Business Sustainability for Practitioners

What is the benefit of a lot of great thinking in the pursuit of business sustainability if it can't be put into practical application? We asked ourselves the same question and decided that the ability to take what is known and learned and put it into action, needs to be a crucial part of what the Erb Institute is about.  In this campaign we will share specific examples of where faculty, partners, researchers (and students) have turned science into action in order to move the needle on business sustainability.

Videos from this campaign

Content from this campaign

Supply Chain & the Circular Economy

The Five Ws of Supply Chains: Who, What, Where, When and Why Corporations Should Care
Not a month goes by without a media campaign linking the supply chain of a well-known brand with unsavory labor practices or environmental mismanagement. Such exposés can devalue brands and reduce well-meaning corporate sustainability initiatives to hypocrisy. Beyond financial and reputational risks, a corporation that doesn’t know its supply chain can be caught flat-footed when the regions it sources from are rocked by political and environmental upheaval.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

The Future of Business Sustainability — Extending Inclusiveness to People With Disabilities
People with disabilities constitute the largest minority group, at an estimated one in six people globally, but their needs often are overlooked. Businesses and other organizations that aim to be more inclusive might opt to create an environment where these people’s needs are understood. However, it is often difficult to recognize the best way to make changes. To effectively engage people with disabilities, managers need to understand disability and how their products touch disability, and how businesses can use their position to further promote education and advocacy while also building customer and employee relationships.

Events, Media & Communications

Conversations with Consequence: Metrics and Sustainability at Innovation Forum Detroit

Research, Reports & Publications

WeWork: Oil Money and the Challenge of Achieving Carbon Neutrality
WeWork, a company that provides shared workspaces, has taken a stand on sustainability. It has committed to carbon neutrality by 2023, and it has stopped serving meat to its employees as well as reimbursing them for meals that contain meat—because of concerns about the environment and animal welfare.

Media & Communications

Simple Interventions Can Help to Inhibit the Spread of Fake Climate Change News on Facebook
“Fake News” has become a hot topic covered by a variety of legitimate reporters and news outlets. But, despite the widespread coverage, we have not yet learned how to prevent the average internet user from spreading false information online.

Supply Chain & the Circular Economy

The Five Ws of Supply Chains: Who, What, Where, When and Why Corporations Should Care
Not a month goes by without a media campaign linking the supply chain of a well-known brand with unsavory labor practices or environmental mismanagement. Such exposés can devalue brands and reduce well-meaning corporate sustainability initiatives to hypocrisy. Beyond financial and reputational risks, a corporation that doesn’t know its supply chain can be caught flat-footed when the regions it sources from are rocked by political and environmental upheaval.

Innovation & Technology

Conversations With Consequence: Professionals from Hilton and Microsoft Weigh In On Sustainability Innovation
The Erb Institute engaged with several speakers and participants around key questions that relate to business, academia and sustainability, during a partner event with Innovation Forum in Detroit. We asked business sustainability professionals: What new opportunities are on the horizon for business to better “innovate for sustainability”?

Innovation & Technology

Conversations With Consequence: How Can Business Better Innovate for Sustainability?
The Erb Institute engaged with several speakers and participants around key questions that relate to business, academia and sustainability, during a partner event with Innovation Forum in Detroit. We asked business sustainability professionals: What new opportunities are on the horizon for business to better “innovate for sustainability”?

Environment

Do’s and Don’ts: Communicating to Customers About Your Circular Products and Services
Until recently, we have lived in a linear economic system that operates under a “take, make, and dispose” philosophy, which ends in waste. In contrast, circular economies develop services and products that are guided by three main principles: design out waste and pollution, extend the life cycle of materials and products, and regenerate ecosystems.

Research, Reports & Publications

Erb Institute ICYMI: How Can Academia and Business Collaborate for Sustainability?
The Erb Institute engaged with several speakers and participants around key questions that relate to business, academia and sustainability, during a partner event with Innovation Forum in Detroit.

More from University of Michigan: Erb Institute | Business for Sustainability

  1. Academic Thought - Sustainability Action
    The Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise conducts both scholarly and applied research. Our scholarly work pushes the envelope on...

  2. Erb Institute Sustainability Experts in the News
    The Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise is renowned for its contributions to business sustainability through research, teaching and...

  3. Business Sustainability for Practitioners
    What is the benefit of a lot of great thinking in the pursuit of business sustainability if it can't be put into practical application? We asked...