The event, titled 'The Social Face of Sustainability', attracted around 200 executives and students to the Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship in the Rotterdam Science Tower, and took a closer look at the social aspect of sustainable business, one of the three factors that define sustainability.
Participants learned what constitutes the social face of sustainable business and the business case for endorsing it during breakout session presentations led by practitioners from a variety of international organisations including Samsung, Enviu, Except, ABN AMRO, Ahold, Ernst & Young, Delta Lloyd and Robeco. The event was moderated by Muriel Arts, co-founder and director of the Flow Foundation.
Sustainable brands at Unilever
Huisman has been instrumental in developing Unilever's sustainability policy over the past 13 years and said Unilever had its roots in social sustainability. “Improving nutrition and hygiene were the driving forces behind the company's first products,” she said, and the company wanted to reduce the huge number of people still suffering malnutrition. Unilever recently topped an annual ranking of food companies by Oxfam for human rights, and considers the 'social' aspect of sustainability as a fundamental part of its strategy.
“For us, the business case is clear: sustainable brands are more popular, greater efficiencies reduce costs, long-term sustainable relationships with our suppliers reduce risks, and sustainability improves our reputation – we have been named the third most favourable company to work for after Apple and Google. This is our business case for our 'sustainable living initiative',” said Huisman. Unilever was the first to publish a human rights report last year and is now sourcing all raw materials from sustainable agriculture. She described the company’s decision to phase out a relationship with the biggest palm oil supplier in the world as a 'very uncomfortable decision'. “When you put into practice responsible sourcing it has huge knock-on effects, and may mean not meeting targets,” she said. “But we have done it.”
KPMG awards top master's thesis
This year's RSM Sustainability Forum marked the tenth anniversary of the KPMG-RSM Sustainability Master Thesis Award. Jan van den Herik, Director Strategy & Innovation KPMG presented the top award, including a €1000 prize, to Tirza Voss, with the runner-up award, including a €500 prize, to Nadine Kooiker.
Breakout sessions
Six parallel breakout sessions, hosted by experts in sustainable business, followed the award ceremony. Participants engaged in solving a variety of case studies relating to a range of issues including how organisation's fostered employee well-being, procured socially responsible products, financed social-welfare projects, strategised for socially-driven competitive advantage, and innovated for humane working practices.
Innovative information sharing
A pub quiz based on international development and sustainable business provided an entertaining and thought-provoking conclusion to the event; it was hosted by Siri Lijfering and Shahrzad Nourozi from IDleaks. The quiz sparked debate around the room that continued long after the quiz had ended.
