Impact & Sustainability News From Leading Brands

Green Infrastructure

Watch: Living Future CEO Amanda Sturgeon speak at TEDMED 2018

Feb 7, 2019 5:15 PM ET

Last November, ILFI CEO Amanda Sturgeon spoke at TEDMED 2018, the independent health and medicine edition of the world-famous TED conference, dedicated to “ideas worth spreading.” In her speech, Amanda talked about biophilic design, human health, and how the former can benefit the latter, as well as the role architecture can play in bringing nature back to our (mostly indoor) lives.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Keep America Beautiful Recognizes National Leaders and Community Organizations with Awards at 2019 National Conference

Feb 7, 2019 5:10 PM ET

More than 80 individuals, including community leaders from national nonprofit Keep America Beautiful’s community-based affiliate network and other partner organizations, are being recognized today at Keep America Beautiful’s National Awards Ceremony, which is taking place during Keep America Beautiful’s National Conference in Baltimore, Maryland, Feb. 6-8.

Sustainable Development Goals

Sappi Puts Its People First With Social Responsibility Goals

Feb 7, 2019 2:55 PM ET

The following offers a view of our annual performance in important areas of environmental and social responsibility. We monitor key metrics for fiber, emissions, energy usage and the impact of our operations on air, water and solid waste. We use this data to set improvement goals for our operations and interactions with key stakeholders.

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

Scotiabank and Tecnológico de Monterrey Announce Factory A in Mexico City, a Corporate Accelerator Designed to Foster Fintech Innovation and Growth

Feb 7, 2019 2:20 PM ET

Factory A will select 10 FinTech ventures made up of young entrepreneurs from Latin America to join the program's Entrepreneur Coworking ecosystem.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Changing of the Guard

Feb 7, 2019 12:15 PM ET

Cecily Joseph has run Symantec’s Corporate Responsibility (CR) program for the past 13 years. This week she’s moving on to a new chapter in her life and is passing the reigns to Jaime Barclay, Senior Manager of CR at Symantec. Jaime has extensive experience in philanthropy and CR, and has been a dedicated Symantec employee for more than a decade. We asked Cecily and Jaime to interview each other – to give us a look into their past work together as well what we can expect to see next.

Environment

DSM's Akulon RePurposed: From Discarded Fishing Nets to High-End Materials

Feb 7, 2019 12:05 PM ET

DSM and Starboard transform discarded fishing nets into high-end surfboard components and contribute to cleaner oceans, litter-free beaches and jobs for local communities.

Education

Durkan’s dscvr and the Future of Hospitality Design

Feb 7, 2019 11:45 AM ET

Each year we look forward to highlighting the talent of designers in the hospitality field and supporting the education of future designers through the Durkan dscvr Student Design Competition. This year we are excited to showcase the stellar achievements of our 2018 grand prize winner, Brianne Brooks.

Brooks put her winnings to good use, applying the scholarship to pay for textbooks and other education expenses. In addition she was able to pursue LEED Green Associate certification and undertake an internship. Brooks plans to graduate in May with a degree in interior design and is now considering a career in hospitality design.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Lockheed Pledges $1 Million to Coast Guard Museum Project

Feb 7, 2019 11:05 AM ET

Lockheed Martin, which owns Stratford-based Sikorsky, has pledged $1 million to the National Coast Guard Museum, the largest donation to date from the defense industry.

Responsible Production & Consumption

Is Large-scale 3D Printing Sustainable?

Feb 7, 2019 11:00 AM ET

With the introduction of its own 3D printing hardware line, dubbed Multi Jet Fusion (MJF), HP is expected to become a major player in the [Automated Manufacturing] ecosystem as well.

Events, Media & Communications

CSRHub’s Bahar Gidwani Speaking at Generating Alpha

Feb 7, 2019 10:45 AM ET

CSRHub CTO and Co-Founder Bahar Gidwani will be speaking at Skytop Strategies Generating Alpha conference, in New York on February 13th. Bahar will join a panel discussing Alpha from Impact: Identifying Opportunities in ESG.

Environment

PFAS and Petroleum Fires: A Quandary for the Oil and Gas Industry

Feb 7, 2019 10:45 AM ET

If you have manufactured and/or used PFAS-containing products, understand the implications of PFAS cleanup now.

Research, Reports & Publications

Erb Institute ICYMI: How Can Academia and Business Collaborate for Sustainability?

Feb 7, 2019 10:20 AM ET

The Erb Institute engaged with several speakers and participants around key questions that relate to business, academia and sustainability, during a partner event with Innovation Forum in Detroit.

Events, Media & Communications

Hormel Foods Corporate Responsibility Efforts Featured in Film Festival

Feb 7, 2019 9:45 AM ET

The Hormel Foods Our Food Journey™ video that showcases the company’s efforts to make the world a better place is featured in an international corporate citizenship film festival.

