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Science and Action:
Bridging Sustainability and Business Strategy
Bonnie Nixon, TSC Executive Director
November 3, 2011
The Sustainability Consortium (TSC)
Vision The Sustainability Consortium is advancing
science to drive a new generation of innovative
products and supply networks that address
environmental, social and economic imperatives.
Mission Through collaboration, the mission of The
Sustainability Consortium is to design and
implement credible, transparent and scalable
science-based measurement and reporting
systems accessible to producers, retailers,
distributors and users of consumer products.
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Who We Are: The World’s Most Recognized Companies
See all of our members at www.sustainabilityconsortium.org/members
Who We Are: World’s Top Tier Academic Institutions
Who We Are: Actively Engaged Working Groups
Sector Working Groups — TSC is about SCALE as it
represents more than 75 of the largest companies in the world
including their supply chains
Consortium Working Groups — Participants consist of Tier I
members, NGOs, government agencies, and academic
institutions
The Sustainability Consortium’s
European office will operate in
partnership with Wageningen
University in the Netherlands.
Wageningen UR (WUR) is the leading
agricultural university in Europe with a
strong commitment to sustainability.
WUR has strong relationships with
agricultural producers, food
processors, and retailers in Europe,
including many TSC members.
Grand Opening of TSC’s European Office – Nov. 8th
The opening ceremony and
symposium will be held in The Hague,
The Netherlands, on November 8.
Those in attendance will learn more
about what TSC can mean for their
business and vice versa.
We are honored that HRH Princess
Máxima of The Netherlands will attend
the morning program and formally
open the European Office.
• We are doing something that has never
been done before for this scale, complexity
and diversity.
• We are committed to scientific rigor,
transparency and multi-stakeholder
engagement.
• We are being efficient by building on
existing worldwide lifecycle, supply chain
and product data.
• We represent the largest corporations in
the world that want science applied.
• We are defining clear standards for social
and environmental metrics and creating or
partnering to build implementable tools.
What: Advancing the Science of Sustainability
How Are We Going To Achieve This?
Sustainability Measurement and Reporting System (SMRS)
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TM
• Mainstreams and operationalizes life cycle
thinking and approaches
• Specifies common rules and metrics for
measurement of a product’s environmental
and social attributes (i.e., calorie, SPF,
inches, etc.)
• Considers carbon, water, materials,
biodiversity, toxicity and social impacts
• Provides a common platform and tools
for sharing and reporting product data
What: Knowledge Creation and Management
Level 1 SMRS Category Sustainability Profiles
• Applies to the product category level (e.g. laundry
detergents, frozen beef, shoes)
• Not for product level comparison
• Promotes sharing of information
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Level 2 SMRS Product Sustainability Declaration
• Applies to the product level (e.g. JC’s Frozen
Beef Patties)
• Allows for direct comparison of products against
the product category baseline: includes uncertainty
• Based on Baseline (LCA) Model + PCR
Brand owner and
manufacturer info
Level of customization
and verification
Lifecycle inventory results
Energy, Water, Waste and
Carbon
Performance indicators
results by different
categories
3rd party criteria:
Certifications and ISO
Eco labels
Potential lifecycle
impacts
Lifecycle impact
assessment (LCIA)
midpoints
Product details
and attributes
Level 2 LCA Product Declarations
Level 1 Category Sustainability Profile
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Science for the Uniform Life Cycle Models
Collaborative Environment: Knowledge Base Interactive IT platform, “Knowledge Base,” enables TSC members to collaboratively
develop Level 1 LCAs and Category Sustainability Profiles
Screenshots of
the web-based
system,
Knowledge Base
• Bringing academia and business together
− Business reality is pragmatism, pace &
execution with an immediate ROI
− Academic reality is the quest for data,
scientific rigor & reputation
• Addressing LCA gaps
− Toxicity, Biodiversity & Social Issues
− Data availability
− Methodology differences
− Dynamic lifecycles (temporal & macro)
− Uncertainty & robustness analysis
How You Can Contribute
• LCAs are time and resource intensive
• Communications
− Difficult to communicate results
to non-experts
− Value chain diversity from raw materials
to consumers
− Complexity can lead to oversimplification
or bias
• Enable retailers to set environmental
performance thresholds for products they sell
