Authors:
- A survey of the world’s largest chemical companies is at the core of this book. It is an empirical examination of sustainability practice
- Practice is outlined in detail in a series of table that show, and compare, what these leading companies are doing (and not doing) in sustainability
- Explanation of the diverse definitions of sustainability held by academics, the public and investors
Part of the book series: Green Energy and Technology (GREEN)
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Table of contents (13 chapters)
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Front Matter
About this book
It’s the new rock and roll. It’s the new black. Sustainability is trendy, and not just among hipsters and pop stars. The uncool chemical sector helped pioneer it, and today, companies inside and outside the sector have embraced it. But what have they embraced? Surely not the Brundtland definition of meeting “the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
Sustainability describes a change in the chemical industry’s approach to the external world: to regulators, to greens, to neighbors, to investors and to the general public. Displacing the adversarialism of the 1970s-80s, sustainability is a new approach to social/political conflict, and an attempt to rebuild the industry’s long-suffering public image. In practice, it consists of:
A ‘stakeholder’ approach to communications and external relations
A rebranding of regulatory compliance and risk management, with the emphasis on their benefits to stakeholders
Recognition (and even celebration) of the opportunities, not just the costs, of environmental and social protection
The core of this book is a survey of the world’s 29 largest chemical companies: how they put sustainability into action (six of the 29 do not), and the six ‘sustainability brands’ they have created. It begins with a history of stakeholders conflict, before looking at various definitions of sustainability – by academics, by the public and by investors. After the survey and analysis, the book covers sustainability and ‘greenwash’ plus the ROI of sustainability, and it gives five recommendations.
Authors and Affiliations
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Atlantic Consulting, Gattikon (Zurich), Switzerland
Eric Johnson
About the author
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Sustainability in the Chemical Industry
Authors: Eric Johnson
Series Title: Green Energy and Technology
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-3834-8
Publisher: Springer Dordrecht
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental Science, Earth and Environmental Science (R0)
Copyright Information: Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012
Hardcover ISBN: 978-94-007-3833-1Published: 18 April 2012
Softcover ISBN: 978-94-017-8155-8Published: 09 May 2014
eBook ISBN: 978-94-007-3834-8Published: 17 April 2012
Series ISSN: 1865-3529
Series E-ISSN: 1865-3537
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XVI, 176
Topics: Environmental Chemistry, Communication Studies, Business Strategy/Leadership, Energy Systems, Industrial Chemistry/Chemical Engineering