Responsible Production & the Circular Economy

General Motors Corporate Responsibility Newsletter - December 2016

One of the growing issues concerning sustainability is the production of palm oil.

Palm oil is found in 1 of 10 products in grocery stores, and this list of items includes toothpaste, baby food, deodorant, chocolate, shampoo, and many other products.

Understanding occupier satisfaction is vital to the success of the property industry. It enables continuous improvement in relationships between landlords and tenants, and encourages best practice property management processes by managing agents.

The emerging concepts of circular economy and resource-efficient design offer opportunities for developers. By embracing these approaches, they can reduce costs, de-risk material price volatility, improve residual values and appeal to a new generation of firms and employees for whom sustainability is a key priority.

The Michigan Urban Farming Initative debuted America’s first sustainable urban agrihood in Detroit’s lower North End.

Just a few years ago, apps were all the rage. In fact, there was an app for just about anything, from ones that let shoppers know if slaves were involved in making products to those that would point you towards companies that align with individual values. Yet, as technology continues to evolve, so too does the world of responsible purchasing. Now, one company is taking the idea of the conscious shopping app one step further, incorporating the technology right into the online shopping experience.

Modernization of the U.S. power grid will not only require replacement of old components with new ones, it will also need to account for larger amounts of renewable energy and distributed generation. This movement is causing utilities to consider microgrids as a part of the solution.

Consumers and specifiers alike are increasingly looking for transparency in products, whether it is to verify point of origin, to understand environmental impacts, or because they want to eliminate exposure to toxic ingredients.

While not all turkeys have it easy this holiday season, those living on the grounds of Domtar's Bennettsville, SC mill have it better than most. In an effort to increase healthy biodiversity around the facility, Domtar instituted a wildlife habitat management plan few years ago. Today those efforts are paying off, including for wild turkeys living within the mill's gates.