Dialogar, colaborar, escuchar y aprender para lograr un impacto real

Ante la urgencia ambiental y social, el rol de organizaciones y marcas ha cambiado; tener un propósito ya no es suficiente si no viene acompañado de un impacto real.

En nuestro programa de este año abordaremos, en diferentes sesiones plenarias y mesas de diálogo sobre cómo muchas organizaciones ya están activando de manera creíble y real su propósito, generando un impacto medible que las aleja del green social washing o purpose washing.

Participantes de diferentes sectores y países para alcanzar soluciones globales

FROM PURPOSE-DRIVEN BRANDS TO IMPACT-DRIVEN BRANDS

23rd & 24th OCTOBER 2023 – MADRID

DAY ONE –  MONDAY 23rd OCTOBER 2023 

09:15

WELCOME to Day One of Sustainable Brands Madrid 2023.

09:15

A mindful mindset: reconnecting with nature.

09:30 – 9:40

Introduction to Sustainable Brands Madrid 2023.

  • Joan Fontrodona. Professor & Director Business Ethics Department at IESE Business School.
  • Sandra Pina. Director, Quiero, Instigator, Sustainable Brands Madrid.

09:45 – 10:05

Harnessing the power of brands to create the future.

10:10 – 10:30

Educating, Equipping and Energizing Boards of Directors for Higher Ambitions.

  • Karen Coyne. Co-Vice President WomenExecs On Boards and Member of the Sustainability Advisory Council of Terrascope.
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Research by NewClimate Institute, Accenture and South Pole all conclude that there is a major gap between corporate pledges and corporate actions around net-zero. As environmental and social challenges continue to accelerate, it remains to be seen whether corporate sustainability will continue to pursue its incremental ¨less bad¨ approach or it will stand up and deliver on its promises around transitioning to an equitable and regenerative future. Although there has been some progress, much more work remains to be done to make the paradigm change we need.

Scaling up these efforts will require one of the most important success factors – that of leadership. The commitment and involvement of Boards of Directors and top management will be essential to ensure sustainability and regeneration objectives are adopted and put into adequate action. It’s time to put an end to greenwashing and purpose-washing.

This opening plenary will discuss the current gap between ambitions and actions, and recommend pathways towards the future we want.

Rainforest Alliance is one of the few most recognizable sustainability certification non-profits global that over the years has been responsible for a wide range of top-notch work, both technical AND creative, including iconic campaigns such as Follow the Frog. Santiago from RA will discuss current opportunities, challenges and pathways available to brands toward adopting truly regenerative business practices in ways that engage and include the whole value chain.

Karen Coyne will give updates on the current state of Board engagement for sustainability globally and share her top recommendations on how to effectively educate, equip and energize Boards of Directors for higher sustainability ambitions.

10:35 – 10:50

Questions to Santiago Gowland and Karen L. Coyne,

moderated by Sandra Pina.

 

10:55 – 11:40

Round table: How companies can make the most of impact investing.

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Impact investments seeks to achieve positive, measurable social and environmental impact alongside a financial return. Many types of investors are entering the growing impact investing market and there are diverse reasons for it. What leads a company to make impact investment? What types of investments are there? What are the direct benefits beyond making money? How can we make it continue to grow?

In this session, impact investing pioneers, Gawa Capital and WHEB Asset Management with over a decade of expertise, will focus on the fundamental connection between long-term positive change and long-term profitability growth through different types of impact investing and on how impact investment is being introduced as a practice in business. Gawa Capital promotes socioeconomic growth in developing countries, while providing a financial return to investors, WHEB Asset Management focuses on the opportunities created by the transition to a zero carbon and sustainable global economy. Sonia from Global Alliance for Banking on Values will share how this worldwide movement of independent banks use finance to achieve sustainable economic, social and environmental development and Allianz Global Investors will explain how by scrutinizing investments from a sustainability perspective, they extend its understanding of risks and seizes potential business opportunities for the benefit of its shareholders, its customers and other stakeholders.

11:45 – 12:15

Coffee & Networking.

12:20 – 12:45

Systemic understanding to disrupt the sector.

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Grupo Construcia was born with the clear aim of transforming the Construction sector towards a
sustainable model based on the circular economy through a systemic vision. The different companies created within the group respond to the objective of promoting a complete shift in the construction sector, to become truly sustainable, positive for the ecosystem and for people’s health and wealth. Learn how Grupo Construcia is transforming the whole value chain, working together in disruptive win-win projects
with key stakeholders with this shared purpose. Get inspired on how to bring to life and implement the systemic vision that is needed to make the paradigm change happen.

12:50 – 13:55

Talks & Q&A: Systemic understanding: a lever for Purpose Activation.

