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South Korea’s financial watchdog, The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), has ordered 17 financial firms and their 3,000 branches to post an embarrassing “red notice” at their entrances to alert customers to their low customer service ratings.

The FSS said that the firms that received poor evaluations for settling customers’ complaints have to display notices printed in large red letters saying: “Fifth Rate (Poor Service),” The notices must also go on their websites.

The ratings, ranging from “first” to “fifth,” are based on the number of complaints compared to the size of the firms and their efforts to improve services.

Those with the lowest ratings are protesting, saying that it is too harsh. However, the FSS said that they did not follow instructions to post their ratings on their homepages, and thus it is forcing them to notify their customers.

The FSS announced the customer service ratings in April after reviewing 85 firms, including banks, credit card companies and securities companies, nationwide.

The institutions with the lowest ratings are to post them at the entrances to all their branches for three months.

The institutions with the largest number of branches nationwide are complaining that the notice makes them look like they have a credit problem.

In addition, they also pointed out that the FSS did not notify them before implementation. “If the new measure is to be introduced, the authorities should have informed us beforehand. But without prior warning, the extreme measure is too harsh and does nothing but kill us if we don’t meet standards,” an official from a financial firm said.

They are also raising questions about the fairness of the evaluation standards, saying basing the rating on the number of complaints to the total assets is unfavourable to small firms.

In addition, comparing provincial banks to commercial banks is also unfair, they said.

“We’ve applied a ‘name and shame’ principle to them because some firms have not shown any improvement in settling their complaints for years,” an FSS official said.

Some firms are making efforts to reduce their customer complaints, such as conducting workshops for employees on how to improve customer service, a topic widely neglected in Korea.

“We need to improve customer service to reduce the number of the customer complaints, but it is desirable to oversee them with more rational measures rather than this extreme one,” an official from a credit card firm said.
 

Picture credit: © Pressureua | Dreamstime.com

The building of a second hydroelectric dam on the Mekong river, which conservationists claim will have devastating effects, is about to start in Laos.

The fear is that the 260-megawatt Don Sahong dam will threaten many of the 1,200-plus fish species in the Mekong and take away the livelihoods of villagers dependent on fishing and related activities.

Ecologists particularly are worried that the project will kill off the rare Irrawaddy dolphins remaining in the Mekong. Only 85 are thought to be in existence. WWF warns that the greatest risks to the dolphins are the sound waves from explosives used in excavating millions of tons of rock, the increased boat traffic, water pollution and habitat degradation.

The developer appointed by the Laos government, Mega First Corporation Berhad, a Malaysian company, replies that the dam will have “no significant impact” on the environment and will create new channels for fish migration.

Last October Laos told the Mekong River Commission, an agency promoting the sustainable management of the waterway, that it intended to start construction.

Neighbouring Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam maintained the project should be subject to consultation with commission members and that a consensus should be reached.

Laos argued that the dam fell outside those provisions as it would be on one of the many channels created by the Khone Phapheng waterfall, a popular beauty spot, not in the Mekong mainstream.

The commission referred the issue to its council, its highest level, consisting of member states’ water and environment ministers, which still has to give a ruling.

However, the commission is clearly little more than a talking shop as an earlier plan, for the Xayaburi dam further up-river in northern Laos, is now proceeding, even though the council could not reach a consensus.

Objections to Xayaburi were that it would displace at least 2,100 villagers, remove agricultural land and destroy fishermen’s livelihoods. Today people are already being told to prepare to move.

More discontent could be looming. Last year Laos said it was planning ten more hydropower dams on the Mekong. Now it is talking of another 60.

Most of the electricity will be sold to Thailand and Cambodia to boost the economy of Laos, one of the world’s poorest countries.
Nam Viyaketh, the industry and commerce minister, wants to turn his nation into the “battery of south-east Asia”. When the dams were being considered in 2010 he predicted: “Laos can be rich.” 

An estimated 56,000 of Nairobi’s poorest residents will receive a safe and reliable water service - costing a tenth of what they currently pay - due to a new four-partner collaboration.

Plastics companies Borealis’ and Borouge’s joint CR programme, Water for the World, together with Water and Sanitation for the Urban Poor (WSUP) and the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) have joined forces to supply Nairobi’s Mukuru Sinai and Korogocho informal settlements with improved access to drinking water. This will be achieved through a planned approach to network design using high quality PE pipes and pre-paid water dispensers to provide water at a much lower unit tariff than they currently pay.

