The Sustainability Imperative
As organizations struggle to define a strategy that balances purpose and profit, opportunities are increasingly emerging to take the lead in sustainability initiatives. Front-line advances in areas such as net-zero emissions, AI-powered solutions for the underserved, precision agriculture, digital healthcare, and more are delivering business benefits, while simultaneously contributing to the realization of the UN’s 17 SDGs. We provide the expert thinking, debate, and guidance to help your organization reposition and transform in the era of sustainability.
Recently Published
Philip Webster, Habib Hussein, Kajetan Widomski, and Jonathan Jeyaratnam of Arthur D. Little together with Ruth Bastow and Mark Matthews of the UK Agri-Tech Centre introduce AI as a powerful tool capable of assisting farmers in making informed decisions about adopting new technologies and practices. The authors acknowledge the complexity of farming systems and the difficulty in identifying appropriate solutions amid a rapidly evolving technological landscape. They propose a use case–driven approach, using AI tools to analyze a range of factors, such as market trends, climate data, regulatory environments, and farm-specific variables, to recommend the most suitable innovations.
This issue of Amplify explores the complex relationship between climate change and agriculture, highlighting the urgent need for innovative solutions to ensure food security and sustainable farming practices. We take readers on a journey from the frontlines of climate change’s impact on smallholder farmers to the potential of AI and data-driven technologies to transform the entire pathway across the agri-food supply chain.
Santosh Kumari, Athula Ginige, and Sanju Saharan shed light on the challenges faced by farmers in Haryana, India, a region heavily reliant on agriculture. Farmers are witnessing firsthand the effects of climate change — from shifting monsoon patterns and increased heat waves to water scarcity and soil degradation. The article emphasizes that these farmers are not passive victims; they are actively adapting by modifying planting schedules, experimenting with climate-resilient crops, and drawing on generations of traditional knowledge. They make it clear that existing adaptation strategies may not be enough to address the scale of the challenge. Some even augment the factors leading to climate change, underscoring the need for systemic solutions.
In this Advisor, a group from Oak Ridge National Laboratory explores energy-efficiency improvement as a feasible, low-cost approach that can bring immediate industrial CO2 emissions reductions around the globe.
Transitioning from a linear to a circular space economy is not just about sustainability — it’s about preventing orbital ecocide and ensuring the long-term viability of orbital space as a resource and habitat. By embracing resource efficiency, reuse, and innovation, we can safeguard the celestial environment and preserve the final frontier for future generations.
This Advisor explores the European Commission SUMP, a consolidated methodology to help local and regional authorities improve accessibility of urban areas by providing high-quality, sustainable transport to, through, and within the urban area. Essentially, it contains actionable guidelines for comprehensive and sustainable urban mobility planning.
In this Advisor, Cutter Expert Curt Hall examines how AI, computer vision, and robotics are being implemented to optimize the plastic recycling process.
This Advisor presents the current status of mobility as a service (MaaS) and explores some interesting new mobility models.