Perpetual Innovation

Author: SustainMe

  • Innovative Countries — Global Innovation Index

    Innovative Countries — Global Innovation Index

    This is a great summary of innovation by country from Visual Capitalist. See the Global Innovation Index (GII) map here:https://www.visualcapitalist.com/most-innovative-countries-2022/

    First Published on IntellZine.com. Note the sustainability implications from innovation, and the lack of innovation.

    We,
    at Strategic Business Planning Company, www.SBP.com, are always
    interesting in all aspects of innovation. Sometimes we hear from a
    layperson or an executive that the most innovative country in the work
    is …  

    Israel and Ireland were
    mentioned in recent years.  One executive said that “all innovation
    comes from Israel”. All right, admittedly, Israel is a great source of
    innovation and invention, but it is a very small country (population,
    GDP). In absolute terms, Israel is not even close, but in relative terms
    (adjusted for size of country), Israel is a very respectable #16 in the
    world (GII score of 50.2).

    So,
    a quick search came up with this great source at Visual Capitalist
    shows that the top 6 countries are: Switzerland, USA, Sweden, and the UK
    all with innovation scores above 60. The rest of the top 10 had
    innovation scores over 56.

    Rank

      Country / Region

    Score

    1

    Switzerland

    64.6

    2

    U.S.

    61.8

    3

    Sweden

    61.6

    4

    United Kingdom

    59.7

    5

    Netherlands

    58.0

    6

    South Korea

    57.8

    7

    Singapore

    57.3

    8

    Germany

    57.2

    9

    Finland

    56.9

    10

    Denmark

    55.9

    Here is the summary of how the Global Innovation Index is developed/designed. (quote)

    Innovation is inherently challenging
    to quantify, but the Global Innovation Index is a longstanding attempt to do
    just that. The framework used for the index was
    designed to create a more complete analysis, comprising of 81 indicators
    across seven categories to calculate a country’s score:

    7 Categories

    Example Indicators

    🧳 Business Sophistication

    Business R&D spend, net inflows of foreign direct
    investment

    📈 Market Sophistication

    Size of economy’s GDP, intensity of local market
    competition

    🛣️ Infrastructure

    Road, hospital, school construction, energy efficiency

    👩‍🏫 Human Capital & Research

    Government funding per pupil, quality of scientific and
    research institutions

    🏛️ Institutions

    Political stability and safety, ease of starting a
    business

    💡 Creative Outputs

    Most valuable brands, industrial design applications,
    trademark applications

    👨‍💻 Knowledge and Technology Outputs

    Patent applications,
    increase in labor productivity, spending on software

    As the above table shows, the
    framework aims to identify indicators that foster an innovative environment and
    breakthrough technologies.

    Other Countries

     The article talks about regions, like North America (namely, US and Canada) and the EU with some 15 very innovative countries. 

    China came in 11th
    (GII score of 55.3). China sucks up technology from around the world —
    legally, unethically, and illegally. And then China shamelessly deploys
    and commercializes technology. In terms of patents, China is by far the
    busiest patent office in the world. World Intellectual Property Organization shows
    that China continues to be the busiest patent office in the world. The
    patent protection in china is not because it is the 2nd largest economy
    in the world behind the USA, it is because patent protection in the
    other big economies is also protected by reducing the knock-offs and
    piracy from China (India and other countries).

    South Africa is generally low on the GII innovation index with South Africa rated 61st country (GII of 29), then Morocco and Tunisia. The nexus of innovation (regions or pockets of innovation) seems to explain much of the GII innovation.

    Summary

    Innovation is complex with may areas that enable economic growth and development. A well rounded environment for invention and innovation is best. There are several ways to get to an economic environment that is innovation enabled and invention friendly.

  • Giving Season and a Sustainable Earth

    Giving Season and a Sustainable Earth

    It is giving season, with Giving Tuesday coming up
    after the long Thanksgiving weekend. Now is the best time of the year to reach
    out to your Donors and make sure that they are thinking of you as they give
    thanks for the year and give donations into the end of the tax year.  GivingTuesday.org  #GivingTuesday

    Black Friday is named
    such as a target date for companies to move from losing money for the year into
    profits: out of the red and into the black. Basically, if you paid all your
    expenses at the beginning of the year, all future sales after the break-even
    point would be pure profits. Thanksgiving Day, at the end of November is a
    wonderful target, that leaves one month of pure profits. Plus, if the last
    month of the year is disproportionate – like Christmas sales – that is pure
    gravy!

