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How eBay is Encouraging Refurbished Tech to Reduce E-waste

Posted on February 27, 2024February 27, 2024 by dishanth

Here’s a weird fact. There are currently a little over 8 billion people on the planet, yet there are about 16 billion mobile phones. Convenient maths shows us that means every single person on the planet has on average two phones.

Even more startling is the fact that, according to the international Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Forum, more than 5 billion of those will be thrown away this year and head to e-waste.

That is despite the fact that these devices contain valuable resources including gold, silver, copper, and palladium. Estimates put the value of these precious metals dumped each year at more than US$10 billion.

It’s not just mobile phones that are the issue, all electronic waste – from laptops to smart TVs – is a pressing issue that needs addressing.

In the UK alone, two million tonnes of e-waste is discarded each year. That’s according to Mark Monte-Colombo, Head of Refurbished Technology for eBay UK, who says refurbished technology can support a circular economy and enhance accessibility.

“Globally, a significant surge in electronic waste is expected to reach 74.7 million tonnes by the end of the decade,” Monte-Colombo tells Sustainability.

“However, the good news is that increased interest in refurbished technology can help to drastically reduce waste. For example, on eBay UK, through the sale of refurbished products, we avoided over 2.8 million kg of waste in 2022, which is equivalent to over 23.5 million phones being spared from landfills.”

Growing Demand for Refurbished to Reduce Costs and Waste

Refurbished technology refers to any tech product that has been used and returned, either to the original business or an approved reseller, for repairs or vetting before being resold.

People return technology for various reasons: perhaps the item is pristine but the customer had a change of mind within the returns window, sometimes items are returned due to marks or wear, many returns fall under what eBay calls ‘open box’ – meaning the item is pristine but not in its original packaging. On top of that, retailers offer trade-in schemes to help people upgrade their tech.

Monte-Colombo says momentum is growing for refurbished technology. More and more brands are seeing the value in refurbished products, and eBay now features over 150 leading brands in its refurbished category, such as Dyson, Samsung, and Apple.

“We understand how crucial it is to partner with major companies to extend the lifespan of electronic devices, reduce waste, and promote a circular economy,” he says.

“Looking ahead to 2024, I’m anticipating continued momentum for refurbished products.
Despite challenging times, consumers still genuinely care about the environment. Nearly a third (32%) of UK consumers we surveyed confirmed they’d purchase pre-loved or refurbished items because it’s better for the environment.”

Switching to Refurbished Drives Circular Economy

Refurbished technology is clearly resonating with consumers, with price being an important factor. Any stigma associated with ‘refurbished’, ‘second hand’, or ‘used’ is also being dispelled, largely thanks to mobile phones providing a “gateway” into the market.

Monte-Colombo says the frequent turnover of devices with contract upgrades has seen a constant influx of relatively new mobile devices becoming available as refurbished.

“The resale of pre-loved and refurbished goods on our global platform conserves resources and reduces waste,” says Monte-Colombo. “In 2022, we avoided 73,000 metric tons of waste globally through buying and reselling on the platform.

“Refurbishing requires significantly less energy compared to manufacturing new products. Our Refurbished category extends the lifecycle of electronic products and diverts them from landfills, helping shoppers reduce their environmental impact.

“With these environmental benefits, more consumers and businesses switching to refurbished vs new will enable a circular economy model.”

How Businesses can Benefit From Choosing Refurbished

There is still work to do to shift consumer attitudes from considering refurbished products as an afterthought to a first thought. To shift this perception, promoting the value and quality of refurbished tech products and their reduced environmental impact is essential.

Monte-Colombo says another significant challenge is educating consumers about electronic recycling and reducing barriers to recycling electronics that no longer function and cannot be repurposed.

“There’s also a real opportunity for businesses to invest in refurbished technology vs new, a trend we’ve already observed gaining traction,” he says.

“Nearly 60% of UK businesses actively opt for refurbished hardware over a new device. With many businesses setting sustainability goals, transitioning to refurbished technology can effectively help achieve these objectives.

“For me, the future is refurbished. In 2024, we’ll see sustained consumer demand for refurbished tech. I’m excited to see the continued shift to a more sustainable future.”

Source Sustainability

Meta Powers Towards Net Zero with Carbon Removal Projects

Posted on February 7, 2024February 7, 2024 by dishanth

Any organisation worth their sustainability salt knows that reaching net zero emissions in operations alone is not enough

Decarbonization must extend beyond offices and factories to include Scope 3, from the emissions caused by suppliers to those created by employees.

For Meta, the world’s fifth-biggest tech company, this challenge is being met with ambitious targets and bold, meaningful action.

Having already hit net zero emissions in global operations in 2020, the social media giant now has its sustainability sights set on achieving net zero value chain emissions by 2030.

