Democracies around the world are less stable “The world economy in response to its invasion of Ukraine proved that market access to democratic countries is no longer a given”. Concerns are not limited to the Ukraine, China / US relations are worsening over Taiwan, “Countries must play by the rules. And that includes China.” Is now the cry from several democratic countries.
Because of the war in the Ukraine inflation is now rife thanks to inflation in commodity prices such as oil and gas, in turn commercially influencing much of our daily lives. Under the baseline scenario, global inflation is currently forecast to reach 7.9% in 2022 and towards 5.0% in 2023, compared with 2001-2019 average annual global inflation of 3.8%. Overall, countries with greater energy dependency will feel higher inflationary effects in 2022 and possibly beyond.
Cut costs is the traditional cry but the low paid are disenfranchised as their wages are not keeping pace with inflation, leading to more protesting and industrial action. We also see numerous examples at election time where more extreme views are accommodated. We also hear the cries for independence or localisation away from globalisation e.g., my ‘country FIRST’ and walls are being built. This unrest is on the back of other social restrictions e.g., Covid lock downs.
The latest Covid variation Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 has been detected in at least 190 nations. Thanks to vaccines and this variant is less virulent, the pressures on most health services are not at breaking point. Nevertheless, the threat is constantly there for a more virulent mutation to threaten our way of life.
Further disruption to ‘our daily lives’ is effected by Global supply chains which plays a critical role in serving channel partners and customers. Many industries and customers, continue to feel the broad-based challenges in the supply chain due to the pandemic. Whilst ongoing supply constraints stemming from component shortages due to destocking during the pandemic and related issues continue to impact businesses. These market conditions have resulted in more frequent changes to sales orders, promised dates and longer lead times for many product lines.
These are all catastrophes affecting our daily lives today, but the effects of Global warming / climate change are here for the long term and getting worst by the day.
Take a moment just to consider; mid-June, saw a ferocious “heat dome” brought roasting temperatures to much of the US, placing around a third of Americans under hazardous-heat warnings. It came soon after a record heatwave in India, so brutal, birds fell from the sky. In addition, Spain amongst other European countries experienced record temperatures for the time of year. The worst drought Italy has faced in 70 years is thirsting the rice paddies of the river Po valley, jeopardizing the precious harvest of the Italian premium rice used for to make risotto.
Floods, meanwhile, have been the worst in a century in Bangladesh and so fierce in America’s Yellowstone national park that entire bridges and buildings were washed away. About 50,000 residents in New South Wales, most in Sydney’s western suburbs, have been told to either evacuate or warned they might receive evacuation orders as Torrential rains kept battering Australia’s east coast, intensifying the flood crisis there. These are the today problems caused by Global Warming, sadly there will be more in the coming months and years ahead and even worst unless we actively engage with reducing the root cause of global warming – Carbon emissions.
As temperatures rise and patterns of precipitation change, permafrost and other forms of ground ice become vulnerable to thaw and collapse, as recently seen in Italy. As these frozen soils warm, the ground destabilizes, unravelling the interwoven fabric that has delicately shaped these dynamic ecosystems over millennia.
Oceans do not fare much better, they do so much to sustain life on Earth, including bearing the brunt of global temperatures that have been steadily warming for decades. An IPCC special report published in 2019 found that oceans — which make up more than 70% of the world’s surface — have absorbed between 20% and 30% of human-made carbon dioxide emissions since the 1980s. They’re also responsible for absorbing more than 93% of the “combined heat stored by warmed air, sea, and land, and melted ice” since the 1970s, according to the Fifth Assessment report published in 2013 by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Have no doubt these are serious issues for our policy makers to address but Climate change is not something we can afford to put on the back burner.
Packaging sustainability may seem small by comparison, but this also has major implications identified in other blogs of Benchmark. Packaging remains a necessary evil, necessary because without out it there would be even more waste / carbon emissions and there are many other benefits too. Nevertheless, unless packaging is designed measured and effectively managed, not just in terms of a material thickness or a smaller volume to reduce price or working capital it should be measured for its carbon footprint from source to grave.
For the carbon footprint to be meaningful to the average consumer: The data needs to be Granular – the consumer pack, Accurately calculated, Transparently communicated and measured by an Authentic source.
Benchmark offers consumer pack solutions that deliver granularity of data, accurate calculations, with results that are transparent and labelling to track our journey to ‘Net Zero’ and importantly Benchmark has no industry vested interest, so we are authentic. Moreover, our solutions are much cheaper than conducting manual Life Cycle Analysis / Assessments.
We look forward to an opportunity to speak with you.
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