Toward a Green Economy: Enabling Small Businesses To Become More Sustainable and Resilient Through Digital Solutions and Mastercard Strive
Mastercard Strive is supporting small businesses in their transition to a green economy through partnerships and innovative technologies. Key initiatives include:
1. Reducing single-use plastic packaging: Partnering with Novek in Kenya to develop IoT-enabled dispensing systems, and with Alner in Indonesia for reusable packaging solutions.
2. Promoting circular economy participation: Collaborating with Tern Eco in the UK to enable small retailers to set up circular retail programs.
3. Facilitating ESG reporting: Partnering with Vested Impact to provide affordable impact assessments for small businesses.
4. Supporting climate-smart agriculture: Working with California Farmlink to integrate capital tools and conservation measures for farmers.
These initiatives aim to help small businesses meet consumer demands for sustainability, comply with evolving regulations, and contribute to global net-zero emissions goals.
Mastercard Strive sostiene le piccole imprese nella loro transizione verso un'economia verde attraverso collaborazioni e tecnologie innovative. Le principali iniziative includono:
1. Riduzione dell'imballaggio in plastica monouso: Collaborazione con Novek in Kenya per sviluppare sistemi di erogazione abilitati IoT e con Alner in Indonesia per soluzioni di imballaggio riutilizzabile.
2. Promozione della partecipazione all'economia circolare: Collaborazione con Tern Eco nel Regno Unito per consentire ai piccoli rivenditori di attivare programmi di vendita circolare.
3. Facilitazione della rendicontazione ESG: Collaborazione con Vested Impact per fornire valutazioni d'impatto a prezzi accessibili per le piccole imprese.
4. Sostegno all'agricoltura sostenibile: Lavorare con California Farmlink per integrare strumenti di capitalizzazione e misure di conservazione per gli agricoltori.
Queste iniziative mirano ad aiutare le piccole imprese a soddisfare le richieste dei consumatori per la sostenibilità, a conformarsi alle normative in evoluzione e a contribuire agli obiettivi globali di emissioni nette zero.
Mastercard Strive apoya a las pequeñas empresas en su transición hacia una economía verde a través de asociaciones y tecnologías innovadoras. Las principales iniciativas incluyen:
1. Reducción del embalaje de plástico de un solo uso: Colaboración con Novek en Kenia para desarrollar sistemas de dispensación habilitados por IoT y con Alner en Indonesia para soluciones de embalaje reutilizables.
2. Promoción de la participación en la economía circular: Colaboración con Tern Eco en el Reino Unido para permitir a los pequeños minoristas establecer programas de venta circular.
3. Facilitación de la elaboración de informes ESG: Asociación con Vested Impact para proporcionar evaluaciones de impacto asequibles para pequeñas empresas.
4. Apoyo a la agricultura inteligente para el clima: Trabajo con California Farmlink para integrar herramientas de capital y medidas de conservación para los agricultores.
Estas iniciativas tienen como objetivo ayudar a las pequeñas empresas a satisfacer las demandas de sostenibilidad de los consumidores, cumplir con las regulaciones en evolución y contribuir a los objetivos globales de emisión neta cero.
마스터카드 스트라이브는 소규모 기업들이 친환경 경제로의 전환을 지원하기 위해 협력 및 혁신 기술을 통해 노력하고 있습니다. 주요 이니셔티브는 다음과 같습니다:
1. 일회용 플라스틱 포장 감소: 케냐의 Novek와 협력하여 IoT 지원 분배 시스템을 개발하고, 인도네시아의 Alner와 함께 재사용 가능한 포장 솔루션을 제공합니다.
2. 순환 경제 참여 촉진: 영국의 Tern Eco와 협력하여 소규모 소매업체들이 순환 소매 프로그램을 구축할 수 있도록 지원합니다.
3. ESG 보고 촉진: Vested Impact와 협력하여 소규모 기업들을 위한 저렴한 영향 평가를 제공합니다.
4. 기후 친화적 농업 지원: 캘리포니아 파머링크와 협력하여 농민들을 위한 자본 도구 및 보존 조치를 통합합니다.
