and very smooth.

And yet, for the same reasons, it’s not an aspirational GI Joe. It does not have the purr of a beastly engine, or the pick-up of a fast stallion. It’s a small toy and not a giant animal and hence will not give the power-fuelled roar that sounds sweet to many ears.

Yet, if it’s power that we are talking about, I do own some of it (and there comes in the money part). Now I can save some of my hard-earned money and spend it on better things.

Add to that the joy of contributing in my own small way to the environment. No smoke, no noise and no petrol consumption make me a better person in my own eyes.

Some more plusesThis bike comes with a good sized kit to keep a girl’s usual load of daily carry-ons. The looks and aesthetics are no less than the usual gearless two-wheelers, if not more. My pretty, black, cute-looking doll of a bike is a proof.


BE BOLD.It’s beautifulBeing aware of the limitations and being transparent about those—that’s key to making your sustainability effort a success

By Jigna Khajuria


FEATURE

So you have decided to go green, or sustainable, with your business. You have made grand plans, announced

it to your employees and community and made the necessary legal arrangements.

But can you be sure that your plan to go environment-friendly will succeed? Well, it will, if you follow a few golden rules. The following points could serve as yardsticks:

1 Be very transparent and coura-geous, admit any failures and learn

the lessons and definitely use those to improve things in the future.

2 Make sustainability a core part of your business rather than doing it

as an add-on to your regular operations.

3 Try to use new technology that has environmental benefits, but also be

aware of any risks that may be associated with some technologies.

4 Strategizing is important. Have clear, attainable goals and prioritize

clearly rather than having a blurry desire to be sustainable. Do not abandon good management practices.

5 Incentives can be big motivators. Reward and recognize those in the

staff who contribute to making the organization and its products and services more sustainable. Just saying ‘we want to do this’ might not be enough; appreciate efforts and make it happen.

6 The example and inspiration has to be driven from the top and the

senior management. Those higher up need to understand a successful change towards being more sustainable and environmen-tally more responsible would best begin with them.

7 Ensure that your sustainability projects lead to environmental,

social as well as financial benefits.

arguably worse for your image than doing nothing at all.

e Delivering is more important than image. If you concentrate on your

company image rather than the outcome for the environment, community and business, the result will be a failure. Sustainability doesn’t start with image management but with deliverables.

f Don’t try to do everything yourself. Some of your efforts like the design

for your products and service may be unique, but there will be many areas where you can benefit from various networks, non-profit organizations or other businesses.

g Simply acquiring a company that is more sustainable than your own

but then continuing to go ahead with business as usual will not help.

There will always be some activities in your business that cannot be pursued in a sustainable manner. Therefore, it is impor-tant to realize your limitations and make it clear that you are taking select sustain-ability steps to achieve your business goals with a minimum impact on the environ-ment. There will be enough opportunities to make a difference, but those efforts need to be put into a context.

As much as it is necessary to follow certain benchmarks to success, it is equally imperative to understand what might pull you down. Even if you have your strategies in place, certain unexpected events might turn up, and knowing how to deal with them will only be beneficial. Here are a few points to beware of:

a Be truly giving; don’t give on one hand

and take away with the other. If you come up with a new product that is no doubt greener but also very expensive, it would be pointless. Your sustainability should benefit your customers and stakeholders as well as your organization. For example, until the electric cars are priced similarly to a conventional one, the green tag alone won’t sell them.

b Be the change you want to bring about; words aren’t enough. Unless

you give your staff the necessary tools and training, a move towards sustainability isn’t going to happen. Make sure that your staff has appropriate resources, including time.

c Same rules apply to all; real change can be brought about only by

practical examples from the top. Using a jet while talking of air pollution and fuel preservation sets an example of getting this wrong. This makes an impression which tries to say, ‘My time is more important than the environment.’

d Don’t mislead; attempting to appear greener than you are, or using

low-impact green gestures just to look more sustainable fools no one. It can significantly damage the company image in the long run. For example, fitting a token wind turbine to highly polluting factory is

Have clear, attainable goals and prioritize clearly rather than having a blurry desire to be sustainable

Sustainability may not be achievable overnight for all activities, so it’s fine to say you are taking only a select few steps now


VIEWPOINT

Corporate sustainability has a close cousin called corporate social responsibility and also a not-so-dis-

tant one called philanthropy. In the recent decade, globally, and in India too, business leaders of the few-in-a-century genre have worked to give philanthropy such dimen-sions that were unseen before.

The most discussed work in the area has been by Bill Gates through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which has seen support coming in from such business leg-ends as Warren Buffet.

Let me cite what Gates noted in one of his annual letters, “Throughout my careers in software and philanthropy—and in each of my annual letters—a recurring theme has been that innovation is the key to improving the world. When innovators work on urgent problems and deliver solutions to people in need, the results can be magical.”

It is interesting to note that while he talked of philanthropy as a career in the same breath as software, he also considers ‘innovation’ as a key to creating differentia-tions in both the areas.

And what could an innovation be when it comes to philanthropy itself?

“The Giving Pledge” is certainly one innovative way in which Gates has been mobilizing support for philanthropy. As Gates puts it, the pledge entails wealthy individuals and families making a simple pledge to give away a majority of their wealth during their lifetime or in their will.

Exchange of ideas and their synthesis is another way to breed innovation, and it’s no surprise that when Gates, Warren Buffett and Melinda Gates were in India in 2011 they “sat down with around 60 wealthy families to hear from them about Indian philanthropy and share experiences.” Gates

Taking away is not necessarily bad, but faces the risk that acts are driven by greed and not by noble intents. The result can often be a mad race where everybody wants to take away as much as possible

We could then build businesses that make systemic commitments of not taking away too much from the society and the environment

Deepak Kumar

particularly noted, “Azim Premji, one of the pioneers of philanthropy in India, joined us for the panel discussion.” Premji is known to have pledged to donate $2 billion towards development of school education in India.

One radical way of doing innovation could be to question the very concept of ‘giving back.’

Giving-back, by its very construction and connotation is a fallout of ‘taking away.’ Now, taking away is not necessarily bad, and could help concentrate resources in the right hands, which could then be redistrib-uted for constructive activities.

But then there always is a huge risk that ‘taking away’ could be driven by pure greed and could lead to a mad race wherein every-body wants to take away as much as possible from the society and the environment.

Could we therefore instead build busi-nesses that take a systemic approach to not giving back (and therefore not taking away too)?

We surely can, and in fact, the tools to do that are already with us. It’s just that we need to start putting those to good use.

The framework of triple-bottomline reporting, for example, could be a big ena-bler and stepping stone. The governments can significantly catalyze this by way of contextualizing the reporting parameters to align with local socio-environmental conditions. And the larger-than-organ-ization philanthropists could work to create innovations that revolutionize the whole process.

Deepak Kumar specializes in marketresearch and advisory and is reachableat [email protected]@saagainteractive.com

Can we give up ‘giving back?’


Sustainuance - November 2012

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