Policymakers, industry leaders map path to a sustainable future at Storyboard18's Power of Purpose: Sustainability edition

Held on October 18 in New Delhi, the event saw discussions on purpose and sustainability from the likes of Union Minister Chirag Paswan, Rohit Kapoor of Swiggy, Sanjeev Bikhchandani of InfoEdge, and Alok Lall, COO, Microsoft India and South Asia

By Storyboard18

Published: Oct 22, 2024 02:08:45 PM IST

Updated: Oct 22, 2024 02:38:01 PM IST

A gathering of purpose-driven minds at Storyboard18 and Network18 Group's Power of Purpose: Sustainability Edition, impactful stories, and pivotal conversations set the agenda for a sustainable future. The evening was graced by prominent industry leaders and key policymakers. (Clockwise: Rohit Kapoor, Alok Lall, Sanjeev Bikhchandani and Chirag Paswan)

The capital witnessed a gathering of purpose-driven minds debating how the young generation and business leaders are driving the sustainability efforts in the country. The Storyboard18 and Network18 Group's Power of Purpose: Sustainability Edition held in New Delhi was graced by prominent industry leaders.From policymakers and business leaders to individuals leading from the frontlines, they all came together to share impactful stories, and pivotal conversations to set the agenda for a sustainable future, on October 18.

Leading the dialogues at the edition were Union Minister Chirag Paswan, Rohit Kapoor, CEO - Food Marketplace, Swiggy, Angelo George, CEO, Bisleri International and Sanjeev Bikhchandani, Co-founder & Executive Vice Chairman, InfoEdge, Alok Lall, COO, Microsoft India and South Asia, and Ramnath Vaidyanthan, AVP & Head Of Sustainability, Godrej Industries, among others.

The event was kicked off with the opening remarks from the Minister of Food Processing Industries, Chirag Paswan.

Paswan shared his dream of having more Indian and homegrown brands in supermarkets, globally and how the country needs to grow with sustainability to become a self-reliant nation.

In his keynote address, Paswan went on to share that the country has enough abundance to fulfil global food demand. He emphasised that "as we aim to grow food processing sector, we need to ensure that it doesn't negatively impact the environment. Hence, we are ensuring not only to minimse the wastage but also add value to the sector.”

He highlighted the role of technology in mitigating environmental waste.

The Minister's speech was followed by a special address by Angelo George, CEO, Bisleri International, who gave an exhaustive presentation on some of the company's efforts and initiatives towards being purposeful and sustainable.

"We are one of the first FMCG companies to become plastic-neutral and water-positive," he mentioned.

George's presentation was followed by a fireside chat with Bikhchandani of InfoEdge, who spoke about the role of the next-generation and young business leaders in driving more conscious choices toward being sustainable.

Recognising the government's efforts and policies in this direction, he pointed out that InfoEdge has recently accelerated efforts toward sustainability.

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He further shared the company's increasing efforts in investing in sustainable businesses, his plan of buying an electric vehicle, although he isn't sure how 'stable is an EV', and the growing significance of artificial intelligence.

Speaking on achieving tech-powered sustainable and profitable growth, Lall of Microsoft India, then delved into how Microsoft is helping consumers make conscious choices of opting for the cloud infrastructure to reduce energy requirements.

"At the end of the day as a tech company, we have to find every avenue to empower businesses and individuals to comply with what the government needs to do," he said.

His remarks were followed by the evening's first panel discussion on 'Policy Perspective: Sustainable Strategies and Innovations' and the panelists included Jyoti Vij, Director General, FICCI, Hisham Mundol, Chief Advisor, Environmental Defense Fund India; Chandra Bhushan, CEO, iFOREST and Samit Mitra, MD, Country Delivery, India, GEAPP.

During the discussion, Chandra highlighted that the kind of education required to solve the climate crisis is missing, at present. Mitra further shared that there are 9 million MSMEs in India in the food processing business, wherein 42% use diesel as their main source of energy.

The panel discussion was followed by a fireside chat with Ruchira Jaitly of Diageo India, who spoke on integrating purpose into core brand ethos and strategy.

She highlighted how the company is working towards water efficiency while being in the business of beverages. She even showcased some of their ad films, showcasing the company's objective.

Later, IIT Bombay professor Solanki took over the stage to share his two cents on how small acts and leave big impacts.

Known as the 'Solar man of India', Solanki delved into the conversation about energy consumption while he talked about his mission. He further highlighted how the majority of people 'don't understand the idea of sustainability'.

Towards the end of the evening, the second round of the panel discussion was held on 'powering long-term sustainability and new bottom-line (people, planet and profit). The panelists included Ramnath Vaidyanthan, AVP & Head Of Sustainability, Godrej Industries, Ridhima Pandey, 16-year-old climate activist, Amar Nagaram- CEO and Co-founder, Virgio, and Saurabh Goenka, Director of Marketing, Pashupati Group.

Concluding the event, Rohit Kapoor from Swiggy emphasised making sustainability the foundation of modern business.

According to him, one thing that is quite aligned with sustainability is fast delivery.

"When we look at our footprint on what we can impact, the biggest is emissions. Fast delivery happens not because of the speed but because of the point that supply is near your residence (within 2 km), which allows EVs to operate very well," he said.

He also mentioned that the larger shift in EVs is happening on the two-wheeler side.