This is quite the challenge, given 99% of Meta’s carbon footprint came from Scope 3 in 2022 – and this continues to rise.

“We know that reaching net zero emissions across our value chain will not be an easy task,” Rachel Peterson, Vice President of Data Centre Strategy at Meta said in the company’s 2023 Sustainability Report.

“Right now, our Scope 3 emissions are increasing and will continue to do so as we work to support the global demand for the services we provide.”

Meta Tackles Hard-to-Abate Sectors with Carbon Removal Projects

Meta acknowledges that reaching this goal requires a significant shift in how it builds infrastructure and operates its entire business – and the 20-year-old company is prioritising efficiency and circularity in its business decisions and embracing low-carbon technology to operate with a lower emissions footprint.

For example, through its supplier engagement programme, Meta is working to decarbonise its supply chain and enable at least two-thirds of its suppliers to set SBTi-aligned reduction targets by 206.

However, there are some emissions from hard-to-abate sectors the Facebook owner knows will be difficult to reduce by the end of the decade.

And so to tackle this, Meta has turned to carbon removal projects, the third pillar in its high-level emissions reduction strategy.

In a white paper outlining its Net Zero Strategy, the company says investing in value chain emissions reductions projects is necessary to address sources it can’t directly influence – like companies or processes used to extract and process the copper in data centre hardware or mechanical electrical equipment.

“These projects offer a significant opportunity to decarbonise our business at pace and scale require to achieve our 2030 reduction target,” the paper states.

For Meta, a diverse approach to carbon removal that includes both nature-based and technological approaches is crucial – not only to ensure near-term climate impact but to support carbon removal solutions for the future.

This strategy involves the purchase of credits from projects that align with Meta’s principles, from reforestation to investment in direct air capture technology.

Nature-Based Solutions in Mitigating Carbon Emissions

Since 2021, the social media giant has supported numerous nature-based carbon removal projects, from Australia to Kenya, including increasing forest carbon stock of community ejido forests in Oaxaca and increasing stored carbon via protection of forests that provide habitat for mitigating salmon in California.

And demonstrating its continued commitment to investing in nature-based solutions to mitigate carbon emissions, Meta recently signed a major carbon credits deal for 6.75 million carbon credits with Aspiration, a leading provider of sustainable financial services.

These credits hail from a myriad of ecosystem restoration and natural carbon removal approaches, including native tree and mangrove reforestation, agroforestry, and the implementation of sustainable agricultural practices.

Meta’s role in the voluntary carbon market extends beyond purchasing credits from projects to supporting new project development through financing and encouraging the evolution of standards that bring more certainty to the market.

Among the ways Meta is driving development in the sector is through collaborative action that will “aggregate the resources of multiple companies to create rapid change at scale”.

This includes a collaborative pledge to develop carbon projects that centre Indigenous leadership.

Through 1t.org, the National Indian Carbon Coalition and Meta have pledged to support and promote a model of carbon projects that centre on the leadership, traditional ecological knowledge, and vision of Indigenous Peoples for themselves and their land.

Among other collaborative projects:

Participation in the Business Alliance to Scale Climate Solutions (BASCS), which provides a platform for businesses and climate experts to meet, learn, discuss and act together to improve climate solutions.
Collaboration with the World Resources Institute to develop a method to map forest canopy height↗ at individual tree-scale using a new Meta AI training model. We have mapped forest canopy in California and São Paulo, Brazil, and are making the data public and freely available

Meta’s Role in Scaling Carbon Removal Technologies

In further driving development in the sector, Meta joined forces with other big tech companies in 2022 to accelerate the development of carbon removal technologies by guaranteeing future demand.

While some say focusing on carbon capture is a distraction to the real goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, Meta argues that both emissions reductions and carbon dioxide removal are needed.

And climate science backs this up.

Scientists say removing the carbon emissions that we have already pumped into the atmosphere is necessary if we are to avoid the 1.5-degree rises in global temperature set out in the Paris Agreement.

Launched in 2022, Frontier is a US$925 million joint commitment between Meta, Stripe, Shopify, McKinsey Sustainability and Alphabet – more recently bolstered with four new companies – Autodesk, H&M Group, JPMorgan Chase and Workday – committing a combined US$100 million.

Frontier helps its member companies purchase CO2 removal via pre-purchase agreements or offtake agreements. The goal is to spur the development of a new industry by providing a novel source of funding that isn’t based on debt or equity investments, but on actual product purchases before the technology is fully available at scale.

So far, Frontier has spent $5.6 million buying nearly 9,000 tonnes of contracted carbon removal from 15 different carbon dioxide removal startups.

Among these, RepAir uses electrochemical cells and clean electricity to capture carbon dioxide from the air, while Living Carbon is a synthetic biology startup working on engineering natural systems to remove carbon dioxide.