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The shift toward becoming Impact Brand requires to take a systemic view and understanding of the environmental and social reality. Adopting a holistic vision enables an interdisciplinary response to meet these ever-changing demands. The Impact Brand is a leader in their own right but understands that bigger impact only can be made by looking beyond its own enterprise and seeks to inspire others to act.

In this session, South Pole will share its expertise when it comes to build coalitions and platforms bringing together public, private, academia actors to accelerate the transition towards a low carbon economy.
Interface and Ben& Jerry´s, as pioneering impact brands, will share its journeys on how their business actions inspires others to follow and creates positive ripple effects across society under. This is done under their fully activated purpose, from inside out, in all their touchpoints, recognized by their stakeholders that are fully engaged into it. You will be truly inspired.

14:00 – 15:00

Lunch & Networking.

15:05 – 15:55

Round table: Consistency for tumultuous times.

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Being consistent is the basic pillar for an impact brand: Being, Doing and Saying should be aligned. Consistency may seem a simple concept, but probably one of the most difficult to apply.
In this session, Jorge will bring on the table the perspective of internal consistency, as in his role he educates Oatly people from different teams and department on climate & biodiversity, making sure that each person contributes in their real tangible work to the ambitious objectives on climate & biodiversity of the company. Jimena will share her insights and thoughts about how to be coherent externally, when practicing storytelling and storydoing, putting on the table the challenges that we face when communicating and when “learning by doing”. Both brands, Oatly and Bimbo, are working on the food sector: a sector that will suffer from disruptive transformation in the following years that requires a systemic vision of sustainability in companies and coherence at all levels. Last but not least, Nicole will bring the perspective of how to avoid greenwashing in all its shapes and forms, and what brands should avoid if
they want to be and be seen as “coherent”, but still manage to engage consumer and other stakeholders. 

16:00 – 16:20

A systemic solution to the plastic problem.

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Disruptive thinking can generate innovative and creative solutions to social and environmental problems and challenges. Plastic Bank is a good example of it being recognized as a leader, advocate, and innovator in plastic regeneration through a systemic vision.

In this session, Plastic Bank Founder David Katz will challenge brands to reevaluate their approach to sustainability. He will share how his Social Recycling movement is helping enliven a wasteless world where every business transaction can become an opportunity to regenerate resources, heal our planet, and help recycling communities transcend poverty. This global Social Recycling movement has mobilized so far over 600 recycling communities in Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Africa, and helped over 39,000 members to find paths out of poverty with the support of over 170 partners.

16:25 – 17:10

The power of emotions to drive change.

(This session will be in Spanish, with available simultaneous translation)

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Numerous studies and practical cases confirm that emotions do transform perceptions and can lead to meaningful change. And many of those emotions are generated through the performing arts. In this session Paula Panero, from Fundación Anesvad will show how the organization is a pioneer in using art and emotions to transmit messages of a social nature that result in generating systemic changes. Also, Antonio Ponce, creator and director of artistic performances, will show firsthand how art can have a real impact on people’s lives and can help them face different challenges. This is, without a doubt a session that will surprise you. Do not miss it!

17:15 – 18:00

PARALLEL SESSION A: Live Q&A.

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In this Ask Me Anything session you will have a unique opportunity to ask clarifying questions and engage with impact brands global leaders who will share their insights, vision and thought process in a approachable way. Do not miss this interactive and fun session that will offer a closer look at what it means to put impact into practice. Help us running a great Q&A session!

17:15 – 18:00

PARALLEL SESSION B: A Closer Look at Greenwashing in All of Its Shapes. Action plan against Greenwashing.

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With the European Union introducing stringent regulations to combat greenwashing, companies now face potential penalties of up to 4% of their annual revenue for making misleading environmental claims. We have seen cases of well-known brands going through huge reputational crises, due to having made major mistakes in this area and being exposed to public accusations of greenwashing. In this session we will take a close look at greenwashing in all of Its shapes and forms and try to find the reasons behind some of the inconsistencies that arise when trying to seem or appear to be something that does not correspond to reality. Businesses must proactively review and substantiate their environmental claims, implement standardised environmental labels, and invest in employee training. Moreover, they must implement rigorous carbon accounting to avoid legal consequences, and competitive disadvantages associated with greenwashing.

18:05 – 18:25

How Blockchain drives Innovation-based sustainability

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Blockchain allows to generate new business models based on trust and focused on ESG impact. In this session Marcos will explain how blockchain is not just another technology, but the guarantor of trust and new relational models, to create models of regenerative finance or tokenized models on this new reliable data infrastructure. And how blockchain also allows the convergence of other technologies such as AI, Quantum or immersive technologies to add real value to the user.

18:30

Closing of the Day.

