Introduction to the SDG

The world market thrives on production and the demand for consumptions is ever growing.
But production of any good requires raw materials and other assets and facilities to process
the final product. Generally, such raw materials come from natural resources and require
labour. However, with production, waste is also produced. Also, a significant portion of the
produced goods goes to waste due to lower consumption or due to the end of their usability
cycle.
Every year about one-third of all the food produced goes to waste and ends up rotting in bins,
landfills, or streets. A similar problem is with electricity. We keep bulbs on or don’t use the
energy efficient variants like LEDs. In fact, these energy efficient bulbs are cheaper
operationally.
Certain operation practices like Six Sigma are designed to reduce waste production and
increase efficiency. Though, the main aim may be to boost profits of firm, the waste and
discarded products are also minimised via these practises.
Sustainable consumption and production – It is the philosophy of doing more and better with
limited resources and includes the methods to implement them. Such consumption and
production is responsible. These responsible aspects come from the fact that the goal also
looks at other environmental problems like resource depletion and environment degradation
and contributes in achieving lower carbon footprint, leading to a green economy.

The Relevance of the SDG in India’s context

As mentioned before, this SDG is related to sustainable consumption & production, and
hence it is inextricably related to the following topics:- 1) Chemical and Waste Management,
2) Sustainable Production & Consumption, and 3) Sustainable Tourism.
1) Chemical and Waste Management:
In 2018, India accounted for around 12% of the global solid waste generated, only behind
China, and it generated over 3,230 thousand metric tons of e-waste in 2019, only behind
China and USA. This amounts to around 62 million tons of waste produced every year, of
which approximately 43 million tons are collected (70% of total). The waste production is
estimated to increase to 110 million tons in 2021. This rapid increase of waste should be a
massive concern for India and is a primary reason why India had filled 1684 landfills in 2019.
2) Sustainable Production:
It is not an overstatement to say that India is a global producer, not only catering to the needs
of 1.3 billion people but exporting to over 190 countries. Hence, adopting sustainable means
of production by inculcating green chemistry and circular economy principles is of top
priority. India’s plastic consumption was 18,450 kilotons in 2018, and it is scheduled to hit
more than 20,000 kilotons this year, which is a threefold decrease compared to 2010. This
rapid increase in plastic consumption is also a significant cause of concern. India also
consumes 31.98 exajoules of energy, of which only 1.43 exajoules or 4.4% comprises
renewable energy, which is much lesser than the USA (7%) and China (5.37%). Thus much
can be done in terms of sustainable manufacturing and consumption in the Indian context.
3) Sustainable Tourism
In 2019, 17.91 million foreign tourists arrived in India, representing 1.22% of all foreign
tourists’ arrivals globally, and is ranked 24th in the world. Tourism also brings in six bn USD
in foreign exchange, and inbound tourism expenditure directly contributes to 1.1% of India’s
GDP. The total contribution of travel & tourism to India’s GDP was 247.37bn USD. Because
of favorable policy changes to trigger tourism growth and its existing share in the nation’s
GDP, the country must develop sustainable tourism by promoting ecotourism and non-
consumptive tourism.
Thus, this SDG is extremely crucial to the future of the country, in terms of sustainable
economic growth and development.

References:
Incredible India Global Tourism Mart (IIGTM) 2017 | Home Page. http://www.iigtm.in/

Business Implications and Responses

It takes two to tango. The essence of SDG 12 lies in the credo that sustainable production or
sustainable consumption can't be the only solution towards a sustainable marketplace. As per
the ongoing trends, consumer demand will outpace the production and distribution progress
made by the industries. Thus, there needs to be concurrent progress in both domains, and one
can't be seen in isolation from the other.
In this seemingly chicken and egg problem, let's begin by analysing the implications of SDG
12 for industries and their responses.
Industries follow a two-step method to achieve this target. The first step begins by identifying
the "Centre of percussion". This translates into identifying the location in the value chain
where efforts will maximise results. The second step is to embrace technology and come up
with pragmatic and out of the box ideas to improve the overall value chain.
A sustainable lifestyle can either be self-induced or inspired through subtle nudging from the
consumer side. The ensuing paragraphs elucidate these two aspects by citing steps taken by
companies to achieve the same.
The first example is that of TATA. One of the Tata group's crown jewels, Jaguar has
successfully implemented project REALCAR ((Recycled Aluminium Car) to achieve a
closed-loop value chain by partnering with one of their key suppliers Novelis. This helped
them reclaim 50,000 tonnes of aluminium which is equivalent to the weight of 200,000 XE
body shells annually.
To educate the consumers towards sustainable consumption, Tata Power initiated Tata Power
Club Enerji with the sole objective to sensitise students about the energy crisis and the
judicious use of inadequate natural resources.
These are merely two great examples among the plethora of other projects Tata has
undertaken towards SDG 12, including an integrated approach to water management at
Mithapur, the Hathikuli plantation, re-utilising waste concrete water and many others.
Reference: https://www.tatatrusts.org/upload/pdf/report-tata-group-and-the-sdgs.pdf

