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Companies are increasingly encouraged to adopt a sustainable and responsible approach.
This CSR news encourages us to reflect on and explore new ways of integrating social and environmental issues into our practices.
We examine themes such as pay transparency, the challenges of greenwashing, and biodiversity loss and its economic impact on Europe. These CSR news items stimulate our thinking and drive us forward on these vital issues.
Be sustainable: be rebellious!
In an article published in Novethic, the 3 heads of B Lab France call for a "constructive rebellion" by companies in the face of the stagnant consensus of business models that fail to take seriously the challenges of "human progress and the protection of living beings".
Their first observation points to the urgent need to put an end to economic models focused solely on competition, the vision of short-term profit and the excessive concentration of wealth within the company.
They also stress the importance of "redefining economic success", which must be seen in its interdependent relationship with social and ecological issues.
Finally, they affirm the need for companies to cooperate with each other and with society.
Improving CSR performance through pay transparency
From 2026, a European directive will oblige companies with over 100 employees to be more transparent when it comes to remuneration. However, taking action today, regardless of the size of your company, is an excellent opportunity to improve your organization's social performance.
According to an Ifop study, "8 out of 10 employees believe that salary transparency is beneficial", and 60% believe that it improves policies to reduce inequality.
Salary transparency ensures greater equity between all employees. It's not just a question of making pay scales fully visible, but also of explaining the criteria used to calculate them. The primary objective is to reduce gender inequality within the company.
Scope 3 is a must for carbon audits of small and medium-sized businesses
Carbo, a company specializing in carbon audits, has published a carbon audit barometer focusing on small and medium-sized businesses. The survey is based on a sample of 944 small and medium-sized French companies that have recently carried out a carbon audit.
First conclusion: 65% of respondents include scope 1, 2 and 3 in their impact measurement. In other words, direct emissions, energy-related emissions and all indirect emissions linked to the company's activities.
In other words, more and more French companies are taking account of their environmental impact across their entire value chain. This reflects a gradual change in the way companies view their social and environmental responsibility in society and on Earth.
Greenwashing: towards improved practices?
The Autorité de Régulation Professionnelle de la Publicité (ARPP) has published its 12th "Advertising and the Environment" report, which provides a wealth of data on greenwashing practices and trends. Conclusion: they are on the decline, "but it's still too much"!
Between November and December 2023, a total of 33,080 advertisements were aired, of which 3.1% used an environmental argument. Of these, 65 (6.4%) were deemed "non-compliant". This is an improvement on the figures for 2022 and 2019.
Although on the decline, greenwashing practices are still "two to ten times higher" than the number of abuses identified in other advertising sectors, according to ARPP.
Finally, the study shows that these behaviors are found at all levels, in all types of sectors and in all sizes of company.
Streaming's very high energy bill
Arcom, Arcep and ADEME have published a study on the impact of audiovisual practices on the environment, with a particular focus on the market for streaming platforms. They are faced with a complex paradox when it comes to meeting consumers' growing demand for sustainability.
Indeed, while they are becoming increasingly energy-hungry, the business model of streaming platforms is based on retaining users' available time. In other words, to generate profits, you need to generate streams, and therefore consume a lot of energy.
The results of the study show that, without change on its part, the sector's carbon footprint could increase by 30% by 2030. It focuses on two areas for improvement: better energy performance of electronic equipment (tablets, smartphones, etc.) and better internal management of the companies concerned.
Big oil's back-pedaling on the environment
UK-based BP, following in the footsteps of giants Shell and TotalEnergies, is reneging on its climate commitments to reduce oil and gas production by 2030. In addition, its stated ambition to transition its business to renewables has been significantly scaled back.
Sources claim that these reversals are aimed at "regaining investor confidence" and "closing a valuation gap with its rivals" in the energy market. This situation can also be explained by the geopolitical uncertainties linked to the war in Ukraine.
The oil majors have recently adopted strategies to accelerate investment in fossil fuels and hydrocarbons. These moves run counter to their initial commitments on the one hand, and on the other, to the reduction targets set by the Paris Agreements to limit global warming to 1.5°C by the end of the century.
In Poland, Décathlon goes 100% renewable
French retailer Décathlon is to connect its 14 Polish stores to solar power. In partnership with another French company, GreenYellow. This sustainable energy solution will prevent the sports equipment manufacturer from emitting 2,000 tonnes of Co2 per year.
This approach is based on an innovative energy solution: Photovoltaics-as-a-Service (PVaaS). This enables companies to purchase renewable energy "without having to raise capital to install the equipment".
The 15-year contract signed by Décathlon offers the benefits of a greatly reduced carbon footprint, long-term financial savings, and real energy independence in a country (Poland) where production is largely coal-fired.
Erosion of biodiversity threatens European economy
The ECB has just published a report highlighting the importance of combating the erosion of biodiversity. At the same time, WWF points out that the rate of biodiversity loss has reached 73% in the last 50 years.
This analysis is based on the fact that European companies are highly dependent on natural ecosystems. According to the ECB, around 3 million companies in the eurozone, or 72% of them, are "critically dependent" on biodiversity, and "will face significant economic challenges" in the future as a result.
For example, the collapse of biodiversity could increase production costs in the agricultural sector, and ultimately accelerate inflation. Not to mention the number of loans "granted to companies critically dependent on at least one ecosystem service".
Biodiversity has been collapsing for 50 years
WWF has published a report whose conclusions are as clear as they are alarming: the population of wild vertebrate animals (mammals, birds, fish, amphibians, etc.) declined by 73% between 1970 and 2020. These data should feed into discussions at the forthcoming 16th World Conference on Biodiversity (COP16) in Colombia.
These figures are based on the Living Planet Index (LPI), which assesses the abundance of wild vertebrate animal populations every year. The report also points out that when one species disappears, entire ecosystems are threatened and weakened.
Finally, the report does not hesitate to underline the risk of a "tipping point" at which climate change "feeds on itself", generating chain reactions with "often brutal and potentially irreversible" effects.
Pathologies linked to the management of large groups?
Winner of the "Penser le travail" prize, sociologist and work clinician Thomas Périlleux has given an article to Le Monde. His work questions the ills and pathologies associated with managerial methods in large organizations, particularly when this confiscates the voice of employees.
He argues that organizational gears can lead some employees to act at odds with their values, dragged along by the machine, and that this causes serious damage over time.
He also asserts that the culture of managerial "agility" and "flexibility" tends to embellish the sometimes very violent reality of professional constraints, speaking of "insidious, low-key violence" when it prevents the expression of disagreements and employee malaise.
The sources
Novethic "Companies: let's be rebels, not revolutionaries"
Youmatter "Pay transparency: why and how to get involved?"
Carenews "A broader spectrum for corporate carbon footprints".
Youmatter "Greenwashing: 6.4% of advertising non-compliant"
RSE Magazine "Energy: digital technology consumes more and more".
Novethic "BP, TotalEnergies, Shell: back to fossils"
RSE Magazine "In Poland, Decathlon will supply its stores with 100% solar power".
Novethic "COP16: 72% of European companies are dependent on biodiversity"
Le Monde "Wild vertebrate populations have declined by 73% in fifty years".
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