DAY TWO – TUESDAY 24th OCTOBER 2023

09:00 – 09:10

Welcome to the International Day against Climate Change

Welcome to Day Two of Sustainable Brands Madrid 2023.

  • Joan Fontrodona. Professor & Director Business Ethics Department at IESE Business School.
  • Sandra Pina. Director, Quiero, Instigator, Sustainable Brands Madrid.

09:10 – 09:20

Inspirational Call.

09:25 – 10:00

A Regenerative Vision.

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We all already know that an incremental vision is not enough, due to the damage caused by our current consumption model that has deeply affected us both socially and environmentally. It is essential for an impact brand to have a vision that seeks to promote the regeneration of all the systems that sustain life and the possibility of continuing to do business on that kind of foundation going forward. Given this new paradigm, it takes a new way of seeing the world – a regenerative business or brand looks at the world in terms of its potential for positive impact, above all.

With this in mind, Biomimicry 3.8 has launched Project Positive, a group of business change agents driven by a sense of urgency to move beyond arbitrary reduction goals, to science-based targets and actions that are actually generous to the ecosystems, employees, and communities in which we operate. One of the most important questions they are asking, and solving, together is “How can businesses be functionally indistinguishable from healthy ecosystems?”
As we all know, Interface is a recognized global sustainability leader. Since they started in 1994, when they began its journey to transform its business to have zero negative impact on the planet by the year 2020. His Founder, Ray Anderson’s famous “spear in the chest moment” brought in 94 a new perspective on business and sustainability that keeps being at the forefront of the conversation.
Join this session with Lisa Conway from Interface and Dr. Dayna Baumeister to learn about groundbreaking innovation at global sustainability leader Interface based on Biomimicry 3.8. concepts.

10:05 – 10:30

A Regenerative Supply Chain.

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It is essential for the brand to have a vision that seeks to promote the regeneration of all the systems that sustain life and the possibility of continuing to do business thanks to that vision: it is about a net positive
impact. It is about giving more to the environment or to society than is taken from them; about generating positive impact instead of causing a lower impact. Given that it is a new paradigm, it is about seeing the world through a new lens, not just a new way of doing thing. A regenerative business or brand looks at the
world in terms of its potential, not on the basis of existing problems.
In this session we will learn how CHEP Brambles, one of the world’s most sustainable companies in the world, is already working to build regenerative supply chains by transforming the way in which commodities are distributed, with a regenerative vision that an Impact brand should have. Vicente will tell us about how they managed to established a solid regenerative vision that acts as a centre for stakeholder engagement,
creating more natural and social value than we take while bringing emissions down to zero as soon as possible.

10:35 – 10:55

Storytelling for Regeneration: Finding the New Stories and Voices We Need.

  • Etienne White. Founder and CEO Let´s Create Possible. Regenerative Brand Leader, Speaker, Farmer, Storyteller.
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Can new stories inspire positive regenerative action, at scale, in people’s everyday lives? What are the stories we’d tell ourselves and our children if we wanted to live more moderate lives? What are the upsides that would come into view that we can’t even imagine or see from our current viewpoints? Are there positive ripple effects that result from simple storytelling shifts we can make? What if, instead of constantly sounding the alarm bells of the polycrisis we’re in, we could start imagining and building a future for all of us? What if we moved from tackling problems to uncovering possibilities and potential? What role would brands play on this journey, and what types of storytelling can they embrace today to help get us there?

These are the critically important and timely questions to be addressed by this plenary talk. Join for deeply thoughtful and well-researched guidance from a recognized marketing and regeneration strategist Etienne White, at the intersection of regeneration and marketing.

11:00 – 11:35

Enchant the future as poetic sustainability leaders.

11:35 – 12:05

Coffee & Networking.

12:10 – 12:55

PARALLEL SESSION A: Workshop. Converting ESG Data into Indicators of Impact Risk.

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Business behavior is largely determined by market prices. As a result, non-market (i.e., unpriced) factors that are neither bought nor sold by economic agents (what economists call ‘externalities’) are often mistreated and/or overused. Sustainability reporting (ESG) was supposed to solve this problem or at least provide actionable information. However, despite the exponential growth in the use of ESG data over the past fifteen years, the negative impacts of economic activity on the environment and neighboring communities keep getting worse.

In this workshop, Thomsen presents a practical set of principled methods for converting low-value ESG data into high-value financial indicators of impact risk: something that any impact brand would for sure address. These indicators can provide actionable value to company management, investors and governing bodies. Thomsen will show how to calculate the actual non-market stakeholder impact of an entity’s actions, how to infer an entity’s real impact risk associated with its actual impact, and how to convert that real impact risk into meaningful financial indicators. Come and join the discussion on why ESG data is not very actionable and why non-market stakeholder impact (a kind of double materiality) is key for linking ESG to finance and for aligning company, regional and sector behavior in pursuit of planetary goals.

