The global crisis caused by climate change has given a wake-up call to all nations that global environmental emergencies such as drinking water scarcity, floods, forest fires, droughts and biodiversity loss could lead to un-sustainable crisis for the entire world. There is an urgent need to safeguard the environment and put solutions in place to help tackle any future crises caused by global warming or natural disasters.
Industrial growth is one of the key aspects of a country’s development. The Government of India wants to enhance the manufacturing sector’s contribution to India’s gross domestic product, raising it to a 25 per cent share over the course of a decade and creating 100 million jobs. Industrialization always comes with a risk of higher pollution levels, overuse of natural resources and increased amounts of waste and waste water posing a threat to ecosystems.
The government is trying to create a balance between industrial growth and environment. The industry bodies have a crucial role in bridging this gap. India’s largest industry body Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) has been working for more than two decades to nurture companies to align their practices with the need of the changing environment.
CII has been remarkably engaging with the industries to help them adopt solutions that are sustainable, financing the sustainability agenda, creating green jobs, facilitating the transition to a carbon neutral future, slowing biodiversity loss, increasing circularity and inclusivity are key priorities to accelerate the transformation.
CII has partnered with government, various departments, national and international agencies, Indian and global industries, MSMEs and other stakeholders to work collectively towards achieving this common goal of sustainable economic growth.
CII-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development: It is a not-for-profit, industry- led institution that helps business become sustainable organizations. It propagates innovative ideas and solutions in India and globally, to enable business, and its stakeholders in sustainable value creation.
CII-ITC CESD with the support of DSM had initiated the Climate Action Programme CAP 2.0° for Indian industry in 2018, with an objective to recognise and driven meaningful corporate action on climate change, and promote the integration of such action into organisational business models and processes.
Climate Change
CII-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development looks at climate change as a strategic risk to business and offers services related to reducing business’s vulnerability to climate change via, climate change risk and opportunity assessment services, GHG inventorization, carbon neutrality services and sequestration study
CII-ITC CESD specialises in helping companies develop climate change strategies, policies, internal processes and frameworks to facilitate low carbon growth through various means.
Biodiversity & Nature
CII-ITC CESD gives a platform to Businesses, SMEs, citizens and government departments to join India business and biodiversity initiatives like Biodiversity Quick Scan 2.0, Biodiversity Need Assessment, Natural Capital Action Plan, Ecosystem Service Matrix, Biodiversity Indexing of the sites and corporate levels and more.
Global partnership
CII-ITC CESD has been actively engaging with development bodies like the UN and UNDP, government, embassies, civil society organisations and academic institutions to create and understand the ecosystem around business and human rights.
Sustainability Summit
CII regularly organizes Summits to measure past progress, and assess where and how policymakers, financial institutions and business leaders should act in future for sustainable growth.
Policy Recommendations
CII’s Technology Centre for Sustainable Development is actively engaged in presenting policy recommendations to the government departments. It has partnered with different stakeholders in order to achieve measurable impacts. Some of the key recommendations made by CII are - mandatory funds allocation for air quality management under the Corporate Environmental Responsibility (CER) in cities with high pollution levels and mandatory contractual obligations for “clean” construction; and penalising companies for non-compliance with Ambient Air Quality Norms.
Publications, Research & Studies
CII-ITC CESD has on-board various industry leaders, policymakers, entrepreneurs and researchers from around the world to conduct research and studies on Sustainable Development. The centre publishes annual reports and newsletters to measure and report about the progress made in Sustainable Development so far. Some of the key Study. Reports conducted by the CII-ITC CESD are - Indian Industry Performance Towards. Biodiversity; Business & Human Rights Ambitions and Actions in India; Together Towards A Sustainable Future; and Air Pollution and Its Impact on Businesses.
CII-ITC Sustainability Awards
Recognizing and motivating the industries seeking ways to be more sustainable and inclusive in their activities, CII-ITC confers Sustainability Awards to them in order to encourage the leaders of this revolution. Winners of this Award are those that demonstrate Excellence in Sustainable Business – role models that inspire all business to follow suit. CII, the apex industry body of the country, helps Indian public and private-sector stakeholders to jointly implement strategies for efficient, environment-friendly and climate-friendly industrial development.
