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

Events, Media & Communications

Erb Institute Managing Director, Terry Nelidov Is Panelist on Innovation Forum Webinar
Innovation Forum is partnering with the Erb Institute in Detroit Oct. 2-3rd, to talk about the latest approaches to materiality, and how to establish a robust business case in 2018. Want to be a part of the conversation? Register here!

Research, Reports & Publications

Erb Featured Business Sustainability Case Study | Dow and the Circular Economy: Trash to Treasure?
Erica Ocampo, sustainability and advocacy manager at The Dow Chemical Company, is getting ready to present her report on the pilot Energy Bag program to her boss. The waste-to-energy program has been met with success in converting plastics to energy, but Ocampo is wondering how she can take the project a step further and truly make Dow a participant and leader in the circular economy. Students are asked to identify with Ocampo and develop a plan of action for the company.

Sustainable Development Goals

Tom Lyon, ARCS President, Issues Statement in Concert with "Step Up Declaration" from Global Climate Action Summit
This past week thousands of delegates were in San Francisco for the Global Climate Action Summit. Spearheaded by California Governor Jerry Brown, the Summit showcases the commitments of states, cities and businesses to cut their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and protect the Earth from further dangerous warming. This is an urgently needed response to the U.S. vow to become the only country in the world to back out of its climate commitments under the 2015 Paris Agreement.

Events, Media & Communications

The Erb Institute at the Global Climate Action Summit Sept. 12-14th
I hadn’t been to the California State Capitol for the longest time—probably since my visit back in elementary school, while growing up in Oakland, California. Fast forward to July 2017, and—after a quick selfie with “the bear” famously guarding the entrance to the California governor’s office—I was back in Sacramento to meet with the governor’s staff and make the case for the Erb Institute to be a part of the recently announced Global Climate Action Summit scheduled for the following year.

Events, Media & Communications

Erb Institute to Hold Affiliate Event at Global Climate Action Summit
The Erb Institute is joining the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, CA on September 12, 2018, to host a roundtable “Developing Climate-Business Strategies: Partnering with Universities for Science-Based Impact.” This invitation-only affiliate event will bring together senior-level business, academic and non-profit executives and thought leaders and will focus on how to build and leverage partnerships with universities—like the University of Michigan’s Erb Institute—to:...

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

Greening Financial Systems, from a UN Environment Perspective
Erb alumnus Marcos Mancini is a country manager in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System. He talked with Erb about the inquiry’s work and the sustainable finance issues involved.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Dow Sustainability Academy at the Erb Institute Trains New Leaders
The world’s most innovative, customer-centric, inclusive and sustainable materials science company, “New Dow” is setting the bar high in reinventing this globally recognized brand.

Events, Media & Communications

Partnership and Purpose at Sustainable Brands
I was excited to attend and present at Sustainable Brands 2018. My research focuses on how organizations are engaging with sustainability challenges, and my work’s motivation stems from my deep-seated hope that business will transform how we address the many societal challenges that we face today. I believe that business is uniquely situated to help solve challenges like climate change and poverty. It was inspiring to hear from hundreds of companies at Sustainable Brands that are working to redefine how they do business—to do well by doing good.

Research, Reports & Publications

What a Sustainable Business Looks Like – Erb Institute Professor Sara Soderstrom Comments on Brewery Vivant
When Kris Spaulding started Brewery Vivant, she did so mindful of the possibilities to create a sustainable business with inspiration sparked at the University of Michigan.

Events, Media & Communications

Do You Have Sustainability Figured Out? | Sustainability Twitter Chat Q&A with Erb Institute

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

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    The Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise is renowned for its contributions to business sustainability through research, teaching and...

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

  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...