With this strategy, Meta is helping to expand the voluntary carbon market, overcome barriers to scale, and at the same time achieve its own ambitious net zero goals.

Source

Sustainable Cooling: Electrocaloric Cooling Breakthrough

Posted on January 30, 2024January 30, 2024 by dishanth

As heatwaves intensify across the globe, the demand for air conditioning and refrigeration skyrockets. The ballooning demand for cooling strains energy infrastructure and escalates emissions from vapor compression systems. These conventional refrigerators and AC units rely on greenhouse gases and inefficient mechanical compressors that have reached their efficiency limits. With little room for improvement, vapor compression technology cannot sustainably shoulder doubling cooling demands. Scientists urgently search for climate-friendly innovations before the warming world overheats.

In a breakthrough discovery, researchers at the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) pioneer a radically different cooling approach harnessing the electrocaloric cooling effect. This phenomenon describes particular ceramic materials that heat up or cool down when electric fields flip on and off. By cleverly leveraging this conductivity toggle, the LIST team designed an assembly that can pump heat without noisy, energy-draining compressors.

Electrocaloric cooling is a fascinating phenomenon where certain materials experience a reversible temperature change when an electric field is applied. In simpler terms, you can directly use electricity to manipulate their temperature, creating a cooling effect. This opens up exciting possibilities for energy-efficient and environmentally friendly cooling technologies.

The regenerative system developed by LIST alternates layers of electrocaloric capacitors with liquid coolant. Switching an electric field pulls heat from the fluid into the capacitors, cooling the system. Cutting voltage then dissipates the heat, so the cycle repeats. The smooth back-and-forth between hot and cold replaces high-maintenance mechanical parts with solid-state reliability. Scientists calculate that electrocaloric cooling efficiency leapfrogs vapor compression refrigeration by directly shuffling heat instead of wasting effort compressing refrigerants.

Since fluids naturally stratify by temperature, no added energy input is required to cycle hot and cold. The passive electrocaloric cooling generator minimizes electricity demands by exploiting thermodynamics rather than fighting against them. With game-changing energy savings over traditional refrigerator designs, this electrocaloric cooling technology paves the way for truly sustainable cooling.

Seeking real-world integration, LIST researchers collaborate with manufacturing partners to develop prototypes. The original discovery featured a single electrocaloric part, which limited heat transfer speed. The current regenerator assembly overcame this by interleaving many capacitors with parallel coolant channels. This boosts heat pumping capacity for powerful, real-world performance. Ongoing enhancements also aim to lower costs and extend operating lifetimes to enable widespread commercialization.

While the immediate goal focuses on eco-friendly refrigeration, the applications likely won’t stop there. Any process generating unwanted heat could benefit from electrocaloric cooling technology. Air conditioners, electronics cooling, industrial processes and even solar energy storage represent prospective opportunities. Because electrocaloric cooling systems thrive when miniaturized, microchip-level cooling also offers possibilities for computing breakthroughs.

For example, electrocaloric cooling films could provide on-chip cooling for high-performance computer processors, enabling faster computing speeds. Electrocaloric cooling systems can also be used to condense water vapor in air conditioning and dehumidification applications. This could allow environmentally-friendly refrigerants like water instead of HFCs to be used in vapor compression HVAC.

Additionally, the flexibility of electric-powered cooling lends well to renewable energy integration and smart grid load balancing. Electrocaloric heat pumps powered by wind or solar electricity during times of excess generation could store thermal energy for later dispatch while synchronizing supply and demand on the grid. With materials and system configuration innovations, electrocaloric cooling technologies show promise for revolutionizing thermal management across many sectors.

Despite enormous promise, unanswered questions remain regarding large-scale manufacturing and durability. However, early indications suggest the regenerator’s simple solid-state design will prove reliable over long stretches. By dodging complex mechanical components, the approach naturally steers towards sustainability. Cooling demand will only climb higher as climate change continues, but creative solutions like the LIST electrocaloric cooling regenerator offer hope we can innovate our way to a cooler future.

Source Happy Eco News

10 Ways Google Empowers Sustainable Choices in 2024

Posted on January 9, 2024January 9, 2024 by dishanth

1. Get more sustainable choices when you travel

You can now find relevant train routes when you search for flights in Google Search making it easier to consider options like high-speed rail when you travel. When you choose to fly, you can also find a carbon emissions estimate for nearly every flight in Google Flights results — right next to the price and duration of the trip. This means that when you’re choosing among flights of similar cost or timing, you can also factor carbon emissions into your decision.

2. Take a more fuel-efficient route

People are looking for information about how to reduce their environmental footprint when in transit. That’s why we continue expanding fuel-efficient routes to new countries, like India and Indonesia. You can find these routes by looking for the little green leaf in Google Maps – it indicates the most fuel efficient route if it isn’t already the fastest.

