Impact & Sustainability News From Leading Brands

Responsible Production & Consumption

5 Trends That Are Creating the Sustainable Property Framework

Jan 13, 2017 9:05 AM ET

While 2016 was a year of humanizing sustainability and empowering people to take action, 2017 will be a year of more ambitious climate change initiatives. We’ve identified five trends in sustainability that are creating the framework for the future of development.

Events, Media & Communications

Major Stakeholders Co-Create Unifying Strategy to Address Post-Harvest Loss in Nigeria

Jan 13, 2017 8:55 AM ET

Major stakeholders in the Nigerian tomato value chain came together from across the globe for the first-ever YieldWise Partner Planning Session last month. YieldWise, a $130 million dollar initiative launched in 2016 by The Rockefeller Foundation, seeks to demonstrate how the world can halve food loss by 2030, one of the UN’s Global Goals.

Education

Avnet Supports STEM Education Through Junior Achievement Partnership

Jan 13, 2017 8:05 AM ET

Thanks to Avnet’s corporate partnership with Junior Achievement (JA) of Arizona, more than 25,000 students are able to have a hands-on tech industry experience. Sparking interest in the technology industry and nurturing science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education is important to Avnet, and sponsoring two shops at JA BizTown provides students with critical exposure to important STEM career opportunities.

Environment

New Fuel Option Means Cleaner Truck Routes

Jan 13, 2017 8:00 AM ET

Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) has a name that sounds like it could be a complex scientific concept, but it’s really not that complicated: CNG is primarily methane gas stored at high pressure. That’s it.

Education

First-Year Harvard MBA Student Chooses Las Vegas Sands for Climate Change Assignment

Jan 13, 2017 8:00 AM ET

Technology and Operations Management is a required class taken by all first year MBA students at Harvard Business School. In 2016, for the first time and as part of their program, all 950 students were assigned a task that focused on climate change. Specifically, the students were given a challenge to write a blog posting of about 800 words, describing how a single organization of their choosing is being affected by climate change, either through the company’s operations, innovation system, or supply chain.

Education

21CF and Pepsico Award $200,000 Scholarships to Women in Stem as Part of ‘The Search for Hidden Figures’ Contest

Jan 13, 2017 7:00 AM ET

21st Century Fox and PepsiCo, in partnership with the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS), have named Yuna Shin from Bothell, Washington, and Joy Bualamwini from Cambridge, Massachusetts, as the two grand prize winners of “The Search for Hidden Figures,” a contest awarding scholarships to young women pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

No Barriers Warriors y Wells Fargo Buscan Veteranos Para la Expedición de “Warriors to Summits” de 2017

Jan 12, 2017 4:00 PM ET

No Barriers Warriors (en inglés) y Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) buscan veteranos con discapacidades para la Expedición de Warriors to Summits (en inglés) de 2017. El épico viaje se diseñó con el fin de presentar desafíos mentales y físicos rigurosos que ayuden a los veteranos a reflexionar sobre su pasado, reconocer donde están ahora y desarrollar una visión de su futuro para que puedan lograr con éxito la transición a la vida civil después del servicio militar.

Education

PepsiCo and 21st Century Fox Announce the Two Grand Prize Winners in "The Search For Hidden Figures" Contest

Jan 12, 2017 4:00 PM ET

PepsiCo and 21st Century Fox, in partnership with the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS), are proud to announce the two grand prize winners from "The Search for Hidden Figures" scholarship contest. Inspired by Fox's "Hidden Figures", this program actively engaged the next generation of female leaders in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), and received more than 7,300 submissions from students across the country.

Education

Attending the 2016 European Amgen Scholars Symposium

Jan 12, 2017 4:00 PM ET

Environment

Keep America Beautiful’s Cigarette Litter Prevention Program Opens 2017 Grant Application Period

Jan 12, 2017 3:30 PM ET

Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s leading nonprofit that envisions a country in which every community is a green, clean and beautiful place to live, today announced the organization has opened the grant application period for the 2017 Cigarette Litter Prevention Program to help communities combat the most commonly littered item in America.

Innovation & Technology

Fortune Video: "The Weird Whirlpool Appliances of CES 2017"

Jan 12, 2017 2:30 PM ET

Education

MilliporeSigma Kicks Off Year-Long ‘Curiosity Cube™’ Tour

Jan 12, 2017 2:15 PM ET

Recognizing that tomorrow’s discoveries depend on the next generation of scientists—and that breakthroughs begin with curiosity—MilliporeSigma has kicked off a year-long “Curiosity Cube™” tour.

Events, Media & Communications

NAEM's 2017 Calendar Features Latest Practices, New Formats, Fresh Ideas

Jan 12, 2017 2:15 PM ET

Today NAEM announced its 2017 conference calendar, focused on the latest management challenges and emerging practices for environment, health and safety (EHS) and sustainability leaders.

"Because the EHS&S field continues to evolve along with the spectrum of risks it manages, NAEM's 2017 calendar was developed to be timely and relevant to the needs of those leading these programs within companies," said Executive Director Carol Singer Neuvelt.

