Volvo named one of world’s most sustainable businesses – meet Australia’s

Volvo Cars has been named as one of the world’s most sustainable businesses by Time magazine. The publisher, working with data firm Statista, ranked the 500 most sustainable businesses based on a rigorous set of criteria including emissions reporting and reduction, renewable energy use, commitment to recycled materials and adherence to science-based targets in a bid to mitigate the worst impacts of climate change.

Volvo Cars came in the top quartile, reflecting the significant progress made to decarbonise the company and its supply chain to date. Volvo is committed to achieving net zero emissions globally by 2040 and to be a fully electric car company by 2030.

This year the company fully phased out diesel cars, which are more polluting. By next year, Volvo’s aim is for CO2 emissions to be 40 per cent lower per average car than they were in 2018 while aiming to reach 25 per cent recycled content in new cars and reducing water use in manufacturing by 45 per cent per average car.

Volvo Cars is also investing to enable electric vehicles to help decarbonise the wider economy, enabling EV batteries to support the power system’s transition to renewable energy – while making customer’s homes more resilient to energy shocks.

All of which make it one of the few carmakers to make the Time 500 most sustainable companies list.

A handful of other Australian companies made the cut – with sustainable distribution and logistics firm Brambles ranked in the top five. The likes of Telstra, toll road operator Transurban and metals recycling business Sims Limited were also listed.

Local champions

On a more local scale, Marie Claire, in partnership with Volvo Car Australia, has recognised Australia and New Zealand’s most sustainable smaller businesses as determined by Marie Claire’s expert panel of judges. Here they are:

Natalie Marie Jewellery, based in Sydney’s Northern Beaches, won the accessories category. Founder Natalie Fitch uses recycled silver and gold to create jewellery that’s as sustainable as it is beautiful.

Maggie Marilyn won the fashion category. The Auckland-based business is climate positive, which means it goes beyond net zero emissions, and its commitment to a sustainable supply chain, recycling and reuse makes it a standout in an industry which can be susceptible to greenwashing.

Emma Lewisham skincare was named the beauty, health and wellness winner for building a sustainable beauty brand that is loved alike by tweens and legendary eco warrior Dr Jane Goodall. It’s also the world’s first certified climate-positive beauty brand.

Pleasant State took home the home and lifestyle award – the ‘just-add-water’ cleaning products business has kept more than 250,000 plastic bottles out of landfill, and bucketloads of chemicals out of the environment.

Anyone with kids knows how many toys they absolutely must have… but then quickly lose interest in. Hence nearly 27 million toys are thrown away in Australia every year. Which is why Toy Libraries Australia is such a great initiative – and rightly won the parenting category.

To make it to supermarket shelves, fruit and veg has to be near perfect. Which means tonne upon tonne doesn’t make the grade and gets wasted. Ugly Vodka won the food and drink category because it uses apples that would otherwise go to landfill – and as a result produce highly polluting methane – to create vodka.

Freycinet Lodge in Tasmania’s Freycinet National Park took home the travel award. Accredited to Australia’s highest EcoStar Tourism standards, it’s as clean a footprint as you’ll find in an equally pristine environment.

Find out more about the 2024 Volvo and Marie Claire sustainability winners here.