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I’ve headed up sustainability at AkzoNobel for 14 years now. During that time, I have often been utterly amazed – and disappointed – about how some segments of the corporate world (even in our own industry sector) have gone about adopting and incorporating sustainable business practices.

Despite a positive shift in attitudes about waste and recycling in recent years, there is one household product that is still being wasted in scandalous quantities:paint.

When I first heard of Singapore’s target to green 80 percent of its buildings, old and new, by 2030, I thought it was a great vision and the way to the future.

Earlier this year, Detroit hosted the North American International Auto Show. It’s an exciting event for consumers who want a sneak peek at what’s on the horizon in the automotive industry. Energy efficiency, new gadgets, enhanced comfort and of course, the latest paint colors and special-effect finishes.

Today many businesses across the globe are offering innovative products that bring a sustainability benefit to the world and to their customers. But they often struggle to tell their story effectively and to engage their customers on the topic. So the question is how should companies approach this topic?

Leadership has become a catch-all phrase, interpreted many different ways, often without precision.

According to the United Nations University, 40% of Europe’s electrical products end up in landfill when they are no longer needed.

By the end of the decade, as many as 100 million Chinese people will migrate from rural areas to live in cities.

Analysis presented during the recent Bloomberg New Energy Finance annual summit in New York offered more evidence that the tide is slowly turning against fossil fuels.

The negative health effects from exposure to lead are well known, the most severe being lifelong irreversible effects on children’s brains, yet in some parts of the world lead compounds are still added to paints as coloring pigments and drying agents.