이러한 이니셔티브는 소규모 기업들이 소비자들의 지속 가능성 요구를 충족하고, 변화하는 규정에 준수하며, 전 세계적인 탄소 중립 목표에 기여할 수 있도록 도와주는 것을 목표로 하고 있습니다.
Mastercard Strive soutient les petites entreprises dans leur transition vers une économie verte grâce à des partenariats et des technologies innovantes. Les principales initiatives comprennent :
1. Réduction des emballages plastiques à usage unique : Partenariat avec Novek au Kenya pour développer des systèmes de distribution connectés et avec Alner en Indonésie pour des solutions d’emballage réutilisables.
2. Promotion de la participation à l’économie circulaire : Collaboration avec Tern Eco au Royaume-Uni pour permettre aux petits détaillants de mettre en place des programmes de commerce circulaire.
3. Facilitation du reporting ESG : Partenariat avec Vested Impact pour fournir des évaluations d'impact à prix abordable pour les petites entreprises.
4. Soutien à l'agriculture intelligente face au climat : Collaboration avec California Farmlink pour intégrer des outils de financement et des mesures de conservation pour les agriculteurs.
Ces initiatives visent à aider les petites entreprises à répondre aux exigences des consommateurs en matière de durabilité, à se conformer aux réglementations évolutives et à contribuer aux objectifs mondiaux de neutralité carbone.
Mastercard Strive unterstützt kleine Unternehmen bei ihrem Übergang zu einer grünen Wirtschaft durch Partnerschaften und innovative Technologien. Zu den wichtigsten Initiativen gehören:
1. Reduzierung von Einwegplastikverpackungen: Partnerschaft mit Novek in Kenia zur Entwicklung von IoT-fähigen Abgabesystemen und mit Alner in Indonesien für Lösungen mit wiederverwendbaren Verpackungen.
2. Förderung der Teilnahme an der Kreislaufwirtschaft: Zusammenarbeit mit Tern Eco im Vereinigten Königreich, um kleinen Einzelhändlern die Einrichtung von Kreislaufhandelsprogrammen zu ermöglichen.
3. Erleichterung der ESG-Berichterstattung: Partnerschaft mit Vested Impact, um bezahlbare Wirkungseinschätzungen für kleine Unternehmen anzubieten.
4. Unterstützung klimaresilienter Landwirtschaft: Zusammenarbeit mit California Farmlink zur Integration von Kapitalinstrumenten und Naturschutzmaßnahmen für Landwirte.
Diese Initiativen zielen darauf ab, kleinen Unternehmen zu helfen, die Anforderungen der Verbraucher an Nachhaltigkeit zu erfüllen, sich an die sich entwickelnden Vorschriften anzupassen und zu den globalen Netto-Null-Emissionen beizutragen.
- Mastercard Strive is actively supporting small businesses in transitioning to sustainable practices
- Partnerships with innovative companies to develop eco-friendly solutions for small businesses
- Initiatives span multiple countries, including Kenya, Indonesia, UK, and the US
- Focus on reducing single-use plastic, promoting circular economy, and facilitating ESG reporting
- None.
Originally published by Mastercard Strive
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / There's an important environmental shift underway, and small businesses are playing a central role. Across the globe, an overwhelming
Recognizing the critical role of small businesses in achieving net-zero emissions, Mastercard Strive has partnered with organizations worldwide to support innovative technologies that enable small businesses to contribute to positive environmental impact. Partners are testing new ideas and scaling socially inclusive innovations for small businesses that minimize the impact on the planet and support communities that are already - or will become - impacted by climate change.
In this post, we share more details about these initiatives, their achievements, and lessons learned so far, where applicable. On the whole, Mastercard Strive programs are supporting small businesses to reduce or eliminate single-use plastic packaging, facilitate their participation in the circular economy, and assess their impact on environmental and social issues.
