ISSUE 60 | VOL 13 | July 2, 2021 Vedanta Newsdesk KEY COVID INITIATIVES NAND GHAR BU UPDATES THE VEDANTA OF BUSINESS Chairman Anil Agarwal addressed members of FICCI FLO – the women wing of the apex industry association, during a webinar on Saturday. Here are some of the key takeaways from his speech that left the women business leaders inspired and motivated. Stay Hungry, Stay Passionate In order to succeed, you have to remain hungry. You should be passionate about what you want to achieve and never give up. Work hard but make sure you enjoy the journey. Women Power If a woman is convinced and she puts her mind into it she can achieve any task. There is special strength in women. Women entrepreneurs can be a major driving force to help the economy recover. Raising the Bar Globally, around 44 per cent of the women are entrepreneurs and head various companies. In India, the share of women entrepreneurs is still just about 20 per cent. This needs to at least double. It is time for women to come forward and deliver. World wants India as a Market India is a land of entrepreneurship with the advantage of location, young talent, natural resources, a country that is racing ahead to become a self-reliant economy. The world always looked at India as a market, never wanted us to become a producer. Now the focus is shifting towards self-reliance and our youth and start- ups with innovative ideas are taking the country to newer heights. Focus on Exploration India has the largest deposit of oil, gold and mineral and the focus should be on exploring them so that the country progresses. The youth and the women will have to take the lead. Setting up a Global University We want to set up a Harvard-like university in Odisha which can offer world-class courses in liberal arts and medicine to youngsters at affordable cost and promote research and development. I am confident that the setting up of 3-4 such global universities will change India. The power of Philanthropy Philanthropy will be the cornerstone of entrepreneurship in the coming years. The Agarwal family has pledged 75 per cent of its wealth to philanthropic activities. The profit of business must help society where it matters the most and there is nothing more than important than securing the health and future of our women and children. Our experience of Nand Ghars is showing the way in various parts of the country and helping women and children get early education, nutrition & health services, and skilling for women to earn & become independent. A BIG INSPIRATION Mr Anil Agarwal's intelligence, strategic decisions and highly efficient leadership skills have come a long way ahead on the road of development, starting from copper, and to steel, aluminium, zinc, iron, oil & gas, power generation and many more. His story motivates business women and young leaders to achieve their dreams UJJWALA SINGHANIA PRESIDENT FICCI LADIES ORGANISATION (FLO) VEDANTA: COMMITTED TO A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE Vedanta is committed to a sustainable future and environmentally responsible practices. As the world emerges from an unprecedented economic and social challenge posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Vedanta remains committed to the core principles of environment and social sustainability in each of its businesses. The company continues to leverage technology to evolve innovative ways to safeguard the environment and communities. Vedanta is committed to responsible mining, energy conservation, recycling, waste disposal, health & safety of all our employees and business partners and development of the local communities in and around our business units. The company is also focusing on extensive disclosure of its sustainability programs for which it is in active dialogue with stakeholders. COMBATING THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE Climate change has been one of the most pressing challenges that the world faces today. As a responsible corporate, Vedanta is committed to combat the impact of climate change as a strategic priority. Vedanta has re-constituted the ‘Carbon Forum’ – the company’s apex body on climate strategy - to help steer the group as it seeks to lower carbon emissions. The company is developing low- carbon solutions and piloting projects that focuses on saving more energy and fuel. With the COP26 UN climate change conference set to take place in Glasgow in November this year, Vedanta is working with a mission to reduce its carbon footprint. The company’s goal is to substantially decarbonise our operations by 2050. The company has adopted carbon reduction goals in line with Government of India’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). Vedanta is supportive of the Paris Agreement and has signed the Private Sector Declaration on Climate Change to voluntarily move towards carbon-neutrality. FOCUS ON ZERO HARM, ZERO WASTE, ZERO DISCHARGE In line with the goal of “Zero Harm, Zero Waste, Zero Discharge”, the company has put in place global best practices under the Vedanta