Here is today’s sustainability news, research and analysis for technology partners, renewable energy and green IT companies, management consultants, CIOs, chief sustainability officers (CSOs) and c-suite members.
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A. Sustainable Technology, Talent, Partnerships and Alliances
1. Corporate Sustainability Reports List: Our database of corporate sustainability reports now spans 245 companies. The latest additions include law firm Baker McKenzie; energy firm Hess; energy distributor Kinder Morgan; and waste equipment manufacturer Wastequip.
2. Can Generative AI Be Green?: There are many considerations involved with the use of generative AI models by organizations and individuals: ethical, legal, and even philosophical and psychological. Ecological concerns, however, are worthy of being added to the mix, according to this Harvard Business Review essay from Ajay Kumar of the EMLYON Business School and Thomas H. Davenport of Babson College.
3. AI and ESG: Iceberg Data Lab (IDL), a green FinTech firm that provides scientific environmental data solutions to financial institutions, has launched an ESG AI assistant called Barbatus. The software can generate real-time, text-based and fully sourced explanations in response to questions regarding the ESG data of portfolio companies, IDL asserted.
4. Toxic Lead Cables - Telecom Investigation: The governor of New York and multiple industry watchers called on telecom companies to share more information about potential toxic lead cables in their networks.
5. Digital Twin Technology and Supply Chain Management: Only 5% of of chief supply chain offers expect Digital Twin of the Customer (DToC) to help improve environmental sustainability scores, a Gartner survey found.
6. SAP - Sustainability Software: SAP's new capabilities for ERP, sustainability, carbon accounting and AI will only be available in the cloud and delivered via RISE and GROW with SAP, the enterprise software provider said. Those new capabilities will not be available in on-premises software, SAP added.
7. University of California: The University of California has adopted "new, stronger climate action goals." In fact, the university expects some campuses to achieve decarbonization goals well ahead of the 2045 deadline.
B. Sustainability M&A, Investments and Funding
1. Potential Stock Delisting: Brenmiller Energy Ltd., a provider of thermal energy storage, may be delisted from the Nasdaq stock market if the company's share price fails to meet Nasdaq's minimum requirements, Brenmiller disclosed. Shares in Brenmiller ($BNRG) were trading at $0.94 as of July 21, 2023 -- a 74% decline over the past year.
2. All M&A Activity: Our M&A database has now tracked 105 mergers and acquisitions involving sustainability so far in 2023. See all M&A deals involving sustainability listed here.
C. Regional and Global Sustainability Policies and News
1. Africa - Solar Energy Partnership: Sunnova Energy International and Seeding Mercy Inc. (SMI) have funded the deployment of off-grid solar powered irrigation pumps for farms in South Sudan. This initiative "aims to combat hunger" and "paves the way for sustainable and renewable development in East Africa," the two organizations said.
2. United Arab Emirates: The United Arab Emirates, host of this year's COP28 UN climate summit, has set out "insufficient" plans to tackle climate change, according to the Climate Action Tracker. Related: Here's a complete timeline and countdown to the COP28 climate conference.
D. Sustainability and Green Technology Conference Calendar
- IAEE European Conference 2023 (July 24-27, Milan, Italy)
- ASES Solar 2023 Conference (August 8-11, Boulder, Colorado)
- MEMA Sustainability Summit (August 15, Troy, Michigan)
- World ESG Summit 2023 (August 21-22, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
- Google Cloud Next 2023 Partner and Customer Conference (August 29-21, San Francisco)
- Complete Calendar of Sustainability Conferences
E. Previous Updates & Future News
1. Did You Miss Yesterday's Daily Update?: Here is our previous sustainability, green IT and renewable energy news for technology partners.
2. Future Updates: Send Us Your News Tips. Please email me the details.
