"Sustainability is not complicated". Magali Anderson, ex-Holcim CSO. SUSXL TALK
The imperative should be to shift from reporting to transforming business models. CEOs should be more like “Chief Environment Officers. The perception of sustainability as a complex and expensive undertaking needs to be overturned.
Last week we launched the inaugural episode of our SUSXL TALKS series. We asked a panel of corporate sustainability leaders for their thoughts on the topic “COP28. So What. What Next?”
What we were trying to find out is how relevant COP is to business action, ambition and transition in sustainability. Is it now just a talking shop between states? Should it be the focal point that it has become in the sustainability calendar? And moving COP aside, what should our business leaders be doing or focusing in on in 2024 to create meaningful impactful business change?
It was an illuminating session attended by 70 business leaders. We’ve edited down some of what our panelists said and I’ll share a few of the interesting takes. Starting with Magali Anderson, ex-Chief Sustainability Officer at Holcim. Magali’s talk was about the approach business leaders should be taking in 2024.
You can hear her talk below.
Highlights:
>Critical of the perception of sustainability as a complex and expensive undertaking
>The imperative should be to shift from reporting to transforming business models
>CEOs should be more like “Chief Environment Officers”
>There is a critical need to move beyond mere rhetoric and talk of transition
>Expressed some frustration at the slow progress despite years of the same machinations and hashtags
>Suggesting (tongue-in-cheek) adopting a new hashtag slogan: “hashtag#FromActionToActionOnSteroids” rather than repeating the same calls to action
>Sustainability must be seen as a business opportunity
Magali Anderson on THE SUSXL TALKS panel 16th Jan 2024