The inspirational piece was created as an anthem video to explain to stakeholders what Our Food Journey™ means to the company and to showcase all that Hormel Foods is doing. From hunger-relief efforts to animal welfare and environmental stewardship, Hormel Foods is inspired to make a difference.

Public voting determines which videos move into the top 10. The videos that receive enough votes to make it into the top 10 will be judged by a panel of corporate responsibility experts; winners will be announced at the Boston College International CSR Conference in April.

Education

Lip Balm and Gumdrops are Inspiring Tomorrow’s Workforce

Feb 7, 2019 9:10 AM ET

In 2000, Techbridge Girls (TBG) - a leader in supporting girls and marginalized communities in breaking into the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields - was launched at the Chabot Space & Science Center in Oakland, California. As STEM fields have historically been dominated by males, women and girls, especially those of color, are consistently and disproportionately left out and often lack information on the multitude of STEM career opportunities available to them. In 2015, Subaru began funding TBG’s after school programs in Seattle, WA, and has since become a national supporter of all three TBG direct service locations.

Environment

Lessons from a CDP Supplier Engagement Leader: Five Steps to Help Accelerate Climate Action

Feb 7, 2019 8:30 AM ET

For the fifth consecutive year, HP has achieved a place on the CDP Climate Change A List for our actions to cut emissions, mitigate climate risks and develop the low-carbon economy.

Environment

General Mills Promotes Focus on Soil Health

Feb 7, 2019 8:05 AM ET

The food company asks farmers to emphasize diverse crop rotations, minimal tillage and keeping soil covered in plants


Research, Reports & Publications

Ørsted Gets Closer to a Complete Green Transformation: 99% Renewable Energy Generation by 2025

Feb 7, 2019 8:00 AM ET

The years 2015-2018 were the four warmest years on record for the world. To avoid runaway climate change, society must radically decarbonise the way it generates and consumes energy, and keep global temperature rise below 1.5° Celsius as compared with pre-industrial levels.

Diversity & Inclusion

Moody's Diverse and Inclusive Culture

Feb 7, 2019 7:05 AM ET

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Saving the World One Paycheck at a Time

Feb 6, 2019 5:45 PM ET

Workplace giving is a highly valued tradition offering benefits to employers, employees, nonprofits, and the people they help.

But what would happen if employee giving programs didn’t exist? On the flipside, what would the world be like with MORE employee giving?

Events, Media & Communications

Lockheed Martin Looks to Fill 100+ STEM Jobs at BEYA STEM Conference

Feb 6, 2019 3:20 PM ET

Are you looking for a job? Would you like to be offered a position on-the-spot? Lockheed Martin will be hiring at the 2019 Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) STEM Global Competitiveness Conference in Washington, D.C., February 9. Lockheed Martin is a world-renowned global security and aerospace company. We are looking for employees with all levels of experience in STEM fields who have fresh ideas to help continue our legacy of excellence.

Supply Chain & the Circular Economy

Greensboro, North Carolina Joins eBay’s Retail Revival

Feb 6, 2019 3:15 PM ET

The third partnership of its kind in the U.S., Retail Revival Greensboro is a 12-month program for local small business owners looking to leverage eBay’s global marketplace to reach new customers around the world.

Supply Chain & the Circular Economy

How IoT Could be Sustainability's Secret Ingredient

Feb 6, 2019 1:05 PM ET

A new report by the World Economic Forum found that the value of keeping things “within” our economy, rather than letting items pass “through” our economy could unlock a global growth potential of $4.5 trillion and also address the global challenges we’re faced with today, ranging from resource depletion to climate change.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Viral Engagement Techniques Get Your Entire Workforce Fully Vested in Your Causes

Feb 6, 2019 1:00 PM ET

We see it every single day. Both within our own company and those of our clients. The face of the workforce is changing. And so are the dynamics that motivate your employees to participate — or not — in corporate charitable giving programs.

Innovation & Technology

ISTE and Discovery Education Launch New Partnership Offering Members Innovative and Engaging Digital Resources that Bring STEM to Life in the Classroom

Feb 6, 2019 1:00 PM ET

The International Society for Technology and Education (ISTE) a global education organization with a bold vision that technology can transform teaching and learning, accelerate innovation, and solve tough problems in education, today announced a new partnership with Discovery Education. Through this collaboration, Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital curriculum resources, digital content, and professional development for K-12 classrooms, is offering all ISTE members access to its newest service, STEM Connect, at no-cost through July 31, 2019.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Viacom Partners with the “I Have A Dream” Foundation for MLK Service Day

Feb 6, 2019 12:05 PM ET

Viacom’s Corporate Social Responsibility branch, also known as Viacommunity, recently partnered with the “I Have A Dream” Foundation to engage in a service opportunity in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Viacom employees had the opportunity to lend their time to assembling care packages, which included: healthy snacks, supplies, and writing encouraging notes. Eugena Oh, CEO & President of the foundation opened the event by speaking about the mission of the foundation and the impact the Viacommunity has had on fostering its programs.