Our Musings
Climate risk and response: Physical hazards and socioeconomic impacts
17 JAN 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ID Stats
After more than 10,000 years of relative stability—the full span of human civilization—the Earth’s climate is changing. As average temperatures rise, climate science finds that acute hazards such as heat waves and floods grow in frequency and severity, and chronic hazards, such as drought and rising sea levels, intensify. In this report, we focus on understanding the nature and extent of physical risk from a changing climate over the next one to three decades, exploring physical risk as it is the basis of both transition and liability risks.
Breaking Down Singapore's Climate Scorecard: Greenwatching the Garden City
17 JAN 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
A recent report from a local environment group and Greenwatch's politically non-partisan campaign shows that Singapore's current government has " not walked the talk" on climate change.
The drive toward sustainability in packaging—beyond the quick wins.
30 Jan 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
Sustainability—particularly regulatory and public concerns around single-use packaging waste—is combining with other powerful trends to drive major changes in consumer packaging. Regulators are moving on the issue, and Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) companies and retailers are proactively making bold commitments to improve both the sustainability of their packaging and to fundamentally rethink their packaging systems...
Re-Evaluating Our Way of Life – ‘Sustainable Living’
20 Jul 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
The pandemic has forced us to revisit the social and economic paradigms that were often considered to be given in the past years. Indeed, the Covid 19 has through enforced isolation has not only triggered economic recession, but also social recession; as it has made each of us – our social strata notwithstanding - confront firsthand the issue of ‘personal safety and thrust upon each of us the challenge of living in an uncertain world’.
Deforestation is Increasing During the Pandemic: What Can Business Do to Turn the Tide?
24 Jul 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
World Rainforest Day (WRD) has arrived again for the fourth consecutive year, this time during the COVID-19 pandemic. WRD is a time for enjoying the rainforests with all their glory, diversity and resource richness. It's also a day to consider the threats facing these ecosystems, including deforestation, and ask: What can we do to protect these precious habitats?
How to Teach Sustainable Habits to Kids?
28 Jul 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
How can you do to ensure that your children understand the state of the environment without upsetting them and help them become part of the solution in an environment of Greta Thunbergs, the ever-present challenge of climate change, and its already devastating toll?
The Ocean’s Reality
31 Jul 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
There are billions of pounds (over 51 trillion microplastic particles) swirling around the ocean today, more than one-third of the fish caught for human consumption contain microplastics, and by 2050 scientists predict that there will be more plastics in the ocean than fish by weight.
Why Sustainable Food Systems are Needed in a post-COVID World
17 Aug 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
Food systems are essential to economic development as they have the resources, we need for living and working. But macroeconomists have long ignored them in the belief that the highly mechanized, subsidized and concentrated global agri-food industry now offers everything we could wish for in food.
CORPORATE SUSTAINABILITY: WHAT IS IT AND WHERE DOES IT COME FROM?
28 Sep 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
Combine sustainable development, corporate social responsibility, theory and transparency to stakeholders, and you have the four corporate sustainability foundations. It's an emerging theory adopted by managers as an alternative to the conventional paradigm of growth and benefit maximization.
The 3 Pillars of Corporate Sustainability
28 Sep 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
In businesses large and small, corporate sustainability has become a buzzword. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (WMT), McDonald's Corporation (MCD) and several of the real corporate giants have defined sustainability as a core priority for going forward.1 2 Other businesses are also under pressure to explain how they expect to contribute and produce their products and services in a sustainable way. This, of course, begs the question of what all this means exactly.
Why all businesses should embrace sustainability
28 Sep 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
Simply stated, sustainability is a business approach to long-term value development by taking into account the ecological, social and economic climate of how a given enterprise operates. Sustainability is founded on the premise that business sustainability is fostered by the implementation of such strategies.
Sustainability trends to watch out
6 Nov 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
A surge of advocacy, financial innovation and government initiatives aimed at meaningful social change has started in the new decade. An increasing number of CEOs, policymakers and consumers are aware of the acceleration of major social and environmental problems, particularly climate change, beyond the limits of our current system.
What a sustainable circular economy would look like
6 Nov 2020 AARNESH SHRIVASTAVA, ACTION IMPACT
The concept of a circular economy is simple: to make better use of resources, close resource flow loops by completely recovering materials rather than wasting them, and by better designing goods and materials and keeping them in use for longer, to avoid waste and pollution.
Ways Corporations Can Achieve Authentic Social Impact
14 Aug 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
For businesses to be competitive in this new environment, they need to move beyond simply saying the right things to do the right things. They need to build opportunities for change at all levels of the company, from the most junior positions to the board of directors, which will bring real social impact. Here are ways to start.
Impact Measurement: The Business Response Case Studies
20 Aug 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
Like many other methodologies, it's no surprise that when it comes to impact reporting, there are differences in approaches. Below we discuss several case studies demonstrating how businesses approached the calculation of the social and environmental effects.
The world is now 8.6% circular.
6 Feb 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
There was a report initiated at Davos by the thinktank Circle Economy. The story, right? Resource use of the world economy has quadrupled since 1970. That's much higher than the world's population, which just doubled. After a year, we keep about a third of products in use (think homes, cars, etc.), 15 percent are released as emissions, we waste a third (as in, landfill). And almost a quarter of us throw away into the world. How much recycling? 8.6%
KNow helped Leeza’s Care Connection determine their HUGS program’s value
16 Jan 2020Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
the KNow Research team nominates and chooses a non-profit organization for their pro-bono project. This year’s recipient was Leeza’s Care Connection, a caregiving organization founded by Leeza Gibbons, who’s mission is to help those caring for their loved ones. Using a multi-phased approach, the KNow team determined the unique benefits of their HUGS program (Helping U Grow Strong) to help clarify their positioning for communication, messaging and outreach expansion.