3. Understand your car-buying choices

For people shopping for an electric vehicle, it’s now even easier to understand the costs associated with buying a new vehicle. In the U.S., when people search for terms like “best electric cars,” they can quickly compare prices, battery range, charging times, and power output of individual models. They can also find federal government incentives for qualifying vehicles in the U.S and parts of Europe.

4. Use our Fuel Cost Calculator to find the most affordable options

If you’re considering buying an EV or if you’ve had an EV for a while, it’s helpful to understand the cost of charging. That’s why we’re adding an updated Fuel Cost Calculator to electric and fuel-based car results to help drivers see the cost of charging compared with filling up at the pump. This is available now in 21 countries around the world.

5. Mitigate EV range anxiety with Battery Range Explorer

When you search for an EV, you’ll get a visualization of how far you can go on a single charge—specific to that model. You can enter your own destination and we’ll show how much battery you’d have upon arrival. And, for really long trips, we’ll show you how many charges are needed along the way. This prediction takes into account factors like elevation change and speed limits.

6. Find more detailed charging information

Finding EV charging stations has never been easier. If you search ‘EV charging’ in Google Maps, you’ll see nearby stations and information about when a charger was last used so you can get a sense of how reliable it is.

7. Locate speedy charging options

EV drivers on Android and iOS can also see even more helpful charging station information. Update your plug types in your electric vehicle settings in Maps to see whether a charger is compatible with your vehicle, real-time charging availability, and if the available chargers are fast, medium or slow.

8. Compare home heating and cooling systems

We’re making it easier for people looking to replace their home heating or cooling system. When you search for queries like “boilers” or “air conditioning” in Google Search, you’ll see information about potential options, including their capabilities, energy efficiency, and financial incentives, all in one place.

9. Find nearby recycling points

We provide a group of recycling attributes for Google Business Profiles on Search and Maps, allowing local storefronts and shops to show the recycling services they offer and helping people share this information with others in their community. Now you can search for nearby recycling drop-off locations — through searches like “plastic bottle recycling near me” — all over the world.

10. Buy used clothes and products

When you search for products on Google, like a winter coat, you’ll see a grid in the organic results with photos and listings from retailers across the web. If any of those products are pre-owned, you’ll see a “Pre-owned” label under that listing. There’s also a similar label for “Refurbished” electronics.

Source Google Blog

How manufacturers can transition to 100% renewable electricity

Posted on January 3, 2024 by dishanth

Manufacturing and other industrial users account for around a third of the world’s energy consumption, according to the International Energy Agency(1). Electricity is a central element of that. If all the power consumed by factories and industrial plants came from renewable sources, it would make a sizeable contribution to tackling climate change.

It is a tough target, but one that companies are increasingly signing up to. The RE100 initiative, for example, has seen more than 400 corporations commit to 100% renewable electricity use across their operations. How they reach that goal will depend on many factors, including what they are making and where.

Switching to renewable electricity

“Organisations with lighter electricity needs and stable finances will be best positioned to transition to renewables. Companies with high electricity demand, like furnaces for glass, smelting or other large-scale heating applications and companies with very large footprints – such as expansive warehouses and assembly operations – may have more difficulty,” says Paul Holdredge, Director for Industrials and Transport at consultancy Business for Social Responsibility (BSR).

COP28 president-designate Dr Sultan Al-Jaber told the Adipec conference in Abu Dhabi in early October(2) that heavy industries may be hard to decarbonise but added “We know that solutions exist, and all industries can and must respond.”

The prospect of switching to renewable electricity has become far easier due to recent dramatic cost reductions. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the price of solar photovoltaic power in 2010 was typically 710% higher than the cheapest fossil fuel, but by 2022 it was 29% cheaper(3). Currently electricity accounts for around 20% of final energy use in manufacturing, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency, and this is only expected to increase.

The manufacturing challenge

But it is not just the price of renewable energy, low as it is, that dictates a manufacturer’s ability to move to 100% renewable energy. Both the required initial capital investment and first-mover disadvantage—where it costs pioneers more than those that follow them to deploy new technologies—can significantly slow down a fully renewable transition. Not to mention the lack of availability of certain renewables in certain geographies and the fact that the appropriate infrastructure must be in place for this energy to be delivered—something no one company can do on its own.

Manufacturing requires an enormous amount of electricity in comparison to offices. In some countries or regions where the supply of renewable electricity is limited, like Japan, Taiwan, and Singapore, it is much more expensive than electricity produced by traditional means, placing a significant future cost burden on companies that purchase renewable electricity.

Epson is working to popularize the use of renewable electricity, despite the certainty of short-term cost increases. The company is advancing investment in sustainability to enrich communities and invest in future generations to create social value.

