Publications

Biodiversity and ecosystem services are critical to businesses, for achieving sustainable development. Businesses are faced with challenges and risks of over-exploitation of natural resources, land-use change, habitat diversion, climate change and pollution which are leading to loss of biodiversity and degradation of ecosystem services. The IBBI declaration helps organisations to map their business linkages with biodiversity and ecosystem services and to identify the risks and opportunities across their value chain. The effective biennial biodiversity reporting, which includes regular mapping of biodiversity and ecosystem aspects across their businesses adds value in several areas.  This guidance document provides guidance to Indian businesses to develop disclosures on natural capital and enable businesses to effectively communicate about biodiversity and ecosystem services by providing standardised data and showcasing the achieved positive outcomes.

Studies commissioned by the G20 nations, carried out by the International Resource Panel, in 2017, show that there is substantial scope reducing for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through material efficiency strategies. 

Such strategies result in reductions above and beyond those attainable through decarbonization, improved energy efficiency, and so on. Strategies of material efficient design, yield improvements both in manufacturing and recovery; methods to intensify use, extend lifespan, repair,  can be effective in reducing life-cycle GHG emissions.

In India, where growth is occurring rapidly, in all sectors of the economy, such strategies when applied through the product's life cycle, can help meet the NDCs, increase employment, reduce resource consumption, and adverse environmental impacts. 

Before examining/quantifying the potential for application of such strategies in India, a scoping study was carried out to identify sectors of the economy to focus on. This report summarises the results of the scoping study. 

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) conducted a Side Event during the World Circular Economy Forum on 27 October 2020. Insights and information emerging from CII-CESD’s report, A Circular Plastics Economy Strategy for India (https://bit.ly/3meWoc2) were presented. The summary of discussions is presented in this document.

The concept of the circular economy focuses on closed-loop cycles of materials and energy and growth within the regenerative capacity of the environment. Given the environmental, resource related and geopolitical challenges companies face, the circular economy has evolved as a new path to competitiveness—an alternative for our current business models. Therefore, adopting a circular economy is crucial to a company’s survival. The CII-ITC CESD has put together to have this CEO’s Guide on Circular Economy and Competitiveness.