BUDA MENDES/LATINCONTENT/GETTY IMAGES
Voices
It is nothing less than a new
business model. One that focuses on the long term. One that
sees business as part of society,
not separate from it. One where
companies seek to address the
big social and environmental issues that threaten social stability. One where the needs of citizens and communities carry the
same weight as the demands of
shareholders.
This is why we have put the
Unilever Sustainable Living Plan
at the heart of our strategy. Our
growth rates are increasing as we
PAUL
POLMAN
put the USLP in action. Innovation
rates are accelerating, new growth
opportunities are appearing (like
Pure-it) and costs are decreasing as we reduce our resource dependency. Our corporate brand is
flourishing, with Unilever becoming the preferred employer in many
of the markets we operate .
But if we achieve our sustainability goals and no one else follows, we will have failed. We recognize that to be successful we
have to work in partnership with
others: with governments, with
customers, competitors, suppliers
and,very importantly, NGOs.
The Rio+20 summit, dubbed by
many as a failure, saw some prom-
HUFFINGTON
10.20.13
Lawmakers
during the UN
Conference on
Sustainable
Development,
or Rio+20,
in Brazil.