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"Circular Economy in India: Rethinking Growth for Long-Term Prosperity" (Ellen Macarthur Foundation) finds that following a circular economy development path could unlock $624 billion in benefits annually by 2050, compared to the country's current development path. The report also finds that this development path would enable India to cut GHG emissions by an additional 44% by 2050, compared to its current development path.

ust 18 months after its launch, the Science Based Targets initiative announced that 200 companies have committed to set emissions reduction targets consistent with the global effort to keep temperatures well below the 2-degree threshold. In the past year, the initiative has seen a growth rate of over 2 companies per week committing to set science-based targets, far exceeding the project's timeline and signaling that climate action has gained tremendous momentum in the private sector.

The transition to a low-carbon economy is already underway, with businesses driving things forward through innovation and smart business practices, writes Unilever CEO Paul Polman. "Let's work together to make our economies strong and our climate sustainable. It can be done," he writes

The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that more than 1 million electric vehicles (EVs) were on the road in 2015, including 400,000 in the United States. In order to limit global warming to 2°C or less, the agency says the world will need 150 million EVs by 2030 and 1 billion by 2050, implying a 21 percent compound annual growth rate from now until 2050.

The Minnesota Sustainable Growth Coalition is a business-led public-private partnership harnessing the collective expertise of over 25 companies, including 3M, Aveda, Dow Water, Ecolab, General Mills, the Great Plains Institute, and Target, to advance the next frontier of corporate sustainability - the circular economy - here in the U.S. Environmental Initiative, a local nonprofit organization, is convening and facilitating the coalition

A partnership of leading international public and private organizations launched the Food Loss and Waste Accounting and Reporting Standard at the Global Green Growth Forum (3GF) 2016 Summit today in Copenhagen. The FLW Standard is the first-ever set of global definitions and reporting requirements for companies, countries and others to consistently and credibly measure, report on and manage food loss and waste. The standard comes as a growing number of governments, companies and other entities are making commitments to reduce food loss and waste.

Economic and population growth on top of climate change could lead to serious water shortages across a broad swath of Asia by the year 2050, a newly published study by MIT scientists has found.

HP has committed to powering its global operations with 100 percent renewable energy - and says it plans to reach the 40 percent renewable electricity mark by 2020 - because, as Nate Hurst, HP's chief sustainability and social impact officer says, "both cost-effective and low carbon sources of energy are essential to the future and the growth of HP's business."

Some of China's provinces and companies, however, are moving into business operations that foster the growth of the circular economy, which means designing products that can be taken apart, re-blended or recycled so that waste is not an end result. This is complemented by the fact that the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation (CPCIF) recently signed on to the World Plastics Council, which also has a goal of reducing plastic waste in the environment. 

Corporate spending on sustainability and circular economy initiatives is on the rise - and yielding increased sales and cost savings, according to consulting firm Pure Strategies, which says its latest survey found more than 80 percent of companies expect a sustainability budget increase from 2016 to 2017 with a third anticipating double-digit growth.

Stricter regulations, the explosive growth of new hydraulic fracturing shale oil and gas wells and limited available water resources are driving the popularity of centralized wastewater management in North America, according to Pollution Engineering magazine

BCC Research reports the global market for anaerobic digestors and landfill gas equipment was estimated at nearly $4.5 billion for 2013. Its study, Waste-Derived Biogas: Global Markets for Anaerobic Digestion Equipment, projects the market to grow to $7 billion by 2018, and register a five-year compound annual growth rate of 9.4 percent 2013 to 2018.

Materials market for energy efficient buildings, construction chemicals and flexible packaging will be the key growth areas in 2014 and beyond, according to Frost & Sullivan's predictions for the global chemical, materials and food industry.

the Global Green Growth Forum in Copenhagen, WRI announced the launch of a process to develop a global standard for measuring food loss and waste. This standard, known as the Global Food Loss and Waste Protocol, will enable countries and companies to measure and monitor the food loss and waste that occur within their boundaries and value chains in a credible, practical and consistent manner.

Preliminary results of our "upside model" show that, within just 10 years, profits can grow 115 percent to $51 billion USD a year compared to today, if all fisheries worldwide were managed sustainably. Importantly, this economic growth doesn't come at the cost of other goals: both seafood production and fish biomass in the ocean would also increase.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power has now dumped 96 million balls into local reservoirs to reduce evaporation and block sunlight from encouraging algae growth and toxic chemical reactions. The balls are coated with a chemical that blocks ultraviolet light and helps the spheres last as long as 25 years.

NRG Energy, Inc. has announced ambitious sustainability goals as part of its continued corporate growth strategy. NRG says it estimates that its new carbon-reduction goals will avoid approximately 3 billion tons of CO2 emissions by 2050.

Colgate-Palmolive's Total toothpaste uses triclosan, an antibacterial chemical linked to cancer-cell growth in animals, to fight gum disease.

The Boston Green Ribbon Commission reports that Boston-based hospitals reduced total energy use by 6% in 2013 compared to 2011 levels. The reduction in energy use resulted in around $11.9 million in cost savings since 2011.

Many of the world's biggest airlines are experimenting with bio-derived jet fuels in a bid to reduce their costs and emissions. "Aviation will double in size worldwide in the next two decades, and if we're not able to provide a sustainable means to fly, we will create a ceiling for growth in the industry," says Ignaas Caryn, director of innovation at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.