Going local

Wherever they are in the world, with whatever types of renewable energy available to them, companies need to adapt to local, national, and global circumstances. Seiko Epson, based in Japan, has done just that. Having switched to 100% renewable electricity for all its sites in Japan in 2021, it will complete the transition to 100% renewable electricity globally by the end of 2023(4). This goal has been made achievable through steady implementation of decarbonization targets and the use of renewable electricity since 2018.

In Nagano Prefecture, Japan, for example, where water sources are abundant, it relies on hydroelectric power. But in the Tohoku area, where it has a semiconductor fabrication plant, it uses hydropower and geothermal heat from the Ou mountains.

It is taking a similar approach outside Japan. In the Philippines, it taps into local geothermal and hydroelectric sources. While in Indonesia, it uses yet another renewable source—biomass power.

“We have used locally produced energy wherever possible,” says Junichi Watanabe, Managing Executive Officer General Administrative Manager, Production Planning Division, whose role encompasses the promotion of Epson’s procurement strategies in the supply chain, including the use of renewable electricity. “Rather than using energy generated in faraway countries, using a particular region’s abundant renewable resources brings many benefits, such as improving energy self-sufficiency and creating jobs.”

In addition to purchasing renewable electricity, Epson co-creates and develops other power sources through continuous renewable electricity purchases. In partnership with Nagano Prefecture and Chubu Electric Power Miraiz Company, Inc., the company began support of hydroelectric power plants in Nagano Prefecture. Two are already in operation (totalling 5,770 kilowatts) and another is scheduled to begin operation in 2024. That number is expected to increase to five by 2025.

Such targets can help a company stand out from the crowd. “Based on our research, setting a near-term goal for 100% renewable electricity use is an example of leadership and a differentiator. Some companies also have roadmaps to transition over longer time periods,” says Holdredge.

Among the practical methods companies should consider are:

• Sourcing renewable electricity from local suppliers via contracts with electricity suppliers – the ability to do this will depend on the rules in a particular country but, if it is possible, a company can be confident its electricity is only coming from renewable sources.

• Generating electricity on-site, via rooftop solar panels or, if space allows, wind turbines. Even if they do not generate all the power needed, they can still make a useful contribution.

• Develop battery storage facilities. A common concern about renewable electricity is the risk of supply being interrupted when the wind isn’t blowing or the sun isn’t shining, but storage technology offers a viable way to address that.

When it comes to solar power generation systems, Epson’s sites also decide whether to adopt self-investment or power purchase agreement (PPA) based on the individual circumstances of each country or region. The solution will vary from company to company. But most manufacturers are likely to find a combination of these elements will go a long way to reaching their renewable electricity goals.

What’s more, many manufacturers like Epson realize that their indirect GHG emissions from their entire value chain (Scope 3) are much greater than the GHG emissions from their own electricity use (Scope 2). As such, by reducing the sector’s Scope 2 emissions using renewable energy—something the sector can do independently—is likely to have a far greater impact on society. Setting goals early and demonstrating a company’s stance toward solving climate change is the key to co-prosperity with suppliers and a sustainable society.

“For large companies the return on investment is there to make the case for investment in renewables. For smaller companies this can also be true, but it depends on the geography. Government incentives can only speed up transition which is sorely needed,” says Christy Slay, Chief Executive Officer of The Sustainability Consortium.

The future for greener manufacturing

There are big gains for humanity if climate change can be addressed, but for manufacturing companies and their shareholders the best approach could also deliver commercial gains.

Consumers and investors are increasingly likely to reward companies with greener credentials, making it an essential part of long-term market positioning. In addition, greater use of renewables and greater self-generation can make a company more resilient to volatile electricity prices on the open market.

“Reaching 100% renewable is tough but pushing to get as close as possible, as soon as possible should be every company’s focus right now,” says Slay. “Epson has managed to stay one step ahead of the industry and is setting an example not only to Japan but to the world.”

Source Reuters

Aloe Vera Insect Repellants from Aloe Vera Peel Waste

Posted on November 30, 2023 by dishanth

Aloe vera is a succulent plant from the genus Aloe and is grown in various tropical, semi-tropical, and arid regions around the world. China, the U.S.A., Mexico, Australia and some Latin American countries are the major producers and exporters of aloe products. Aloes produce two substances: the gel, which is the clear, jelly-like substance found in the inner part and the aloe latex, which comes from just under the plant’s skin and is yellow in colour.

Because of these properties, aloe vera has been used for a variety of reasons, including treating wounds and skin problems or promoting healthy digestion. It’s known for its anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antiviral properties, which make it useful for treating burns, sunburns, and minor abrasions. Aloe vera gel can also help soothe and moisturize the skin. Aloe vera is also a common ingredient in skin care products, shampoos and conditioners.

