02 Nov 2021
Sustainable business practices are essential for bringing a balance between development and growth on the one hand and the imperatives of Nature on the other. Climate change is a huge concern for governments across the world. The COP26 summit is one such initiative driven at the global level to tackle the effects of climate change. It involves nations reaching agreements on how to mitigate the effects of climate change. This year, the COP26 UN Climate Change Conference is scheduled from 31 October to 12 November 2021 and is being hosted by the UK in partnership with Italy, at Glasgow.
CII has developed a strong institutional structure for driving sustainability as an integral component of various dimensions of business activity through focused centres of excellence on sustainability, green business, water, agriculture and MSME competitiveness. The CII-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development (CESD) leads in guiding the Indian Industry on sustainable business practices, with the objective to minimize the impact of businesses on the environment.
CII has created an ecosystem with a vision to drive transformation towards sustainable development, where Government, businesses and stakeholders collaborate with an aim to address the most pressing global challenges.
Here’s a closer look at CII’s key flagship initiatives towards building a sustainable Indian Industry:
Cleaner Air- Better Life –
The initiative ‘Cleaner Air – Better Life’ aims to create a clean and pollution-free environment by sensitizing Industry leaders and business houses to adopt concrete measures to curb air pollution. . Under this initiative, the ‘India CEO Forum for Clean Air’, a dedicated group of 60+ industry leaders spearhead the movement. This involves the following:
Providing a common platform to governments, businesses, communities, and all key stakeholders to contribute towards improving air quality
Building momentum and capacities for on-ground action
Providing industry leadership for action on air pollution, cutting across all sectors
India Business & Biodiversity Initiative (IBBI) –
Initiated by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change and hosted by CII, IBBI is a multi-stakeholder platform that works towards integrating nature’s value into business decision making. Comprised of 40 business members and 12 stakeholders organizations, this is an industry-led initiative and provides a national platform for businesses to promote knowledge sharing and learnings to enable the mainstream adoption of sustainable management of biological diversity by businesses.
Sustainability Awards
Sustainability Awards recognize exemplary work undertaken by the Indian Industry towards sustainable and inclusive business practices. In more than 15 years of recognizing sustainable businesses, the Sustainability Awards have become a symbol of credibility and pride for companies.
CAP 2.0° – Climate Action Programme
The Centre initiated the Climate Action Programme CAP 2.0° for the Indian industry in 2018. The objective of CAP 2.0° is to recognize and pursue meaningful action on climate change by corporates and incorporate the best practices into work processes.
The third edition of CAP 2.0° has been initiated recently, and so far, the first two editions have seen participation of 50 companies from different sectors, including MSMEs. A total of11 companies have been recognized till date.
India Plastics Pact
The India Plastics Pact is an initiative which aims to address the issue of pollution caused by the usage of plastic. It brings together businesses, governments and NGOs with the objective to reduce, reuse, and recycle plastics in the value chain.
The pact also aims to create a world where plastic is valued and doesn’t pollute the environment. Signatories of the India Plastics Pact are working towards reducing the use of problematic plastics in India, reataining valuable materials in the economy for use in other products, generating jobs, increasing investments, and creating opportunities in the plastics system in India.
Climate change continues to be a threat for the planet and for human lives. Changes at individual level and at larger scales are necessary to reverse the impact of human systems and processes on the environment, to ensure a brighter and healthier planet for the forthcoming generations to see.