“Using high quality PE pipes, we will reduce the non-revenue water lost due to leaks and illegal connections that impact on Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company’s financial ability to supply informal settlements around the city,” explained Mark Garrett, chief executive at Borealis. “The expected lifetime of these pipes is three times as long as existing pipes and higher durability results in fewer pipe breakages, less contamination and leaks, and lower maintenance costs.”

Wim Roels, ceo, Borouge, said that the company is no stranger to this kind of initiative: “In Asia, we have also supported several local communities in India, Vietnam and China through our Water for the World program, by facilitating access of safe drinking water and better sanitation to schools and villages. This collaboration with WSUP is another opportunity where we engage with an international NGO to bring affordable and safe drinking water to more homes.”

WSUP chief executive Sam Parker noted that the key objective was to supply drinking water at an affordable price: “We achieve this by applying a model that strengthens the capacity of service providers to extend their services into low-income areas and informal settlements on a profit-basis, at the same time as offering water at a price less than half a cent per jerry can.”

Parker highlighted too the success of existing WSUP programmes in Bangladesh, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique and Zambia that have adopted the model, which promotes financial, institutional, environmental and social sustainability.

Rachid Bencherif, head of OFID’s Grants Unit believes it will be a showcase to be replicated in other regions where clean water supplies are in demand: “OFID’s principal objective is to provide the finance that allows essential infrastructure to be built, thus alleviating poverty and stimulating economic growth. OFID’s projects focus on meeting basic needs, which include clean water and sanitation, alongside food, energy services, healthcare and education.”
 

The proponents of impact investing believe that we are witnessing a seismic shift in investment behaviour.
Miranda Ingram reports

 

It is hard to imagine what the past fifty years would have been like without the rise of the venture capital industry which lead to new types of investment models for entrepreneurs and gave us, among other innovations, the commercial internet and mobile ‘phones.

Today, the proponents of impact investing believe that we are witnessing another seismic investments shift. “Now we are seeing start-ups and innovative products pop up around the world, not just in Silicon Valley and London, but in Nairobi, Delhi and Lagos,” says Sir Ronald Cohen, Chairman of Big Society Capital.

“We have a similar opportunity to now accelerate the impact investing industry on a global scale – to bring large financial resources to bear on some of the world’s most pressing problems.”

While this might sound like wishful thinking from the man dubbed the “father of social investment”, two landmark financial reports, increased government support, the failure of traditional investment models and an overall change in the way we consume and invest all signal that 2014 is indeed the year that Impact Investing is moving from the sidelines to centre stage.

Philanthropy is nothing new, of course, and socially responsible investing can arguably be traced back to the early days of the C18th Building Society movement. More recently, as fortunes were made in the 1990s (later to be lost in the noughties) socially responsible investing (SRI) became fashionable among some investors. SRI then became known as ESG (investing for environmental, social and governance goals) – and now we have Impact Investing.

So what’s new about II? The main difference is that while socially responsible investing avoids the baddies - tobacco companies for example - impact investing is proactive and deliberately seeks out the goodies.

Ethics first
“It is about intent,” explains Joe Ludlow, who leads Nesta Impact Investments. “We invest in companies which are lead by ethics first. It is their stated intention to do good that counts even though the business model also has to be financially viable.”
Traditionally, impact investment is also more hands-on with investments being made at an earlier stage of a start-up’s existence and the investment fund playing a guiding role.

Nesta Impact Investments, for example, sits on the boards of the companies they invest in in order to back up their investment with experience and expertise. In the early days, investees were often those who had been refused traditional finance, perhaps because they were too small, for example, but now the hands-on nature of impact investment funds makes them a first port of call even for businesses which might qualify for traditional funding.

While this sounds ethically fantastic, it also sounds financially risky so what it is that has changed in the investment landscape to make Impact Investing suddenly so attractive?

Firstly, a 2013 report by RBC Global Asset Management stated that “the chief finding of this research is that socially responsible investing does not result in lower investment returns... individual investors and trustees of institutional funds can pursue a program of socially responsible investing with the expectation that investment returns will be similar to traditional investment options”.

A second report, by JP Morgan and the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), backed up these findings, concluding that “the vast majority of surveyed investors report that ... despite the market’s early stage, investors’ portfolios are meeting financial expectations in addition to social and environmental expectations.”