Taking the second example of Reliance Industries Limited, the company which after their
strategic pivot to digital, has been working hard at mitigating or at least managing their
environmental impact. Some of the major initiatives that the company has taken to are:

1.Commissioning of Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems (CEMS):

To monitor the emissions of total particulate matter (TPM), Sulphur oxides, Nitrogen
oxides, and other volatile organic compounds, all the petrochemical and refinery sites
commissioned CEMS, which has led to significant reduction in the air emissions from
these sites YoY. The company also claims to not use Ozone depleting substances in
their production processes.

2. Reducing the material intensity by using 100% recycled products:

It is a universally known fact that PET bottles on account of being non-biodegradable
lead to degradation of the environment after disposal. RIL produces a polyester staple
 staple fibre (Recron Green Gold) from 100% recycled PET bottles and 90% recycled
water. This has led to the recycling of over 60kT of polyester waste and more than 2
billion post-consumer PET bottles annually.

3. Extended Producer Responsibility:

The company has been rooting for proper disbursal of e-waste via an exchange scheme that is
operational across all the 2000+ retail stores under their umbrella. Under the program, the
customers are encouraged to bring their used and outdated electronic devices and in exchange
get a discount on a new device from the store. One of the key initiatives under this is also the
jiophone, which post usage, the customers can return for a full refund. The company then
takes care of the responsible disposal of the e-waste. This is done in collaboration with
Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO).

Refrences: https://www.ril.com/DownloadFiles/SustainiabilityReports/RILs
%20Sustainability%20Report%202017-18.pdf

To quote another example, since its days in glory, Amazon has been facing severe criticism
for its packaging. It has been taking incremental steps in this direction by gradually
eliminating plastic while ensuring the safety of delivery products. In this line, Amazon has
said, "German logistics centre will replace all single-use plastic packages with paper-based
bags or cardboard boxes by the end of the year."
These efforts are concomitant with Amazon's increasing transparency and stakeholder
responsiveness to delineate the eco-labelling and certification on the page prow to raise
consumer awareness and inspire sustainable consumption practices.

Refrences: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/two-ways-amazon-plans-to-reduce-the-
waste-it-creates-11637694383

The past couple of years have seen a lot of action in terms of the corporate world turning to
sustainability, ESG and all the jazz that goes along with it. But how much of this is due to
their own volition and how much of it is being driven by consumer sentiment and market
forces? It seems like the entire world is increasingly moving towards sustainable
development and the pandemic has only accentuated the process, the consumer of today is
conscious of the choices they make and demand responsible action from the companies they
engage with. It is no doubt that the billions of dollars being pumped by businesses to meet
these sustainability goals are hurting their bottom line in the short term, but sustainability is
the new world order and businesses understand that for there to be a bottom line, they need to
still be in business.

