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People are wired with an innate desire to learn. Yet, while desire may be evenly distributed, access to education tools, resources, and opportunity is not. At Cisco Networking Academy, we believe that all people, regardless of where they live, their means, age, gender, or background, deserve equal access to education and the opportunity to pursue meaningful work that provides for themselves, their families, and contributes to the betterment of society.

For 23 years, Cisco Networking Academy has provided a bridge to career opportunities to more than 12.6 million people in 180 countries. Working with nearly 12,000 affiliated academies and more than 650 employers around the world, we have proven what’s possible when companies, non-profits, governments, and academic institutions come together for a shared purpose – empowering all people with career opportunities. Today, Cisco Networking Academy is the largest and longest-running corporate social responsibility education program in the world.

And, we have just begun.

Learning styles are changing. Social media redefines modes of engagement. Then, the pandemic upended, accelerated, and exposed underlying inequities. Workers without a college degree, women, ethnic minorities, and young people have been most affected by widening economic gaps. Digitization, which was already in play, is gaining a faster foothold. Meanwhile, companies across all industries are struggling to fill critical IT jobs in in-demand areas in networking, cybersecurity, and software development.

Cisco is addressing the challenge with the worldwide launch of Skills for All, a bold step forward in our purpose-driven mission to power an inclusive future for all. Skills for All is a free, mobile-first program that delivers leading-edge adaptive and gamified learning experiences, including self-paced courses, interactive tools, and career resources that are designed by industry experts. If an individual is connected to the Internet with a mobile phone, they are empowered as a learner at Skills for All.

This expansion of our Networking Academy mission will redefine education with a new skills-to-jobs experience. We have an aspirational goal to equip an additional 20 million learners with valuable digital skills over the next five years.

Skills for All is designed for learners like Marie Kamga, a Cisco Networking Academy alumna. She equally values the practical skills she has learned in her coursework and the attention she is getting from potential employers. Today, she is a cybersecurity intern preparing for a long-term career in the industry.

The Skills for All experience is designed to engage and nurture every learner’s own journey. We know that learners are more successful when their experience is tailored to their unique goals and interests. With evolving learning styles, we’ve reimagined a learning platform with adaptive learning technology, videos, and gamification built in. We’ve truly designed Skills for All to meet learners where they are.

At launch, Skills for All will offer a learning pathway featuring cybersecurity to prepare learners for jobs in this vitally important and job-rich industry. Soon, we will follow-up with courses about cloud infrastructure and automation with even more content to follow. Best of all, our curriculum is vendor agnostic so learners can get jobs with any company.

Cisco Networking Academy alumnus Billy Anglin shares his endorsement for Cisco Networking Academy’s model to offer real-world training that leads to high-quality, rewarding jobs. “If you want to guarantee yourself upward career mobility, then Cisco Networking Academy is a no-brainer,” he says. “The program ensures you get the essential training you need to be a viable contender in the cybersecurity field and that you develop a mindset that will take you leaps and bounds above your competition.”

Knowledge is not enough. We know that connections to jobs, certifications, and career resources is where learning translates to opportunity. Skills for All is backed by a job matching engine, an alumni network, employment partners, and more. It also makes access to jobs easier with entry-level certifications, requiring less time than traditional certifications. Learners also earn digital badges, a growing requirement of employers.

Circumstances of the past year have enabled us to crystalize and actualize the next leg of our mission at Cisco Networking Academy. Millions of people around the world need career opportunities that can grow with them, now and in the future. We are fully committed to being a bridge to those opportunities – and we’re just getting started.

Learn more at skillsforall.com.

Previously published in the 3BL Media newsroom.

Image credit: Dayne Topkin/Unsplash

In this day and age of worker shortages, it seems that many employers have gone the extra mile to tolerate employees and prospective hires who refuse to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Fortunately, an equal and opposite movement is beginning to materialize around protecting workers, customers and clients. The healthcare industry could become a leading driver of the movement to establish vaccine mandates, and some institutions are already heeding the call.

Vaccine mandates take hold

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution took note of the rising tide of vaccine mandates last week, conjecturing that “no vax, no service” could soon join the familiar “no shirt, no shoes, no service” poster common at many eateries and other small businesses, due to the risk of infection by ferocious new variants of the COVID-19 virus.

The problem is that millions of American workers and employers did their due diligence and got vaccinated, but still must deal with other workers, customers and clients carrying the virus. The vaccine still protects against serious illness and death, but a positive test can spark expensive, disruptive waves of quarantine and testing throughout a company. It can become especially burdensome on small businesses, which may need to shut down completely while taking steps to contain an outbreak among employees.

The healthcare industry’s support is needed on vaccine mandates

So far, any strong movement in support of vaccine mandates has yet to gather steam. Despite the rising tide of death and long term illness, the anti-vaccination movement is still being stoked to a boil by Tucker Carlson of Fox News, among others in the media. Small business owners who impose a vaccine mandate are exposed to backlash from their community, unless larger companies step up to promote universal vaccination and help create a culture of community protection.

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Krispy Kreme provides a good example of the creative ways in which companies can offer a vaccine carrot, but their efforts seem to have mainly rewarded those already inclined to get vaccinated. They have barely put a dent in the anti-vaccination movement.