In other words, while it may not yet bring top returns, with a good portfolio spread, impact investing is no more risky than traditional investing. Putting your money where your conscience is is no longer an idealistic – and costly – indulgence.

Impact Investment also received a big boost from the negative examples in the early 2000s such as the implosion of WorldCom and Enron after the companies misled investors, as well as from the excessive risks taken in the property and mortgage markets that prompted the 2008–9 financial crisis. Such events swiftly convinced investors of the need for responsible corporate governance and social investing’s emphasis on managing risk started to look very attractive.

In Britain, a leader in the impact investment field, the continuing shenanigans at the Co-op Bank have even destroyed faith in ethical banking.

Government support
Another boost for impact investing in Britain is continuing government support, including David Cameron’s inclusion of Impact Investment on the G8 agenda and the Government’s 2013 budget announcement (effective from April this year) of a new tax relief for socially responsible investors. “Although the scope is still a bit limited,”says Nesta’s Joe Ludlow, “as it only concerns Community Interest Companies and charities, is it an important psychological boost in that tax relief status legitimizes impact investing in the public’s perception.”

A final reason the future of impact investing looks so rosy is our own changing attitudes, post financial crash, to the nature of business and of how we consume and invest. “The wider the field grows,” explains Ludlow, the more opportunities there are for impact investors and for change – as well as for financial returns. As Impact Investors, we see the major issues facing society today as the economic opportunities of the future.”

Nesta specifically focuses on the UK, on old-age and loneliness, the education and employability of children and young people, and the social and environmental sustainability of communities. Companies they have invested in have come up with innovations such as ‘chair cheerleading’, for older people in care homes (Oomph , pictured); a new online and mobile story writing community aimed at improving literacy skills amongst teenagers (Movellas ); digital services which allow people who cook at home to provide meals for those who can no longer cook and digital technology to facilitate communication between children’s carers to avoid further disasters like the Baby P case (both FutureGov and both now sold internationally as well as in the UK).

Whilst these are undeniably laudable achievements, are they not picking up the government’s slack and, to that extent, somewhat political?

“Not political in the obvious way,” says Ludlow, in that such initiatives enjoy cross party support. What some do find political, however, is the idea that areas of social need are being served by private companies. There is a perception that only charities or non-profits should get involved in social good.

But two things are clear, he says. “We can’t go on “solving” things in the old ways and if governments aren’t going to pay we have to find another way. We’re four years into austerity, and government’s plans for public services reforms are being undermined fraud investigations and a lingering suspicion that services aren’t being run for the public benefit.

“If ever there was a time for a new type of investing to be leading the way then surely it is now? We invest in all structures: charities, non profits and entrepreneurs with a clear social mission, committed to making an impact. These are the people that I believe deserve to be running our public services.”

Measuring impact
Impact investors, both corporations and individuals, are by their nature keen to assess the impact of their investment as well as the financial returns and there is an emerging range of standards coming into force. Firstly, the expected positive affect is assessed: for example ‘chairobics’ for the elderly will improve their health and wellbeing. Then the ‘impact risk’ is measured: how certain are we that this will be the affect? Thirdly, the scale and reach of the innovation is measured, as in: how will our investment increase scale and reach?

One leading impact investor – and eBay founder – Pierre Omidyar, however, says that impact investors are still being too risk averse. Another believer that business can be at least as powerful a force for good as a charity (look at all those eBay entrepreneurs), he set out to try and build a viable business which would sell to the very poorest consumers, where costs must be pared to the bone, to prove his case. Today, the jewel in Omidyar Investment crown is perhaps D.light, maker of cheap, safe, solar lanterns which absorb solar energy during the day and dispense light at night and which is now shipping half a million units a month to India and Africa.

Given that his own wealth still hovers at around $8.5 billion, Mr Omidyar is perhaps a man worth listening to: impact investing is the future.
 

There is significant untapped potential for investors to exert a positive influence on the economy, environment and society, by practising responsible investment, according to a new report titled ‘The Value of Responsible Investment - The Moral, Financial and Economic Case For Action’ from eleven leading investment institutions with over US$5 trillion (c.€ 3.66trn) assets under management.

The institutions, which include asset managers and owners, are part of the Investment Leaders Group (‘ILG’), a three-year project to “help shift the investment chain towards responsible, long-term value creation”, such that economic, social and environmental sustainability are delivered as an outcome of the investment process alongside satisfactory, long-term investment returns.

