Brands continue to lead the way, as governments drag their feet on climate policy.
Despite the political climate in their homeland, US retail chain Target, has recognised the big role it has to play in combating the effects of climate change.
Importantly, their new climate policy and goals focuses on not just their business but working together with their supply chain to reduce emissions.
Brian Cornell, chairman and CEO of Target says that Target has long been committed to making their business more sustainable. He believes this leads to a stronger, cleaner supply chain and operations, and a healthier environment for their team members and guests.
“That’s why we’re setting goals to reduce our greenhouse gas footprint, and working with our industry partners, policymakers and other stakeholders to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy,” says Cornell.
Target’s new climate policy focuses on 5 key areas;
- Increasing adoption of renewable energy in our own operations, our supply chain, and on the electricity grid;
- Driving energy and water efficiency in our own operations and in our supply chain;
- Investing in innovations supporting the transition to a lower-carbon transportation system, including vehicle electrification;
- Considering climate impacts in raw materials sourcing, particularly the impacts of land use change, and designing plans to mitigate those impacts; and
- Supporting communities most heavily impacted by climate change and building their resilience to climate change impacts like extreme weather events
Target also says it will continue building on several projects already in the works, like their collaboration with WWF (World Wildlife Fund). This partnership advises Target on areas like climate change, water stewardship, food waste, packaging, and sourcing raw materials, with more to come as the relationship moves forward.
Target has also committed to sharing their learnings and progress with regular updates and their annual Corporate Responsibility Report.
Michael Hughes
Michael is Managing Partner and Strategy Director at Truly Deeply, a brand agency with 25 years’ experience working with brands to position them for growth. His deep expertise is in unlocking the strategic power of your brand to create a differentiated, compelling and authentic brand proposition that will engage all your audiences. Michael has extensive experience working across Australia and the Middle East working with leading Australian and International organisations across just about every sector.