    Visit Intellzine.com to see a longer discussion about Nonprofits
    using the Giving Tuesday moment to solicit funds from Donors    . Some of that
    post is repeated here before jumping into a sustainable earth discussion.  The Thanks-Shopping-and-Giving Week is an
    interesting week:

    1. Thanksgiving Thursday (in
      USA)
    2. Black Friday
    3. Small Business Saturday
    4. Sunday Football (or
      futbol, same name, different game)
    5. Cyber Monday
    6. Giving Tuesday
    7. Buyer’s remorse Wednesday
    8. Returns Thursday

    There’s a similar concept
    related to Black Friday, Earth Overshot Day. Earth Overshot Day is the day
    (approximately) during the year when the population of the world has exhausted
    the resources that the earth produces in a year and we move into deficit
    spending (overconsumption). Until a few decades ago, the earth produced far
    more that humans (and other living things combined) could consume. Not so now. Earth
    Overshoot Day is the day of the year – figuratively – where sustainability stops,
    and unsustainable live/living begins for the rest of the year. Guess what day
    of the year Earth Overshoot Day occurs? Before or after Black Friday?

    …

    … <scroll down>

    …

    … Wikipedia on Earth Overshoot Day.

    …

    … <scroll down>

    …

    Earth’s “carrying capacity”
    has been exceeded since about 1970.

    …

    Mid-August is now Earth
    Overshoot Day. That is with about 1/3 of the year remaining. We need an another
    third of an earth to continue living as we are.

    Stated differently, we
    are approaching the need for another planet earth to support our lifestyles and
    consumption patterns.

    Quietly in November 2022
    we blasted past 8 billion world population. Estimates are that we will max out between
    9 and 11 billion world population. But, as the rest of the world consumes at
    the rate of the industrialized world, we need 4 to 6 worlds to support us all.
    It is not that the earth cannot support us all; it simply can’t support us in
    the same lifestyle we would like, using the same production methods.

    You might find critics of
    the analysis on Earth Carrying Capacity and Earth Overshoot Day. But the
    concept holds up rather well. There’s sustainable, and there’s non-sustainable.
    If our 8 billion population and all businesses move toward being 100 percent
    sustainable, then Earth Overshoot Day will return to the black, all year, every
    year. And, if we like the planet we’ve got very much at all, moving to all
    sustainable is better much sooner, not later.

    Happy Thanksgiving,
    Shopping & Giving Week.

    Think Sustainable. Be
    Sustainable.
    Elmer Hall (c) SBP
    First Published on IntellZine.com (modified and reprinted here with permission
    of Author).

    Check out Hall & Hinkelman’s
    book on Nonprofit Planning and Impactful Giving for more on fundraising and
    philanthropic ecosystems.

    Hall,
    E. B. & Hinkelman, R. M. (2022). Perpetual
    Innovation™: Strategic planning for nonprofits and the art of impactful giving:
    the gift of giving, the art of caring    . ISBN: ‎ 979-8842614615
    Retrieved from: Amazon.com/dp/B0BF8MB13X (Available
    on Kindle eBook as well.)

     

  • Renewable Energy and IRA 2022

    Quick take for Inflation Reduction Act 2022

    The Inflation Reduction Act is a huge
    legislation act passed in 2022. It includes increases in taxes (mostly
    corporate related), limits to some spending (like drugs), and a lot toward
    energy efficiency and renewable energy. See the overview on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation_Reduction_Act_of_2022

    Renewable Energy Incentives. The IRA has raised and extended the
    30% investment tax credit to qualified renewable energy investments. There are
    many limitations and additions. Look for updated blogs here and get informed
    from the IRS and Treasury. 

