Impact & Sustainability News From Leading Brands

Sustainable Development Goals

Professionalising African Motorcycle Taxis: From Vitamins to Painkillers

May 22, 2018 9:20 AM ET

SafeMotos is proud to announce our new version of our smart phone application: what we believe to be the most localized piece of software ever built by an African startup. It’s been a rocky journey though, with many missteps along the way. Our hope is that we can pass on some of my lessons learned at SafeMotos to others so they can avoid some of our pitfalls.

Environment

Cisco Employees Are Earth Aware, Making a Positive Impact on the Planet

May 22, 2018 9:15 AM ET

Earth Aware is Cisco’s annual month-long volunteerism and awareness campaign in support of the sustainability and the environment. Through dozens of “green” events, such as volunteer-led tree plantings, Earth fairs, beach cleanups, recycling seminars, and more, employees took action to positively impact the planet, at work and at home.

Supply Chain & the Circular Economy

Is the Commodity Era Over?

May 22, 2018 9:00 AM ET

I’ve recently begun to wonder if we’re moving away from the world of commodities as we’ve known them for hundreds of years. The buying, selling, trading and hedging of commodities like cocoa, grains and energy have been stalwarts of global trade. For decades, people in corporate procurement have sourced raw materials from around the world based on defined specifications and quality standards.

Diversity & Inclusion

Brands Taking Stands Newsletter, 5/22/18

May 22, 2018 9:00 AM ET

“The Big Story” in this week’s edition of the Brands Taking Stands Newsletter focuses on the issue of companies supporting LGBTQ rights. The issue continues to be a crossroads for private-public conflict, as business pushes back against public policy perceived as discriminatory.

Sustainable Development Goals

Freeport-McMoRan Invests in Skills Development for Indigenous Fish Industry Workers

May 22, 2018 8:55 AM ET

PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI), a Freeport-McMoRan company, has an extensive Community Economic Development program in the region where it operates in Papua, Indonesia. Mangrove crabs (Scylla serrata) commonly called ‘Karaka’ by locals in the coastal Mimika Regency of Papua, Indonesia, is a coastal fishery commodity. Karaka are large and meaty crabs, and are an economically important species of crab that are found in estuaries and mangroves.

Education

Views of the Biotech Experience From Dublin

May 22, 2018 7:20 AM ET

On one typically overcast morning in April, I stepped out of my comfort zone and headed down to the Herbert Park Hotel in Ballsbridge, Dublin, to address the delegates at the Amgen Biotech Experience (ABE) global annual meeting. I spent the evening beforehand thinking of what I would say during the allocated five minutes. There are so many positive things to say about the ABE program, and I wanted to do it justice; the idea of speaking in front of an assembled audience of experts, and strangers, however, was a bit daunting. I feel much more comfortable in my classroom, talking to the teenagers that I meet every day in school.

Events, Media & Communications

Bloomberg Announces the New Economy Forum to Be Held in Beijing in November 2018

May 21, 2018 5:50 PM ET

Bloomberg and the China Center for International Economic Exchanges (CCIEE) announced the New Economy Forum to be held in Beijing, China from November 6-8, 2018. The Forum will stimulate a frank conversation about the shifts in the global economy and the risks and opportunities created by a world in transition that is increasingly led by China and India, as well as the rising powers in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Republic Climbs Fortune 500 List as Waste Management Sees Slight Dip

May 21, 2018 5:05 PM ET

Events, Media & Communications

MOD Pizza: How a Culture of “Doing the Right Thing” Is Good for Business

May 21, 2018 5:00 PM ET

MOD Pizza was founded with the goal of using business to make a positive social impact. Founders Ally and Scott Svenson realized that through the fast-casual pizza segment they pioneered, MOD could create a positive effect on the lives of their fiercely loyal employees. MOD’s hiring philosophy - that talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not – continues to drive their success and gives their employees purpose.

Health & Healthcare

Nepal Validated by WHO for Eliminating Blinding Trachoma

May 21, 2018 4:45 PM ET

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced today that it has validated Nepal as the sixth country to eliminate trachoma as a public health problem. Pfizer is excited to join the global trachoma community in celebrating this important milestone, which brings us one step closer to eliminating the world’s leading infectious cause of blindness once and for all.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Medtronic Foundation Opportunity Grant Initiative Now Seeking Applications

May 21, 2018 4:30 PM ET

Medtronic Foundation is seeking project ideas to test or scale solutions that improve the efficiency of healthcare delivery by addressing gaps in distance, time or people, while leading to demonstrable health outcomes for underserved populations. Successful applicants will receive a one time, one-year grant for US$50,000-US$100,000 and will participate in a global learning collaborative facilitated by the Medtronic Foundation. Up to ten (10) grants will be awarded.