12:10 – 12:55

PARALLEL SESSION B: Round table. Transition to Regenerative Businesses: how a paradigm shift occurs.

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Transition to regenerative business models is a paradigm shift that requires persistence, open mindset, courage, system thinking and of course, effective implementation at all levels. At its core, a regenerative business model aims to not only avoid negative impacts but to actively improve the well-being of the environment and society. How a paradigm shift occurs? The challenge for brands is ‘how-to’ shift entire business models.
At this session, we will find answers to this question. Gloria from Hemper will explain how to regenerate means to weave new connections & use fibers and fabrics that give back to the earth more than they ask of it. Santiago will give us tangible answers to key questions through what does regenerative agriculture looks like in practice and what we can learn from it to promote the paradigm shift. Alejandro from CHEP, one of the most sustainable companies of the world, will share how the institutional side must also make the leap to promote regenerative action. Jose will point out how HP Graphic Arts recently adopted a regenerative vision and how regenerative marketing can become a fundamental lever for the transition. Dayna, with a privileged view on her clients making the leap, will share her deeper insights on promoting the paradigm shift.

12:10 – 12:55

PARALLEL SESSION C: Workshop. The hows to become an Impact brand.

  • Jonathan Yohannan. Global Brand, Communications and Sustainability consultant. Former Senior Vice president I. Communication Kind Snacks and Former Vice President of PR for Panera.
  • Jorge Castro. Global Sustainability Engagement Specialist, Oatly.
More information Go deeper into the Impact Brand model guided by 2 global thought sustainability leaders, Jonathan Yohannan, Global Consultant and Former Senior Vice President of Communications at Kind Snacks and Former Vicepresident of PR for Panera, and Jorge Castro, Global sustainability Engagement Specialist at Oatly. Find about real business insights and the main hows when walking through this transformation on each of the 6 dimensions of an Impact Brand and be able to share with your collegues the best strategies, tools and actions to advance towards being an Impact Brand. Try also in this workshop our Quiero free available tool for a 1st diagnostic of “Impact Brands” and start now your journey to become an Impact brand.

13:00 -13:45

Round table & Discussion: Impact is Not a Fad, Fashion or Campaign: Toward Impact Measurement & Reporting

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As of today, very few Brands systematically engage in the kind of impact management required to be an Impact Brand. Rather, most Brands are primarily campaign-based and run from fad to fad. To be an Impact Brand is to proactively monitor, evaluate and communicate one’s historical and projected impacts based on real, evidence-based concerns rather than just minimally conforming to regulatory requirements. Because an Impact Brand needs to assess real impact risk, its impact management analytics can also be used to improve its medium to long term capital planning – a cornerstone of business-financial sustainability.

In this session we have convened brand and sustainability practitioners who are serious about managing impact from an environmental and social sustainability perspective and from a business financial perspective. And we’ve added to the group Erik Thomsen (a sustainability analytics specialist) who will frame the conversation by explaining why negative economic externalities are endemic to market economies, what impact really is, how real impact risk for a Brand contributes to its medium term financial risk and how at a regional/national level to align economic profits with positive externalities.

Fiona Berwick from Asics and Robert O ́Mahony from Logitech represent brands that are at the forefront of product-level impact measurement and reporting, especially with respect to carbon footprints. They will share what methodologies, processes and engagement strategies they have put behind their product-level carbon labels in order to ensure high quality, accuracy, verifiability and effectiveness. Also, Marco Jansen from Braskem, the largest producer of thermoplastic resins in the Americas and the world leader in the production of biopolymers, will share how they measure and communicate recycling and recovery indicators for plastic packaging materials and how they monitor the environmental impacts of their businesses through the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to support decision-making on what and how to improve processes.

13:50 –  14:20

Talk & Q&A: Impact at the Core of the Product.

  • Kavita Palmar. Founder of the IOU Project and Partner at XTant.
  • Conversation with Anna Sáez de Tejada, Operations, information and Technology Assistant Professor of IESE.
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The positive impact at the heart of the product is the ultimate example of how we can measure the impact of our purchases and how, with every purchase we make, we can bring about positive social and environmental change. The impact starts from the actual offer of the company in terms of the product and/or service. In this session we will be inspired by the renowned industry activist Kavita Palmar, designer and founder of the IOU Project, an award-winning disruptive new idea of what a fashion brand of the future can be. She will share her knowledge and expertise after creating various projects to build a new paradigm in the fashion industry with an approach of transformational retail around core values of authenticity, transparency, uniqueness, and both social & environmental positive impact.

14:20 – 14:30

Special Closing of Sustainable Brands Madrid 2023.

Regálate una Little Big Conversation.
Nuestros aperitivos de SB para ir abriendo boca.