Now it appears that the time for a stick has come. AJC reporter Ligaya Figueras profiled one Atlanta restaurant and bar co-owner who explained that his decision to impose a vaccine mandate on both employees and customers was a quality of life and safety issue. He also pleaded for support from the healthcare industry.

That support may finally be forthcoming. In a twist of irony, a significant number of healthcare workers are still unvaccinated, putting medical institutions and companies at risk along with clients, students, patients, visitors, and volunteers. The industry is finally beginning to put its foot down.

Earlier this week, dozens of leading healthcare organizations and professional associations signed a statement making the ethical case for universal vaccination among healthcare workers.

“Due to the recent COVID-19 surge and the availability of safe and effective vaccines, our healthcare organizations and societies advocate that all healthcare and long-term care employers require their workers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine,” they wrote. “This is the logical fulfillment of the ethical commitment of all healthcare workers to put patients as well as residents of long-term care facilities first and take all steps necessary to ensure their health and well-being.”

The statement also emphasized the need for leadership by the healthcare industry, arguing that “we hope all other employers across the country will follow our lead and implement effective policies to encourage vaccination. The health and safety of U.S. workers, families, communities, and the nation depends on it.”

Political leaders now stepping in

The vaccine mandate movement is already gathering steam, at least among institutional-type healthcare organizations. Last week, Becker’s Hospital Review published a long list of hospitals, medical facilities and healthcare systems issuing COVID-19 vaccine mandates for employees, students, vendors and volunteers.

The missing piece is political. That is a prickly subject, considering the linkage between the anti-vaccination movement, the Republican Party and the failed insurrection of January 6.

That area is also quickly approaching a tipping point. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) was among those included in the Becker’s list, having issued a vaccine mandate for all staff and medical employees at its facilities earlier this week.

The VA’s decision follows the Department of the Army’s plans for introducing mandatory vaccination in this fall, in consideration of widespread vaccine refusal among soldiers. That could set the stage for widespread mandates across the entire Department of Defense and other critical federal agencies, as well as state and level law enforcement agencies where vaccine rates also lag.

On the state level, California Governor Gavin Newsom has taken the lead and has bet his political future on mandatory vaccination.

Though facing the threat of a recall election, Newsom issued a detailed statement on July 26 imposing a wide-ranging vaccine mandate that covers all state employees as well as all healthcare workers in the state, plus workers in nursing homes and other high-risk residences.

Employers need to step up for vaccinated workers

In an interesting strategic decision, Newsom’s vaccine mandate provides unvaccinated workers with the alternative of submitting to weekly COVID-19 tests.

That underscores a point of contention for vaccinated workers. After all, those who are vaccinated expect to realize the rewards of vaccine, both in terms of disease prevention and in the ability to go about one’s work without the inconvenience of wearing a mask and other restrictions.

Now the vaccinated are exposed to new risks and a new imposition of mask mandates and other restrictions, largely on account of obstinate vaccine refusal by others. It is only fair to require the unvaccinated to take steps that help promote worker and customer safety by submitting to regular tests.

The whole situation should put employers on alert, not only in the healthcare industry but across the entire U.S. workforce.

Many employers have hesitated to impose vaccine mandates, most likely for fear of alienating vaccine-refusing employees, recruits, customers or the community at large. Now they have to deal with the consequences of a worker-friendly job market, in which vaccinated workers and job seekers are motivated to pick and choose among employment options that offer the safety, convenience and just plain fairness of a vaccine mandate.

Healthcare industry observers have already sensed that a tipping point is coming. Employers who act now can get ahead of the curve and help accelerate the vaccine mandate movement.

Image credit: Alex Mecl/Unsplash

While companies (and the public relations agencies promoting them) are once again ramping up their communications on how they can appeal to current and potential millennial and Gen Z employees, Gen X has been taking it on the chin, and being hit hard, over the past 18 months.

A recent report from Generation, a nonprofit that works with educators and employers to expand access to job opportunities while taking on youth unemployment, suggests that workers aged 45 to 60 worldwide have felt the harshest effects of COVID-19’s impact on the global economy. They may not feel their careers are ready to sunset, but the message they are getting from employers is that dusk has long passed on their job prospects.

Generation surveyed around 3,800 people across seven countries, ages 18 to 60, along with close to 1,500 hiring managers during the spring. The findings aren’t pretty for the generation that was rocked by the early 1990s recession, got hit again by the double-whammy of the dot-com bubble burst and 9/11, and then found themselves reeling yet again during the home foreclosure fiasco and global financial crisis of 2008-2009. Now, as they feel the pressure to save for retirement, much of this news will come across as grim and grimmer.

Editor's note: Be sure to subscribe to our Brands Taking Stands newsletter, which comes out every Wednesday.

“In every country we surveyed, the experience of looking for work is harder for 45+ individuals than other age groups, and they typically find themselves unemployed significantly longer than those who are younger,” the study’s authors wrote.