Events, Media & Communications

Cone Sponsors Sustainable Brands® Conference for Seventh Year

May 21, 2018 4:30 PM ET

For the seventh year in a row, Cone, a Porter Novelli public relations and marketing agency specializing in Purpose and corporate social responsibility (CSR), will join Sustainable Brands® 2018 (SB’18) as a sponsor. Cone will help lead and facilitate four dynamic sessions taking place over the four-day conference in Vancouver, June 4-7.

Media & Communications

100 Best Corporate Citizens 2018” Roster -– Published by CR Magazine

May 21, 2018 4:25 PM ET

Now in its 19th year, the well known CR Magazine “100 Best Corporate Citizens 2018” list was just unveiled; this effort recognizes the ESG performance of public companies in the United States. (The publication is now titled Corporate Responsibility Magazine, published by 3BL Media LLC.)

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Family Adopts from Foster Care and Gets Shocking Surprise

May 21, 2018 2:45 PM ET

More than 117,000 children in the United States don’t have the family they deserve. They are living in foster care, hoping to be adopted, hoping to have a safe, warm bed to come home to each night. Every. Single. Foster Care Adoption Story is UNIQUE. The Walker Family has an incredibly special story about their son Ja’Kolby.

Environment

Brightening Our Corner Newsletter - May 2018

May 21, 2018 2:15 PM ET

This is the quarterly newsletter for the Ray C. Anderson Foundation, a private family foundation that seeks to promote a sustainable society by supporting and funding educational and project-based initiatives that advance knowledge and innovation in sustainability.

Energy

Rochdale Village Earns $1M in Energy Efficiency Rebates

May 21, 2018 1:15 PM ET

Rochdale Village in Jamaica Queens, the second largest housing cooperative in the world, with 120-acres including 20 apartment buildings, a daycare center, three schools, a public library system, two shopping malls, two banks and a host of small businesses, is receiving more than $1 million in National Grid energy efficiency rebates for their commitment to greening the local community.

Education

Students Get a Slice of Education With Their Pizzas

May 21, 2018 1:00 PM ET

Ruben Xochitiotzi, 16, a sophomore at Chino Hills High School, hopes to be a successful restaurateur or businessman one day. He got a taste of what it would be like to be part of a cookline making pizzas using modern commercial kitchen appliances during his recent class visit to Southern California Edison’s Foodservice Technology Center.

Green Infrastructure

Tomorrow's Infrastructure, Today

May 21, 2018 12:30 PM ET

Our highway system is the backbone of America. Highways connect our cities. They allow us to visit relatives, live and work in separate places and take that family vacation. But, it’s also a place where 40,000 American lives are lost every year, and it’s the part of our transportation system that contributes an outsized proportion of carbon pollution to our environment.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Sands Academy Assists Team Member in Attaining US Citizenship

May 21, 2018 11:10 AM ET

As part of its commitment to helping Team Members thrive in the hospitality industry through educational partnerships and providing them with an outstanding working environment, Sands Academy, Las Vegas Sands’ Learning and Development program, has offered a “Road to Citizenship” course. After completing the course, Las Vegas Sands Team Member, Cortez Robles, became a US citizen on March 10, 2018.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

KeyBank Receives Ninth Consecutive "Outstanding" Rating from OCC On Community Reinvestment Act Exam

May 21, 2018 11:00 AM ET

KeyBank has earned its ninth consecutive "Outstanding" rating from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), for exceeding the terms of the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) exam. KeyBank is one of the only U.S. national banks among the 25 largest to be rated “Outstanding” by the OCC for nine consecutive review periods, since the Act's passage in 1977.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

PNC Launches Quarterly Corporate Social Responsibility Newsletter

May 21, 2018 11:00 AM ET

PNC’s recently released 2017 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report outlines the ways that the company is meeting its commitments to its stakeholders – including employees, customers, shareholders and communities. Now, with the launch of its quarterly CSR newsletter, PNC is able to provide more up-to-the-moment information on the progress it’s making against those commitments.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Here's How Six Companies Take The Lead Supporting Working Mothers

May 21, 2018 10:30 AM ET

Diversity & Inclusion

Cultural Diversity - Making Us Stronger

May 21, 2018 10:05 AM ET

This year on the “World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development”, we are celebrating leaders and teams that embrace cultural differences, making Nestlé a stronger team.

Energy

CLP's Transition Towards a Low Carbon Future

May 21, 2018 10:00 AM ET

The CLP Group has developed strategies to address renewable resources and global climate change since 2004. To meet the challenges ahead, the power company has updated its Climate Vision 2050, building on the optimism of CLP's original aspirational, science-based trajectory while taking into consideration the realities of the energy market development in the Asia-Pacific region.

Energy

Behind the Wheel: Lille – A City Running on Natural Gas and Bio-methane

May 21, 2018 9:45 AM ET

Meet the people who are driving both the buses and project for an efficient and environmentally friendly public transport system in the city of Lille, in northern France. From vision to implementation, this metropolitan area is now firmly established at the forefront of large scale, sustainable mobility projects and IVECO BUS is a proud partner in this quest for an efficient and environmentally friendly public transport system.​