While the inner parts of the aloe vera plant are in high demand, the peels are thrown away as agricultural waste. It is said that millions of tons of aloe vera peels get thrown away every year. The agricultural waste is used in the creation of biomass, which can improve the soil quality at aloe farms. While it is good that they are not being thrown into the landfill, agricultural waste does have some environmental consequences. For example, after some time, it can release methane and other greenhouse gases, which contribute to climate change.

Scientists from the American Chemical Society have found another alternative for the aloe vera peels, which can act as a more sustainable solution. They have found that the peels can ward off bugs and can act as a natural insecticide for crops. The aloe vera insect repellant discovery was made at an aloe vera production centre, where they noticed that insects were leaving the aloe vera plants alone but attacking other plant varieties, they had discovered natural aloe vera insect repellants.

To analyze how and why aloe vera insect repellants work, the team from the American Chemical Society dried out the peels in the dark at room temperature by blowing air over them. They then produced various extracts from the peels. The researchers found that in the hexane extract (used to extract edible oils from seeds and vegetables) contained octacosane. Octacosane is a compound with known mosquitocidal properties.

The researchers identified that there were over 20 compounds in aloe vera insect repellants that had antibacterial, antifungal or other potential health benefits. Additionally, they found six compounds within the peels that are known to have insecticidal properties. Best of all, they also concluded that the compounds were not toxic, meaning there are no safety concerns in using aloe-peel-based insecticides in crops.

The researchers still have to test how these aloe peel insecticides could work against agricultural pests. They hope that developing a natural pesticide could help farmers in areas where insects can be a major threat, including regions of Africa, the tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, and the maize and millet fields in India. The researchers are also testing to see if the aloe vera peels also have anti-mosquito and anti-tick properties, which could eventually be used to develop a natural aloe vera insect repellant for consumer use.

This is an important discovery to help make aloe vera production and even other crop production more sustainable. If the researchers can develop this into a natural insecticide, it could help us move away from harmful pesticides and make farming less harmful to the environment. Furthermore, this might also be the beginning of what we can do with other plant peels and waste and how we can utilize them for other purposes instead of throwing them away.

Source Happy Eco News

Greenwashing is out: companies need to get serious about their sustainability journey

Posted on November 8, 2023 by dishanth

Businesses are increasingly being held accountable for their environmental and social impact. And Siegwerk, a global provider of inks and coatings for packaging, has taken a leading role in driving sustainability within the sector. The company is committed to producing packaging solutions to drive a circular economy for the industry, and supporting sustainable transitions along its supply chain.

Like many companies, Siegwerk has taken an incremental approach to expanding its sustainability strategy. “We started our sustainability journey by looking at how our products could better enable a circular economy,” says Alina Marm, Global Head of Sustainability and Circular Economy at Siegwerk. “That laid the groundwork for us to launch an entire new strategy on sustainability with a broad scope, covering carbon neutrality targets and diversity as a quantifiable target, but also looking at the conditions in our supply chain and creating transparency around these conditions in order to continuously improve.”

For Marm, the three primary aspects that define sustainable packaging are true circularity, carbon neutrality and fairness in the supply chain: “Carbon neutrality meaning zero emissions, and fairness in the supply chain meaning that there’s nobody who suffers as a result of your business practices.”

There is an increased need for transparency around companies’ sustainability data. Consumers are more educated about greenwashing and will no longer just take companies at their word when it comes to sustainability claims. Special interest groups such as NGOs are also publicly highlighting discrepancies between company commitments and performance.

“There is a huge regulatory push to bring sustainability reporting on par with financial reporting. And this is a game-changer. It’s going to make it much easier for consumers to look up data and make decisions about which products to buy and which companies to support,” Marm says.

But this is one area that is severely lagging. A survey conducted by Deloitte in April 2022 revealed that only 3 per cent of consumer companies say they produce sustainability data that is as accurate and verifiable as their financial data. Siegwerk is one of the first companies in its sector to commit to reporting on the carbon footprint of its products. “There is no option but to embrace sustainability holistically,” says Marm. “It’s not just about doing the right thing, it’s also about remaining competitive and future-proofing your business.”

Source Independent

Walmart and General Mills build a sustainable food supply

Posted on October 31, 2023 by dishanth

Working as partners in regenerative agriculture projects, Walmart and General Mills are working with authorities to create a more sustainable food system

Disruption of the food supply chain is perhaps the single most impactful event that can have detrimental effects globally. Also, the emissions that are produced as a result of the global food supply are just as impactful to our future and the shortage of food itself.

According to 2018 data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) meat, eggs and nuts are the primary sources of food across the states while vegetables are the third largest and fruit is at the bottom. However, from what we’ve seen over recent years, many would suggest the meat supply chain accounts for a large proportion of the industry’s emissions and is therefore unsustainable in its current mass-production form.

