Laudes Foundation

🌍 Exciting Announcement: Launching JUST Stories Initiative 🌱 At Laudes, we firmly believe in the power of narratives to drive meaningful change. That's why we're thrilled to see the launch of our latest partnership with Institute for Human Rights and Business: JUST Stories. In today's world, we're at a critical juncture where urgent action is needed to foster a green, fair, and inclusive economy. However, inspiring decision-makers across various sectors to embrace this transformation requires more than just words – it demands compelling stories backed by evidence and solutions. Whether you're a business, a financial institution, a government entity, or a member of a local community, we invite you to share your experiences and insights. The JUST Stories portal is now live and open for submissions in any language. Together, we can create a vibrant community of just transition practitioners, united by our shared commitment to building a better future. #JUSTStories #ClimateAction #Sustainability #GreenEconomy 🌿🌏

Over recent years, the EU has reformed or introduced regulations relating to business, human rights and sustainability, including in the last weeks the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive and the Forced Labour Product Ban. The Danish Institute for Human Rights - International Activities has helpfully updated its Pieces of the Puzzle publication which helps to connect the dots in the evolving policy and regulatory environment. It is a useful tool summarising company, financial and trade focused policies, how they align with international frameworks and where greater policy coherence is needed. Learn more in the publication below. #CSDDD #ForcedLabourBan #BusinessandHumanRights

⚡ Next week I'm speaking at Footprint Plus on the role of philanthropy in driving the shift to a regenerative and inclusive built environment in Europe. I'm excited to see that increasingly the philanthropic community recognises buildings as a lens through which to view many of the issues funders seek to address. For Laudes, real estate and construction are central to the climate, equity and biodiversity crises we were set up to help tackle. 🎙 I'm very pleased to be on stage alongside Felicity Mallam, Florence Miller and Justin McGuirk - having had our prep call, I know this is going to make for a great session. ❓ If you're curious to find out more, join us at 3:15pm on the Finance Stage during Day 2 of the conference, link in the comments below. #FP24 #footprintplus #zerocarbon #carbonneutral #philanthropy

Congratulations to WWF - Pakistan on the launch of the Regenerative Production Landscape Collaborative (RPLC) Pakistan! The RPLC Pakistan will drive new business models and farming practices that holistically tackle current challenges faced by smallholder farmers and address the environmental issues resulting from unsustainable practices. RPLC Pakistan, with the support of textile and food brands and catalytic funding from Laudes Foundation, will be implemented in the Jhang and Sahiwal districts of Punjab and Barkhan and Lasbela districts of Balochistan. This initiative has already seen success in India, Brazil, and Tanzania, demonstrating the scalability of this approach. Globally the RPLC is planned to cover over 1 million hectares and more than 300,000 farmers; specifically in Pakistan this will cover over 100,000 hectares and benefit upwards of 50,000 farmers. #RegenerativeProduction #Landscapes #RPLC

This International Worker's Day we commemorate the important work that many have fought for to improve working conditions and worker's rights around the world since its inception in 1856. Laudes supports leading organisations across Europe and Asia to strengthen the inclusion, agency and collective action of workers through key industry transitions. Here we highlight three organisations we’ve supported recently:   As an organisation founded and led by three former garment workers Kalpona Akter, Nazma Sheikh and Babul Akhter, Bangladesh Center for Worker's Solidarity has widespread grassroots support among workers in Bangladesh and credibility in international labour rights movements. Founded in 2000, they advocate for improving working conditions and workers’ rights, emphasising the rights of women workers, gender equality, participation of women workers in bargaining and protecting the human rights of women and children. Given the importance of just transitions in climate vulnerable countries like Bangladesh, we are supporting BCWS to bring workers along in the ensuring industry transitions are just and centered around the priorities of workers.    Find out how you can support BCWS: https://www.bcwsbd.org/.    The International Trade Union Confederation - ITUC's Just Transition Centre has been awarded the 2024 WIN WIN Gothenburg Sustainability Award in recognition of its support for the rights of workers in the global shift towards an environmentally and socially sustainable future. Laudes has been supporting the ITUC to ensure that workers and their priorities are at the centre of just transition planning and implementation by companies and governments across sectors and geographies. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gGbCcDQN.    Central to discussions around Decent Work and the Sustainable Development Goals, the WageIndicator Foundation is publishing their Living Wage estimates for over 165 countries, a big step in the pursuit of labour market transparency and fair compensations that employers, workers, and unions can use to engage in informed wage negotiations. Explore the report: https://lnkd.in/dtZzUT6P. Cornell University ILR School The Freedom Fund BWI - GLOBAL UNION - Building and Wood Workers' International Oxfam Trade Union Rights Centre awaj foundation Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) #WorkersDay #LabourDay #JustTransition