Analysis – A Progress Report & the Stakeholders involved

It has been conveyed at several instances by the learned scientists worldwide that humanity is
heading towards the three planetary crises of climate, biodiversity and pollution, and how it
all is linked to unsustainable production and consumption patterns observed today.
The 12th Sustainability Development Goal talks exactly about this. Summarized, the goal
talks about doing more and better with less. It talks about decoupling economic growth from
environmental degradation, increasing resource efficiency, and promoting sustainable
lifestyles, in order to ensure future generations have enough to sustain themselves!
In a business context, below are the key Stakeholders of any goods manufacturing
Company:
Each of these stakeholders have differential causal impacts and responsibilities towards the
goal. It is good news that key stakeholders are increasingly becoming conscious of
sustainability and their responsibility towards it, and have started contributing, but much is
yet to be done.
Companies & Producers: Procurement of Green raw materials and production of Eco-
friendly and sustainable products, Adopting protocols for responsible Emission and Waste
Management and implementing efficient Inventory Management systems and Supply chains
is increasingly being adopted. Ola is coming up with a revolutionary line-up of Ola Electric
Scooter and is spreading awareness towards responsible consumption of Fossil Fuels in
tradition vehicles – This is a great sign!
Also, the impact of rating systems on the Internet and recommendation engines related to
social networks obliges producers to develop arguments other than price alone.
(https://www.economiecirculaire.org/static/h/responsible-consumption.html) This has
brought significant change in the mindset of the producers – away from merely profit
margins and more towards sustainable production.
Consumers & Customers: Customers are increasingly making informed choices today by
using several non-financial criteria during their purchasing process. Organic & Green Staples
are being preferred in Retails Stores and Supermarts, and so are Electric Vehicles.
However, data reveals that about 14 per cent of the world’s food is lost along the supply
chain prior to the retail level. Around the world, 1 million plastic drinking bottles are
purchased every minute, and 5 trillion single-use plastic bags are thrown away each year. The
global material footprint increased by 70 per cent between 2000 and 2017. Evident from
these figures, responsible consumption has miles to cover from the Consumers perspective.
Source: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/goal-12/
A Global Perspective - Where do we stand today on the SDG-12?
 The Rapid & Unsustainable Growth Rate of Natural Resource consumption
Globally, domestic material consumption per capita, i.e., the total amount of materials
directly used by an economy to meet its consumption needs, rose by more than 40 per cent
from 2000 to 2017 – from 8.7 to 12.2 metric tons. Over the last two decades, all regions
except Europe and Northern America, as well as Australia and New Zealand, have seen a
considerable rise. Industrialization, which includes the outsourcing of material-intensive
production from developed nations, is largely to blame for rising domestic material
consumption in developing regions.
Natural resource use and benefits, as well as environmental consequences, are distributed
unevenly between countries and areas. Circular economy techniques that reduce or eliminate
waste and pollution, keep products and resources in use, and regenerate natural systems are
required for a road to sustainable consumption and production.
Following are the observed trends in the Domestic material consumption per capita (metric
tons per capita) between 2000 & 2017 for various regions of the world.

Domestic material consumption per capita, 2000 to 2017 (metric tons per capita)
Source: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/img/goal12-g1.jpg
 The Uneven Progress in promoting Sustainable Production and Consumption
Shifting to more sustainable consumption and production patterns is essential for solving
global crises such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution, as well as attaining
long-term development. The development of national instruments and initiatives targeted at
assisting this transformation is on the rise. Under the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on
Sustainable Consumption and Production, 83 nations and the European Union submitted a
total of 700 policies and implementation activities by 2020. However, in Sub-Saharan Africa,
only 50 policies and implementation initiatives were documented, compared to 374 in Europe
and Northern America.
As of December 2020, 40 countries had reported on sustainable public procurement policies
or action plans (or equivalent legal dispositions) that encourage the procurement of
environmentally sound, energy-efficient products while also encouraging more socially
responsible purchasing practises and sustainable supply chains. The following figure
illustrates the same.

Countries reporting on national action plans or policies on sustainable consumption and

production, 2017–2019 reporting cycle and 2020 reporting cycle
Source: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/img/goal12-g2.png

 Proliferating E-Waste and its Improper Disposal Continues!

In 2019, the global production of electronic and electrical equipment waste (e-waste) reached
53.6 million metric tonnes, up more than 20% from 2014. In 2019, each person generated
around 7.3 kilos of e-waste, with just 1.7 kilogrammes recognised as being treated in an
environmentally sustainable manner. Poisonous chemicals are released into the land and
water as a result of improper e-waste disposal, endangering both the environment and human
health. Rare and valuable raw commodities such as gold, platinum, cobalt, and rare earth
elements are lost as a result. E-waste could hold up to 7% of the world's gold at any given
time.
E-waste creation is anticipated to increase by 0.16 kilogrammes per capita every year until
2030, when it will reach 9.0 kilos per capita (or 74.4 million metric tonnes in total). In the last
decade, however, the realised annual growth rate of e-waste recycling was only 0.05 kilos per
capita. To achieve the recycling of all e-waste by 2030, it will need to be at least ten times
higher.
Following is the illustration which depicts the current and required rates of growth.

