A few days before the G7 on the environment, the events connected to it come alive with the conference on the circular economy organized by the Hera Group in its headquarters in Bologna, on the occasion of the presentation of the sustainability report of the multi-utility and in the presence, among others , by the Minister of the Environment Gian Luca Galletti. The Minister himself underlined the centrality of the circular economy in the context of the fourth industrial revolution we are experiencing, highlighting the important steps forward made by regions such as Emilia-Romagna. Moreover, many influential personalities from the world of business, institutions and research took part in Hera today to discuss the transition towards increasingly sustainable development models. Among these Enrico Giovannini, Professor of Economic Statistics at the University of Rome "Tor Vergata"; Oscar Farinetti, creator and founder of Eataly; Catia Bastioli, CEO of Novamont and Carlo Ratti, Director of the Senseable City Lab at MIT.
They were preceded by the speech by Ellen MacArthur, also known for the homonymous foundation, which represents the most active and important organization in the world in the circular economy. “Coal will run out within 100 years – MacArthur explained – but saving resources is not enough: it must serve us to buy time and allow us to transition from a linear economy to a circular economy, which frees the scarcity of resources from our growth prospects, focusing on innovation, training and new generations.”
"Innovation" and "creativity", after all, are the watchwords of the conference organized by Hera which - through its top management - recounted its commitment to sustainability, showing how 10 of the 17 objectives listed in the Agenda of the UN to 2030 see the Group strongly committed.
The new edition of the report, in particular, takes into account the "shared value", ie the wealth generated by Hera by pursuing the objectives of the global Agenda. Equal to 1/3 of the overall EBITDA, the shared value of the multi-utility amounts to 2016 million euros in 300, and was produced by working in three strategic areas: intelligent use of energy (with 48 million euros generated by the promotion energy efficiency and 29 million euros from the diffusion of renewable energies); efficient use of resources (with 110 million euros obtained by progressing in the transition towards a circular economy and 83 million euros obtained from the sustainable management of water resources); innovation and development of the territory (with 18 million euros deriving from innovative projects and digitalisation, 11 million euros relating to the protection of the air and the soil and 35 million euros relating to the economic development of local communities and social inclusion projects).
“These moments of discussion are very important – says Tomaso Tommasi di Vignano, Executive Chairman of the Hera Group – because they confirm the international dimension in which the excellent results achieved by Hera in terms of the development of a circular economy are located. At stake - continues Tommasi - is the acceleration of a transition that requires everyone's contribution, with particular reference to the need for a certain and more homogeneous regulatory framework, capable of favoring planning, investments and those consolidation processes which are essential, in the long run, to sustainable and long-lasting growth.”