Needs Assessment: Deciding if Training is the Right Solution.
20 Aug 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
"I suppose it is tempting to handle anything as if it were a nail, if the only tool you have is a hammer," once said Abraham Maslow, one of the pioneers in the field of psychology and training. Therefore, the job of trainers is to build up their toolboxes so that they can react with more than one hammer. When doing a little research, also known as the needs review, trainers will decide what resources they need.
Reasons Why Corporate Executives Must Up their 'Social' Quotient
20 Nov 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
At a time when 'social' has come to be related to - or decreasing, as the case may be) one's presence on an increasing number of social media and networking sites in our society, there is an idea of being social whose time has really come: of Corporate India specifically, the people who make up our businesses making a sincere effort to understand and resolve the diverse so Why are you allowed to ask? To begin with, here are the reasons:
When, which … Design Thinking, Lean, Design Sprint, Agile?
23 Jul 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
Many people are-understandably so-very uncertain about methodologies, systems and strategies for innovation. Questions such as: "How do we use Design Thinking? "What is the Design Sprint 's purpose? "" Is Lean Startup for startups only? "How is Agile fitting in? "What happens after the process of < a certain methodology >? "The questions are all very general.
Product Innovation: Meaningful Work in the Age of Automation
24 Jul 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
Everybody wants to do important research whether we think about it or not. Significant research is highly motivational and deeply personal, contributing to greater commitment, success and satisfaction. Significant research can appear to concentrate on the worker, but most people who encounter significant work see it as a larger contribution to society. We want this work to affect other people, communities and the wider world.
Reconceiving Innovation for Covid-19
21 Sep 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
Covid-19 has brought new sense for many companies into the old cliché that a crisis is merely an opportunity in disguise. Digital businesses like Amazon and Zoom were struggling not only with incumbents before the pandemic but also with traditions that refused to die, such as handshake and clearance sales. Today, Covid-19 has disrupted the old ways, leaving much less competition and far more room to innovate for these already cutting-edge companies. There's no wonder that Amazon has recruited 175,000 frontline staff as it prepares for significant growth.
A culture of innovation strengthens business resilience and fuels economic recovery in Singapore
28 Sep 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
As Singapore and Asia Pacific continue to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic disruptions, 80% of business decision-makers in Singapore today state that innovation is now a 'must' for them to rapidly respond to market challenges and opportunities and ensure progress. Almost all (98 percent) of Asia Pacific's leading organizations with the most mature culture of innovation (leaders) believe that innovation is a must to remain resilient during a crisis.
The Complex Relationship Between Crowdsourcing and Innovation
29 Sep 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
Innovation and crowdsourcing, each with its own set of specific problems, are challenging subjects by nature; for CSR and business for good practitioners, this means finding out how to carefully manage all subjects as they occur. It's not too much of a challenge to take them on their own, but if we are trying to use crowdsourcing as a way to formulate and create an idea, then that's where things start to get a little complicated.
Gamification: A New Path towards Innovation
30 Sep 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
In the video game industry, the rapid acceleration of information technology has led to a huge boom. Some are interested in trying it out in non-gaming ways, curious about what really makes games so engaging. This method (not to be confused with game theory) is called "gamification".
Developing a Go-to-market Strategy for Social Impact Start-ups
20 Nov 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
When it has worn out the initial excitement of becoming a bootstrapped start-up working to address societal problems, it is time for the entrepreneur to answer some difficult questions - was the market defined? Are consumers prepared to welcome this new item? Is there a match for the product market?
Why is Volunteering important for students?
2 Mar 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
I entered the world of formal volunteering when I was in 7th grade. There was a government run ‘Each one Teach one’ program in which our school had partnered. Students were encouraged to stay for one hour after school in help in adult education classes. I don’t know if I had a truly altruistic motive in joining it or maybe I just wanted to shine in my teacher’s eyes. I was just a kid! But it did hook me to volunteering in education. Later in college, I started volunteering at the local municipality school to take extra sessions for students weak in Mathematics, Science and English...
Why is Volunteering important for students?
5 Aug 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
Managing a volunteer program is a big challenge from hiring dedicated and professional volunteers to ensuring that they are organized and qualified to get the job done. You don't waste time on spreadsheets and e-mails. Imagine being able to do twice as much in half the time? You do this with a volunteer management approach, thus increasing the positive effect of the organization. Here are the Volunteer Management you need to help you save time and increase your impact.
Fundraising Action Plan for Crisis Response
21 Jul 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
Fundraising is a delicate activity in times of crisis. So, the need to receive financial support has never been more urgent for many organisations.
Your organization may face a critical situation and you need to let the stakeholders know about it.
How to Fundraise For Coronavirus Relief On Social Media
28 Jul 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
Novel crises often come with complications which warrant widespread public responses. Fundraising can be a part of the answer. For the case of the COVID-19 pandemic, this includes allocating funds to study vaccines and treatments; securing short-supplied hospital medical equipment; and helping vital staff, health care providers, and communities affected.
Nonprofits and grassroots leaders across industries provide growing forms of providing support for the effects of the pandemic. Here's how to effectively fundraise them on social media. Of course it's not an exhaustive list, but it does have a starting point. This all counts.
Impact Investing: What you need to know
18 Sep 2020 Aarnesh Shrivastava, Action Impact.
Impact investments are investments made with the goal of creating significant, observable social and environmental effects alongside a financial return. Impact investments may be made in both developing and developed markets, and target a range of returns from lower to market rates, depending on the strategic objectives of the investors.