Hosted by the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (‘CISL’), the group is supported by financial economists at the Cambridge Judge Business School. Jointly conceived by the University of Cambridge and Natixis Asset Management, it is championed by an influential group of investment managers and asset owners comprising eleven investment institutions including Allianz Global Investors, Aviva Global Investors, Mirova (Natixis Asset Management), Nordea Life & Pensions, PIMCO, Standard Life Investments and TIAA-CREF Asset Management.

The extensive 68-page report warns that today’s economy continues to “draw down” on the world’s natural capital rather than living off its interest. In particular it identifies a need for strong and collective leadership from the investment industry and argues that there is a “moral, financial and economic case for action”.

Philippe Zaouati, CEO at Natixis Asset Management’s responsible investment brand, Mirova, and Chair of the ILG, commenting said: “In spite of a widespread rhetorical commitment to responsible investment principles, market dynamics remain pre-occupied by the short-term, and the majority of investment does little to answer the challenges of our time. The ILG seeks to change this, first of all by defining the value of responsible investment and then working out how to promote it.” 

The report specifically outlines actions that investment institutions can take to maximise the opportunities of investment that seeks to create environmental, social and governance benefits.

These include: (1) Commission targeted research on the degree to which the risks generated by so-called environmental ‘megatrends’ are placing a drag on economic performance, limiting future returns; (2) Pursuing a range of tactical opportunities to support responsible investment (e.g. standardised reporting on environmental and social impacts, long-term investment mandates, and demonstration of alignment between fiduciary duty and ESG integration; and (3) Scaling up capital allocation into the technologies, infrastructure and business models of a future low carbon, green economy.

Dr Jake Reynolds, Director of Business Platforms at CISL, added: “In a world that neglects to account for social and environmental costs on corporate balance sheets - costs we know can ultimately impact value. Responsible investment can be seen not only as a smart investment strategy but as an essential response to growing sources of systemic risk.”

The report includes input and chapters from Carlos Joly (‘The Moral Case: Why I Invest Responsibly?’), as well as from Rob Lake (‘The Investment Case for Responsibility’) that looks at how investors create value in the face of sustainability risks and opportunities, and Farzad Saidi (‘Unravelling Responsible Investment: A Literature Review’) that includes an examination of future research needs.

Kelly Semrau, senior vp- global corporate affairs, communication and sustainability, at SC Johnson, tells Ethical Performance about the household cleaning giant’s approach to CR and sustainability

 

What does sustainability mean to you?
For me, sustainability is about the positive choices that we all make; whether businesses or individuals, large or small scale. These choices set the course for the future of our planet, and I believe we have an obligation to make the planet a better place not just for us, but future generations. It’s not going to be easy, with the planet nearing 9 billion people who all have a growing dependence on energy. But I’ve also seen the impact that awareness and education can have in helping people to make green choices. And I’m optimistic that these green choices help make the impossible become possible.

 How did you get interested in the field?
My appreciation of sustainability issues started from a very young age. I grew up on a farm in Illinois and I think my awareness of sustainability was embedded in me during those early days. Today, our family farm is still managed by my brother, and I’m inspired by the sustainable changes he has made, such as changing the hog operation to become organic.

What are the most interesting innovations in sustainability that we’re seeing at SCJ right now?
Some of the most effective initiatives we’re doing at SC Johnson aren’t driven by big investments but by making smart choices in how we approach what we do every day. Our approach to how we develop our products is a perfect example. While some companies offer a green line of products, we take a different approach.
 We use an internal classification system called Greenlist™ that we developed in 2001. Greenlist™ lets us classify the ingredients and packaging we use in our products, and to continuously strive to improve them. We’ve rated all of our ingredients and hold ourselves accountable to improve our overall Greenlist™ scores year over year. Since 2001, we’ve increased the percentage of our “Better or Best” ingredients from 18 to 44 percent. And to reinvigorate our efforts, we recently rolled out a new Greenlist™ training program for our scientists to help them make even greater progress.