Now, this is not to blame the humble cow or any other animal for climate change, but more the processes in which meat is reared and distributed across the US. With certain regenerative principles in place—and the support from the public to reduce consumption—farms are known to provide higher quality goods that are nutritionally beneficial.

How does regenerative agriculture support a sustainable food system?

This is neither a slight of common habits, nor a simple task to conduct. In order to make the food system sustainable economically, consistent, and less impactful to the climate, examples of regenerative agriculture show the impacts of more mindful farming.

On the 17th October 2023, General Mills and Walmart announced a joint effort that will likely spark further consideration as the organisations advance regenerative agriculture across 600,000 acres of US soil by 2030. This project is about reducing the emissions and resource-drain from farming, improving soil health and, in turn, product quality.

The primary projects will be supported through grant funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and will reshape the process for growing crops like wheat across the Northern and Southern Great Plains.

Based on the research from the USDA, grains are the second most-consumed foods in the country after the meat, eggs, and nuts group.

These two corporations will also collaborate with Sam’s Club, a division of Walmart that offers superior quality and pricing for millions of items supplied to the US and Puerto Rico.

“Through this partnership, we will work hand-in-hand with Walmart and Sam’s Club to help regenerate the acres of land in the key regions where we source ingredients for our shared business,” says Jon Nudi, Group President, North America Retail at General Mills.

“We are excited by the opportunity to bring our products, including Pillsbury refrigerated dough and Blue Buffalo pet food and treats, to Walmart shelves more sustainably, with the help of our merchants and farmer partners.”

The three organisations believe that regenerative agriculture holds the key to emissions reduction in the supply chain and tackles many of the challenges within the modern food system. They also recognise their collective footprint and overall impact on the industry, and therefore will set the benchmark for regenerative agriculture implementation in the wider industry.

Walmart’s and General Mills’ sustainability alignment

Both organisations are impacted by the fate of the planet. As influential businesses in the food supply chain—Walmart operating across many facets of consumer goods—sustainability is now at the core of their future projects. Walmart’s net-zero emissions target is set for 2040 and will be driven by a number of investments into clean energy, providing 100% renewables to its facilities by 2035. The path to net-zero in Scope 3 requires further action to support its partners, suppliers, and customers to deliver on their own emissions targets.

When it comes to securing the food supply chain, Walmart dedicates much of its support to preserving land for regenerative projects and in investing deforestation-free product sourcing, which was recognised as one of the key downfalls of the meat supply chain—limited space resulting in deforestation.

“We’re committing to making the everyday choice the more sustainable choice for consumers,” says John Laney, Executive Vice President, Food at Walmart US.

“This collaboration is an example of how we are working across our value chain on intentional interventions to help advance regenerative agriculture and ensure surety of supply for these essential food products for the long term.”

As a key supplier of food globally, General Mills owns some of the much-loved brands and will continue to ensure that these products are delivered at lower impact to the planet. Also focusing on regenerative agriculture, energy sourcing and packaging innovation will also allow the company to drive healthier approaches in the food supply chain.

Source Sustainability

Renewable energy battery systems could harness eggshell proteins for electricity conduction

Posted on October 26, 2023 by dishanth

Chicken eggshells may be the answer to developing safer, sustainable and cost-effective rechargeable battery storage systems, according to new research.

Murdoch University Associate Professor Dr. Manickam Minakshi Sundaram, from the Center for Water, Energy and Waste at Harry Butler Institute, for a doctoral thesis has successfully developed a new mechanism associated with electrode materials and electrolytes, offering an alternative to the expensive and impractical power storage technologies of the past and present.

“We’ve found that chicken eggshells can be used as electrodes—a conductor of electricity—in powering batteries. Eggshells contain a high level of calcium carbonate, and when they are baked and crushed, their chemical compositions change and they become a more efficient electrode and conductor of power,” Dr. Minakshi said.

“The current lithium-ion batteries used for renewable energy storage typically use fossil fuels.

“Repurposing a bio-waste product like eggshells could add considerable value to the renewable energy market. They also offer a potentially safer option, as the current lithium battery technologies are high-cost and potentially unsafe in the event of catastrophic failure.”

As the world continues to prioritize renewable energy sources, this breakthrough marks a significant step forward, offering hope for a greener and more sustainable future.

The study, conducted by Dr. Minakshi as part of his higher doctorate thesis with Flinders University, focused on the development of sustainable electrodes in aqueous-based energy storage technology.

“The implications of this study go beyond scientific discovery,” Dr. Minakshi said.

“Chicken eggs and related products are used in large quantities in the food processing and manufacturing sectors, households, the nutrition industry and even in the pharmaceutical industry, but their shells are typically sent as solid waste to landfill.

