A vision for sustainable food
Food systems and sustainable agriculture — Europe
Origin Green sums up the best of what joined-up thinking looks like: uniting food and drink businesses of all sizes in Ireland under a national sustainability programme
Responsible consumption and production
Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
Targets
Indicators
Target
12.1
Implement the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns, all countries taking action, with developed countries taking the lead, taking into account the development and capabilities of developing countries
Indicators
12.1.1
Number of countries developing, adopting or implementing policy instruments aimed at supporting the shift to sustainable consumption and production
Target
12.2
By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources
Indicators
12.2.1
Material footprint, material footprint per capita, and material footprint per GDP
12.2.2
Domestic material consumption, domestic material consumption per capita, and domestic material consumption per GDP
Target
12.3
By 2030, halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses
Indicators
12.3.1
(a) Food loss index and (b) food waste index
Target
12.4
By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment
Indicators
12.4.1
Number of parties to international multilateral environmental agreements on hazardous waste, and other chemicals that meet their commitments and obligations in transmitting information as required by each relevant agreement
12.4.2
(a) Hazardous waste generated per capita; and (b) proportion of hazardous waste treated, by type of treatment
Target
12.5
By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse
Indicators
12.5.1
National recycling rate, tons of material recycled
Target
12.6
Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle
Indicators
12.6.1
Number of companies publishing sustainability reports
Target
12.7
Promote public procurement practices that are sustainable, in accordance with national policies and priorities
Indicators
12.7.1
Number of countries implementing sustainable public procurement policies and action plans
Target
12.8
By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature
Indicators
12.8.1
Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education; and (d) student assessment
Target
12.a
Support developing countries to strengthen their scientific and technological capacity to move towards more sustainable patterns of consumption and production
Indicators
12.a.1
Installed renewable energy-generating capacity in developing countries (in watts per capita)
Target
12.b
Develop and implement tools to monitor sustainable development impacts for sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products
Indicators
12.b.1
Implementation of standard accounting tools to monitor the economic and environmental aspects of tourism sustainability
Target
12.c
Rationalize inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption by removing market distortions, in accordance with national circumstances, including by restructuring taxation and phasing out those harmful subsidies, where they exist, to reflect their environmental impacts, taking fully into account the specific needs and conditions of developing countries and minimizing the possible adverse impacts on their development in a manner that protects the poor and the affected communities
Indicators
12.c.1
Amount of fossil-fuel subsidies (production and consumption) per unit of GDP
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Is clean technology transfer an empty promise?
Economic development — Global
Technology transfer is fundamental in developing countries’ aspirations to decarbonize, yet the flow of green tech from developed nations is far below what’s needed. How can we shift investment and political incentives to truly enable the proliferation of sustainable technology worldwide?
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Time to face the facts
Climate — Global
COP28 is a pivotal moment for the Paris Agreement. The first global stocktake presents a comprehensive view of progress towards the goals of the agreement. The synthesis report released in September makes it clear we are falling well short. The science is clear and, collectively, we have the knowledge and resources to deliver. Now it is time for political leaders to unite behind a common plan to address the climate crisis
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Critics of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change’s focus on production-based emissions argue that it ignores “carbon leakage.” How might a consumption-based approach, looking beyond national borders, improve climate mitigation strategies?
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Wrestling with hypernumbers
Climate — Global
The promise of trillion-dollar sustainable finance initiatives rests on a triple fallacy: that we can make sense of them, that they are a measure of money that is available to finance or support climate-related causes, and that someone has structured and organized control over these amounts. It’s time to accept their extremely limited utility and move on
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The snowball effect of supplier engagement: cutting emissions through science-based targets
Climate — Global
Scope 3 emissions, those outside an organization’s direct control, are proving the most stubborn to reduce. Key to success is more companies working with their suppliers to adopt science-based targets throughout the whole value chain
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What role can carbon markets play in preserving forests?
Climate — Global
Evidence is mounting that forest carbon offset credits are not working. Can a new approach, based on countries and companies making wider contributions to climate action beyond offsetting emissions, save the world’s forests?
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Every watt we save brings us closer to net zero
Climate — Global
Improvements in energy efficiency are a critical component in our quest to reach net zero by 2050. While rapid technological advances suggest the transformation is possible, we must also direct efforts to overcome the many challenges – from financial to behavioral – that remain
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Solving the energy storage problem for a clean energy system
Energy — Global
Energy storage is a critical flexibility solution if the world is to fully transition to renewables. While many technical, policy, and regulatory barriers remain, there are already a range of maturing solutions that we can leverage
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Growing sustainability leaders
Food systems and sustainable agriculture — Europe
Origin Green provides a range of services to raise sustainability and climate literacy in the Irish food and drinks sector
