Exploring the Green Revolution: Climate Change and Shifts in Industry, Technology, & Supply Chain, Sources of Renewable Energy, Green ‘'Cloud" Data Centers, EVs, and Sustainable Development Goal 13 for Climate Action with Tom Raftery (SAP)
- S1E25
- 32:14
- July 13th 2020
Global carbon dioxide emissions have increased by nearly 50 per cent since 1990, and 2019 was the warmest year on record. Climate change touches everything we do and for the 1st time, the World Economic Forum has named climate change as a leading risk facing business and our survival. Episode 25 discusses the Green Revolution and all its glorious, wicked, complexities. Climate action requires rapid changes that must take place in four key parts of society: energy generation, land use, consumer behavior, and industry. Tom Raftery, Global VP and SAP Innovation Evangelist joins Sheri Hinish, and both have a deep-rooted passion for sustainability and sustainable development.
This episode touches on everything from SDG 13, to a comparison of renewable energy sources, how to build a green data center, why Google and Microsoft cloud environments are more sustainable than AWS, and the business case for transition to EVs (electric vehicles). What is the social cost of carbon? How do we trust businesses and suppliers to be sustainable in environmental stewardship? How can reporting and pricing carbon can reduce emissions and enable smarter planning in supply chains? According to conservation.org, the Price tag for climate change in the US is $ 140 billion per year. This is what it would take to make the changes humanity needs to adapt to a warming world. It may sound like a lot, but it’s less than 0.2% of global GDP. And the cost will only increase the longer we take to act ambitiously.
Supply Chains, technology, and Industry 4.0 are a conduit for climate action using environmental risk management, the cost of carbon, and understanding consumer behavior where shifts like purchaser-to-participant and “shades of green” meet the consumer in their green journey. There are natural climate pivots like the “flexitarian diet” and small behavior shifts that pay dividends. There is a fiscal argument for climate action that is unpacked in this episode, inlacing SAP’s new Climate 21 initiative.
Climate change impacts natural and human systems globally through the increase globally averaged surface temperature, extreme weather events, changing precipitation patterns, rising sea levels and ocean acidification. These risks will ultimately impact people’s livelihoods, particularly marginalized groups such as women, children, and the elderly, as resources, food and water become more scarce. If you think about the SDGs, the lasting effects of climate change tied to SDG 13 makes it very difficult to achieve other goals. The green revolution starts with you. Learn more about how we can design a better future with zero waste, equality, and transition to carbon neutrality, and carbon negative solutions to unite people and our planet.
This is a longer discussion than other episodes but worth the listen!
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Supply Chain Revolution
The Supply Chain Revolution podcast is a series focused on the latest trends and innovations in sustainability and supply chain management. The podcast is hosted by Sheri Hinish, also known as the Supply Chain Queen, who is a sustainability consultant and digital transformation expert, and features interviews with a wide range of supply chain professionals, thought leaders, and entrepreneurs.
The podcast covers a variety of topics related to the supply chain revolution, including digital transformation, sustainability, circular economy, diversity and inclusion, and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, data analytics, and robotics. Each episode features in-depth discussions and insights from guests, providing a valuable resource for supply chain professionals looking to stay up-to-date on the latest trends and best practices in the field.
The Supply Chain Revolution podcast is known for its engaging and thought-provoking content, and has been featured in numerous publications and media outlets. It is a great resource for anyone interested in learning more about the rapidly evolving world of supply chain management, and for professionals seeking to improve their skills and stay ahead of the curve in this dynamic field.
Join podcast host, Sheri Hinish also called the Supply Chain Queen, and reimagine the future of how we interact with the world and business in the decade of our lives. In each episode, provocative points of view that challenge paradigms for progress are evangelized holding the SDGs, purpose, and diversity as a business imperative as a North Star. This is the TOP Supply Chain podcast unpacking the future of supply chain that explores shifts in generational, social, environmental, technological, and "the people side" of leading change in transformation.
The Supply Chain Revolution is the supply chain podcast that highlights progressive ideas that challenge the status quo, giving people access to insights, strategies, and tools to make better choices that shape critical aspects of their business and personal lives, building transformational change for a better, sustainable world.
This is the supply chain podcast for supply chain leaders, thinkers, dreamers, doers, learners, builders, and supply chain professionals who want to change the world using a different approach to traditional supply chain, leadership, circular economy, digital transformation, sustainability, diversity and inclusion, technology, strategy, and camaraderie to create new ways of working in the supply chain revolution. We are an inclusive group where all are welcomed and represented.
Learn more at http://www.supplychainqueen.com
The host Sheri Hinish believes supply chains can save the planet, save lives, and transform traditional business models. Recognized as 2022, 2021, 2020 & 2019 Supply & Demand Chain Executive "Pro to Know," a 2021 Top 100 Women in Supply Chain Award winner, and recipient of the 2020 Global Women Supply Chain Leaders Award, Sheri Hinish is a leading advocate, strategist, and influencer in supply chain, sustainability & the SDGs, leading with purpose, and change management in digital transformations. She is a Principal and Global Lead for Innovation + Ecosystem at EY and formally the Global Lead for Sustainability, Alliances, and Strategy at IBM.
Top Podcast Exploring #SupplyChain #Sustainability #CircularEconomy #Technology #Diversity and #Innovation
Learn more at supplychainqueen.com
My purpose is to make a meaningful impact for the clients, colleagues, partners, and communities I serve. I have spent my career at the intersection of supply chain, sustainability and innovation in large-scale transformation. I’d love to walk with you on your journey.
I'm the Founder and Host of the Supply Chain Revolution podcast. In my day role, I currently serve as the Global Consulting Sustainability Services, Technology + Ecosystems Leader at EY serving across sectors, alliances, sustainability solutions, and digital ventures. I formerly led Sustainability Services + Alliances at IBM with a passion for sustainable supply chain, circularity, and hardening emerging sustainability tech use cases.
Colleagues and clients affectionately call me the nickname “Supply Chain Queen.” I'm recognized as a trusted partner that F500 companies consistently leverage for connected transformation, end-to-end digital supply chain, purpose-driven leadership, and disruptive thinking in embedding sustainability and emerging innovation in transformations.
Recent awards include: Top 250 leaders in Sustainability (2025), Leaders in Excellence, Supply & Demand Chain Executive (2025), Top 100 Women in Sustainability and Supply Chain (2024), Top 50 influencer in Sustainability by Onalytica (2023), 100 Women in 2023 by March8 Magazine, the 2021 #1 Supply Chain Leader by Supply Chain Digital, a 2022, 2021, 2020 & 2019 Supply & Demand Chain Executive "Pro to Know," the "People's Choice 2020 Global Woman in Supply Chain Leader,” and a Corporate Vision Excellence award in 2020.
I’m a Rebel who loves creating, building, and bringing out the best in people, helping to grow high-performance teams. I've made a career in turn-around and scaling high growth opportunities (product, solutions, infrastructure for practice areas and alliances), simplifying the complex, rethinking paradigms for F500 clients, mainly in CPG, Financial Services, Retail, Advanced Manufacturing, Chemicals and Energy.
I am a graduate lecturer in Sustainability at the University of Arkansas and have a Masters from Harvard University with emphasis in Sustainability + Liberal Arts. I hold 2 credentials from Rutgers University with highest distinction (Beta Gamma Sigma), an MS in Supply Chain Management, and a Mini-MBA in Digital Supply Chain. I also have a BS in Business, Supply Chain Management (Summa Cum Laude) from the University of Maryland. I hold an IBM Industry Academy Expert designation (in Consumer), Project Management Professional (PMP), and Lean Six Sigma Greenbelt.
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