E-waste generated and recycled, 2010–2019, projected e-waste generated and required
growth in recycling, 2020–2030 (kilograms per capita)
Source: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/goal-12/

 Progress to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies remains uneven – A threat to

achievement of the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda
Government subsidies for fossil fuels, such as coal, crude oil, and natural gas, encourage the
production and consumption of these fuels over the development and use of clean and
renewable energy. They contribute to climate change and air pollution, as well as having a
negative influence on public health. Due to decreased fuel costs, fossil fuel subsidies fell to
$432 billion in 2019, interrupting a two-year increasing trend that began in 2017 ($450
billion) and ended in 2018 ($548 billion). Due to dwindling demand and the oil price shock,
subsidies were predicted to drop dramatically in 2020. However, due to a parallel decrease in
global GDP in 2020, the reduction in fossil fuel subsidies (measured as a percentage of GDP)
is likely to be smaller than predicted.
Many governments have taken advantage of decreasing fuel costs in the previous two years to
urge for reforms and the phase-out of subsidies. However, there is still a lot of room for
improvement. With fuel prices rising considerably in 2021, there is also a risk of regressing
and failing to reach the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement's
goals.

Fossil fuel subsidies as a proportion of GDP, 2015 and 2019 (percentage)

Source: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/goal-12/

Suggested Way Ahead

While the achievement of the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda seems to be in threat, it
certainly does not mean conscious efforts are not being made with respect to the SDG-12.
The vast untapped potential for Renewable Energy is the way forward to achieve SDG-12.
Over the last decade, new renewable power capacity installations have outpaced non-
renewable electricity capacity installations globally, regularly exceeding non-renewable
electricity capacity installations since 2012. Most of the new renewable electricity capacity
was installed in developing countries for the first time in 2018. The large rise in capacity in
these countries can be attributed mostly to the uptake of new solar and wind power, which
climbed by 72 percent and 22 percent, respectively, between 2010 and 2019. Despite
COVID-19, renewable energy capacity grew at an even faster rate in 2020, according to the
most recent data.
Renewable energy capacity per capita in developing nations was 219 watts in 2019.
Renewable energy capacity per capita in industrialised countries was 880 watts, four times
more than in developing countries, indicating that there is still opportunity for expansion.
Following figure depicts the trend of growth of different forms of Renewable Energy
Capacities in the developing countries between 2010 and 2019.

Installed renewable energy-generating capacity in developing countries, by technology,

between 2010 and 2019 (watts per capita)
Source: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/goal-12/
As the data suggests, there is still an immense untapped potential for adopting Renewable
Energy sources, and the growth in these adoption rates certainly gives hope.
We conclude that while we are on the right track on the 12 th SDG and are getting numerous
positive figures backing the conscious efforts being made by organizations worldwide in
order to bring consumption and production levels in the sustainable ranges, the future
demands more efforts and awareness towards meeting the goals we set in the past, in time.

References
[1] https://www.statista.com.xlrij.remotexs.in/topics/5586/waste-management-india/
#dossierKeyfigures
[2] https://www.statista.com.xlrij.remotexs.in/statistics/1168458/india-number-of-
landfills-by-state/
[3] https://www.statista.com.xlrij.remotexs.in/statistics/237090/renewable-energy-
consumption-of-the-top-15-countries/
[4] https://www.statista.com.xlrij.remotexs.in/statistics/263455/primary-energy-
consumption-of-selected-countries/
[5] https://www.statista.com.xlrij.remotexs.in/topics/6902/plastic-industry-in-india/
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arrivals-ftas/data-year/all-years
[7] https://www.statista.com.xlrij.remotexs.in/topics/2076/travel-and-tourism-industry-in-
india/
[8] https://www.statista.com.xlrij.remotexs.in/topics/5734/international-tourism-in-india/
[9] https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/goal-12/
[10]