Issue #22: It's just business
Our Top Stories
Climate-focused companies exceeding financial goals: Edie sheds light on a recent study, conducted by EY, that has shown the correlation between business climate action and exceeding financial targets. Companies regarded as “pacesetters” on climate – those which have set ambitious targets and completed a broader set of actions than their competitors – were found to be 2.4 times as likely to report significantly higher financials than expected. This goes to show that putting sustainability at the heart of your business can truly increase performance. Companies should see climate action as a way to grow the business, not just as a mandatory process. [Edie]
Lula’s victory: In a historic election, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva beat incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro, earning just over 50 percent of the vote. According to Vox, his victory is promising news for the Amazon rainforest, with Lula’s policies predicted to result in a 89% decrease of deforestation by 2030. In Lula’s last term of presidency, between 2003 and 2011, deforestation fell by 80%. However, when Bolsanaro was president from 2018 to just last week, deforestation accelerated, showing a 52% increase when compared to the previous three years. The Amazon can hopefully breathe a sigh of relief, as the world now looks to Lula and Brazil with the promise that the rainforest’s destruction can be halted before we reach irreversible levels. [Vox]
The deforestation trend in the Amazon has been worrying for the past several years, but now with a change of presidency, things may start to decrease once again. Source: Vox
The need for agroforestry: The Woodland Trust has urged the government to set a target for converting 10% of arable land to agroforestry systems as part of a 40-year rotation, Farming UK reports. Agroforestry is the integration of trees within an agricultural area. The reason for Woodland Trust’s pressure on the government is because a major increase in agroforestry is seen as 'essential' if the country is to meet nature and climate targets. Establishing agroforestry on 10% of arable land and 30% of grassland could enable farm emissions to reach Net Zero by 2050 whilst maintaining food production. To make farmers more resilient economically and environmentally in a rapidly changing landscape, agroforestry should be at the centre of the government’s agricultural strategy.
The plastic-eating robot fish: A student at the University of Surrey has designed a robot fish capable of filtering waterways to collect microplastics. Thred notes that the digital code is open source too, so anyone with access to a 3D printer can create their own. In what may be a revolutionary invention, robotic fish could be implemented in a worldwide citizen-involvement strategy to remove microplastics from our water, which currently make up almost 92% of the estimated 5.25 trillion plastic objects floating on the ocean’s surface. This could be an effective technological solution to aid the effort of cleaning up our global plastic pollution. [Thred]
Robots are being trialled globally within water systems to unlock their potential to remove microplastics. Source: Thred
Research Corner
Higher CO2 levels lead to plant mineral deficiency: In the past, scientists have seen enhanced photosynthesis as one of the only possible bright sides of increasing levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) - as plants use carbon dioxide for photosynthesis, it is thought that increased CO2 would increase plant productivity. Alain Gojon and his team have now found this to be unfounded, as elevated levels of CO2 actually make it difficult for plants to obtain minerals necessary to grow and provide nutritious food. The long term consequences of this study are crucial, as it adds to the collection of evidence that a world with increased atmospheric levels of CO2 has almost no positive knock-on effects. In order for plants to maintain their levels of production, and uphold a food system that can feed the global population, there is no option but to reduce our emissions. [Trends in Plant Science]
Stat Attack
“While only 4% of Americans say they follow a plant-based diet - which can be vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian, or some other variety where plants are prioritised over meat - more than half would be willing to eat more plant-based foods if they knew more about the environmental effects of their food choices.”
Source: Earth Day Network
The Big Picture
Temperature records are still continuously being broken in 2022, with October seeing an unprecedented level of warmth in Europe. The map shows temperatures compared to normal across Europe over the last five days of October. Record high temperatures - as much as 20 degrees Celsius above normal - stretched from Scandinavia through central and western Europe and southward into North Africa. Source: The Washington Post
About Reewild
The food and agriculture industry is at the heart of the climate crisis, generating around a third of man-made greenhouse emissions. And while the challenge of reducing its impact may seem beyond our grasp, it is one that we all have the power to tackle.
We believe that the solution lies in climate transparency. That’s why we’re equipping businesses with the means to evaluate and communicate the emissions of their products. This, in turn, means consumers are armed with credible, independent information, which can be used to make more sustainable choices.
We know that many people want to take climate action but lack the necessary tools and information to do so. We're confident that, armed with the right knowledge, everyone can and will do their bit to build a greener, more sustainable food system.