As anyone over the age of 40 can tell you, finding that next job feels like being stuck on the proverbial hamster wheel. Never mind the fact that in 2021, if someone in their 40s is in good health, they still have a good 25 to even 35 working years left in them. Still, getting the time of day from a human resources professional, recruiter or hiring manager is often challenging.

More than 70 percent of workers 45 and older who participated in the survey felt their age factored against them when it came time to find a new job.

And no wonder: When the 45-plus crowd was compared to those 18 to 34 and 35 to 44, Generation’s survey of hiring managers found results, or shall we say an attitude, that blares two words no one wants to hear: age discrimination. Compared to the two younger age groups, Gen X is viewed as less prepared, less experienced and less fit for the jobs that companies are currently posting.

In fairness, each generation faces challenges, and some hurdles that workers of any age may perceive can come from within: For example, almost 60 percent of the Gen X crowd who Generation surveyed said they were resistant to new training. Nevertheless, that still leaves more than 40 percent who are eager to start afresh. Further, some of that resistance could come from the reality that they are either unaware of, or believe they are not eligible for, such training. Government incentives could offer a lift, especially when considering any subsidies allotted for the hiring of reskilled workers will eventually be paid back, and more, by future income taxes.

Among the countries featured in Generation’s research, Singapore, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and India were home to hiring managers who, at a rate of at least 40 percent, said subsidized wages of some sort would encourage them to review their hiring practices. Hiring managers in the two other countries in the study, the U.S. and Brazil, were far less open to such a suggestion, which suggests entrenched attitudes will be hard to overcome if Gen X workers are to feel they have a stake and are valued in today’s economy.

“Hearing employers that have hired job-seekers aged 45 and above say that those workers tend to outperform their younger counterparts is encouraging, but also accentuates the tragedy of today’s employment landscape,” Generation's CEO Mona Mourshed said in a public statement. “We hope this new research spurs governments and employers alike to take steps to counter rampant ageism and to include this forgotten age-group in their recovery efforts.”

Generation suggests a complete rethink coming from both the private and public sectors is necessary for improving the long-term job prospects of Gen X. To start, the report’s authors suggest improved government statistics with narrower age brackets in order to shine more light on the job struggles the 45-and-over crowd find. Further, organizations can do more to link training programs directly to new job opportunities, and even provide financial assistance, to Gen X workers who might be skittish to take on new training courses. Finally, companies can reset their hiring practices and find ways to transition current employees who happen to be 45 into new roles, instead of the conventional approach, which has been to simply recruit new hires.

Image credit: Jamie Street/Unsplash

Mercedes-Benz sent a ripple of excitement shooting through the internet last week when it announced plans for a rapid transition into the electric vehicle (EV) field. Part of the package is an ambitious ramping-up of the automaker’s charging station network, through a partnership with the legacy oil and gas firm Shell, and that’s where things get interesting.

Mercedes-Benz enlists Shell for rapid electric vehicle adoption

The U.S. startup Tesla burst ahead of the electric vehicle pack early on, with an exclusively electric lineup and its own network of charging stations. Meanwhile, conventional automakers like Germany’s Mercedes-Benz (owned by Daimler AG) have been engaged in a grindingly slow pivot to electrification while keeping their gas and diesel operations afloat.

The pace of electrification has picked up considerably in the past year, but that can be a two-edged sword. With a sudden flood of EV drivers heading for the road, competition to book space at public charging stations could result in long wait times, anxious drivers and depleted batteries.

In addition, demand for charging during peak electricity use hours could weaken the stability and reliability of local grids.

Like other automakers, Mercedes-Benz is solving part of the issue by introducing new battery technology that charges more quickly and goes farther on a single charge.

Last week’s electrification announcement also included a focus on increasing the number of charging stations, and that’s where the Shell Recharge network of EV charging stations comes in.

Recharge may come as a surprise to those familiar with Shell’s deep roots in the oil and gas business. However, in recent years Shell has made a series of significant moves into electrification. They includes investments in wind power, solar power and hydrogen fuel stations. The company is also beginning to embrace the green hydrogen market.

Electric vehicle charging for grid stability

Shell launched the Recharge network in California with an eye on accelerating EV adoption in that state.

As a public charging network, Recharge involves commercial, retail, public and government locations, and multi-family residential buildings. 

To help build grid stability into the system, Shell also added a new smart-charging feature called RechargePlus.

The Plus feature encourages EV drivers to charge their batteries during times that benefit local grid operations. That would generally be at night and other periods of low demand, when electricity rates are also lower. The driver can save money on EV charging and contribute to a more reliable grid at the same time.

EV charging and brand loyalty

As would be expected for a luxury brand, Mercedes-Benz is also planning to add notes of exclusivity and convenience into the simple act of charging an electric vehicle battery.

One aspect of that plan is a hint that Mercedes-Benz drivers will get extra consideration for booking a charging station.

“Customers will get enhanced access to Shell's Recharge network consisting of over 30,000 charge points by 2025 in Europe, China, and North America – including over 10,000 high-power chargers globally,” Mercedes-Benz explained.

Mercedes-Benz is also leveraging its existing network of more than 530,000 charging stations worldwide. Later this year, the company will introduce its new “Plug & Charge” service, which will eliminate the authentication and payment steps normally needed to use a charging station.

