65 Business Opportunities Identified for a Sustainable NZ

27 November 2014

65 Business Opportunities Identified for a Sustainable NZ

In a new, publicly-available report the Sustainable Business Network (SBN) identifies 65 business opportunities that will help bring about a more sustainable New Zealand.

“Business Opportunities for a Sustainable New Zealand” represents the collective work of hundreds of individuals and organisations who have participated with SBN in events, workshops and surveys around the country during 2014.

Commercial opportunities are outlined in four areas: smart transport, social value in business, restoring NZ’s food system and the circular economy (massive resources efficiencies for zero waste).

The report can be downloaded here.

CEO of SBN Rachel Brown says she’s really pleased to release the findings which demonstrate the tremendous range and number of pioneering opportunities around. “This report represents the output of a diverse range of individuals and organisations that we have had the pleasure of working with this year,” she says.

“We need new business and commercial models to transform many of the systems we rely on – such as food, transport, energy and social systems – to make them more resilient, more equitable and able to continue into the future. Business has a crucial role to play in doing this, and it’s through new solutions and more collaboration that we can start to make a difference.

“The opportunities outlined in this report are really just a start and we hope they get picked up by others. While that is happening we (SBN) are now working with our progressive members on a range of active projects, some of which are described in the report, which are collaborations between businesses, social enterprises and local government. It’s really exciting as these projects genuinely do have the potential to shift New Zealand markets onto a more sustainable path.”

Some of the opportunities SBN has identified and is working on include:
• Electric vehicles: Some businesses are now seriously considering the conversion of a proportion of their corporate fleet to electric vehicles. There are clearer benefits of the new electric vehicles coming on the market over traditional vehicle types, for example in fuel savings.

• Procurement: an organisation’s purchasing choices have a real and immediate impact on the community around them. Most procurement policies focus on maximising economic value for the company, yet there is a major opportunity for corporates and councils to include criteria that value social and environmental performance, such as locally made products, whole of life costs, and relevance to an organisation’s purpose.

• Deposit scheme: incorporating a deposit element into the price charged for a product, which is repaid to the customer when the product is returned at the end of its life, is a business opportunity. It enables a lower net price to be charged based on the fact that value can be extracted from the product at the end of its life.

• ICT and food apps: these can help connect consumers and suppliers so each knows what is available and desired, along with health and environmental considerations. ICT can also improve transparency about food by tracing products from gate to plate.

“Our next steps will be to work with businesses around the country to unlock the potential of these additional opportunities. We know there are many more opportunities identified than we can possibly hope to be involved in, but we are actively working with our members and project partners to make some of them a reality,” says Rachel.

Based on the report’s findings, SBN has already started the following projects: sustainable procurement; sustainable investment; culture change and employee engagement; community footprinting; biodiesel; reducing food waste; national cycling infrastructure, strengthening local food systems; supporting businesses with good food solutions; and water restoration (via the Million Metres Streamsproject, a crowd-funding website to fund the restoration of New Zealand’s waterways).

Download ‘Business Opportunities for a Sustainable New Zealand’.

About the Sustainable Business Network
The Sustainable Business Network (SBN) provides advice and support to help business succeed through becoming more sustainable. As the largest organisation of businesses dedicated to sustainability in New Zealand, the SBN actively helps our network of progressive companies to: collaborate with other innovators and learn; profile stories and connect; and access practical support.

www.sustainable.org.nz

ENDS

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