Category Archives: Business

Greens should keep their powder dry: Brussels doesn’t always know best

This post is by Matthew Farrow, director of policy at the Environmental Services Association, writing in a personal capacity. I recently attended a judicial review hearing for the first time. The subject was Defra’s interpretation of certain parts of the … Continue reading

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Why we need low carbon infrastructure, not “shovel ready” zombie roads

This post was first published on the New Statesman blog. After three years of vigorous disagreement the political and economic commentariat seem to have found common ground. Infrastructure. Left and right now agree that it’s vital for the UK’s economic renewal, … Continue reading

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7 reasons why cities hold the key to sustainability

Chris Guenther, research director at SustainAbility, argues that cities offer the best hope for rapidly developing and replicating sustainability solutions. A longer version of this article will appear in the spring issue of Green Alliance’s journal Inside Track. 

Posted in Business, Green economy, Policy | 2 Comments

The hidden giants of infrastructure

This post first appeared on BusinessGreen. Industrial strategy hasn’t been fashionable for a long time. Anyone romantic enough to have spent February 14th watching Harold Wilson Night on BBC Parliament will have seen the last moment when industrial strategy took … Continue reading

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The circular economy: big in Japan

This post is by Jonny Hazell, policy assistant on our Resource Stewardship theme. When it comes to the ways in which stuff is made, consumed, and disposed of, there’s a lot the UK could learn from Japan. Japanese recycling rates are … Continue reading

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Radical activists play a vital role in political & corporate change

This post by George Marshall,  founder and programme director of the Climate Outreach Information Network, first appeared on Guardian Sustainable Business. Large businesses and governments often regard radical activists as a nuisance, a threat or an outright enemy. I’ve worked with … Continue reading

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Economics, not science, will save the world

I have participated in many different types of event in my time, but none so intense as the Science Museum’s ‘speed geeking’.  This involves gathering a dozen experts from fields as varied as cancer research, space mining, nuclear physics and … Continue reading

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British economic policy would benefit from more Olympic discipline

This post is by Green Alliance director Matthew Spencer and independent energy consultant Paul Arwas, the authors of Green Alliance’s new pamphlet Nurturing UK cleantech enterprise which is published today . It appeared first on BusinessGreen.  We now know that when the … Continue reading

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Which raw materials pose the biggest business risk?

I wrote about Chatham House’s report on resource futures last month, which provides a detailed and comprehensive look at how underlying environmental stress contributes to material insecurity. Green Alliance’s contention is that addressing material insecurity means tackling the underlying environmental … Continue reading

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City deals are an opportunity for green growth

In its bid to unlock growth around the country, the government is turning to cities for help. The UK’s major urban hubs have been given decision-making powers, devolved funding and new financing models in return for drawing up growth plans. … Continue reading

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