Future plans also include luxury-style pampering.

“Mercedes-Benz is also planning to launch several premium-charging sites in Europe, which will offer a bespoke charging experience with top-notch facilities,” the company explains.

New life for legacy brands

Shell has a long way to go in order to undo the damage of years past. However, the new partnership with Mercedes-Benz demonstrates how the global auto industry can stimulate and accelerate sustainable investment by fossil energy stakeholders.

Manufacturers in other sectors can also play a role. Lego, for example, has embarked on the technologically challenging journey of transitioning to recycled plastic and other more sustainable sources for its iconic bricks. That aim could end up dovetailing with Shell’s plastic recycling R&D work.

In an interesting twist, back in 2014 Lego was targeted by Greenpeace for including a Shell-branded gas station within its long roster of specialty kits. Lego pledged to remove the kit, which was somewhat ironic considering Lego’s longstanding reliance on fossil resources to make its bricks.

For that matter, the pledge did not involve breaking Lego’s existing contract with Shell, which apparently is still in force. Shell-branded Lego gas station kits for sale can still be found online at Walmart, for example.

Shell has many other brand affiliations in its lineup, some of which have expired in recent years. That includes Shell and Mercedes-Benz gasoline tanker truck toys.

Perhaps the time is right for the two companies to partner with Lego on a Shell-branded electric vehicle charging station kit featuring the forthcoming Mercedes-Benz all-electric Vision EQXX, scheduled to be premiered next year.

The EQXX has stirred up quite a buzz in the automotive world for its claim to a range of more than 621 miles per charge. That should help relieve pressure on public charging station demand, and Mercedes-Benz is already working on plans to adapt the Vision EQXX architecture in other new electric vehicles.

Image credit: Mercedes-Benz USA corporate site

As anyone who’s visited any wine country, whether in Northern California, the Pacific Northwest, France or elsewhere knows, the various microclimates in these regions are crucial for the production of some of the most popular wine varietals on the market. Climate change is already affecting some of the more sensitive types of grapes worldwide. In a few years, the lucky ones will say they were only “affected,” as a warming planet could devastate many vineyards this decade.

Reality is hitting many vineyards now. This summer, fierce summer heat has been doing a number on grape growers worldwide. The crisis slamming these growers and the wider wine industry comes in the wake of a 2019 study, which analyzed grape harvests over the past seven centuries and found that global warming has accelerated over the past 30 years.

That revelation might offer some good news for future aspiring winemakers in regions like Canada, Britain, Scandinavia and the upper Midwest, but for long entrenched wine production leaders in France, Italy and Spain, the effects could be devastating. An earlier growing season, for example, also puts vineyards at higher risk of frost – as in what occurred in France and Italy earlier this year. Some regions have witnessed growers already responding: Growers in Sicily, for example, have transitioned from grapes to raising avocados.

The outlook for this industry looks bleak. If climate change risks go unchecked, more than half of the world’s wine growing regions could be lost by mid-century. That might not sound so serious if wine isn’t your indulgence of choice – but with the disappearance of those vineyards will come the loss of jobs and a body blow to local economies that are dependent on this popular niche of tourism.

The news is not all bleak: One recent study has suggested that diversifying the types of grapes grown in vineyards could mitigate some of this risk. Nevertheless, just as no one could have predicted searing summer heat in the Pacific Northwest while the U.S. Midwest was pummeled by flooding, no can predict the outlook for wine growing regions over the next several years. The bottom line is that the outlook for the industry is nothing to clink your glasses over.

When a global insurance company points out that wine grapes are among the most sensitive crops to climate change, it’s clear the concerns go far beyond someone’s favorite varietal or preferred vintner.

Meanwhile, grape growers in Napa, Sonoma and nearby areas in California have to respond to the crisis now, as they currently don’t have time to focus on what will become of their land in five, 10 or 20 years. The most desperate are turning to “water witches,” (who engage in a longtime practice known as “water divining” in Australia) to find new sources of this most precious resource. And in recent weeks, as the thermometer hit 100F and above, other grape growers sprayed sunscreen on their grapes in an effort to make sure they can make it to harvest season, as this recent New York Times story profiled.

The financial impacts are already mounting. In an area already hit hard by catastrophic wildfires, Northern California vineyards are facing another huge challenge to their livelihoods – insurance costs that are skyrocketing, that is, if they can even secure property insurance in the first place.

At first glance, it may appear to be a stretch to compare the wine industry to other segments within the global agriculture sector – that is, farmers who actually grow food crops that feed much of the world. But the crisis that grape growers worldwide have confronted the past several years presents a test case for a sector that will be tasked with feeding as many as 10 billion people by 2050. How these growers are responding now, and what happens to their land over the next several years, will offer a template for how other farmers will be forced to pivot during the coming decades.

Image credit: Nacho Domínguez Argenta/Unsplash

July is Disability Pride Month. It’s also the start of back-to-school shopping for many families. In other words, it’s the perfect time for JCPenney to introduce Thereabouts, an apparel line featuring adaptive clothing options for disabled and neurodiverse children.