🗺 Mapping Just Transition initiatives To tackle the climate crisis and catalyse positive change towards a green, fair and inclusive future, industrial transitions are urgently needed across all sectors of the global economy from agriculture to apparel production, construction and energy. In 2023, Laudes Foundation, Wallace Global Fund and Ford Foundation commissioned a mapping of organisations and efforts working to deliver just transitions across sectors and geographies relevant to the strategies of each foundation. Conducted between August and December by Climate Horizons, a diverse global team of expert consultants, the research resulted in a mapping of 600+ initiatives across Europe, Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia, and five major sectors (built environment, fashion, finance and capital markets, and extractives – including fossil fuels). Intended as a springboard to enable ecosystem-building and inform strategic grant-making and collaboration, it prioritises breadth over depth and presents a broad picture of initiatives, which can inspire and inform more in-depth mapping and analysis in the future. Explore the complete research here: https://lnkd.in/eX-HkE_M #JustTransition #ClimateCrisis

🌍 Ensuring Market Integrity in the Face of Climate Change: A Crucial Role for Lawyers ⚖️ As we confront the urgent challenges of climate change, maintaining market integrity is paramount. Lawyers play a pivotal role in upholding integrity within financial systems, ensuring transparency, compliance, and accountability. So it is great to see that this is on the agenda at the Global Alliance of Impact Lawyers (GAIL) Conference today, a valued Porticus partner, and even better that our head of Finance & Capital Markets Clare Hierons has been invited to moderate a panel on the issue. Access tickets to the livestreams of the conference here: https://lnkd.in/eyJEmTMS. #ClimateChange #MarketIntegrity #Sustainability #FinancialRegulation

🌍 This Earth Day we celebrate our partners working to address the challenge of plastics in supply chains.   About 15 million used garments are exported to Ghana weekly with as much as 40% ending up in informal dumps. The Biomimicry Institute together with The Or Foundation Ghana and University of Ghana are collaborating on the Design for Decomposition initiative to support the safe decomposition of textile waste in Ghana. https://lnkd.in/dNnfysDn   Roughly three billion trees are cut down every year to meet the global demand for paper packaging. Canopy's Pack4Good initiative is tackling this head on by developing real solutions from 444 industry leaders to reduce waste, develop innovative packaging solutions and ensure ancient and endangered Forests are protected. https://lnkd.in/duVKg5p   The most common fibre in the world, polyester represents a significant portion of the 73% of textiles that are landfilled or incinerated annually. Fashion for Good launched the Full Circle Textiles Project – Polyester, with the ambition to validate and scale promising chemical recycling innovations.  https://lnkd.in/e34BKYGS Reach out to us to learn more about these incredible partners and their work. #EarthDay #WasteManagement #PlanetvsPlastics

🌱 REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS 📊 Join us in shaping the future of shareholder engagement. Laudes Foundation is launching a game-changing Request for Proposals (RfP) focused on uncovering effective approaches to drive sustainable business practices. 🌍 Global Scope: This RfP seeks to address shareholder engagement on a global scale. ⏳ Deadline: Submit your proposals by 5pm CET on Monday, April 29th. 🔑 Research Focus: We're exploring what makes shareholder engagement successful and how it impacts sustainability. If you're passionate about making a difference in finance and sustainability, this is your chance to contribute! For more details and to access the RfP document, visit the link below or contact the Senior Programme Manager responsible, Nando van Kleeff. #ShareholderEngagement #SustainabilityResearch #LaudesFoundation #RfP #GlobalImpact

From Portugal’s golden visa scheme to Copenhagen’s long-term development model, cities have initiated programs that are combatting major issues in the built environment. Our partner Institute for Human Rights and Business dives into the meaning of just transition in housing markets across eight such cities to identify opportunities for real estate developers and investors to equitably support all stakeholders, zooming in on marginalised communities. Read Giulio Ferrini’s article on tackling the climate crisis with a social justice lens, supported by the Institute for Human Rights and Business's work in establishing dignity through decarbonisation in the industry. #BuiltEnvironment #HousingMarket #ClimateCrisis