Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan

Everyday Hero

Employees and shareholders, becoming increasingly concerned about the company’s impact on the world.

Ordinary World

The pursuit of corporate profit destroying habitats, driving biodiversity collapse accelerating climate breakdown.

Better World

A sustainable future which is catalysed and positively impacted by big business. “We cannot choose between [economic] growth and sustainability. We must have both.” Eight years of growth, averaging twice the rate of overall market growth, whilst delivering a total shareholder return of 290%.

Compelling Villain

Big business only cares about the money. The mentality that profits have to come before the environment and they are not mutually beneficial. ”If you want to exist as a company in the future, you have to go beyond. You actually have to make a positive contribution.” An unsustainable business. If you want to exist in the future, you have to make a positive contribution.

Call to Adventure

There is no Planet B. The Unilever Sustainable Living Plan sets out to decouple its growth from its environmental footprint; The Unilever Compass sets out to build on this.

Crossing the Threshold

CEO Paul Pollman makes a speech addressing their concerns. “If we focus our company on improving the lives of the world's citizens and come up with genuine sustainable solutions, we are more in sync with consumers and society and ultimately this will result in good shareholder returns."

Three Challenges

Three difficult but confidence-building hurdles to be overcome

1. Health and Wellbeing. Making sure that people around the world have basic human rights and necessities. Each subsidiary within Unilever focuses on an SDG, e.g. 35+ million young people received help via Dove self-esteem programmes over 2005-2018.
2. Environmental Impact. Plastic reduction, creating more sustainable products, changing to less toxic ingredients, strictly regulated testing and using ethically sourced raw materials.
3. Proving that being sustainable can work for profit and have a positive impact on the world. To push sustainable living and producing to be the norm.

Allies and Gifts

The Sustainable Development Goals. The SDG Open Working Group.

Mentors and Gifts

Paul Pollman: “In a volatile world of finite resources, running a business sustainably is vital for its long-term growth.” Interface set the example and was voted the number one environmentally sustainable businesses.