Reducing and eliminating single-use plastic packaging
The United Nations Environmental Programme estimates that about
In 2022, Mastercard Strive partnered with Novek to develop and test an Internet of Things-enabled dispensing system for washing powder for micro-retailers in Kenya. Mastercard Strive and Novek believe there is an opportunity for this technology to eliminate single-use plastic packaging and grow micro-retailer revenue at the same time. During the program, Novek built and successfully tested dispensing prototypes, learning several lessons on building innovative technology for small retailers. They learned that regular touch points involving training can promote consistent use among retailers and that it takes time to build trust among customers to switch to accessing a product in a new way. Novek is now building a more stable machine that requires less maintenance and focusing on building partnerships that can support their growth.
More recently, in Indonesia, Mastercard Strive has partnered with Alner, which employs a reusable and returnable packaging system to replace single-use, non-recyclable packaging for daily essentials such as detergent, rice, cooking oil, and more. Consumers can use the packaging up to 20 times. Alner creates a sustainable consumption loop by first providing Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCGs) companies with reusable packaging and then incentivizing consumers to return the packaging through a deposit-reward scheme. Through a mobile app, small businesses can monitor their business performance and environmental impact by tracking the volume of returned single-use plastic. Mastercard Strive is enabling Alner to further enhance its mobile app by introducing features to boost small businesses' performance. These enhancements include comprehensive training materials, peer-to-peer learning, gamification elements, digital payments, and timely market insights.
Participating in the circular economy
Thousands of tons of unnecessary waste are created each year. The circular economy can minimize waste by keeping products, materials, and resources in use for as long as possible, reducing the
In the UK, Mastercard Strive has partnered with Tern Eco, a retail tech solution that leverages circular retail models, such as reuse and resale, to support small businesses on their journey to circularity. Tern Eco's enhanced solution will enable smaller time-poor retailers to intuitively set up circular retail programs, offering greater flexibility and new functionality to enable repairs, upcycling, and relisting products traded-in for resale.
Additionally, using the data generated and aggregated across merchants, consumers, and product verticals, Tern Eco will build a comprehensive view of the full life cycle of products to identify emerging market and consumer trends - data that will be shared with the wider retail community to encourage circular models in other markets.
Assessing business impact on social and environmental issues
Today, countries require major buying organizations to mandate their small business suppliers to measure and disclose their impact on social and environmental issues, known as Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reporting. Despite this growing demand, current ESG and sustainability data solutions are often inaccessible and expensive, and do not cater to small businesses' unique needs. To address this, Mastercard Strive has partnered with Vested Impact, an impact assessment platform, to provide micro- and small businesses across the globe with independent, affordable, and data-driven impact assessments.
Through Vested Impact's platform, small businesses can leverage more than 300 million science-based research papers and impact data points to assess the impact of their products and services on global priorities like climate, education, healthcare, and the economy. Small businesses will gain access to an AI-powered comprehensive summary, offering a breakdown of complex ESG data that aligns with leading regulations and supply chain requirements. This data has the potential to improve small businesses' market access and empower them with the data they need to become sustainable and impactful.
Supporting small businesses to navigate evolving regulatory and consumer demands around sustainability is also an important priority for Mastercard Strive in the EU, which sought applications for innovative solutions to address these issues in its recent innovation fund.
Mastercard Strive is also increasingly turning its attention to the impact of climate on agriculture and farmers in the United States. A partnership with California Farmlink will pilot a program that integrates capital tools, digital solutions, and conservation measures to better support farmers and promote social impact investment in climate-smart agriculture. Further, federal funding focused on the climate crisis, such as the
Looking ahead
As suppliers, consumers, and regulators increasingly shift toward a green economy, micro- and small businesses cannot be left behind. Through these initiatives, Mastercard Strive aims to contribute to global net-zero gas emissions goals and promote the growth and financial resilience of small businesses worldwide. We are delighted to support these innovative partners and work alongside such inspiring entrepreneurs. We look forward to the insights and lessons our partners will share as they work to deliver digital and data-first solutions that support small business growth and environmental sustainability.
Originally published by Mastercard Strive
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View the original press release on accesswire.com
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