Global Compact International Yearbook 2009
The road to Copenhagen is the catchphrase: Climate Change is the top issue of inaugural edition, on the market since 1th of august 2009. In a very personal and exclusive foreword, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stresses the urgency of multilateral action: „One underlying message of this Yearbook is that a global, low-carbon economy is not only technologically possible, it makes good business sense“, said Ban. „We need the voice and energy of business to help us combat climate change.“ Sir Anthony Giddens adds the importance of the upcoming Copenhagen Climate Summit: „It is an important year, and everybody knows it because it is the year of Copenhagen. It’s a key for climate change policy. I do hope the Copenhagen negotiations will be successful, but there are reasons I have to be worried. “ Another key issue of this edition is the global economic crisis: 2008 will be remembered as the year of crises. The breakdown of financial institutions and markets and the subsequent worldwide economic downturn have put the spotlight on issues that the United Nations Global Compact has long advocated as essential responsibilities for modern business and today’s global markets: comprehensive risk management, long-term performance, and ethics. Georg Kell, Executive Director of the Global Compact, writes: „Restoring confidence and trust in markets requires a shift to long-term sustainable value creation, and corporate responsibility must be an instrument towards this end. If the crisis is any indication, it is now time to build on the advances made over the past 10 years by companies and investors in the area of ESG performance and bring this discipline to the mainstream. “
The road to Copenhagen is the catchphrase: Climate Change is the top issue of inaugural edition, on the market since 1th of august 2009. In a very personal and exclusive foreword, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stresses the urgency of multilateral action: „One underlying message of this Yearbook is that a global, low-carbon economy is not only technologically possible, it makes good business sense“, said Ban. „We need the voice and energy of business to help us combat climate change.“ Sir Anthony Giddens adds the importance of the upcoming Copenhagen Climate Summit: „It is an important year, and everybody knows it because it is the year of Copenhagen. It’s a key for climate change policy. I do hope the Copenhagen negotiations will be successful, but there are reasons I have to be worried. “
Another key issue of this edition is the global economic crisis: 2008 will be remembered as the year of crises. The breakdown of financial institutions and markets and the subsequent worldwide economic downturn have put the spotlight on issues that the United Nations Global Compact has long advocated as essential responsibilities for modern business and today’s global markets: comprehensive risk management, long-term performance, and ethics. Georg Kell, Executive Director of the Global Compact, writes: „Restoring confidence and trust in markets requires a shift to long-term sustainable value creation, and corporate responsibility must be an instrument towards this end. If the crisis is any indication, it is now time to build on the advances made over the past 10 years by companies and investors in the area of ESG performance and bring this discipline to the mainstream. “
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News around the world<br />
Latin America<br />
A <strong>Global</strong> Concept for Zero-Emission Buildings<br />
Carbon reduction is a difficult job. Significant progress will<br />
only be possible with a coherent climate strategy. We spoke<br />
with Dr. Wolfgang Große Entrup, Head of Governmental and<br />
Product Affairs at Bayer AG about the ambitious plans.<br />
Experts say that there are huge<br />
carbon reduction capacities in<br />
the field of building. Bayer has<br />
some lighthouse projects in this<br />
area. Can you describe in a few<br />
sentences what we could achieve<br />
with Bayer technology?<br />
Dr. Wolfgang Große Entrup, Energy consumption in<br />
Bayer AG<br />
buildings accounts for nearly<br />
20 percent of global greenhouse<br />
gas emissions. We are focussing<br />
on a segment that has been<br />
rather neglected up to now: office and industrial buildings and<br />
welfare facilities. Together with partners, we have developed<br />
the “EcoCommercial Building” (ECB), a globally adaptable<br />
concept for zero-emission buildings.<br />
These measures are tremendously important for megacities like<br />
the ones in Latin America. A UN study recently stated that these<br />
cities will be affected by climate change exorbitantly. What should<br />
governments and city councils do in your opinion, and how could<br />
Bayer support them?<br />
Authorities and the private sector should partner and focus<br />
on areas where greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced<br />
immensely, even in the short term. One of these areas is the<br />
insulation of buildings. Bayer has a long record in this business<br />
and can contribute a lot of know-how and innovative<br />
products. Insulating materials based on raw materials from<br />
Bayer display an excellent climate balance: In buildings, they<br />
save more than 70 times as much energy as is needed for<br />
their production.<br />
Your climate program has been introduced globally. But are there<br />
specific regional differences and cultural adjustments?<br />
Our climate program has been adopted in the regions according<br />
to different climate challenges and different legislative<br />
opportunities. For example, our ECB in India has been adapted<br />
to the climate aspects and existent construction supply chain<br />
boundary conditions. The ECB Kindergarten in Monheim (Germany),<br />
in contrast, is also a climate-neutral building but with<br />
totally different energetic installations. Different aspects of<br />
energy efficiency opportunities have been monitored through<br />
our climate-check initiative.<br />
Bayer has already reduced its carbon footprint significantly. Which<br />
of your measures could serve as models for industry?<br />
The continuous improvement of energy efficiency is a key<br />
focus in managing our production processes. Our innovative<br />
“Bayer Climate Check” is helping us to assess the greenhouse<br />
gas emissions at our sites worldwide. It is special because it<br />
enables a company to analyze the carbon footprint not only<br />
of the production processes, but also of raw materials, energy<br />
supply, and logistics. This holistic approach is really cuttingedge<br />
and could serve as a model for industry.<br />
14<br />
<strong>Global</strong> <strong>Compact</strong> <strong>International</strong> <strong>Yearbook</strong> <strong>2009</strong>
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