As businesses become increasingly engaged in sustainability around the world, we are presented with an growing range of examples of active companies. However, when I speak with students and faculty, they say that they often hear about the same examples from the same international companies over and over again.
In an attempt to share some new best practice examples, I asked a handful of faculty members from around the world about their favourite classroom examples of local companies that are actively involved in sustainability. Here are some examples from India, Morocco and Lebanon:
Dr. Kaushik Ranjan Bandyopadhyay, Associate Professor, TERI University
Attero is India’s largest e-waste management company. It launched, in partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Clean e-India: the first-of-its-kind innovative initiative for e-waste consumer take-back model in Delhi.
Asun Solar Power Pvt. Ltd. is a company working in the domain of solar and renewable energy solutions in India. Their notable achievement includes the installation of a Hybrid Solar PV System in the Convent of Jesus and Mary School in New Delhi in which solar power and batteries are used as the first and second priority and the grid is used as the third priority optional source of power for low generation days. With this Solar Power Plant installed, the school is off-setting almost 100% of the electricity bills for its entire new building block.
Dr. Ali Elquammah, Co-Director of Academic Affairs & International Relations, HEM Business School
INWI, a Moroccan telecom operator, has partnered with UNICEF for an awareness campaign for the protection of children on the internet. INWI has launched a virtual space of awareness and developed a tool and an application for parental control.
In addition to this action, INWI has also launched a platform, free of charge, called e-madrassa so that students can have access to tutoring sessions and other academic resources.
COSUMAR is a Moroccan group specialized in the extraction, refining and packaging of sugar in various forms. COSUMAR supports farmers on many levels. For example, COSUMAR provides farmers and their families with health insurance and financial support in case of natural disasters.
Dima Jamali, PhD,Professor of Management, American University of Beirut
In the area of waste management and recycling, Recycle Beirut and Cedar Environment are good examples. Cedar environmental has a mission to achieve 100% safe treatment of Municipal Solid Waste with no burning or landfil,focusing on compost technologies.
Bank Audi is Lebanon’s largest bank. They started a My Carbon Footprint project to raise awarness of climate change , the use of resources and their impact on the enviornment among 10-15 year olds. Aramex has a number of projects in CSR, including supporting the funding of a number of initiatives focused on youth empowerment that target marginalized and underpriveleged societies. BLC Bank also promotes a culture of sustainability within its business through its Corporate Environmental Policy, including a new Head Office that is rated by the Lebanese Green Building Council and goals involving energy, water, paper use and waste.
PRiMEtime 