    The 30% ITC for 10 Years. The 30% Investment Tax Credit was being
    reduced over time. The rate had dropped to 26% but was held at 26% through the pandemic.
    Now 30% is held through 2032 before phasing down. In 2033 and 2034, the ITC
    rates will be 26% and 22% respectively. If no further legislation is passed the
    ITC would phase out after 2034.

    Certainty. These 14 years of Investment Tax
    Credit provides an amazing amount of certainty to businesses and residential
    customers as well as the whole solar manufacturing and installation complex.

    Something for Nonprofits and Governments. Note that the ITC applies to more
    than solar. It applies to qualified batteries, wind and more. One big complaint
    with the Investment Tax Credit of the past is that it only applies to residents
    and businesses that pay taxes. Nothing for low-income who pay no income tax,
    nothing for nonprofits, nothing for government. The IRA law provides for
    rebates to nonprofits and governments that install renewable energy systems. This
    is a 30% rebate. The details of this aspect of the law are still being refined
    as of November 2022, it would appear. So, check with your favorite tax advisor
    on how to apply for the rebate before jumping into the investment.

    Strategic Business Planning Company
    (and SustainZine) developed a calculator and produced blogs and videos in 2020
    related to solar for residential and commercial. That means that when you work
    through the numbers using 26% ITC, you should come up with a much more
    profitable investment. The ITC is 30% and power inflation is wicked high, maybe
    4% or 5% forecasted. The residential calculator will now work for nonprofits
    and governments at 30% rebate (not ITC)! This is a game changer. Without any tax incentives, a solar or wind installation is just a good thing to do, and an okay investment. Now it will be a good investment as well as (still) being a good thing to do for the future and for the planet.

    Sometime soon we at SBP will revisit the
    articles and calculators for the new tax laws under the IRA. For now, enjoy the
    options that are provided for us all to be much more self sufficient and reduce
    our energy bills.

    For anyone (or nonprofit) considering
    renewable energy, it is probably a good investment. For most businesses, it is
    a crazy good investment, that just got a little bit better.

     

    The US Treasury Department offers a Fact Sheet on IRA Clean
    Energy Incentives: https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/FactSheet-Implementing-IRA-Climate-CleanEnergy-TaxIncentives.pdf

    Here’s a pretty good overview of the law: https://www.mofo.com/resources/insights/220810-369bn-climate-deal-americas-path-to-climate-resilience

    #SustainZine #Solar #RenewableEnergy #SBPlan #IRA2022 #InflationReductionAct

  • Ryder CSR reporting. Easy(ier) then BIG initiatives

    Ryder CSR reporting. Easy(ier) then BIG initiatives

    Ryder corporation has released its Corporate Sustainability Report for
    last 2021. They seem to be making more progress than many organizations,
    especially in the transportation industry. But their environment is one of the hardest
    to move to zero emissions. Long-haul trucking will be around for a long time
    and switching from diesel is difficult. All of the reporting creates fodder for
    anyone on the left, right or center to hammer on endlessly. See the Ryder Corporate Sustainability Report here: https://www.ryder.com/about-us/sustainability

    To match with the more recent terms and reporting
    approaches, Ryder refers throughout the CSR as Environmental, Social and
    Governance (ESG). A 3rd party is helping with the ESG reporting. The graphic from page 13 in the CSR report shows only a fraction of emissions from Scope 2 and Scope 3. (Scope 1 is completely with an organizations control.)

    Ryder ships stuff for other people, directly and indirectly.
    Who should be counting up all the carbon costs? If there were no parts shipped
    in the auto industry, there would be no trucks moved and zero carbon costs. Same
    with service and repairs. And, of course, the huge part of the equation is
    leased vehicles to other businesses that ship using Ryder-owned vehicles. (If  95% of emissions are within the domain of the businesses who use the trucks for shipping, this is where the massive amount of emission are. In other circumstances that might fall within Scope 3 for Ryder, but it seems that Ryder is not taking responsibility for the shipping that other businesses do. Rightly so. Just so long as someone takes responsibility for all the shipping, everywhere.)