JCPenney is the latest American retailer to offer its own brand of adaptive children’s clothing, joining the likes of Target, Kohl’s, Tommy Hilfiger, Zappos and Lands’ End.

Adaptive Clothing and Fashion 101

So, what exactly is adaptive clothing? As Annie Groer wrote in a 2019 Washington Post article, it is “clothing and shoes re-engineered for children and adults with physical, cognitive or sensory issues, both chronic and short-term.”

Adaptive fashion lines, added Groer, “offer style, dignity, independence, even joy to younger, hipper consumers with disabilities, whether they dress themselves or get help from others.”

Some common features found in adaptive clothing (such as those in JCPenney’s Thereabouts line) include:

Larger openings and simpler fasteners (such as magnets or Velcro) for those with limited dexterity and fine motor skills to dress themselves more easily.

Abdominal access, which allows for feeding tubes (usually in a concealed layer of a top, like a hoodie pocket or a built-in camisole in a shirt).

Wide-leg pants with adjustable sides to allow room for leg braces to be worn.

Extended size ranges are also available on items like bodysuits, onesies or diaper-friendly clothing.

Differently proportioned pants, a design crucial for making sitting in a wheelchair more comfortable.

Flat seams (or no seams) and tag-free labels also limit sensory overload for those with sensitivities.

Why do these designs matter for adaptive clothing?

As the mother of a disabled child, I greatly appreciate the increased availability of adaptive fashion options.

Previously, adaptive children’s clothing was only available if you could sew or hire a tailor. There were some small vendors available online (like on Etsy), but there was no economy of scale, so prices were extremely high for many families. Major retailers like Target, Kohl’s and now JCPenney, however, are able to bring adaptive clothing prices down to the same price point as their other offerings by using materials already in production. After all, as any parent knows, kids outgrow and wear out clothes very quickly!

In addition, adaptive clothing in earlier years was primarily focused on older wearers, focused almost entirely on function instead of fashion. There were solid colors (usually navy blue or beige), and one-size-fits-all templates, geared toward adults.

Today, my son’s clothes look just like his peers’, with bright colors and patterns and fun characters and all. The only difference is his pant legs have Velcro to accommodate his leg braces, and his shirts have special holes for his feeding tube to thread through.

My family has loved seeing what new adaptive items will be released each season. Last year, for example, ShopDisney sold adaptive Halloween costumes in a variety of characters ranging from princesses to Buzz Lightyear. And just last month, Target released $20 backpacks designed to be strapped onto the back of wheelchairs, with special storage for a feeding pump and a port for a feeding tube. This is huge news, as similar backpacks can cost five times that price on sites like Etsy or through medical supply companies.

Looking ahead at an expanding adaptive clothing market

The U.S. adaptive clothing market is expected to reach nearly $53 billion in 2022. (This projection includes children’s and adults’ clothing.) While the industry has made incredible strides over the past few years, there is still much progress yet to make.

For example, Facebook and Instagram’s algorithm rejects any paid ads that mention disability, or ads that feature medical equipment like wheelchairs. This creates a barrier to entry for small adaptive fashion companies.

In addition, some big companies may enter the adaptive fashion market without adequate input from the disability community itself, especially in the planning stages.

“You can definitely see which companies are really trying to understand their customer, as opposed to who is just trying to check the inclusivity box,” said Helya Mohammadian, founder of adaptive underwear brand Slick Chicks, in a recent interview with Forbes.

JCPenney’s Thereabouts line had a rigorous research and development phase with parents, children, disabled consumers and adaptive fashion consultants.  

“When designing the Thereabouts collection, it was essential to us that we developed the line in partnership with the disabled community,” said Michelle Wlazlo, JCPenney executive vice president and chief merchandising officer, in a recent interview. “Their sensory, dexterity and mobility needs were top of mind during the design process.”

Image credits: JCPenney newsroom

The ocean plastic crisis shows no sign of going away, and it never will unless somebody, somewhere, can figure out a way to make harvesting plastic trash more financially attractive than digging virgin oil and gas up from underground. A new recycling process is emerging that promises to do just that, but care must be taken in order to prevent recycled plastic from entering the ocean all over again.

The clock is ticking on ocean plastic action

Last year, the organization Pew Charitable Trust produced a report on the ocean plastic crisis called Breaking the Plastic Wave. It laid out a gloomy view of the state of affairs. On a brighter note, the report also described a strategic timetable for achieving significant progress in the near future, based only on technologies and systems.

“The next two years will be pivotal for breaking the trend and implementing a first horizon of change that will allow key milestones to be met by 2025, including stopping the production of avoidable plastic, incentivizing consumers around reuse, improving labelling, and testing innovations such as new delivery models,” Pew wrote.

Looking farther out to a 2030-2040 time frame, Pew anticipated that “achieving the outcomes modeled under the System Change Scenario would require substantial changes in the business models of firms producing and using plastics and their substitutes,” in addition to similar changes in recycling and waste management, investment criteria, and consumer behavior.

Follow the money

All of these elements could fall into place if money were involved.

The energy transition provides a model of how that would work. Several leading oil and gas producers have begun to make significant investments in renewable energy even though it cuts into their oil and gas business, with Shell and BP being among the leading examples.

