Episode 039 | January 16, 2023 | 49:08
Guest: Kristoffer Hvidsteen (Sustainability Marathoner)
Published: January 16, 2023
Duration: 49:08
Description
Sustainability is a marathon, not a sprint. You complete a marathon by breaking it into smaller targets. This episode is about quantifying sustainability so we can measure, benchmark and drive sustainable development.
Full transcript
About this transcript
This transcript was automatically generated and may contain inaccuracies, typos, or mistranslations. Episodes recorded before 2024 were transcribed by an on-site model and may have a higher error rate. The content reflects the original conversation to the best of our ability. For the authoritative version, please listen to the audio episode.
Labor is taxed fairly intensively, but resources are not taxed. So we use resources frivolously — they’re cheap compared to labor, which we are stingy about. When companies start operating they take that into account. The connection to circular economy: when you want to be resource-efficient (not economy-efficient), it has a fairly high labor component. Sustainability was often considered a cost centre.
Hello and welcome. Today we explore quantifying sustainability with Kristoffer Hvidsteen — the marathoner of sustainability.
Sustainability is a marathon. You see change but slowly. Bite it into pieces. Set attainable goals; stretch goals to keep you focused.
I did my first carbon accounting in 1993 — part of the green-accounting team in Denmark linking economic activity to emissions, funded by the Rockwool Foundation. CO2 equivalents are becoming a currency — one of the few realms of sustainability that lends itself well to quantification.
Why circular economy: private sector responds to money and profit. Sustainability was a cost centre — “fix the problem you don’t care about, expensively.” Circular economy reframes: the economic system has been hugely wasteful. Agriculture loses ~30% on the field. Manufacturing operational equipment efficiency is ~50-60% (oil & gas hits 90%). Food waste at consumer: ~34%. Targeting these bins of waste saves costs or grows revenue — aligned with the private-sector agenda.
Efficiency commands respect in corporate lingo, but resource efficiency doesn’t. Resource efficiency makes you more resilient (pandemic, war). Should look like a massive business opportunity.
Kristoffer on price factors: Denmark — labor heavily taxed, resources cheap. So companies use resources frivolously. Resource-efficient repair has a high labor cost — that’s part of why we don’t repair.
His prior company (large household-appliance reuse): repair from a service technician is 800+ DKK just to visit, no guarantee of fix; total 1,500+ DKK vs ~1,500 DKK for a new machine. By collecting machines in a factory we got the minimum price point down to ~300 EUR. 1,100 customers; “local for local” production values. Green segment buying because it’s the right thing — and people who got access to high-quality machines at low cost.
Three waves of sustainability:
1. Pioneers in the 1990s — no systematic scrutiny, basically a free-for-all.
2. Private certifications: FSC, MSC, fair trade, organic, CDP, ISO. Provided certainty for some sectors but private-sector-driven and a “jungle.” First-movers got criticized; laggards stayed in the shadows.
3. Now we have public-sector standards — EU taxonomy. First real attempt at consistent international sustainability accounts, like financial accounting standards a century ago. Will companies struggle to report? Yes. Will it need iteration? Absolutely. But it’s agnostic and applauded.
On the SDGs: a Christmas tree — too many things hung on the vehicle. 17 goals with 200+ sub-goals. Suffered from its own success. Lacks accountability — became perfect ground for SDG-washing. EU taxonomy is likely to take over.
Bloomberg stripped trillions in ESG ratings because the reality didn’t match the reports. EU taxonomy strict methodology, transparency, instated by law — drives accountability.
For healthcare: qualities and reporting on qualities matter. Health economics — how much health outcome per dollar and per CO2? Tough love: healthcare needs to articulate how it provides health to society. The better you measure and document how you improve people’s lives, the better your “license to operate,” the better you can charge a premium and access resources.
Thank you Kristoffer. Thanks for listening — please subscribe and share.