BASF Canada: How to drive superior levels sustainability engagement through employees and other stakeholders

In this episode, Eva Musso – Head of Sustainability and Government Relations for BASF Canada, talks with Alex about why BASF Canada has had such a strong focus on employee and supply chain sustainability engagement programmes and the value of this activity to the business.

Sustainability cannot be the remit of just one person, but many companies find the scale of the issue and the busyness of staff can be a block to meaningful engagement. So have Eva and her team achieved great results?

We explore:

• How Eva’s background in Government brought a different lens to the challenge
• The context and goals for the engagement element of her sustainability strategy
• The goals the Sustain YOU program and employee response
• The most innovative projects to come out of the Site Emission Reduction Challenge and why making it an employee-led competition made a difference

· How employee-driven programs shift the culture of sustainability within a global corporation

· How partnering with external organizations like Bull Frog Power & Iron and Earth, link to sustainability objectives

· How to engage suppliers to align with BASF’s decarbonization targets – and the role of BASF’s digital application for calculating the cradle-to-gate Product Carbon Footprint (PCF)

For further links and information, check these links out:

Show links:

- Connect with Eva Musso on LinkedIn and explore the BASF Canada sustainability site

- Follow Alex Cameron on LinkedIn and find how to get involved with the membership and work of Decarb Connect

- Join Eva and Alex in Toronto where she will be speaking at Decarb Connect Canada (Toronto, November 2024)

Recommended Links from BASF Canada:
Bull Frog Power

Iron and Earth

PCF

Clean Commuting Program

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• (00:01) - Introduction
• (00:02) - Eva Background and Journey into Environmental Science and Sustainability
• (00:03) - Joining BASF
• (05:41) - Engaging Employees and Stakeholders in BASF's sustainability mission
• (07:35) - Measuring the impact of sustainability work
• (08:58) - The Sustain You Program at BASF: Its goals: education, engagement, and recognition.
• (11:28) - Initial Engagement and Statistics from the Program
• (13:49) - Corporate Engagement off the back of the program
• (14:52) - BASF's Site Emission Reduction Challenge
• (16:04) - The Impact of implementing an Emissions Reduction Challenge
• (19:24) - BASF's Decade of Action contest
• (20:20) - How this program motivated employees
• (23:00) - How these programs have fostered a cultural shift towards sustainability in the workplace
• (26:15) - Balancing corporate needs and sustainability objectives when engaging in external partnerships
• (29:17) - The principles of establishing successful partnerships: transparency, shared vision, and accountability.
• (30:25) - Maintaining relationships with partners for future projects
• (31:33) - Managing a complex supply chain: The strategies BASF employs to engage suppliers effectively for measurable sustainability outcomes.
• (36:07) - The importance of training sales teams to effectively communicate the benefits of sustainable products to customers.
• (36:29) - Lessons Learned in Stakeholder Engagement: Key takeaways from Eva's experience
• (00:39) - Final Thoughts and Advice