Sustainability Business Forum 2021 Annual Report

Against the backdrop of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, members of the Sustainability Business Forum (SBF) worked to support local communities, effectively acting as anchor institutions by assisting families affected by the pandemic-driven recession and pivoting their operations to demonstrate long-term resilience. Despite the challenges, SBF members focused their efforts on a green growth economic recovery,  identifying opportunities to build back better and advance Hawai‘i’s statewide 2030 sustainability goals, known as the Aloha+ Challenge. This report highlights the SBF’s collective and individual actions in 2021, and the strategic outlook for 2022 and beyond.

The SBF convened virtually for 2021 Q1-Q3 meetings, which included a Green Growth Talk Story Series with local, national, and global sustainability experts and leaders. Speakers included local leaders from the City & County of Honolulu and the state tourism authority, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) executives and experts from BlackRock, and the Brookings Institution to advance the SBF’s three priority areas:

1. nature-based solutions and payment for ecosystem services (PES)
2. sustainable growth through Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) metrics and reporting
3. regenerative and sustainable tourism

Kona Hema Carbon Offset Initiative - SBF members partnered with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) Hawai’i to support the Kona Hema Offset Project, a PES project on Hawai‘i Island. The project was accepted into the American Carbon Registry and identified several best practices for carbon offsets in Hawai’i, including data collection and analysis.

Localized ESG Metrics - SBF members developed localized ESG metrics to highlight the unique challenges and opportunities they face as businesses operating in an island economy context, particularly related to supply chain disruption and vulnerability to climate risk. SBF members agreed to track data on Diversity and Inclusion, and Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience on the Aloha+ Dashboard, in addition to their annual ESG reporting.

Sustainable Tourism - Building on the successful SBF model, and in response to increasing interest in sustainable and regenerative tourism solutions in Hawai‘i, SBF members discussed launching the Sustainable Tourism Forum (STF). The STF would convene tourism executives in parallel to, and together with, SBF CEOs to implement joint initiatives that catalyze action on the Aloha+ Challenge.

In 2022-2025, SBF members reaffirmed their commitment to PES, ESG reporting, and sustainable tourism. In addition, members agreed to focus more broadly on a net-zero transition, green growth economic recovery, and community resilience.

The Sustainability Business Forum (SBF) is a group of business executives who are taking the initiative to shape a more sustainable and resilient future for Hawaiʻi. SBF members share a commitment to drive private sector action to achieve Hawai‘i’s statewide sustainability goals. Members agree to align their company values with a triple-bottom-line (people, planet, and profit) approach to achieve economic prosperity, environmental stewardship, and community resilience, and to advance Hawaiʻi’s Aloha+ Challenge and the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Convened by the Hawai‘i Local2030 Hub, the SBF meets quarterly throughout the year at the executive level to engage in strategic dialogue and catalyze action on joint initiatives. Learn more:  http://sbf.hawaiigreengrowth.org 

Despite being on the frontlines of climate change, experiencing sea-level rise, an increase in natural disaster risk, and biodiversity loss, Hawai‘i and other island economies are leading the way in developing sustainable solutions that cut across economic, environmental, and social issues. In 2018, the United Nations recognized Hawai‘i’s leadership in implementing the SDGs at the local level and designated Hawai‘i Green Growth as the Hawai‘i Local2030 Hub – the first island Hub and the only Hub in North America. The Hub brings together diverse stakeholders committed to economic, social, and environmental priorities, and it seeks to connect generations of ancestral knowledge and systems-thinking with modern science, technology, and policy to support scalable solutions that can be applied globally.

The Hawai‘i Local2030 Hub convenes various local stakeholders to achieve the Aloha+ Challenge and green growth outcomes through the Hawai‘i Green Growth Network. With the Global Island Partnership (GLISPA), the Hawai’i Local2030 Hub convenes the Local2030 Islands Network, a global network of island nations, states/provinces, communities, and cultures to achieve the SDGs by empowering island leadership and shared solutions.

The Sustainability Business Forum achieves its mission and vision through candid dialogue and concrete action. The SBF convenes quarterly under Chatham House Rule to share best practices, insights, and experiences while working collectively to catalyze sustainable outcomes. Focus groups, including the ESG Focus Group and the Carbon Offset Focus Group, convene regularly in parallel to quarterly CEO meetings to drive progress on the SBF’s priority areas.

