Sustainability is one of the core pillars of business at the Mahindra Group and its efforts are being increasingly recognized and validated on the global stage. Mahindra & Mahindra recently ranked 17th among the ‘100 Most Sustainably Managed Companies’ in the world – the highest for an automobile company and for any Indian company, according to the new Wall Street Journal (WSJ) Global Sustainability Ranking.

“The Mahindra Group strongly believes that it is possible to do good and do well at the same time. This simple philosophy guides our decision making particularly in terms of our sustainability initiatives”, said Anand Mahindra, Chairman, Mahindra Group, commenting on this global recognition. “It’s very clear that every business needs to step up its sustainability game if it expects to remain relevant in the future.”

Globally, Mahindra was the first company to commit to doubling its energy productivity through the EP 100 initiative. It is also the first company to introduce an internal carbon price of US$10 per ton of carbon emitted. The funds collected are invested in renewable energy projects including solar and wind, heat recovery systems and energy-efficient motors.

WSJ assessed more than 5,500 publicly traded businesses across the globe, based on sustainability metrics in such areas as business model and innovation, external social and product issues, employee and workplace issues, and the environment.

The ranking reflects a company’s management of financially material issues in key areas such as the environment, human capital, social capital and innovation. Instead of measuring the company’s overall impact on people and the planet; the scores focus on policies, initiatives and tracking metrics which are potentially leading indicators of performance.

Mahindra & Mahindra scored especially well on the human and social capitals metric. The ranking recognized the company’s business model and its innovations in this sector, as well as the work done on the environmental front. Fourteen of the company’s manufacturing plants are already certified as ‘Zero Waste to Landfill’. Already committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2040, this recognition spurs on Mahindra’s long-term sustainability initiatives.