Sustainability framework. The company’s safety programs are focused on enhanced quality of investigation and improved learning from fatalities, cross-business safety audits and a critical risk management framework. The company is focused on effective water management and has saved 7.5 million cubic metres of water over the past three years. Fly ash management has also been a strong focus with fly ash utilisation rates pegged at 110 per cent. Vedanta is committed to reduce its GHG emissions intensity by 20 per cent by FY2025. The company has reduced GHG emissions intensity by 13.83% in FY20 as against the FY12 baseline. This reduction is equivalent to ~9 million tons in avoided GHG emissions. Through sustained efforts across business units, Vedanta achieved energy savings of 1.92 million GJ in FY2020 and has set up Solar Power Projects of 40 Mega Watts. WATER CONSERVATION Water is a shared resource. While access to a steady water supply is critical for mining and smelting operations, it is an equally critical requirement for the host communities and the natural ecosystem and biodiversity of the area. As part of its philosophy of sustainable and responsible growth, Vedanta has recycled 282.65 million cubic metres of water in the past four years. Protecting water resources is an integral part of Vedanta’s commitment to sustainable development as the company has taken up 19 water saving projects to reduce water consumption across its businesses. The company believes in using natural resources prudently and has been investing in new technologies and systems to optimise water consumption. Hindustan Zinc has emerged as a water positive company. The company has become 2.41 times water positive with respect to the water consumed, making it one of the top water conserving companies globally. BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT At Vedanta, biodiversity management has been made integral in all our projects. The company has rolled out the Vedanta Cares Green Cover initiative across the organisation to reaffirm our commitment towards the protecting the environment. Under the Vedanta Cares Green Cover initiative, more than one million saplings will be planted by employees and business partners to celebrate their dear and loved ones who have recovered from Covid. FOCUS ON DIVERSITY Gender diversity is a big focus area at Vedanta which is ranked among the top global companies where women feel comfortable to work. Empowering women is at the heart of Vedanta's corporate philosophy. The company has about 20% representation of women in senior leadership positions. The vision is to achieve 33% gender diversity across all levels. Vedanta is way above the industry average when it comes to gender diversity in the natural resources sector. The company is elevating women to do critical shopfloor jobs like in blast furnace operations, underground mine operations or in the oil & gas sector. EMPOWERING COMMUNITIES Vedanta is focused on empowering local communities and retaining their trust. The company is the primary economic driver in most of the business locations and impacts the lives of local communities, whether as employers and business partners or through community development interventions. Nand Ghar is transforming the Anganwadi ecosystem. Aim to change the lives of 7 crore children and 2 crore women at the grassroots level. Vedanta’s vision is to drive inclusive growth that build communities, enhances the country’s self-reliance in an environmentally responsible manner. Vedanta has been at the forefront in the battle against Covid-19, undertook measures across business locations to prevent the spread of the virus. The company has set up 10 field hospitals with 1,000 critical care beds and supplied more than 15 lakh litres of oxygen to hospitals to support local communities in the fight against the pandemic. REVAMPING SOCIAL PERFORMANCE Vedanta is engaging with external stakeholders to revamp its social performance. The initiative, aimed at building greater trust with communities, will involve all departments through the formation of dedicated committees to respond to any situation in a holistic manner. VEDANTA’S SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVES GET GLOBAL RECOGNITION Vedanta’s Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) ranking in the metals and mining sector globally has risen to #12, as against #21 in 2019. Hindustan Zinc, and Vedanta have topped the DJSI rankings in the Asia Pacific region this year. Vedanta Limited and Hindustan Zinc, have also been included in The Sustainability Yearbook 2021 by S&P Global. The publication is globally considered to provide one of the most comprehensive and in-depth analysis on corporate responsibility. Vedanta has released the first Climate Change Report in line with the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), becoming the first Indian metals and mining company to do so. Our collaboration with TCFD will help us develop good practices and bring in greater transparency in our disclosure standards.