What’s the biggest challenge you’re faced with?
As a consumer packaged goods company, the area that I truly believe is the biggest challenge we face is consumer behaviour. Take concentrates, for example. American consumers buy 320 million cleaning products in trigger bottles each year, and millions of them end up in landfills. By comparison, concentrates use less packaging and can help reduce waste compared to buying a new trigger bottle. But consumers are reluctant to make the switch so retailers won’t stock them.
To learn more, in 2011, we piloted a Windex® concentrate product on our US website, and in 2012, we extended the offer to five of our leading home cleaning brands. We used an open sourcing concept to learn more about consumer preferences, and with the second wave of cleaners, we applied a great deal of the feedback we received, like making sure the packaging is recyclable. We haven’t cracked the code yet, but we continue to press on and are doing what we can to learn more so that we can ultimately get these products on store shelves.

What are some of your short-term goals?
We believe that to make progress, you’ve got to set goals. For more than 20 years, we have set environmental goals every five years and reported the results. Our current five-year plan includes goals like using more renewable energy, reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, minimizing landfill waste and developing innovative products made with better ingredients, less packaging and that use fewer resources. We’re well on our way with our progress, and our employees are a big part of progress, bringing enthusiasm and commitment to innovative solutions. So far we have reduced our global manufacturing waste by 62 percent and eight of our manufacturing sites have achieved zero waste going to landfill. We’ve also increased our use of renewable energy to 30 percent.

And long term?
SC Johnson believes that every place should be a better place because we are there. We also believe that to make progress, you have to set goals. We will continue to set goals every five years and hold ourselves accountable to reaching them. And because we’re privately held, we have the benefit of thinking long term, versus focusing on the next quarter’s earnings, and making choices that we believe in and that will help lead to a sustainable future.

What sustainability statistics at SCJ are you most proud of?
Today, nearly 30% of our global energy use comes from clean energy, with sources like wind energy, biomass and cogeneration playing an ever increasing role in powering our global operations. I’m incredibly proud of the results we’ve made around our energy usage, but I also think it is important that we not rest on our laurels and continue to look for the next improvement we can make.

If you could influence one major thing in sustainable business practice, what would it be?
Energy consumption is a major issue for businesses; in terms of bottom line as well as the environment, so I think this is an area where companies could achieve some high impact results. We’ve been creative in our renewable energy usage, using methane gas from a local landfill for cogeneration and burning waste products like rice husks as a form of biofuel. We regularly share these experiences to help other companies gain a better understanding of innovative options. It takes some creativity and commitment, but it can be done. The more companies that move in this direction, the more overall progress that can be made.
 

Submitted by Guest Contributor

Editor's Note: Today we launch a new weekly series aimed at learning more about the 92 B Corporations who won the 'Best for the World' title earlier this year from nonprofit B Lab. Through short interviews with company founders, CEOs and directors, we'll dig into their motivations, missions, challenges and what makes them truly Best for the World.

Through their stories, we'll search for best practices, tips on aligning mission and profit, and identify gaps where better regulation can help or private-private partnerships can play a role. Becoming the change is an ambitious order – and one that over 1,000 companies have accepted already. Let's learn how they're doing it.

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Today we spotlight Alter Eco, a company that connects food with economic empowerment. Or in their own words:

"A values-based brand of specialty food products that brings sustainable, delicious, exotic and healthy ingredients from around the world to people in the United States and Canada while directly benefiting farming communities in the Global South."

Directly from the farmers, Alter Eco brings food products that capture distinct attributes of various regions around the world including ancient supergrain Royal Quinoa from the Bolivian Andes, heirloom Jasmine Rice from Northern and East Thailand, Amazon-grown and Swiss-made dark chocolate bars, and unrefined ground Mascobado cane sugar from The Philippines.

Quick facts:

• Products are 100% fair trade certified, organic, carbon-compensated and soon to be packaged in home-compostable material.
• Founded in 2004.
• Distributed at key retailers such as Whole Foods, NCGA, Wegmans, Sprouts, Vitamin Cottage as well as numerous coop and natural regional chain stores across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Here we go:

What motivated you to start your company?

Both of us – co-founders Edouard Rollet and Mathieu Senard – worked for development organizations early on in our careers. At age 19, Edouard worked for UNICEF in Africa while Mathieu managed an orphanage in Northern Cambodia. Those experiences convinced us to spend our time and energy serving the underprivileged in the third world.

With degrees in business and communication, Fair Trade became the ideal intersection to achieve social change through business. Combine this with a love for travel and for food, and this is how Alter Eco came about.

Why did you become a Certified B Corp?

