CIEX Europe is coming to Frankfurt on September 28-29. We are incredibly excited about the great cast of speakers sharing their ideas. I appreciate the fresh inspiration and thought that these leaders are bringing to the table, so I spent some time interviewing them. Hopefully, this will give you a sneak peek into what the conference will be about, as well as some inspiration to motivate change and growth in your organisation. Below is my interview with Dr. Nicoletta Piccolrovazzi, DOW‘s Global Technology and Sustainability Director, Olympic & Sports Solutions.
At CIEX, Nicoletta will talk about ‘Low-carbon economy – enabling the transition with chemistry based solutions’. She will discuss how collaborations at the intersection of sports and business can drive technology adoption. She will also highlight how the carbon benefits of technology can address certain needs and drive differentiation in the marketplace.
JL: What are you most looking forward to at CIEX Europe 2016?
NP: Coming together as a science and business community provides a moment to reflect, to learn and to be inspired by others. What excites me most is the potential of where we go from here together. We have an opportunity, and a responsibility to look beyond the collaborations of today, and set the bar higher for business and social and environmental progress.
JL: How has the market changed over the last 5 years for the European chemicals market and what will Dow do to meet the market requirements in the near to medium term?
NP: As the Official Chemistry Company of the Olympic Games and Official Carbon Partner of Rio 2016, the Olympic motto of “Citius. Altius. Fortius.” (Latin for “Faster. Higher. Stronger.”) provides perspective on the market environment we experience as a company.
Higher – The bar for leadership is continuously rising and Dow is at the forefront, rebuilding and reinventing the sector globally. Externalities, like climate change, have to be factored into the equation.
Faster – The pace of bringing products and solutions to market is accelerating and in order to accelerate the pace, we are becoming more agile and sharpening our market focus to go narrower and deeper into the applications.
Stronger – We are building stronger customer alliances and developing solutions together.
JL: Given the outlook of chemicals industry, what is Dow’s strategy to maintain and strengthen the company’s position?
NP: We believe in the role of science to shape the future of society, and we want to do our part to help lead the transition to a more sustainable one. With a commitment to sustainability, innovation and constant progress that runs deep, Dow is uniquely qualified to accomplish this through the power of our products and our people. Together with our partners, we have the opportunity to shape the environment future generations will experience decades from now—a responsibility that belongs to every one of us.
JL: Why did you choose the topic you will speak about?
NP: Every day at Dow, we are driving innovations that harness material, polymer, chemical and biological science to help address many of the world’s most challenging problems such as the need for clean water, clean energy generation and conservation, and increasing agricultural productivity.
We are combining the power of sports and science with the power of collaboration to catalyze action on climate change and help build a more sustainable future. Sports offer a unique means to engage a large and global audience – both in the business and the consumer worlds. The increasing attention given to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by event organizers and stakeholders provides an opportunity to establish meaningful and lasting mitigation programs.
These efforts are well underway. For example, Dow’s partnership with the Olympic Movement enables us to use the platform, of sport and the Olympic brand to demonstrate how our science and technologies can advance the adoption of lower-carbon solutions. The Rio 2016 Olympic Games have provided us with a unique opportunity to start a new dialog and collaborate with industry leaders to introduce solutions that will benefit generations to come.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIxeI_hO8ZI
JL: Why should people attend your talk?
NP: Climate change is generating new and emerging challenges as well as opportunities for business. It will require innovation and collaborations that reconsider how we source, process, produce and distribute the energy, food, water and goods that make our lives healthy and productive. The business community should see these economic and ecological imperatives as opportunities to act with urgency and ingenuity.
Motivated by Dow’s goal to drive collaborations for a more sustainable planet, Dow created the Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Framework to address the need for clearer guidance on how to properly manage and mitigate the GHG impacts of events and to lay out options available for GHG mitigation beyond the event’s physical and temporal boundaries.
Attendees will gain insight and tools on how to implement a structured yet flexible approach to quantify the carbon benefits of chemistry-based solutions and use them to mitigate carbon impacts while also leaving a positive legacy through the adoption of innovative low-carbon technologies.
Editor’s note: You can learn more about the upcoming conference at CIEX Europe website.
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