The many faces of sustainability, at the CSR Fair

The many faces of sustainability, at the CSR Fair

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It is up to every one of us to spread a culture of sustainability that involves all players in society. This consideration was behind “I volti della sostenibilità” (The Faces of Sustainability), the theme of the 2020 edition of the CSR and Social Innovation Fair (Salone della CSR e dell’Innovazione Sociale), Italy’s main happening on corporate social responsibility, which this year attracted 205 organisations and more than 300 speakers for 80 events.

Once again, our Group was one of the Fair’s institutional partners, which took place on 29 and 30 September. Enel representatives participated in eight events: the mix of speakers from various areas of the company confirmed our Group’s transversal and broad commitment.

The panels covered a range of themes: from solidarity for the Covid-19 emergency to sustainability models in business strategy, from the opportunities created by the energy transition to electric mobility, from innovations developed with startups to the sustainable development tools available for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), from sustainable finance geared towards the achievement of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals to the central issue of creating shared value through a new approach to doing business.

Solidarity in the time of coronavirus

Filippo Rodriguez, Head of Sustainability Italy and Managing Director of Enel Cuore

“In recent months, we have been standing alongside the people worst affected by the pandemic, supporting the Civil Protection agency, hospitals, nurses and Third Sector organisations. Through our charitable foundation Enel Cuore, and thanks to the generosity of our colleagues, we have been able to provide genuine assistance to some of society’s most vulnerable. We have supported distance learning and have taken action to enable our territories to bounce back stronger than before, leaving no one behind, to build together a future that is better, more sustainable and more inclusive”.

Change management and sustainability: how change is changing

Maria Luisa Marino, Head of People Care and Diversity Management

“Sustainability is the engine driving change; it is part of our strategy and organisational culture and is the reason for our daily activities. This journey of transformation places people at the centre, considering them in their entirety and complexity, valuing their passions and diversity; it creates an environment that is inclusive, free from judgement, focused on development and wellbeing: an environment in which everybody can contribute in their own unique way to tackling challenges and managing ever greater complexity”.

Energy transition and sustainable development

Andrea Angelino, Head of Administration, Finance and Control Italy and Sole Administrator of Enel Logistics

“As major player in the Italian energy sector, we are deeply committed to the new challenges of the energy transition, not only taking on its risks but also seizing the opportunities it generates and driving forward a fair and balanced model for development that leaves no one behind.

In this context the Group has created a new company in Italy, Enel Logistics, to implement the project to recover, enhance and use existing areas and structures which are part of power plants that have either been or are in the process of being decommissioned, according to our Group’s decarbonisation programme in line with the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (Piano Nazionale Integrato per l’Energia e il Clima, PNIEC). These sites will be converted into customs warehouses, to become fully-fledged logistical Hubs that can attract part of the flows of goods that transit through the Mediterranean on their way to other Mediterranean countries or to Northern Europe. All of this will be created in full respect for the principles of the circular economy by extending the sites’ useful life; furthermore, by combining innovation, competitiveness and sustainability, we can bring economic and social benefits to the territories where these assets are located”.

Responsible communities and smart cities: how urban mobility is changing

Riccardo Amoroso, Head of e-City Enel X

“New technologies are influencing our habits and also the ways in which we move around the city: today, electric public transport enables us to offer citizens a sustainable, efficient, quiet and cost-effective service, playing a key role in the transition towards sustainable mobility and better cities”.

How can we finance the SDGs?

Nicole Della Vedova, Head of Corporate Finance

“Today, more than ever before, we are duty bound to make sustainable choices: as a participant in the market it is also our responsibility to suggest new sustainable business models that can be more resilient, more profitable and less risky in the years to come. Sustainable finance has attracted substantial interest in recent years in so far as it represents a key lever to mobilise private and public capital for sustainable investments. The UN’s 2030 Agenda, therefore, should not be considered as an abstract aspiration but rather a tangible goal: with finance linked to sustainability and the synergy between sustainable capital markets and recovery plans, we can accelerate progress towards achieving this objective and also emerge from the crisis resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic”.

Startups and SMEs, Innovation and Sustainability

Ernesto Ciorra, Chief Innovability® Officer

“To be sustainable we must continue to innovate, renewing ourselves like the human body does by replacing millions of cells every day. We can achieve this goal thanks to the expertise and passion of our colleagues, and by staying humble. This will allow us to continue to engage, in all of our activities, startups, universities, research centres, clients, suppliers, local communities and the institutions in the countries where we operate.

Together, we can innovate, be sustainable and improve Enel and the society in which we work. We already have tangible examples of this approach in the app, developed by startup Pedius, that allows deaf colleagues and clients to dialogue with our contact centres; and in JuiceAbility, a device designed to recharge wheelchairs by using the same infrastructure we make available for electric cars”.

Governance and tools for sustainable development: SMEs’ commitment 

Alda Paola Baldi, Head of Procurement Italy

“Sustainability and innovation are at the centre of our strategy. We believe that the supply chain can be a critical factor for the success of environmental, social and economic sustainability. We expect, therefore, that the work of our suppliers, in addition to ensuring the required quality standards, is in step with the commitment to adopt the best practices in terms of human rights, health, safety in the workplace and environmental responsibility, during both the qualifying phase and the contract management and performance assessment phase. We have activated a specific procedure for the selection of startups that enables us to collaborate with the very best and with innovative SMEs. We pay particular attention to the protection of workers, promoting at the same time sustainable initiatives with suppliers. In the month of July 2020, we launched the Supplier Development Program Enel, a programme specifically dedicated to SMEs, to support their growth.

The goal is to make our supply chain more solid and innovative and to improve its performance, by promoting the sustainable development of our leading suppliers and fostering financial and managerial growth, innovation, sustainability and internationalisation”.

Shared value and social generativity for a new approach to doing business

Maria Cristina Papetti, Head of CSV, Sustainability Projects & Practice Sharing

“Businesses that take full advantage of their potential to benefit society and that have identified a Purpose – a reason for their existence that is coherent with their strategic plan – can have an extraordinary impact on sustainable progress. Companies today have the opportunity to develop sustainable business models that respond to global problems, such as climate change and the social inequality that inevitably results from it, interacting in a more open and proactive way with all stakeholders. The Purpose Playbook is a useful tool to help companies better understand what it means for an organisation to be guided by a purpose and how to keep that purpose’s promise as it orients change, guiding it in its processes, goals and results within its entire ecosystems, in order to generate positive impacts for society, with a view to creating shared value”.