In addition, individual and institutional investors are beginning to flee the fossil energy field in favor of renewables, partly motivated by a surge in activity among activist shareholders and rising consumer demand for clean power. The demand-side pressure is coming from filtering up from individual rate payers to top corporate energy buyers as well as state and local energy policy makers.

The energy transition still needs to speed up substantially in order to avert global catastrophe — and it will, now that renewable energy is becoming competitive with fossil energy on cost.

An economical solution for ocean plastic pollution

A similar dynamic could be at work on the ocean plastic crisis. A new generation of more efficient recycling systems is beginning to emerge, partly with the help of research and development funding from L’Oreal and other leading corporate consumers of plastic.

That helps to improve the financial picture, but recycled plastic must still find a market, meaning that it must compete against virgin plastic on both cost and performance, too.

Vigorous subsidies and public policy can help tilt the playing field. Consumers who are willing to pay more for sustainable products can also help carve out space in the market. However, as Pew points out, the clock is ticking. Scale-up and acceleration are the key, and that will only happen when more investors realize there is more money to be made in plastic recovery and recycling.

A research team organized by the BOTTLE consortium is pursuing one solution to the money problem.

BOTTLE stands for Bio-Optimized Technologies to keep Thermoplastics out of Landfills. The consortium includes 10 national laboratories and academic research institutions operating under the umbrella of the U.S. Department of Energy. The focus is on “upcycling strategies for today's plastics and redesigning tomorrow's plastics to be recyclable-by-design.”

The new research was produced by a team from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the U.K.’s University of Portsmouth. Although focused on textiles and carpeting rather than plastic bottles and straws, the research project does indicate that the plastic crisis is not a hopeless one.

The research team used enzymes to convert PET plastic into two components, terephthalic acid (TPA) and ethylene glycol. They modeled their system against the production of virgin plastic and found several key advantages.

A holistic solution to a global problem

One leading advantage is a sharp reduction in energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

“Compared to conventional fossil-based production routes, the research team determined the enzymatic recycling process can reduce total supply-chain energy use by 69 percent - 83 percent and greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent – 43 percent per kilogram of TPA,” NREL explained.

The researchers also took environmental and socioeconomic effects into account. Noting that the economic benefits and social costs of virgin plastic are unequally distributed, they calculated that the new process would reduce environmental impacts by up to 95 percent, while creating new jobs that generate up to 45 percent more socioeconomic benefits.

Most importantly, the study indicates that the enzymatic process is cost-competitive with the production of virgin PET.

“That’s one of the biggest opportunities,” explained NREL chemical engineer and lead researcher on the project Avantika Singh. “If we can capture that space - textiles, carpet fibers, and other PET waste plastics that are not currently recycled - that could be a true game-changer.”

Keeping plastic out of the ocean, permanently

At first glance, textiles may not seem to be a significant part of the ocean plastic problem. However, the NOAA Marine Debris Program does list cloth among the leading types of debris in the ocean.

Illegal dumping and individual carelessness are parts of the textile debris problem. NOAA’s research indicates that accidents also play a large part.

“Materials can be dumped, swept, or blown off vessels and stationary platforms at sea,” NOAA explains, adding that cargo ship accidents can be a leading source for all sorts of debris, from sneakers to TV sets and toys.

Textiles and other debris from land can also makes their way to sea, especially after floods, storms, and other catastrophic natural events.

In other words, the new BOTTLE research is a promising solution, but only if the end result is a suite of recycled plastic products that have little or no chance of becoming ocean plastic waste all over again.

The problem also includes microscopic plastic particles. Discarded bottles and other beach debris make for eye-catching photos, but a significant part of the ocean plastic problem is invisible to the naked eye.

If and when the recycled plastic market overwhelms fossil-based plastics, manufacturers and consumers must address the issue of ocean re-entry for both larger items and microplastic particles.

For example, one potential market is the use of recycled plastic to repave roads. That opens up a whole new area of potential ocean impacts related to tire wear and tear.

Another area is everyday laundry, which has been identified as a significant source of plastic microparticles in the ocean. Recycling other plastic items into clothing may solve one problem, only to contribute to another.

As new, more efficient plastic recycling technology emerges, policy makers and industry stakeholders will need to collaborate closely on solutions that truly undo the damage, and do it permanently.

Image credit: Naja Bertolt Jensen/Unsplash

The path to net-zero is taking another step forward, as one of the world’s highest carbon-emitting sectors says it is amplifying its focus on sustainability and decarbonization. We know the scientific rationale driving the worldwide push for decarbonization: The process minimizes the total greenhouse gas output largely by relying on low-carbon energy sources. This is critical for mitigating climate change and, according to a new survey, it offers a compelling business opportunity for real estate owners, occupants and investors. 

The real estate industry, specifically building and construction, is responsible for 38 percent of global carbon emissions, according to the U.N. Environment Program. Key players within the sector are starting to reply in kind: The worldwide commercial real estate services company JLL recently released a survey that revealed real estate senior executives are now more focused than ever before on sustainability. By and large, they have accepted the reality that climate risk is a financial risk. Further, the COVID-19 pandemic added a sense of urgency to taking on climate change risks while ensuring the safety of the buildings the real estate industry builds, sells and leases. Meanwhile, people are demanding safer and more sustainable spaces in which they live and work.

