Rosa Fernandez
I'm Associate Professor in Global Sustainable Development at the University of Warwick. Economist by training, my research interests are linked to sustainability (energy, food, CSR, education) and EU.
Activity
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Interesting thought. There are many small things people do every day and the purpose may not be tackling climate change. Awareness through education and information dissemination is necessary to promote more active engagement.
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Rosa Fernandez replied to Forouhar Haidari
That's a very laudable purpose. I hope you will find the course useful.
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
It seems nobody is commenting on this week's content yet. Is it because you couldn't access the article or are you still reflecting on it?
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Thanks Lisa. This mirrors comments made elsewhere so please see my answers to look into what the EU is doing in that regard... It may be helpful.
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@FernandoLozano Dear all, one thing that you need to consider is that precisely the 'one size fits all' attempts in the past have failed, so it is important that there are adaptations to specific context that account for cultural differences. From a financial point of view, most international companies are now disclosing non-financial information following the...
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Rosa Fernandez replied to Fernando Lozano
Dear Fernando, thanks for your comment. You are absolutely right. The latest regulations about reporting coming from the EU (which the UK is likely to mirror) include special provisions for SMEs, together with specific guidelines. It may be worth having a look at them.
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Hello all,
You may have experienced some issues accessing the course activities but this has now been sorted, so I hope you will enjoy and find the course interesting. -
Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Thanks for your comments. Also bear in mind that producing something locally is not always synonym of lower carbon footprint, if for that production there is a need to use more fertilisers or energy to keep temperatures artificially warm, for instance.
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Thanks John. Glad you like it.
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Rosa Fernandez replied to Natalya Tyler
Hello Natalya, and thanks for your question. It is unlikely that there will be overestimate, since there are a number of activities whose carbon footprints have not been yet calculated or estimated, so though there is always a level of inaccuracy, if anything the tendency would be underestimations.
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Interesting comments. Food is a very complex issue, and how it is kept is linked to intrinsic characteristics, where it comes from and how much processing it has suffered... the less processing the less packaging (in general)
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Rosa Fernandez replied to Hamish Morrison
@HamishMorrison Hi Hamish, thanks for your comments... I would say that no matter who came with the idea, or the attempts to shift responsibility... if nobody acts we all lose...
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Rosa Fernandez replied to Juvenal MAMBOUNDOU
Hi Juvenal. I hope the materials of the course are helpful enough.
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Welcome everyone. Good to see people from different places. I hope you will find the course helpful.
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Rosa Fernandez replied to Nina A
Good reflection Nina. This has to do with the consideration of corporations as 'legal' (but fictitious) 'persons'... in trying to make them similar to individual people... They have rights, but they also have responsibilities. The debates for some time wonder 'who is to blame when a corporation fails or misbehaves?'
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Hello everyone and welcome to the course. I hope you will find it helpful.
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Hello all. I'm surprised nobody has added a comment here yet. Is it because you do not think you could influence others? because you are unsure what should be a priority? This is a personal reflection to help you decide taking action, so there is no right or wrong answer
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Thanks for the comment so far. One key aspect to consider, particularly in less developed countries, is if the governments would have access to other sources of funding for the implementation of big infrastructure projects. As the global financial system works now, governments stand to take a higher level of risk to make private investors part of their...
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Good points raised here. Transparency is one of the key areas that most companies need to improve. This is where CSR reports could play an important role, if companies take them seriously and they reflect the true activities and impacts.
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Thank you for the comment... One point for reflection would be if regulation should prevent companies that do not behave as 'socially responsible' from operating in the first place or that would be considered over-regulation and too much control by the State. Would that be feasible in Western economies that are so dominated by the so called 'free market'?
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Rosa Fernandez replied to Jan Mole
Thanks Jan. Here is a possible link to use for the free documentary but there is more than one. A search on YouTube would help. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpQYsk-8dWg
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Rosa Fernandez replied to Ian Biles
Good reflection. Thank you... Do you think society is happy with corporations? or that corporations have become too influential in the political sphere that society's views take a secondary role? Food for thought
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Thanks Alison. These are all aspects to be considered. The question is why the diets that people adopt are not the 'right' ones... Information campaigns would suggest that people know, at least at a basic level, what is healthy and what is not... but is it affordable, or accessible to all? Health is one of the Sustainable Development Goals, but when making...
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Well pointed. The pandemic has changed too many things already so it is unlikely that we 'return to normal' as a 'new normal' is appearing, for instance with more people working from home and commuting less... The question is if we will take advantage of the opportunities for change (for good) that the pandemic has brought about.
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Thanks for the comment. It is important to acknowledge that ESG agendas are focused on investment decisions by companies (and private individuals... sometimes governments) and right now the debate is on if and how this should be standardised and regulated... but there is much more to do apart from where to invest our money and hopefully the course makes...
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Rosa Fernandez replied to Morag M
Thank you for this post. It is one of the purposes of the course to create awareness so that personal change and action can take place. It is the first step towards achieving collective change too.
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Hello all. I hope you are finding the course interesting and that it is helping your reflection on the need for change. If there is something you would like to ask, please feel free to do it through these Discussion areas and I will be happy to answer.
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Hello again. Following on my previous post, please reflect... if in your specific area there are no actions or policies or initiatives in place... could you share where do you think they are most needed? Or by any chance, do you live in a place where greenhouse gas emissions are low and could it be used as an example of best practice?
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Hello everyone. It would be nice to see some comments here. Or does silence mean that nothing is being done in your local area to reduce greenhouse gases? Is it perhaps another area of sustainability being prioritised? Please share.
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Good to see active participation here. The food topic always brings a lot of discussion because it is very close to everyone. Daily shopping and shopping only what one needs is an option, though accessibility may be an issue as someone has added... but it is also a matter of convenience and time availability. The way lives are structured now call for doing...
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Rosa Fernandez made a comment
Good to see that you are finding the documentary interesting and thought provoking. I would invite you to reflect on the fact that this has been going on for many decades, so change is necessary and possible, but it will require time... And as the course tries to unfold, the change needs to begin with oneself.
