Seventeen companies in Singapore have been awarded by the Singapore Business Federation for their sustainable business practices and application of green technologies. The fifty applications received from public-listed and private firms, including multinationals, exhibited the trend of shifting towards a higher commitment to corporate and social responsibility. In the long run, the award is expected to serve as a guide for firms to benchmark their sustainability efforts against. Read more

The Straits Times (4 Jul 2012):

REUSING beer bottles, recycling product labels or cutting waste production can make a big impact on the bottom line – just ask the winners of this year’s sustainable business awards.

There were 17 winners – 10 firms for sustainable business practice and seven under green technology – with Sembcorp Marine, Qian Hu Corp, the Housing Board (HDB), TP Vision Singapore and Cyclect Energy taking home the top honours.

Mr Victor Tay, chief operating officer of the Singapore Business Federation (SBF), told a briefing yesterday that about 50 applications, from public-listed and private firms, including multinationals, from 16 industries were received.

The winners were judged on their sustainable business practices, pro-environment operation, corporate responsibility and innovation.

Mr Tay said: ‘This year’s winners exhibit the trend shift towards higher commitment to social responsibility.’

Mr Michael Chin, general manager of Asia Pacific Breweries (Singapore), a winner in the large-enterprise category for sustainable business, said: ‘Sustainability is part of our DNA. It’s not because it’s sexy but because it’s the logical thing to do.’

He added that the firm has cut electricity consumption by 12 per cent – enough to power 47 HDB blocks a month.

TP Vision, which makes and markets Philips-brand TV sets, was another winner.

Managing director Wong Lup Wai said: ‘The award recognises our priorities in achieving targets of energy efficiency, reduction of hazardous material and use of recycled material in our products.’

HDB director Alan Tan said the organisation, which won top honour for the green technology awards, is conscious of the need to create well-designed townships and well-used spaces to meet the community’s needs.

The awards, now in their third year, are an SBF initiative to encourage businesses to employ long-term sustainable development goals.

The independent panel of judges comprised the Economic Development Board, IE Singapore, the National Environment Agency, the National University of Singapore, Spring Singapore, the Institute of Technical Education, KPMG and Frost & Sullivan.

SBF is also embarking on a series of workshops to enable firms to benchmark their sustainability efforts against other Singapore companies and industry best practice.

‘This knowledge will help businesses improve their environmental impact, and empower industries to improve collectively,’ SBF chief executive Ho Meng Kit told a gala dinner yesterday.

The awards were handed out at the dinner by Mr S. Iswaran, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for Home Affairs and for Trade and Industry, who was the guest of honour.

Source: www.spring.gov.sg

Communicating climate change and its consequences has never been easy. Taking the cake is Globe-Town, a new website that aims to showcase the complex nature of climate change and how it relates to individuals. It has been awarded a top three place at the inaugural ‘Apps for Climate’ competition held by the World Bank. Developed by a team from the University of Southampton, Globe-Town connects the global to the local, and enables individuals to explore how climate change affects them personally and the responsibilities and opportunities present. Read more

Eureka Alert (29 June 2012):

A new website that opens up the complex world of climate change and how it relates to the individual has won a major global award for a team from the University of Southampton.

Globe-Town.org won a top three place at the first international ‘Apps for Climate’ competition (#Apps4Climate) held by the World Bank presented at a ceremony in Washington DC.

By opening up the facts of climate change in different countries, Globe-Town shows how no one is isolated from the consequences in an interdependent world. The site also reveals how responding to climate change presents a world of opportunities to inspire individuals and entrepreneurs.

The application was conceived by web and sustainability researcher Jack Townsend (@JackTownsend_) and developed with a team including four other PhD students from the University’s Web Science Doctoral Training Centre. Jack says: “The World Health Organisation has estimated that climate change is killing 150,000 people a year. In order to tackle this challenge, we all need to know how it affects us personally and what we can do about it. Globe-Town does this by connecting the global with the local, so we can explore the risks, responsibilities and opportunities of climate change in an increasingly interconnected world.”

Jack continues: “The aim of Globe-Town is to open up our world of connections to exploration, whilst bringing home what the things we discover might mean to us personally. We hope to bring more transparency to the rich network of our connections, or, perhaps introduce people to their far-away next-door neighbours.”

Globe-Town originated with Jack’s research into the web and climate change. “I’m fascinated by the potential of web technologies and openness to tackle global challenges and advance sustainable development for all,” Jack adds. “Globe-Town is just one example of how they can contribute.”

Globe-Town is an easy-to-use web application where people can learn about each country’s environment, society and economy, so they can understand the challenges and opportunities that it faces in a changing world. Moreover, they can explore the connections between countries through relationships such as trade, migration or air travel. Stories can then emerge of how climate risks can be transmitted between distant countries, for instance the impact of the 2011 Thai floods on the Japanese economy. Similarly, the user can learn about shared responsibility for greenhouse gas emissions through the things we import, or opportunities to act to mitigate and to adapt, such as investing in renewable energy projects abroad.

Andrea Prieto (@Andrea__Prieto) designed the site graphics, and it was developed by architect Richard Gomer (@RichardGomer), and Huw Fryer, Will Fyson and Dominic Hobson. It builds heavily on the increasing amount of freely available ‘open data’ online, with much of it originating from the World Bank’s open data portal.

Jack concludes, “We are exploring a wide range of possibilities for the future of Globe-Town, such as enabling people to crowd-funding projects, participate in e-activism, or to contribute content so they can take action about what they discover. With ideas like these – along with the existing discussion feature – Globe-Town can go beyond exploring our existing links to forging new ones around the world. After all, we all live in the same Globe-Town.”

Watch a video about Globe-Town here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40Q0_Is7Lw8

Source: www.eurekalert.org