“People are beginning to see buildings as becoming agents of change and a force of good again rather than a cost ramification but that's exactly what's going to have to happen for all of these commitments that are coming out to be met,” said Robbie Hobbs, JLL’s global product group leader of sustainability and workplace management, during a recent interview with TriplePundit. 

The economic benefits of decarbonization 

As the interest and demand for sustainable real estate increases, its industry leaders are left with a few options to increase the attractiveness of their assets and remain competitive. For existing infrastructure, upgrades can be made. For this alternative, Hobbs explained that new technology and the promise of a competitive return on investment (ROI) supports the extra expenses necessary to make the real estate industry secure long-term resilience.

According to JLL’s research, investors believe decarbonization creates value and a competitive edge for them. Hobbs addressed three options within the decarbonization process that investors can lean on: onsite renewable energy, the procurement of off-site renewable energy, and carbon offsets. Through these steps, investors can differentiate their asset value beyond the standard factors like location and square footage.

Such options, along with prioritizing progress on the road to a net-zero economy, can help companies ensure they can continue to thrive in a competitive real estate market. The business opportunities resulting from real estate companies’ increased focus on sustainability and decarbonization for their buildings’ tenants, Hobbs said.

One such opportunity for these companies’ clients is the ability to attract and retain talent, as the next generation of employees will often make their career decisions based on wishing to work for companies that align with their values. The real estate industry’s commitment to building and retrofitting buildings for long-term resilience is crucial, as climate change is often stated as one of the five largest concerns of millennials and Generation Z. 

Enabling sustainability in real estate 

An increased focus on sustainability, defined by making bold, long-term climate action commitments, is not enough. Businesses need to be able to show their progress if they are to reap any future economic opportunities while scoring a boost in brand reputation. Real estate developers and investors indicate they are well aware of this. For example, the survey indicates they understand that any current ambitious climate mitigation plans need to be translated into targets. In fact, 81 percent of the stakeholders who JLL queried believed that strong partnerships between cities and their industry can help drive net-zero action plans. 

“We need owners, investors, city governments all working together to drive regulation, to drive investment, and to drive the development of supply to the level that it needs to get to,” Hobbs said. Collectives are impactful and can drive change because they have more lobbying power, he added. On the other hand, governments have a duty, too. Hobbs elaborated on this point by explaining that clear guidance and regulatory frameworks provided by cities can drive the right behaviors in the wider real estate industry.

Right now, leaders within the real estate industry are increasingly focusing on new technology, data collection and measurement. These three focal points can close the digital gap in this industry and enable net-zero plans, according to JLL’s data. For real estate owners and occupants specifically, technology is the top investment focus, as it can provide opportunities for improvement, analytics and decision making. Despite technology’s immense potential, which could help the real estate sector make progress on climate action, nearly half those who JLL surveyed claim their current data systems are in the works, the survey finds.

The current attitudes of senior leadership within this industry are clear. Owners, occupants and investors have no choice but to meet the increasing demand for sustainable real estate in order to maintain their livelihoods. A commitment to a net-zero or even low-carbon economy presents the obvious path, as it can result in the earning of higher returns while averting climate change.

Image credit: Laura Tancredi/Pexels; Chait Goli/Pexels

A fleet of 20 hydrogen double-decker buses has been released onto the streets of London to help cut toxic fumes and tackle climate change.

In what is believed to be a first for England, the £12m hydrogen double-decker buses are being introduced on the number 7 route in the capital, running between East Acton and Oxford Circus.

Wrightbus has manufactured the new zero-emission buses and the hydrogen will be produced at a facility in Cheshire. From 2023, the Air Liquide facility in Runcorn will be converted to produce only green hydrogen (using electrolysis powered by renewable energy).

Aberdeen already has hydrogen buses operating and more are expected to be rolled out in Bristol, with each bus needing to refuel once a day.

Transport for London’s (TfL) other business partners for the new hydrogen fleet are gas cylinder manufacturer Luxfer, and Nel Hydrogen, which has installed a refuelling station at an Ealing bus depot.

TfL’s sustainability goal is to operate only zero-emission vehicles by 2030.

Geoff Hobbs, TfL’s interim director of buses, said: “London may have one of the cleanest bus fleets in Europe, but we need to continue to act now to tackle climate change and the city’s toxic air quality.

“Introducing these hydrogen double-decker buses to our fleet, alongside electric buses, diversifies our green bus portfolio and helps us use the right technology for the varying operational requirements of our vast network. This will help Londoners breathe cleaner air.

“Our investment in hydrogen won’t just benefit London, either. Outside the capital, we are supporting jobs across the UK and our involvement with the industry across Europe is making cleaner fuels more affordable to cities all over Europe.” 

TfL is also ploughing investment into electric models, with more than 500 electric buses currently in operation, while other buses have been retrofitted to meet the Euro VI emissions standard.

