{"id":9573,"date":"2016-11-03T22:31:03","date_gmt":"2016-11-04T02:31:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/unilever-the-small-steps-necessary-to-decrease-a-large-footprint\/"},"modified":"2016-11-04T16:33:01","modified_gmt":"2016-11-04T20:33:01","slug":"unilever-the-small-steps-necessary-to-decrease-a-large-footprint","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/unilever-the-small-steps-necessary-to-decrease-a-large-footprint\/","title":{"rendered":"UNILEVER: The Small Steps Necessary to Decrease a Large Footprint"},"content":{"rendered":"

THE PROBLEM: THE RISK CLIMATE CHANGE POSES TO UNILEVER<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Unilever, the world\u2019s second-largest consumer goods conglomerate that produces some of the world\u2019s most iconic brands like Dove, Lipton and Hellman\u2019s, appears to understand that climate change poses an enormous risk to its business.\u00a0 Climate change caused by the emission of greenhouse gases leads to water scarcity, extreme weather such as tsunamis and earthquakes, decreases in productivity across the agricultural supply chain, and increased food and material costs, all of which directly affect Unilever\u2019s business as a manufacturer of food and consumer products.\u00a0 Unilever has already estimated that natural disasters linked to climate change cost the company $300M<\/strong> a year, or 6% of its net profits <\/strong>[1<\/a>].<\/p>\n

If greenhouse gas emissions continue at current levels, experts predict that profits of the consumer goods industry could be destroyed in 30 years.\u00a0 Consequently, Unilever is taking steps to combat this global crisis [2<\/a>].<\/p>\n