Sustainable Business

Projects

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  Business Circle Bringing together leading companies to share views on current policy debates
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  Business Circle Bringing together leading companies to share views on current policy debates

  For over 20 years Green Alliance has worked closely with progressive companies who understand the benefits of working in partnership with government and non-governmental organisations to develop policy that is both ambitious and realistic. Our work helps companies to navigate the changing external environment and understand the implications for their business. We also organise private events for company leaders with senior decision makers in politics, business and environmental organisations.
  
  See our Business Circle partners

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  Publications

  • Recycling reset: how England can stop subsidising waste9 January, 2017
  • The end of the upgrade? How O2 is adapting to a more circular mobile market31 May, 2016
  • Natural partners: Why nature conservation and natural capital approaches should work together25 January, 2016
  • Growing the UK's coastal economy: learning from the success of offshore wind in Grimsby17 November, 2015
  • UK offshore wind in the 2020s13 November, 2014

  Events

  • Can natural markets benefit business and the environment?28 September, 2016
  • Prosperity after Brexit: a UK strategy for resources12 September, 2016
  • Natural capital thinking: how can it help business help nature? 25 January, 2016
  • What have we learned from the financial crisis? 4 March, 2015
  • Does Generation Y trust business on sustainability?9 September, 2014
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  Circular Economy Task Force Developing policy solutions for a circular economy
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  Circular Economy Task Force Developing policy solutions for a circular economy

  The Circular Economy Task Force is a business group convened by Green Alliance. It is a forum for policy, innovation and business thinking on resource use in the UK and is currently chaired by Colin Church, chief executive of IOM3.
   
  Since its establishment, the task force has produced a number of reports.  

  1. Resource resilient UK identified the barriers to business becoming more resilient, profitable and sustainable through better resource productivity, helping the UK to increase its resource security.
  2. Wasted opportunities showcased how addressing the UK’s broken recycling system can foster higher value reprocessing, and begin to encourage more valuable remanufacturing and redesign.
  3. UK resource governance for the 21st century highlighted the risks the UK's poor performance in improving resource security and productivity poses to businesses, and analysed potential solutions.
  4. Recycling reset: how England can stop subsidising waste identified an opportunity to rethink the household recycling system and provided recommendations to guide a new policy for England.
  5. Lean and clean: building manufacturing excellence in the UK proposed a manufacturing upgrade programme to support businesses in raising their resource efficiency in order to help close the north-south productivity divide and keep good jobs in the UK.
  6. A new direction for UK resource strategy after Brexit looked at how Defra can manage the divergence from existing EU waste and resource governance and create new policies after Brexit.

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  The task force’s most recent report, Completing the Circle, placed a spotlight on the amount of material often lost to the economy once collected and proposes new measures to complement recycling targets which would help to 'pull' these materials back into use in manufacturing.
   

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  Publications

  • A new direction for UK resource strategy after Brexit30 November, 2017
  • Lean and clean: building manufacturing excellence in the UK9 October, 2017
  • Recycling reset: how England can stop subsidising waste9 January, 2017
  • The social benefits of a circular economy: lessons from the UK19 August, 2015
  • UK resource governance for the 21st century 2 March, 2015
  • Wasted opportunities: smarter systems for resource recovery15 July, 2014
  • Inside Track 33: Resource resilient UK20 December, 2013
  • Resource resilient UK16 July, 2013
  • Cutting Britain's energy bill: making the most of product efficiency standards1 September, 2012
  • Reinventing the wheel - a circular economy for resource security5 October, 2011
  • Inside Track 25: How do we get greener products?1 July, 2010

  Events

  • Novel materials workshop: Brighton Eco-Technology Show27 June, 2014
  • Financing the circular economy in Scotland27 April, 2014
  • Building a Bioeconomy in Scotland27 March, 2014
  • Novel materials workshop14 January, 2014
  • Compete or collaborate? The best business approach to resource security4 July, 2012
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  Nestlé Enhancing the UK's natural capital
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  Nestlé Enhancing the UK's natural capital

  Business has emerged as a major source of new thinking about how to ensure short term economic growth isn't at the expense of nature.
  
  In a project partnered with Nestlé, we worked with progressive companies on a new policy framework to preserve and enhance the UK’s natural capital: its water, soil and biodiversity.
  
  Our January 2016 report, Natural partners, looked at how nature conservation and natural capital approaches can work together to manage pressures on the UK's environment.
  
  Read the Storify (with audio clips) of our economic seminar with Professor Dieter Helm discussing the natural capital approach.

