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Retour sur: The challenges of corporate sustainability: a new strategic imperative

By 2024, sustainability has entered the core of every company’s operational strategy. Climate change, social expectations, and environmental legislation are requiring companies to make new efforts, and businesses are increasingly taking social and environmental responsibilities in society. However, while we often discuss the importance of sustainability, ESG is still an emerging topic with many different facets – and the possibilities for positive impact are many.

To explore the meaning of ESG in everyday business management anno 2024, the Danish-French Chamber of Commerce held a conference at SOHO in Kødbyen with a panel debate on the theme “The challenges of corporate sustainability: a new strategic imperative” on April 24, 2024, where 4 of our members spoke about the challenges, the opportunities, and the remaining considerations that ESG poses for their companies:

• Schneider Electric, represented by Susanne Emich, SERE Manager
• L'Oréal Nordic, represented by Emma Hurley, Sustainability Director
• Guldsmeden Hotels, represented by Kirsten Aggersborg, Head of Communication
• Air France KLM represented by Anita Wagner Feddersen, Country Manager

The debate was moderated by Thomas Canguilhem, CEO and co-founder of EcoTree, who asked the panellists about sustainability challenges in their businesses anno 2024 and also touched upon consumer attitude, the attitude in the Nordics compared to France, and, finally, which social initiatives the groups had put in place.

Key takeaways from the discussions where that the late ESG reporting remains challenging for companies; that consumers in general are not yet ready to pay more for climate friendly products; and that it is difficult to cut on CO2 emissions as demand is going up.

In conclusion: there is still a lot to discuss. Luckily, this conference was also organised to celebrate the launch of the Chamber’s new sustainability committee where our members can meet to discuss the challenges, opportunities and best practices for ESG initiatives. Learn more about it here.

After the panel debate, we enjoyed a networking cocktail on SOHO’s rooftop with wine from Les Grands Chais de France  and snacks from Agent Green. Agent Green, a recent member of the Chamber, works at the core of sustainability: Their speciality is organic, natural, and healthy snacks, distributed in vending machines to avoid any waste. Via their their service “office solutions”, they work directly with companies to promote green and happy businesses. Learn more about them on our website (INSERT LINK).

A big thanks to the moderator and speakers; Les Grands Chais and Agent Green; and all the participants from our network.