At Alter Eco, we love third-party certifications. One hundred percent Fair Trade and organic certifications have been part of the company's DNA since day one. Next came carbon neutral certification thanks to Alter Eco’s reforestation/conservation programs developed by sister organization Pur Projet.

The last frontier for Alter Eco to reach its full-circle sustainability goal is now home-compostable packaging certification, which we're working on.

Becoming a B Corp in the early days and most recently a Public Benefit Corporation helped us put all the elements of this mission into the heart of our organization and into the heart of our legal structure. Going through the B Corp certification, we went even deeper into learning about the impact of Alter Eco on all its stakeholders (Alter Eco employees being a top priority) and were able to ensure we applied the same high standards at every level of our company.

Within the B Corp movement, we hope to build a new model of corporation that serves the public and the greater good, harnessing the power of business to build a better future for our children and our planet.

You were named among the B Corp ‘Best for the World’ list. What were some of the challenges you faced in meeting your CSR goals?

We believe placing the mission at the heart of the company is the best way to achieve long-term sustainability and profitability for our company.

It does, however, come with challenges.

All those sustainability standards stacked one upon another add layers of costs and reduce our margins. We thus operate with the smallest margins in our industry. Yet, we have to play by the same rules, play the same costly game. So everything is always a bit more challenging for companies like Alter Eco.

But we believe we provide the products that people want and will increasingly want in the future, positioning us to thrive in the 21st century.

What is one critical area that you're challenged with because of lack of industry participation or government regulation?

The main difficulty for a mission-driven food company like ours is that we are part of an industry that is very expensive. All costs related to distribution, promotion, slotting or free fills add to staggering amounts, presenting difficulties for any brand, and even more for mission-driven brands, especially in the early days.

We hope in the future to see industry programs or government regulations that help mission-driven businesses become established and mature.

Next week: How Atayne is driving social and environmental change by combining technology with some ingenious creativity.

Every week, we chat with an interesting leader in the sustainable business movement. These chats are broadcast on our Google+ channel and embedded via YouTube right here on 3p.

On Thursday, May 29 at 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET, TriplePundit’s Founder, Nick Aster, spoke with Scott Nichols, Director of Verlasso: Sustainable Premium Farmed Salmon.

Verlasso is the first and only ocean-raised farmed Atlantic salmon to receive the “Good Alternative” buy ranking from the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program. Verlasso offers premium salmon raised in harmony with the natural environment, and is leading the way to a new environmental stewardship.

Scott and Nick discussed a range of sustainable seafood topics including:

• Are our oceans "tapped out"? It has been reported that more than 85% of our wild fish are harvested at or above their sustainable limits.  What does the future hold?


• The world's population is growing. How will we continue to serve everyone? 


• Verlasso believes that when food is raised really well, it tastes great. How exactly should fish be raised? 

If you have remaining questions, please tweet us @triplepundit and use the hashtag #3pChat.

If you missed the conversation, you can watch it right here or on our YouTube channel.

ABOUT SCOTT: 

Scott is responsible for Verlasso’s NGO engagement and the ways we evolve aquaculture to meet the ever-growing demand for fish while preserving the ecosystems where fish are raised.  Previously, Scott worked extensively on biodiversity projects in Africa and South America, giving him a deep appreciation for developing comprehensive approaches to sustainable food production.  Scott’s education includes a Ph.D. in biochemistry from UCLA and Wharton’s Advanced Management Program.  “I have a complete and total belief that we must act with urgency to find the most sustainable ways to produce good and healthy food. Big and little steps are both important.”

Image: Verlasso Salmon via Facebook

When the topic turns to feeding the global population boom, the main theme is how to grow more food within limited resources. However, a recent conversation with the president and CEO of Bell Aquaculture, Norman McCowan, reminded us that food is at the heart of community and ethnic traditions. Feeding the world is more than a matter of producing more calories and nutrients while consuming less resources, it is also a matter of sustaining identity.

With that in mind, when you take a close look at Bell Aquaculture's operations you can see that sustainable seafood is more than simply a matter of food supply.

Aquaculture and local culture

Bell Aquaculture is currently known for its yellow perch, though it is introducing new fish this year. Perch happens to be a good example of the identity-sustaining model, which we discovered with one of our first question when we asked McCowan, "Why perch?"