The  Aloha+ Challenge : He Nohono ‘Ae‘oia is Hawai‘i’s statewide commitment to achieve 2030 sustainability goals and a local framework to implement the global SDGs. The Aloha+ Challenge includes six priority areas: Clean Energy Transformation, Solid Waste Reduction, Natural Resource Management, Local Food Production and Consumption, Smart Sustainable Communities, and Green Workforce and Education. This framework provides a holistic approach to solutions grounded in Hawai‘i’s local culture, values, and legacy of systems thinking. The goals provide a policy roadmap to build back better and increase stability across economic, social, and environmental systems, including building resilience to the shocks and stresses of climate change. Progress is measured on the Aloha+ Dashboard to provide transparency and accountability.  Click here to explore the Dashboard. 

SBF members worked to support their employees and the broader community, volunteering time, money, and materials to those most in need as a result of the pandemic. Below are some bright spots of SBF members' response to the COVID-19 pandemic that support a green growth recovery and the Aloha+ Challenge goals.

According to a Conservation International 2017 study published with support from the SBF, payment for ecosystem services (PES) that promote the conservation of natural resources in the marketplace can leverage private investment in Hawai‘i’s unique ecosystems and provide the foundation for a healthy economy. Inspired by dialogues at the 2016 IUCN World Conservation Congress, SBF members agreed to focus on accelerating nature-based solutions (NBS) and market-based mechanisms in Hawai‘i, including PES and carbon offsets. Carbon offsets can help businesses and individuals meet their voluntary climate goals by funding projects that sequester or capture carbon emissions, such as planting trees.

Hawai‘i is physically and financially vulnerable to climate-related severe weather events and prolonged hazards, including natural disasters, sea-level rise, wildfires, and increased flooding; the impact is aggravated in communities with aging infrastructure systems and services. In addition, with 70 percent of Hawaiʻi’s jobs in the tourism and food services industry, Hawaiʻi continues to be particularly affected by fluctuations in the visitor industry. The  Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority’s 2020-2025 Strategic Plan  notes several threats to the industry, including natural disasters and the consequences of climate change, political events, and pandemics.

Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and sustainability reporting helps businesses prepare for future risks and economic realities. Businesses recognize the interconnectedness of the environment, society, and the economy, and ESG provides a framework for corporations to respond to the existing and evolving needs of society. ESG metrics track and evaluate the impact a company has on its employees, stakeholders, and the communities in which they operate, as well as the overall sustainability and financial viability of a company facing external risks, such as climate change.

Despite global economic and health challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, many SBF businesses increased their ambition on Environmental, Social, and Governance reporting and implementation.

In 2020, Hawaiʻi published the first comprehensive statewide  Voluntary Local Review  (VLR) on progress to achieve SDGs. This review provides Hawaiʻi with 2020 benchmark data to inform action needed over the next decade to achieve its 2030 sustainability goals. The 2020 baseline data below provides a benchmark for recovery in areas that are most material to Hawai‘i’s businesses. By aligning with and reporting on various ESG frameworks, SBF members are contributing to a green growth recovery.

 Alaska Airlines    Alexander & Baldwin   AHL   Bank of Hawaii 

 First Hawaiian Bank   Hawaiian Airlines   Hawaiian Electric Industries 

 Hawaiian Electric   Kualoa Ranch    Par Pacific 

The Sustainability Business Forum demonstrated its global leadership through engagement in international organizations including the United Nations Global Compact and the International Chamber of Commerce.

As members of the UN Global Compact since 2019, the SBF has committed to the  10 Principles  of the Compact in the areas of human rights, labor, the environment, and anti-corruption. The UN Global Compact is the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative, which is based on CEO commitments to implement universal sustainability principles and to take steps to support the global SDGs. SBF members participated in virtual events such as the UN Global Compact’s Leaders Summit and Uniting Businesses LIVE.

This year, Hawai‘i Local2030 Hub released the Communication on Engagement report, which can be viewed  here .  

Hawai‘i Gas demonstrated its commitment to Aloha+ Goals and SDGs as the first Hawai‘i-based company to independently join the UN Global Compact. Hawai‘i Gas participated in the SDG Ambition Accelerator, a six-month program for Global Compact members to accelerate the integration of the SDGs into core business management.

 During a panel  at the International Chamber of Commerce's (ICC) Make Climate Action Everyone's Business Forum, SBF members A&B, AHL, and Hawaiian Electric discussed actions that they are taking to advance sustainability and resilience across energy, land management, and construction. CEOs highlighted ongoing climate adaptation and mitigation efforts as individual businesses, and collectively through the SBF in an island context. The ICC hosted the forum on the margins of the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), and brought together over 10,000 participants from government and business to align their climate ambitions for the next decade. The discussion emphasized how local action has global implications for advancing the global SDGs.