Ey Sustainability Summit took place last February 8th in its fourth edition.
Ey Sustainability Summit represents the kick-off of a path dedicated to sustainability, animated by events on strategic topics for the business such as food, fashion, energy, mobility, manufacturing and financial services.
In a handy playlist on YouTube, you can retrace the entire event
Within the fourth edition of Ey Sustainability Summit, representatives of the sustainability institutions discussed the business model, circular economy, climate change, mobility and sustainable finance.
In addition to this, the results of the study “Seize the change: sustainable futures” were presented: a survey on the integration of sustainability in the business of national companies through the pillars that support existing practices and their continuous evolution.
The study highlights how the health emergency has not slowed but intensified the attention of companies on sustainability issues, making them more organic to corporate strategy.
In terms of corporate sustainability planning, the EY research observes that most of the companies interviewed are committed to the issue in a strategic context, as more than two thirds (70%) have envisaged a sustainability plan accompanied by growth objectives compared to the Last year.
However, the companies that have structured it with medium-long term quantitative targets remain in the minority (39%) while only 23% of the companies have also defined the relative timelines for achieving the objectives.
Following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, despite the perennial state of uncertainty deriving from the health emergency, it is significant to note that for a third of the companies interviewed, or 33%, the impact of the pandemic will act as an accelerator for a transition towards more sustainable models, giving particular emphasis to the enhancement and protection of human capital, risk management and community and territorial development, while for 23% it will not entail any change for the activities envisaged in the related sustainability plans. Furthermore, almost half of the companies interviewed (44%) suffered repercussions on the progress of the activities envisaged by the plans which could lead to a downsizing of the initiatives and projects envisaged in some areas.
In relation to the issue of mobility, it was highlighted during the EY Sustainability Summit, that travel represents one of the main sources of carbon dioxide emissions closely related to the quality of life and well-being of people.
The possibility of resorting to alternative forms of mobility could facilitate behavior, habits and styles for the benefit of the environment and communities.
The EY study shows that companies in the country are particularly active in offering mobility services and initiatives for their employees. In particular, the survey shows that among 87% of companies that have developed or planned mobility initiatives for workers, 63% have activated smart working programs, 5% have implemented company programs for car sharing, while 11% provided concessions for public transport.
