A major challenge that organic and sustainable brands face is how to break through the green glass ceiling. How can such brands break out of their niche status and gain a mainstream following? How can they maintain their core green values, whilst appealing to wider consumer groups? Organic Monitor (www.organicmonitor.com) gives some insights into this growth conundrum.

In light of the horse meat scandal, a new Sustainable Foods Masterclass (www.organicmonitor.com/foodmasterclass1.htm) has been launched to help operators mitigate risks of food fraud and improve transparency in their supply chains. Taking place in Amsterdam on 5th June, the half-day programme has seminars and a workshop on food authenticity and traceability.

The City of Oulu, the capital of Northern Scandinavia, today revealed new plans to build a city district that will serve as a model for environmental design in the northern hemisphere. Hiukkavaara, the Arctic Smart City, will be the largest city district to be built in Northern Finland and the most important future construction and investment area in Oulu. The total investment of the Hiukkavaara district amounts to 1.8 billion euros.

The new edition of forum CSR international has just been published. This preliminary online version shows sustainable solutions for the issues of biodiversity and energy. It analyses not only energy-efficient business models, but also future economic impacts of ecosystems on businesses and highlights ground-breaking solutions to companies' dependencies on biodiversity.

Bonn - More than 450 participants from 37 countries brought the issue of a Green Economy into the centre of the former Bundestag in Bonn from November 27th-28th. The motto of the International Conference on Sustainable Business and Consumption (SusCon) was "Green Economy - from intention to action". In the plenum of the World Conference Centre and during all 12 thematic sessions, delegates from businesses, non-governmental organisations, the media and science discussed concrete steps towards achieving a sustainable economy and society. Important highlight of SusCon 2012 was the video communique by HRH Prince Charles in which he underlined the value of organic farming and the need for sustainable development. Other high points were the trenchant presentations of Auma Obama, Alain Caparros, Helmy Abouleish, Pavan Sukhdev, as well as Ernst-Ulrich von Weizsäcker and Ulrich Hoffmann.

The business of land acquisition is flourishing. In the past decade, investors have bought or leased more than 48 million hectares of land worldwide, though more than one third of these transactions have taken place in African countries. Much of this frantic activity is best described as "Land Grabbing", i.e. the land is acquired entirely for the exploitation of natural resources for exportation without benefitting the local population. Benevolent investments in land, agriculture and forestry that create new job opportunities and improve infrastructure are now urgently needed in developing countries. At the SusCon conference these topics, along with strategies for responsible investments in land, will be discussed by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Prominent visitor to the UN city, Bonn. Dr Auma Obama, sister of the incumbent US President, Barack Obama, will deliver the opening speech of the international sustainability conference SusCon. SusCon, the largest follow-up conference to Rio+20, will take place on November 27-28, 2012 in Bonn, Germany. With the UN World Summit in Rio de Janeiro having yielded few results, the aim of SusCon 2012 is to find practical measures that will bring an actual transition to a "Green Economy", and therefore move the world economy to an economic system based on sustainability and the conservation of resources. Auma Obama will demonstrate in Bonn the significance of combating poverty for a sustainable economy.

In Europe, many different tools are used for protecting biodiversity and natural areas, including the Natura 2000 network, the Habitats Directive and the European Charter for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas. To the European business sector, however, the potential economic value of Natural and National parks is little known. More and more companies are looking for ways to contribute to biodiversity protection. The European Business & Biodiversity Campaign and EUROPARC Federation are offering new aspects to the debate how protected areas can be maintained, and how societies can re-connect to the ecological, socio-cultural and economic value of such landscapes. European protected areas can bring measurable direct and flow-on economic benefits to local, regional, state and national economies.

Geneva - The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and Stockholm Resilience Center (SRC) today announced an innovativecollaboration to ensure future business solutions are based on the best scientific analysis. The collaboration signals, for the first time, that the WBCSD has committed to integrating scientific analysis and resilience thinking into projects focused on accelerating business solutions for sustainability. The announcement was made at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Jeju.

Voluntary performance standards offer a means for companies to adopt sustainable practices, conveying benefits to the environment, society and indeed to their own business, but how well are they protecting biodiversity? A recent study by UNEP-World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) reviewed the biodiversity related criteria within a number of business standards to find out. Issues raised include the lack of clarity in identifying important biodiversity and the under-use of existing biodiversity conservation approaches. This article provides an overview of existing gaps that need to be addressed in order to strengthen the ability of standards to safeguard biodiversity.

Daimler AG carried out a Biodiversity Check in the framework of the European Business & Biodiversity Campaign in 2011 at the Sindelfingen plant. In so doing, it recognised the economic importance of intact ecosystems and has set the course towards an environmentally friendly business practice. Having carried out the check, Daimler provides an example of how businesses can examine its business processes and value chains in relation to biodiversity.

forum CSR international supports these events as media partner and is happy to present the variety of celebrations. Starting by the glamorous gala-events in Düsseldorf and London, to the renowned ceremonies like the Right Livelihood award in Stockholm, the B.A.U.M. Umweltpreis in Hamburg and the international Energy Globe in Austria we give you an impression about the merits of the nominees and winners. Last but not least we present the newcomer of 2012, the sustainable entrepreneurship award.

As a partner of the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation & Development (BMZ), the Siemens Stiftung (Foundation) supports regional workshops for the winners of a global ideas competition. Submit your application!

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The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services in the areas of automotive and industrial technology, consumer goods, and building technology

CSR Commitment - For HiPP, sustainability has never just been a trendy issue. For over five decades, the family-owned company has been practicing BIO-Production and resource-saving economic activity. Beginning in the mid-80s, Professor Claus Hipp, a committed entrepreneur, began turning the topic of sustainability into an organisational objective. A corporate area dedicated to sustainability drives the implementation and further development of the HiPP sustainability goals