The Monday Playlist #9 – on sustainability

What is sustainability? From greenwashing to ESG and class conflict, here is our recommended list, featuring @bocconisustainablefinance + @greenlight4business:

#1  In defense of dpop girls
The myth of the middle class oppressing lower classes might be incorrect (remember the Platform?). Gentrification is a problem, but should we blame users that partake in the system to make ends meet or ask for systemic change to bridge the wealth gap?

#2  What you eat has an impact
It’s not just about owning solar panels and electric cars, what we eat has a tangible impact on climate change. Everyone can contribute and small habits really add up to a big impact

#3  On Personal action and climate change
Yes, we should all do something, but what about systemic and collective action? It’s such a global issue with just 100 companies being the source of more than 70% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions since 1988, yet we focus on what the individual can buy to be green. What is personal action about?

#4  Bocconi Students Sustainable Finance – The rise of ESG investing
ESG investing is surging following the pandemic and demonstrations over racial justice.

#5  Bocconi Students Sustainable Finance – How ESG Metrics Work And Why All Investors Should Care
Martin Kremenstein explains how ESG metrics serve as an indicator of quality and as a risk management tool.

#6  Bocconi Students Sustainable Finance – What Are ESG Funds and Why Are They Under Scrutiny?
WSJ explains why regulators have ethical and sustainable funds under scrutiny.

#7 Green Light for Business – the true cost of fashion
What happens when you discard your clothes? Only 25% of discarded clothes end up in sorting plants. As for the rest, hundreds of thousands of tons of clothing items end up in landfill every year. This video by The Economist discusses the effects of fast fashion and our obsession with convenience. However, alternatives are finally gaining momentum. Services like Rent the Runway and brands like Patagonia are trying their best to reduce consumption. In an ever growing world of spending and discarding, how can we make a difference as consumers?

#8 Green Light for Business – Fashion Toxic Threads
Professor Richard Thompson explains microplastics. Microplastic from textiles are really impacting the environment. A single domestic wash can produce up to 700.000 fibres and a god number of them escape into the environment. The large majority of microplastic comes from synthetic fibres as polyester largely used from brands. More sustainable solutions exists! Tom Kay, founder of Finisterre, based its company on sustainable business model. Finisterre only used organic cotton, wool and recyclable polyester for its product. Finisterre is just one out of 2700 B Corp approved companies, companies with a more sustainable vision integrated in an innovative business model. Another example is ECOALF, founded by Javier Goyeneche, which sells shoes made of bottles recovered from the oceans. Choosing to make the difference for our planet is possible, we just have to know the issues related to what we buy and find more sustainable alternatives. 

#9 Green Light for Business – Recycling Fashion: the town turning waste into clothes
In the North of Italy there’s a town processing 15% of all recycled clothes in the world: we’re talking about Prato. At this point the Earth is not capable of absorbing the huge amount of clothing that is produced each year, but those wasted clothes can be saved and turned into something else. In this small district, there are hundreds of companies, each of them specialised in one specific aspect of the process, whether it is spinning, weaving or designing. 

A special thanks to the student associations that collabed with our team to share the most meaningful and interesting videos on women & feminism! Go follow @bocconisustainablefinance + @greenlight4business on their social media to keep tuned on their projects and activities.