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  Publications

  • Natural partners: Why nature conservation and natural capital approaches should work together25 January, 2016

  Events
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  O2 A business experience of adapting to a circular economy
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  O2 A business experience of adapting to a circular economy

  Our 2016 report, The end of the upgrade? looked at O2's experience in adapting to a circular economy. It provides new evidence that Sim Only customers are using their phones for longer, nearly six months more than four years ago, which is helping to cut annual carbon emissions significantly.
  
  It recommended a number of innovative schemes that companies can implement in order to create more circular business models, as well as steps that governments can take to encourage companies to implement these models

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  Publications

  • The end of the upgrade? How O2 is adapting to a more circular mobile market31 May, 2016
  • A circular economy for smart devices19 February, 2015

  Events
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  Offshore wind Harnessing the benefits of a vibrant UK sector
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  Offshore wind Harnessing the benefits of a vibrant UK sector

  Offshore wind promises to be a crucial technology in decarbonising the UK electricity supply. It also has the potential to deliver substantial industrial benefits for the UK economy. 
  
  Short-term policy, regulatory and funding issues are causing large numbers of offshore wind projects to be shelved, putting the benefits of this technology at risk. In 2014 we published the report UK offshore wind in the 2020s, where we suggested the next government could reverse this trend, and provided five recommendations on how this can be achieved.
  
  Our November 2015 report, Growing the UK's coastal economy, looked at Grimsby and showed how offshore wind has brought new jobs and opportunities to the former fishing town. It also made two recommendations for government action to prevent progress from stalling in the growth of the sector.

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  Publications

  • Growing the UK's coastal economy: learning from the success of offshore wind in Grimsby17 November, 2015
  • UK offshore wind in the 2020s13 November, 2014
  • The implications of a European 2030 renewable energy target for the UK21 January, 2014
  • Infrastructure investment and the UK's economic renewal26 June, 2013

  Events

  • Which energy technologies will be the winners in the low carbon transition? 23 November, 2015
  • Stick or twist? The next government's choices on offshore wind13 November, 2014
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  Water efficiency Reducing water use to benefit consumers and the environment
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  Water efficiency Reducing water use to benefit consumers and the environment

  The UK is facing poorly-understood water challenges, with demand set to outstrip the available supply in the south east in the coming years. Water bills are an increasing financial burden on many householders.
  
  During 2014 we ran a programme in partnership with Southern Water to identify ways in which policy could help drive down water demand and water bills. Our 2015 report Cutting the cost of water looked at how reducing water use could meet demand more cost effectively than developing new sources of supply.
  
  See the highlights of our event, 'Does more ambitious water efficiency hold the key to bringing down water bills?'' in February 2015 at which we discussed our conclusions with the CEOs of Southern Water and Ofwat. 

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  Publications

  • Cutting the cost of water: the case for improving water efficiency in the UK11 February, 2015

  Events

  • Does more ambitious water efficiency hold the key to bringing down water bills?11 February, 2015
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  Sustainability strategy How business can go further
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  Sustainability strategy How business can go further

  Corporate trailblazers have been looking for ways to reduce their environmental and social impacts for over 40 years. For many leading companies, it is now part of everyday business practice. Yet, for many more, sustainability is still not central to their business strategy. So, what would encourage more businesses to go further on sustainability?
  
  Our microsite Business strategy for a better world explores this question. It includes the fascinating discussions held at our 2014 Catalyst Debates, covering consumer opinion, sustainable agriculture and the views of Generation Y. And it features the following insights from experts on key questions raised by the debates:
  
  - Is collaboration finally outcompeting competition?
    Matt Prescott, Robertsbridge
  - What's holding business leaders back on sustainability? 
    Justin Keeble, Accenture
  - Doing business with nature: safeguarding industrial systems from environmental degradation 
    Hannah Tranter, University of Cambridge Institute of Sustainability Leadership
  - Shaping business strategy for a better world
    Sophia Tickell, Meteos
  - How business-NGO partnerships are tackling sustainability challenges in food chains
    Rachel Wilshaw and Danielle Smith, Oxfam

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  Blog

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  Publications

  • The future savings challenge21 August, 2014
  • The global green race28 August, 2013
  • The future of UK infrastructure10 July, 2013
  • Infrastructure investment and the UK's economic renewal26 June, 2013

  Events

  • Does Generation Y trust business on sustainability?9 September, 2014
  • Feeding Britain: Can we do it sustainably?8 July, 2014
  • Can business succeed on sustainability if consumers aren't interested?9 June, 2014
  • The business case for a strong 2030 EU climate and energy package31 October, 2013