Funding for the new hydrogen buses, which were launched by London mayor Sadiq Khan, has been jointly provided by TfL, the UK Government’s Office of Zero-Emission Vehicles and two European bodies – the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, and the Innovation and Networks Executive Agency (INEA).

It is predicted that hydrogen will account for a quarter of final energy consumption in road transport globally by 2050, according to a recent report by Bloomberg Intelligence.

The UK Government’s National Bus Strategy will result in a ban on new diesel bus sales, with consultations underway to support bus manufacturers and operators and it is aiming to deliver 4,000 British-built electric and hydrogen buses over the course of this Parliament.

Previously published in the 3BL Media newsroom.

Image credit: Belinda Fewings/Unsplash

Honestly, most of us do not even want to look at 2020 in the rearview mirror. Sadly, so far summer 2021 has been its own doozy of a season. Climate change is punishing many of us with oppressive heat in the Pacific Northwest, wildfires across more of the western U.S., and dangerous flooding in midwestern states. Add the rise of the Delta variant, and 2022 so far will not look so bad, even with what will surely be polarizing mid-term elections here in the U.S. and mega sporting events slated to launch in nations with far less than stellar human rights records; oh, but then there's that wobbly moon that could be adding more chaos to climate change risks through April 2022.

Nevertheless, this summer has offered many of us the opportunity to reconnect with friends and family, and after a long day of working in the office or remotely, sometimes we just want a cold one. So, whether you imbibe or don’t imbibe, here are a few ideas for quaffing down a cold one by yourself, or with your favorite people – as in beverages that make us feel better that we spent some coin on these companies.

Brew Dr.: Bottled kombucha keeps getting better and better, and for those of us who avoid alcohol yet still want to hang out with our friends at the local bar or taproom (without being limited to a cola served with a slice of awkwardness), more of these establishments are offering these tea- and SCOBY-based drinks. As for consumers who buy into the supposed health benefits of kombucha but don’t want something looking like a human brain lurking in their fridge, the bottled options are a fine choice – and are now even available at drugstores and gas station mini-marts.

Arguing over what is the leading kombucha is about as productive as picking a fight over what is the best ice cream flavor, but we’re giving a shout-out this Friday to Brew Dr. The brand’s ginger lemon, mango, watermelon and yes, the pineapple guava flavors all shine, plus a lavender-chamomile-green tea option Brew Dr. rolled out for Pride has been a winner as well – and the latter helped raise funds for the Trevor Project. The company also participates in the 1% for the Planet initiative; Brew Dr. also donates proceeds from the sales of one of its product lines to organizations focused on racial justice.

Clean Cause: Intuitively, yerba mate, flavors like berry mint and carbonation should not be in the same list of ingredients, much less mentioned in the same sentence. Clean Cause shows making such an assumption is wrong, wrong and wrong. This Austin-based company has reinvented the fizzy drink, deliciously served in tall, 16-ounce cans. The drinks work cause nothing is overdone: the mate gives off no off-putting earthy aftertaste, the touch of erythritol as a sweetener is just enough and the flavors (others include orange ginger and cherry lime) are understated. Light and crisp sum up these drinks in two words. Plus, there’s a kick of caffeine – just enough to get you through the rest of the afternoon when 2:00 p.m. ambushes you and darn it, there are still several hours of work ahead.

What’s even better about Clean Cause? The company says it donates 50 percent of its profits to fund sober living scholarships. At last check, Clean Cause has fronted the costs of 2,000-plus such recovery scholarships that have added up to a value of more than $1.1 million.

Maine Root: No high-fructose corn syrup here. This company, based in, you guessed correctly, Maine, churns out the next-best thing to a real Mexican cola; traditionalists will enjoy the root beer while the more adventuresome will be intrigued by the blueberry and pumpkin pie sodas. For those who avoid sugar in any form, the diet Mexican cola holds its own (full disclosure: it is sweetened with sucralose). Most of Maine Root’s beverages are fair-trade certified, as the company sources organic sugar cane from Brazil.

New Belgium Brewing Co.: Here’s one token large company on the list, though its track record over the years suggests its efforts are hardly token. This certified B corporation has performed well both on the environmental front as well as how the company treats its employees. As for its beverages, the company has no shortage of fun, boozy options; plus, one of its ales, Fat Tire, is now officially certified as a completely carbon-neutral beer.

And as TriplePundit’s Sarah Lazanova recently pointed out, the Colorado-based brewer stepped up during the pandemic, as it set up a fund to help out bars and restaurants hit hard by COVID-19’s impact. New Belgium has also operated another fund that for almost a decade has helped out its employees at times of dire financial need.

Zaddy’s: Pre-made cocktails are all the rage, and the assortment is overwhelming. Unfortunately, after tasting some, we often feel enraged we’ve wasted our money.  But there are plenty of creative choices out there, and the options keep getting better. Among the winners is Northern California-based Zaddy’s. These gin-based canned cocktails check many boxes: The company avoids using plastic within its packaging, participates with 1% For the Planet and donates some proceeds to The Story of Stuff project. Of the three flavors, the favorite is a toss-up between the Gin(ger) Fizz and Corpse Reliever, yet all work. Bottom line, these drinks are a winner – and each only has 100 calories a can.

Image credit: Clean Cause