Extricating yourself from market research and surveys is always a frantic exercise. If it happens as in these times, to read reports on the environment and sustainability with data that contradict the information campaigns and the reports of top managers, the effort becomes double. Every quest has its own goals, but learning that in Italy, only 1 out of 4 companies is interested in adopting sustainable policiesarouses wonder. The ConsumerLab research body says it with its own research.
In these hours, the EU is examining the Italian Recovery Plan which allocates a third of economic resources to a lasting recovery. Big companies have changed industrial paradigms and assets to face the new deal. However, the Consumer Lab report speaks to us of a serious dissonance between citizens and industry towards a country with a circular economy. The Body deals with sustainability, brings together economists, trade unionists, consumer representatives and at its "Future Respect" congress it launched a platform -NEXTPEDIA - on the topics covered by the research. Very critical issues, far from implementations and financial resources of companies. But does Italian industry really suffer from such a strategic squint? “ Paradoxes and contradictions still exist in our country today, and on this subject Italy still appears to be behind the rest of Europe – he replies Francesco Tamburella, president of ConsumerLab. 20% of commercial advertisements talk about sustainability, but out of 4,4 million Italian companies, just over a million are interested in starting a path of sustainable transformation".
These are numbers that dwarf any neo-industrial design, mostly shared at the tables of the current government that has a vision. The green choices of companies are not uniform despite the fact that the game is played on a global scale. They are affected by a variety of factors, conditions, investors, markets. Those that draw up the sustainability report were less than 2000, where that document certifies the commitment to the sustainable transformation of the business. On the other hand i66% of citizens “would like more committed companies in reducing impacts on society and the environment.” The major efforts at this point should come from agribusiness, health care, insurance and utilities. 12% of those interviewed also say they are concerned about the pollution of water, air and soil.
How much is a platform on the wikipedia model, free and collaborative, as NEXTPEDIA has been defined, sufficient to improve the overall picture? It will certainly help. The real point lies in the Italian industrial system. Needs sustainable governance, applicable laws, streamlined procedures, of supervisory authorities, of an efficient justice. Sustainability reports outline transformations and financial resources; for those listed they are added value. But the green economy does not stop at certifications, it requires a reformist and shared vision of the economy where the demand and supply of sustainable goods and products intersect and territorial and structural differences are reduced. A patient work, not impossible as long as the goal is clear.