There's an answer for that. Bell was founded in 2005 specifically to serve the demand for yellow perch in the Great Lakes area. The region is known for its Friday fish fries, a tradition with roots in the Catholic admonition against eating red meat on Fridays.

As a ripple effect of the local custom, fish fries are also promoted as a tourist attraction in Great Lakes states, so this is also a good example of how culturally rooted food traditions take on a significant role in regional economic activity.

For many years the massive yellow perch population in the Great Lakes provided ample fodder for the tradition, but more recently overfishing and environmental stress have severely curtailed commercial yellow perch fishing in the region.

The one exception is Lake Erie, where the perch population collapsed in the 1990s but has been recovering thanks to successful management practices. However, perch in the other Great Lakes have not fared nearly so well (for a first-hand report on the problem, read this 3p piece about overfishing).

With demand for perch still high in the region, it's no accident that in a few short years Bell has grown to be the nation's largest yellow perch fish farming facility.

The result is a three-fer: local residents can still enjoy a custom they identify with from a fresh local source; the tradition continues to support the regional tourist economy; and employment in the regional commercial fish industry still has the potential to continue growing.

Aquaculture and the environment

Aquaculture has a somewhat problematic past in terms of environmental impacts, but Bell Aquaculture represents the sustainable wave of the future.

Throughout our conversation, McCowan emphasized the role of Bell's unique vertically integrated business model in enabling the company to improve its operations in terms of environmental improvements that also result in bottom line savings.

Aside from raising fish, Bell invests significant energy in R&D up and down the supply chain, including partnerships with the aquaculture industry and other stakeholders.

One significant result can be seen in Bell's use of a closed system called a Recirculating Aquatic System (RAS). In contrast to aquaculture operations located within natural bodies of water, a closed system consists of segregated pools or tanks. That enables a high degree of water recycling along with the recapturing of fish effluent and other contaminants for proper disposal or reclamation.

Energy and aquaculture

One drawback of RAS in terms of sustainability is that it is an energy intensive operation. McCowan, though, noted that Bell has tackled that issue  head on. Bell's RAS has been updated to include a number of proprietary tweaks developed by the company's research partnership with the Conservation Fund's Freshwater Institute.

Those tweaks have yielded significant energy savings partly by speeding up the rate at which the fish mature to market, which in turn has come about as a result of water quality improvements.

McCowan recently listed the results of the partnership in a statement available on the Freshwater Institute's website. These include bringing Bell's perch to market four months earlier than before, reducing electricity consumption by threefold, and reducing water consumption by an impressive twentyfold.

The energy improvement also has to do with Bell's adoption of a new tank and drain system, which enabled it to drop from 265 hp (horsepower) per 800,000 perch to 80 hp per 800,000.

Another significant result of Bell's R&D partnerships, particularly in the area of water quality, is that the company can raise fish without hormones or antibiotics.

McCowan also emphasized to us that the vertical integration model includes the company's own feed mill, providing it with full control over the fish feed supply chain.

Triple Pundit founder Nick Aster and senior editor Mary Mazzoni recently paid a visit to Bell's fish farm in Redkey, Indiana and spoke with McCowan and other Bell staffers about the company's vertically integrated model. See what they had to say in the video below.

Additional benefits of aquaculture

As for the future, Bell Aquaculture is adding more fish to its roster, including rainbow trout and coho salmon. That underscores the benefit of raising fish in a closed, highly controllable environment, which is the ability to bring new species of fresh fish into a market.

McCowan is optimistic about Bell Aquaculture's latest addition to its vertical integration model, which is the capture of fish effluent for use in fertilizer. That is a bottom line benefit that would be difficult to pursue commercially in natural bodies of water.

We'll add one last thought to that: The benefit of reclaiming fish effluent could also be realized in a combination of RAS fish farming with vertical produce farming or other hydroponic produce farming configurations--although Bell notes that for its own purposes, producing fertilizer is a better fit than farming fruits and veggies onsite.

Image credit: Perch fry by Hungry Dudes via Flickr

It's been said that there's an app for everything these days, so why should the world's most pressing challenges be any different?

That's the message behind the Vodafone Americas Foundation's Wireless Innovation Project Competition (WIP). Developed by June Sugiyama, director of the foundation, WIP has provided funding for a range of wireless technology innovations--awarding more than $2 million to universities, nonprofits and NGOs since its inception in 2009.

