AmCham Sustainability Forum: Ambition and Inevitable Change
Representatives from 15 AmCham member industries joined AmCham’s latest Sustainability Forum, as Founder and former CEO of OSM Aviation, Espen Høiby, and Per Hynne, Head of Public Affairs, Communication and Sustainability at Coca-Cola European Partners Norway, presented their companies’ respective groundbreaking initiatives. Both leaders within the respective aviation and food and beverage industries, Høiby and Hynne underscored the responsibility their companies have in their proactive approaches to sustainability.
Presenters
Espen Høiby – Founder & Former CEO
Per Hynne – Head of Public Affairs, Communication and Sustainability
Sky-High Innovation
Espen Høiby, a former airline captain and management executive for Scandinavian Airlines (SAS), has led OSM Aviation’s vast growth over the past seven years. The company provides aviation training and crew management services and was founded with the intent of disrupting traditional industry inefficiencies. OSM Aviation’s flexible model has enabled their clients to cut costs while increasing flexibility for employees – in other words, a more sustainable model focused on business longevity and employee satisfaction.
Contrary to general assumptions, the aviation industry overall accounts for approximately 2.5% of global carbon dioxide emissions. These emissions, however, must be actively addressed with efforts to lessen impacts. A new modus operandi has been “long overdue” for the industry – a sentiment that, along with the pandemic, has acted as a catalyst for technological advancements.
“This past year’s dramatic effect on airlines cannot be overstated,” Høiby acknowledged. “However, when the world does return to more regular traveling patterns, airlines will need to respond to customers – led by demography, technologies, and consumer behavior and expectations.” The answer lies in the emergence of electrification.
Forecasting the future of aviation, Høiby addressed environmental scrutiny and focus, aircraft electrification, new business models and urban mobility. OSM Aviation’s purchase of 60 electric planes from Colorado-based Bye Aerospace is one step towards revolutionizing training for pilots. With these types of battery-driven planes, operating costs are one fifth of fuel-driven planes, carbon emissions during flight are zero, and noise pollution is greatly reduced. “In 10 years, the way we move around will be completely different to what we see today.”
Ambition as a Force for Change
Per Hynne opened by acknowledging the Sustainability Forum’s evolution since its inception in 2018, affirming that it serves as a unique platform for sharing cross-industry best practices and as an inspiration on sustainability-related topics.
Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP) has dedicated mounting resources to their climate and sustainable impact strategy, working on system-wide solutions since 2011. When addressing sustainability, CCEP works within six pillars: drinks, packaging, society, water, climate, and supply chain. Over the course of 10 years, Hynne has seen a dramatic change within key initiatives. Today, the company is acting on its Action on Climate Now protocols launched in November 2020. Their vision is a path to net zero by 2040, measuredly cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
According to Hynne, large corporations need to be the ones driving change, as they have the resources and the capabilities to do so. Additionally, there must be incentives for leaders internally to promote sustainable practices. “What we see through the plans we have driven within sustainability over the last years is that ambitious targets are what drives the change.”
When assessing external value chains – including sourcing, packaging, equipment, customers, and communities – one finding is that 43% of emissions are derived from packaging, providing ample reason to explore optimized circular packaging solutions.
In 2018, The Coca-Cola Company launched the campaign Working Towards a World Without Waste. One way of reaching that goal is by collecting every single unit that enters the market, an area Norway excels through its depositing scheme. Drawing upon its strong brand, Coca-Cola has effectively replaced its bottle logos with the message “PANT MEG IGJEN” (deposit me again) on its 100% recycled bottles throughout Norway.
About Sustainability Forum
Future success is dependent upon running a sustainable business – for people, planet, and profit. Hence, AmCham brings select, cross-industry member company representatives together on an ongoing basis to discuss opportunities, facilitate open exchange and determine how AmCham members can best contribute to Norwegian and US sustainability agendas going forward.
Read more about our Sustainability Forum and please contact Margrethe.Harboe@amcham.no for interest in future meetings.