− Educate and measure procurement and
buying community
How You Can Contribute
For More Information About Membership
Contact:
Greg Lewis
Assistant Director of
Development - Sustainability
Corporate and Foundation
Relations, University of
Arkansas
Office: (479) 575-4934 I
Cell: (479) 409-8971
Food, Beverage & Agriculture,
Packaging, Paper, Retail, and
Measurement Sciences
Contact:
Shaun Brenton
Associate Vice President,
Corporate Relations
ASU Foundation for a
New American University
Office: 480-965-1475
Fax: 480-965-0290
Home & Personal Care,
Electronics, Toys, and
Consumer Science
Contact:
Koen Boone
Head Centre for Economic
Information
LEI Wageningen UR
Office:
+31 (0) 70 33 58 235
Partnering for Transparent and Credible
Social and Environmental Research
• Generate product innovation ideas
• Reduce the environmental and
social impacts associated with
global production and consumption
• Help secure a brighter future for
next generations
Extra Slides
Challenges Associated With Product Sustainability
• Consumer demand for sustainable
products is increasing, which in turn
increases pressure on manufacturers,
suppliers and retailers
• Economic and environmental
inefficiencies in the supply chain
sharply impact profitability
• Science is gaining an understanding
of social and environmental impacts
and benefits
• Global regulations are emerging with
unpredictable metrics and reporting
• Cumbersome and inconsistent
surveying/scoring of manufacturers
and suppliers increases costs
History of TSC and the Sustainability Measurement
and Reporting System (SMRS)
Date State
Fall 2009 – Spring 2010 Established Sector Working Groups, Measurement Science
Working Group
Spring 2010 – Fall 2011 Level 2 SMRS Prototypes – Product Category Rules and LCAs
for seven product categories
Summer 2011 – Fall 2011 Level 1 SMRS Prototypes – Product Category Dossiers for 100
product categories
Fall 2011 – Winter 2012 SMRS Reengineering Project
2012 Level 1 SMRS production; Level 2 SMRS new component
development and prototyping
TM
• Hired New Executive Director, Bonnie
Nixon (previously with Hewlett Packard)
- April 2011
• Completed formal TSC assessment,
restructured organization and renewed
vision and mission
• Seated Board of Directors with
corporate, academic, and NGOs
(World Wildlife Fund & Care)
• Conducted budget analysis and
began extensive outreach into European
LCA community
• Delivered 7 Level 2 Product Category
Lifecycle Assessments (LCAs) and
tested our Sustainability Measurement
and Reporting System (SMRS) methods)
Recent Accomplishments and Near Future Plans
• Launched European Office in the Hague
which is based in the Netherlands
• Delivered 50 Level 1 Product Category
analyses and Dossiers
• Delivered 10 Category Sustainability
Profiles (CSPs) – narrative summaries
of detailed hot spot analyses,
improvement practices and stakeholder
concerns
• On target to deliver another 50 Level 1
Product Categories by January 2012
• Expanding to Asia and Latin America
and Re-engineering Level 2 LCA
methods in 2012
TSC Team Approach to SMRS
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• Identify environmental and social hot
spots and hot buttons most relevant
to their product categories
• Understand, access and develop key
indicators that will improve product
and supply chain performance
• Calculate the life cycle impacts of
products based on best available
science and data in conformance with
global standards (ISO)
• Complete environmental product
declarations in a scalable, cost-
effective way
Retailers: Why Consider Joining TSC
• Harmonize standards and systems for measuring the social and
environmental impacts of products
• Substantiate “green” product claims by arming your buying
community with credible tools for measuring product sustainability
and supplier performance
• Reduce confusion in the green and fair trade marketplace
• Genuinely increase your competitive edge by engaging, educating
and empowering consumers
Brand Manufacturers and Supply Chain
Partners: Why Consider Joining TSC
• Anticipate customer requirements and co-design practical and
implementable tools for measurement
• Level the competitive playing field by harmonizing standards,
measurement and reporting systems
• Prepare for emerging regulations and associated costs
• Dramatically reduce time and cost for product LCAs
• Reduce “green washing” and “fair trade” confusion
• Pool research and development funds with 100 partners and
increase product innovation and differentiation
• Reduce the cost and time to conduct LCAs
and address critical sustainability issues
with research, innovation, and education.
• Gain access to world-class academic
scientists, researchers and NGO experts
• Manage risks and find out what retailers and
customers are going to ask regarding
product sustainability attributes .
• Enhance reputation through alignment with
other sustainability leaders in multiple
sectors
Partnership Benefits of Working with TSC