Applicants can win from a total prize fund of $600,000 for innovative mobile solutions that have potential to solve critical global issues. The technology developed by past WIP winners is poised to impact poverty, health, environment, disaster relief and technology access around the world.

This year's eight finalists, who were recognized at a reception in Redwood City, Calif. on April 1, presented mobile-based solutions to a range of critical issues--from addressing deforestation and improving communication during natural disasters to diagnosing illnesses quickly and non-invasively.

Vodafone Americas Foundation announced the winners today during the Social Innovation Summit 2014, being held at the United Nations Plaza, and it's tough not to get excited about their ideas.

First place: MobileOCT

First place went to MobileOCT, a medical device company seeking to eradicate cervical cancer by making screening as ubiquitous as mobile phones.

"More than 5 billion people around the world have access to mobile phones, but not to a physician," the company points out on its website. "They deserve to catch cancer early enough so that it can be treated."

The technology converts any digital camera—even one attached to a smartphone or an endoscope—into a device capable of providing the evidence clinicians need to catch cancer before it develops. Plans for field testing the device to help detect cervical cancer are in place for a clinic in Mexico.

Second place: Soko Enterprise

Second place was awarded to Soko Enterprise. Created by Gwendolyn Floyd, an internationally recognized expert in using mobile technology to achieve development goals, and Ella Griffith, an MIT graduate who has worked on social enterprises in and around the slums of Nairobi for four years, Soko aims to put the global marketplace in the hands of artisans in the developing world.

"At Soko, we believe that talented artisans everywhere should have access to the online marketplace," the company writes on its website. "By providing tools and connectivity to global markets, Soko enables direct access to opportunities for entrepreneurial growth, streamlining trade and making it simple and transparent."

Its enterprise tool enables small-scale producers to manage production and operations, sell to global consumers and get paid directly--all via mobile. Using Soko, artisans and craftspeople in countries like Kenya will be able to participate in the global marketplace in ways that were typically not possible without the help of a larger organization. Check out the video below to learn more about Soko's enterprise tool.

http://vimeo.com/66019023

Third place: eyeMITRA

Developed by a research team at MIT, the third place winner, eyeMITRA, is a mobile phone attachment with the potential to prevent the most common cause of adult blindness.

"Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of adult blindness," the research team writes on the eyeMITRA website. "Today, there are over 366 million diabetics globally and this figure is expected to rise dramatically in the next decade. About a quarter of this population comprise individuals who either have or will go on to develop DR."

Specifically, the attachment is used for imaging of the retina (the nervous tissue in the back of the eye) to provide real-time health status assessment and potentially diagnosis. The tool is targeted towards detection and monitoring of retinal diseases, as well as systemic illnesses that manifest in the retina, such as diabetes. Along with visiting scientist Karin Roesch, who specializes in retinal disorders, and MIT associate professor Ramesh Raskar, graduate student and research assistant Everett Lawson played a key role in developing this potentially sight-saving tool. Check out the video below to learn more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ffmqrkPC4y4

Chair of the Vodafone Americas Foundation and head of Vodafone xone, Vodafone’s innovation, incubation and venture arm based in the Silicon Valley, Fay Arjomandi had this to say about the 2014 WIP Competition:

“This is an exciting stage for many startup organizations that are seeking to bring their applications and technologies for social good to the people who need it the most. In a few short months, the organizations [that] our judges have selected as the most cutting edge and viable concepts will not only receive financial support, but will be able to draw on the cutting-edge labs and expertise of a global leader in mobile technology. Some of our past WIP winners have already gone to market and have started to make a difference in people’s lives.”

Only time will tell how these ideas will manifest once they hit the open market, but if the experiences of past WIP winners are any indication, they're likely to spur change where it's needed most. Some of the innovations developed by winners past—in the market and also in beta testing—are already impacting people and countries around the world.

One thing is for certain: By recognizing ideas like these, we give inspiration and encouragement to the innovators and change-makers of tomorrow--and that in itself is a pretty big win.

Images courtesy of the Vodafone Americas Foundation

Based in Philadelphia, Mary Mazzoni is a senior editor at TriplePundit. She is also a freelance journalist who frequently writes about sustainability, corporate social responsibility and clean tech. Her work has appeared in the Philadelphia Daily News, the Huffington Post, Sustainable Brands, Earth911 and the Daily Meal. You can follow her on Twitter @mary_mazzoni.