    Ryder has specific, measurable and attainable targets for
    several things. The emissions from their facilities. Energy efficiency in the
    buildings is set to be down 30% for 2018 to 2024. The nice thing about that is
    it saves money, especially with energy (electric) costs going up (rapidly)
    every year. They have targets and training for drivers to drive better and safer.
    (Less accidents save massive amounts of money.) 
    At first look it seems that Ryder is not doing well on this safe-driving metric, but the situation is probably
    much more complicated, likely because of pandemic and supply shortages for 2+ years.

    Especially for short-haul, Ryder has been working on
    alternatives for decades, with lots of early work on moving trucks to natural
    gas. (Cleaner, but still a fossil fuel.) The same concepts that work for NatGas
    work for hydrogen (if H2 ever makes it to full viability). As with electric
    trucks, the infrastructure is needed before you can use the alternative fuel
    vehicles.

    So, some things sustainability-wise – like efficiencies –
    are great business decisions all around. Building and fuel efficiencies same
    money now and offer a perpetuity of savings forever (if maintained). Wind skirts on trailers improve fuel efficiency from 8 to 9 mpg. Oh, and
    efficiencies are good for the environment, too.

    Other things are much more complicated and require much more
    lead time and staged investment. Switching to alternative fuels, requires the
    infrastructure first, or at least part of the infrastructure. Also, the new
    technologies require additional/different training for service and maintenance.
    Note that Ryder is training 10% of technicians on alternative fuel technologies
    (each year).

    Ryder is moving past the chicken-and-egg problem. Measure
    first. Then move into the Plan-Do-Check-Act process of sustainability. The low-lying
    fruit should come first, then move into the initiatives that will really make a
    difference.

    #SustainabilityReporting, #ScopeEmissions,  #ESG, #CSR, #Transportation, #SupplyChain

  • Earth Day 2022 Who Killed the Electric Car?

     Earth Day 2022 (April 22, ’22) Who Killed the Electric Car?

    The statistics and the forecasts for Global Warming and
    Climate Change are increasingly dire. The decision – and it is a decision – to do
    business as usual (buy big gas guzzlers) is becoming increasingly costly to the world. And the window to avoid
    the worst warming scenarios is closing. The CO2 and methane that we have been
    pumping into the atmosphere will persist for decades (centuries really)
    continuing to heat a warming world.

    On that note, a documentary is in order for Earth Day 2022, Who
    Killed the Electric Car     (2006). Read about it on Wikipedia,
    watch on many venues including IMDb and Prime Video. It pretty much describes the methods of
    Big Tobacco in its hay day, and the methodology adopted by oil companies for
    about a century. Lots of celebrities. Hard to find a single factoid that is not true.

    General Motors was starting to be very successful with its
    electric car in 2005, rolling it out to meet the aggressive zero emissions vehicle
    (ZEV) standards that California was phasing in at the time. The standard,
    appropriately call CARB, was suddenly watered down and phased out, with both
    the state of California (Schwarzenegger)
    and the Federal government (Bush) chasing after a shiny object: Hydrogen. Cool technology, but… Hydrogen is still not here, and will probably never be truly competitive for most applications.

    GM (and the other Big Autos) killed off their EVs. In GMs
    case, the recalled them all back from their leases (not renewing) and crushed
    them all (but 1). If GM had stayed with their EV program they would have been
    in the same market position as Tesla is now, only 15 years earlier.  GM bought controlling position in a wonderful
    battery technology that would have given the EV 200+ mile range (vs 60 for the antiquated
    lead battery technology they were implementing). But that battery was never
    utilized. This controlling stake in the battery company was later sold to …
    Chevron!

    The documentary investigates who were the murders of the EV
    and who were the accomplices. But the obvious victims are the general public
    and, of course, the environment! We continue to be addicted to oil. Ukraine is
    a stark reminder of what the power bought with oil revenues can do.

    For now, drive less. Plan for a small vehicle. Make sure
    your next vehicle is either electric of plug-in- electric hybrid.

    As we celebrate Earth Day of 2022, think about how easily
    the citizens can be manipulated away from objectives that are better for the
    world into paths that are only good for monopolies and the ruthless.

    Please let us know if there is anything that is factually untrue. Also, are the conclusions sound?

    #EV #PHEF #WhoKilledTheElectricCar #GlobalWarming #ClimateChange #EarthDay