“However, eggshell and shell membranes contain a range of active chemical compounds that can be used. The reversibility of this new approach allows for efficient energy storage and retrieval. The study demonstrates that highly conductive aqueous lithium and sodium electrolytes with varying salt concentrations have the potential to replace existing non-rechargeable primary batteries. The discovery holds the promise of high energy capacity, long cycle life and affordability in aqueous batteries.”

By incorporating suitable additives such as biodegradable redox polymers, titanium boride/sulfide (TiB2, TiS2), or bismuth oxide (Bi2O3) compounds, the electrodes can be further modified to improve their performance.

“The potential applications of this breakthrough are immense,” Dr. Minakshi said. “We could transition from a linear economy to a circular economy, reducing, reusing and recycling waste improving both sustainable development and addressing waste management.”

The studies on sustainable electrode materials have also been extended to other biowaste including chitosan derived from crustaceans, mango seed husk, and grape marc from wineries. From these biowastes, N-doped carbon was derived, which exhibits excellent electrochemical performance.

Source – Tech Xplore

Sandvik: Building sustainability into upstream supply chain

Posted on October 20, 2023 by dishanth

Mats W Lundberg is the Head of Sustainability Strategy for Sandvik, which is delivering a strategy to decarbonise raw materials to cut supply emissions

According to figures from Sandvik’s 2022 Annual Report, the business of sustainable manufacturing and mining machinery is booming. The high-tech engineering group supplies new solutions to industries to support their actions in these areas, which will also help them reach their sustainability goals.

However, it’s about more than just machinery as the company is now delivering a new sustainability strategy that will allow further impact in the future while also ensuring commercial success for Sandvik and the users of its solutions.

In September 2023, the company made a significant update to its sustainability shift strategy, which was originally brought to public attention in 2019. This also aligns with how the structure of the organisation has evolved as Sandvik Materials Technology was separated from the Group and listed on Nasdaq Stockholm as a business called Alleima. Alongside this further businesses were acquired by the company, making sustainability a crucial strategy for its growing business.

“We are leaning on the good work that has already been done,” says Mats W Lundberg, Head of Sustainability, Sandvik.

“But the field of sustainability is evolving. It is becoming more mature with new legislation and increasing customer, shareholder and employee expectations. We need to evolve with it and meet the new demands.”

The Key focus areas of Sandvik Group’s sustainability strategy include:

Sustainable solutions – An emphasis on closely aligning with customers and their businesses, pioneering change through engineering
Ecosystem regeneration – Sandvik’s innovative approach to collaborating with partners throughout the value chain, focusing on revitalising diverse ecosystems, promoting responsible water management, and mitigating pollution
Circularity and resource optimisation – The objective encapsulates the aspiration to achieve greater output with fewer resources and to embrace resource efficiency as a fundamental mindset
Net Zero Commitment – Sandvik pledges to attain science-based net zero targets, which received approval from the Science Based Targets Initiative in September 2023
People and Communities Engagement – Sandvik’s approach to its interactions with the communities in which it operates and provides its products
Responsible Business Practices – commitment to conducting ethical and responsible operations across the entire value chain.

Sandvik solutions for the sustainable industry

As an organisation that covers a number of industry practices, and is heavily involved in early-stage supply chain activities, Sandvik is digging deeper to create more value for businesses through its mining and machinery solutions. Taking a leading role in decarbonising its supplies from the top, Lundberg explains how the business will generate value across multiple facets.

“We have focused much more on our contribution and how our businesses create value”, says Lundberg. “The new strategy is connected to the Sandvik purpose of advancing the world through engineering, it is forward leaning and shows that Sandvik wants to be a positive driving force.”

Lundbergy is also correct in saying that raw material is one of the primary components of all value chains, whether that involves the production of goods or machinery to ensure services are provided sustainably.

“For any product to be truly sustainable, the entire value chain needs to be sustainable, from raw material sourcing to the manufacturing and usage of the products,” says Lundberg. “And we operate in important and relevant areas here; the mining and processing of raw materials and the machining. If we can contribute with sustainable solutions in these areas we can have a massive impact on sustainability outside of our own operations.”

McKinsey & Company research states the mining industry generates between 1.9 and 5.1 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2) every year. These emissions originate from all of the major resources required to sustain consumer product industries, but also those that are critical for providing sustainable electricity and clean-energy-driven solutions to transport. An example of this being the use of cobalt, nickel, and lithium in the electric vehicle (EV) sector as major components in platform batteries.

As the global demand for raw materials grows, the pressure on mining, rock excavation, drilling, and cutting processes is forever impactful to the emissions embedded in their supply chain. Understanding how crucial this stage is to the reduction of overall emissions in the atmosphere, therefore the ability to reach net zero, will allow greater impact on the environment moving forward.

Source Sustainability