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A new energy market analysis shows the average cost of electricity from renewables is already lower than from fossil fuels, writes Alex Kirby. And as renewables eat deeper into the 'market share' of coal and gas power plants, so the entire economics of fossil fuel power generation will unravel.

The industry group Sustainable Apparel Coalition has opened use of its Higg Index suite of tools for measuring and evaluating supply chain impact to non-member small and medium-sized (SME) brands and retailers. SMEs may now take advantage of a special licence for full access to the Higg Index. The coalition, which has over 180 apparel, footwear and home textile company members, expects that increasing the number of SMEs participating in the Index will bolster reporting and impact a wider spectrum of the supply chain.

nability programs are producing cost savings, revenue growth, competitive advantage and environmental benefits across corporate America, writes Harold L. Sirkin, a senior partner of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), in a Businessweek management blog.

Australian regulators are clamping down on egg and pork producers who deliberately misuse terms such as "free range" to describe animals that actually spend much of their lives indoors. "When claims such as 'free range' or 'bred free range' are misused, consumers may be misled into paying more for a product feature that doesn't exist," said Rod Sims of the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission. "Competitors are also harmed as legitimate free-range producers unfairly lose their competitive advantage." 

Canadian architect Michael Green wants to build a 35-story wooden skyscraper in Paris that would be carbon neutral. He and some partners have submitted the proposal as part of the Reinvent Paris competition, a revitalization project in the city. Green said constructing the building would highlight the advantages of wood in the construction of tall buildings

Here are the clean energy trends that will matter in 2015:  - Moves toward 100 percent renewables will expand - Energy storage will carve out a competitive advantage - Low-cost oil could affect clean transportation, but not clean electricity - Other regions will follow New York's fracking ban 

Corporate sustainability is evolving. In its early days, sustainability was tantamount to reducing harm by making products and processes "less bad." With a glimpse of the competitive advantage that could be achieved, companies began to embed sustainability principles at the core of decision-making. Sustainability today goes beyond the walls of the organization - it's now about using brand, purchasing and political power to influence stakeholders and create positive change.

This UN Global Compact-Accenture CEO Study report reveals that the UN climate summit (COP21) is critical to supporting private sector investment and that executives see climate change action as an opportunity for growth and innovation. Among the world's largest companies, those with annual revenues in excess of US$1 billion, 70 percent see opportunities for growth within the next 5 years and 69 percent see investment in climate solutions as essential to competitive advantage.

Hilton Worldwide is taking advantage of a partnership with General Electric by installing electric-vehicle, or EV, chargers at 100 of its hotels by the end of 2016. Some other hotels are using green-energy storage systems, which can reduce charges on about 30% to 50% of a property's energy bill, according to a GreenBiz report