Industry and Entrepreneurship

In case you missed the most recent "GGKP webinar: Greening SMEs towards a Just Transition from Policies to Practice" from 11 April 2024, please find the recording below!

Jointly hosted by DCED and supported by ILO, this fourth webinar in the webinar series, "Expert insights to support effective green private sector development" discussed key policies and support services that promote both environmental sustainability and decent work among MSMEs.

The webinar set the scene by introducing the key principles of Just Transition, as outlined by ILO's Just Transition guidelines. They include a wide spectrum of considerations from mental health to gender equality; as well as inclusion of all, including workers, communities, women, indigenous communities, youth and so on.

Noting how SMEs are crucial for just transition to environmentally sustainable economies with decent work opportunities, the webinar then turned to practical examples from Mauritius, Kenya, Indonesia and Kyrgyzstan. For instance, they addressed some practical circularity measures such as enhancing resource efficiency and waste management practices which can lead to higher business productivity; insurance strategies that businesses can consider which proof them against climate change-induced events such as floods; and some product regulations as well as different eco-labels that manufacturing SMEs can keep close eyes onto.

To listen to the full webinar and retrieve further details about these hands-on examples of green and inclusive SME practices, click on the webinar recording link below.

Hi there, do you work to support SMEs? Or do you work on discovering circular economic solutions?

Every few months, the I-GO initiative at GGKP invites stakeholders and active projects around the world that support SMEs to enhance resource efficiency and contribute towards a green and circular economy transition. These roundtables provide experience-sharing and informal networking opportunities, which in turn can strengthen collaboration.

In case you missed our last quarterly I-GO Community roundtable, you can find the recording below.

At this 5th roundtable, we provided updates from the EU-funded Circular Economy project that GGKP is implementing (the first survey results and upcoming activities like a community of practice launch for Circular Economy initiatives around the world); as well as invited circular #textile practitioners to tune into perspectives from both the private sector and global projects with regional activities.

Based on the presentations from Lee-Hendor Ruiters from the National Cleaner Production Centre South Africa (NCPC-SA) and Ramesh De Silva from a Sri Lankan textile repair firm, Compreli, questions flowed in from the audience, such as: How can we convince big and small apparel brands to use second-hand or repaired garments? How can we secure manufacturers' buy-in for using repaired garments? How global and regional projects can enable their policy and technical support to address the pre-consumer textile waste.

Watch the recording to find out about the answers as well as access the full presentations from the experienced garment repair business and the circular textile project kickstarting in South Africa. You can also find the presentations below.

Finally, let us know in the comments or get in touch ([email protected]) to share the topics YOU want to talk about - anything SME, circular economy, resource efficiency related - at the next I-GO Community roundtable! (And join the roundtable!)

The World Circular Economy Forum (WCEF) is coming back in about a month's time! Are you excited?

GGKP will be co-organising / supporting TWO accelerator sessions at WCEF 2024.

First is co-organising the session on, 'the EU in the Global Circular Economy Transition: Inspiration, incentives and market leverage' alongside the European Commission, Green Economy Coalition, and PAGE among our partners.

Did you ever wonder what actual ground-level impacts the EU Circular Economy policies and initiatives are making? Or how similar/different the EU CE action plan is from other regions, let's say Africa's? This is your chance to hear from & speak to the EU Circular Economy practitioners, as well as its global collaborators on the detailed ins and outs of the CE efforts so far. REGISTER here: https://thegreenforum.org/event/eu-global-circular-economy-transition-i…

The second accelerator session we're supporting is titled, 'Driving the Circular Economy Transition with Private Sector Initiatives'.

The global circular economy transition will not only bring behavioural changes to our consumption and waste management, but also the global value chains imposing substantial changes to how SMEs, entrepreneurs, and the entire private sector works. Join the session to learn more about experiences from the field, and how we can address the value chain-wide challenges come the global circular economy transition. REGISTER here: https://thegreenforum.org/event/driving-circular-economy-transition-pri…

Both events can be joined ONLINE.

🌿Why is motivation important for achieving your sustainability goals?

🌟 In the journey towards corporate sustainability 🌿, recognizing the intrinsic link between employee motivation and organizational goals is paramount. 🎯

Employees, when motivated, become champions of sustainable practices, driving positive change within and beyond the workplace. 🏆

As managers embrace their crucial role in nurturing and sustaining this motivation, they contribute significantly to the realization of corporate sustainability goals. In essence, a motivated workforce isn't just an asset; it's the driving force that propels organizations toward a more sustainable and responsible future.🌍
➡️ Read more on our article !

Empowering Managers for Sustainability: Key Strategies for CSR Compliance and Leadership- 2030 Builders Roadmap

🌍Managers play an indispensable role in the smooth running of an organisation, ensuring that employees are motivated, fulfilled and productive. Managers are in a key position to ensure that the company effectively integrates sustainability ambitions and goals into its day-to-day activities. They need to be the heroes of sustainability initiatives, steering activities towards practices that promote sustainable development.

However, it is a challenge for managers to create an understanding of environmental issues within their teams and to implement concrete actions for change. Lack of time, lack of skills and fear of change are holding managers back from implementing their sustainable strategies.⏳

2030Builders is THE solution to enable managers to integrate sustainability into their strategies quickly and easily!

Through our interactive platform, employees have access to quizzes and collaborative experiences to learn and understand sustainability. We create engagement with green corners, badges and rankings of what everyone has learned. Employees can challenge each other, which also builds team cohesion and motivation.🏆

Data is then generated to track the positive impact our platform is having on the business, and also to implement targeted strategies that lead teams towards a sustainable future.📊.

➡️Read more on our article !

In my latest episode of Climate Connections - I tackled the issue of killer stoves in #Kenya #Nairobi #Africa

Perhaps for those of us living in urbanised cities, it’s hard to fathom how the simple act of cooking could be deadly.

Hats off to EarthShot Prize winner Charlot Magayi, founder of Mukuru Clean Stoves, who is charting the way forward for low-income and underserved communities, and cleaning our air at the same time.

Find out about her personal story in my latest feature on the plight faced by the people living within these communities and how she’s working very hard at changing that: (link in stories & bio)
Spotify: https://spotify.link/iNb1eIZTSDb
OMNY: https://omny.fm/shows/moneyfm-morning-show/climate-connections-how-afri…

#climate #environment #airpollution #charcoal #climatechange #sustainability #innovation #solutions #nature #air #cleanair

On my latest episode of #ClimateConnections - we explore the issue of whether it’s realistic to dream of a complete fossil fuels phase-out, ahead of #COP28

Take a listen to Dr Swati Sharma from Nanyang Technological University Singapore here:
https://omny.fm/shows/moneyfm-morning-show/climate-connections-is-the-f…

#EUdraftdocument #fossilfuels #cop27 #cop26 #parisagreement #coal #oil #energy #environment #laws #dirtyenergy #cleanenergy #climatechange #climatenegotiations