Research, Reports & Publications

Bechtel Releases Annual Sustainability Report

Jan 12, 2017 1:30 PM ET

Bechtel announced today the release of its annual sustainability report, showcasing projects and innovations that are delivering sustainable cities, fostering cleaner energy, and preserving scarce water resources worldwide.

Events, Media & Communications

Quo Vadis for Corporate Sustainability and Sustainable Investment for This New Year?

Jan 12, 2017 12:50 PM ET

At the outset of the Year 2016 we were seeing so many (mostly) positive trends converging in a critical mass that spelled out "s-u-c-c-e-s-s-f-u-l" year ahead for sustainability professionals, whether they toiled in the corporate sector, in the capital markets, in NGO offices, in the public sector, and so on.

Environment

Driving the Next Phase of Corporate Sustainability: the Private Sector

Jan 12, 2017 12:30 PM ET

The nation’s first privately-run electric bus fleet began service in Chicago in December 2016, and it's not run by the City of Chicago—it’s run by the owners of Aon Center and Prudential Plaza.

Environment

Indonesia's Foresty Products Exports Achieve Significant Milestone

Jan 12, 2017 12:00 PM ET

Nov. 15, 2016 marked a historic day for the forestry sector in Indonesia and for timber legality efforts globally. Indonesia became the world’s first country to export forest products licensed under the EU’s Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan. This means that Indonesia’s forest products now automatically meet the strict requirements of the EU Timber Regulation, designed to prohibit illegal timber products from entering the EU. This milestone is particularly gratifying to me. As a member of the SCS Forest Conservation Program for more than a decade, I know first-hand the environmental and social costs of illegal forestry practices... https://www.scsglobalservices.com/blog/indonesia-becomes-worlds-first-country-to-export-forestry-products-under-eus-strict-timber

Education

VIDEO: Being the Change – Women in Tech

Jan 12, 2017 11:55 AM ET

At AT&T, more than 84,200 women work to transform the way we connect with our world. These women are executives, engineers, marketers, sales people, financial professionals, installation technician and attorneys. They are innovators. They are mentors. And they’re leaders.

Environment

Tears Don't Mend Broken China

Jan 12, 2017 11:50 AM ET

I’ve always been clumsy. There were many broken dishes and glasses in my childhood. My Mom was always kind about it. She’d say, “Tears don’t mend broken China.” She had other similar phrases I remember (e.g., “If you get a load of lemons, it is time to make lemonade!”), but the lesson was always Midwestern positivism. Don’t sit around moaning about what can’t be fixed—keep moving forward and don’t let your own failures hold you back.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Countdown To Comcast Cares Day: 100 Days

Jan 12, 2017 11:25 AM ET

On April 22, 2017, we will celebrate that commitment through Comcast Cares Day as more than 100,000 Comcast NBCUniversal volunteers join together to make change happen across the country and around the world.

Innovation & Technology

Mayor Kasim Reed, 10 corporations, Georgia Tech launch Engage, an accelerator program and venture fund

Jan 12, 2017 11:00 AM ET

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, the Georgia Institute of Technology and the CEOs of 10 of Atlanta’s leading corporations today jointly announced the launch of Engage, a mentorship-driven accelerator program and venture fund.

The Atlanta-based Engage accelerator is open to startups across the country, with a focus placed on mentoring and market access strategies. Applications will be available in early 2017, with programming scheduled to begin in the spring. Up to 48 startups could go through the program in the first three years.

Social Impact & Volunteering

CITGO Raises Funds for Local Community Programs with 2016 Spirit Pump Initiative

Jan 12, 2017 10:15 AM ET

CITGO Petroleum Corporation, along with its Marketers and Retailers, raised approximately $30,000 in 2016 through the installation of “Spirit Pumps” at participating CITGO stations across the nation. These specially wrapped, branded fuel pumps were operational at different times throughout the year to raise money for a variety of education, charitable and community service programs.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Antea Group Named Member Partner of Manufacturing USA’s REMADE Institute on Clean Energy

Jan 12, 2017 9:40 AM ET

Antea Group has been named a member partner of the Reducing Embodied-Energy and Decreasing Emissions (“REMADE”) Institute by the U.S. Department of Energy. REMADE, part of the multiagency network known as Manufacturing USA, will work to find new and less expensive ways to reuse, recycle, and remanufacture materials such as metals, fibers, polymers, and electronic waste, aiming to achieve a 50-percent improvement in overall energy efficiency in U.S. manufacturing by 2027.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Public Consultation on the Latest AA1000 AccountAbility Principles to Open in Late-January 2017

Jan 12, 2017 9:30 AM ET

AccountAbility will open the latest revision of the AccountAbility Principles, the AA1000AP (2017) for public consultation on the 26th of January 2017. Upon completion of the public consultation and consideration of feedback received, the AA1000AP (2017) will be updated, finalised and replace the current AA1000 AccountAbility Principles Standard (AA1000APS 2008) as the core foundation and “Guiding Principles” of the AA1000 series. The AA1000AP (2017) may be used and referenced immediately after the release date in 2017.

Innovation & Technology

IUPUI and Butler University Win AASHE Sustainable Campus Competition, hosted by Kimberly-Clark Professional

Jan 12, 2017 9:00 AM ET

Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) and Butler University partnered to win the AASHE Sustainable Campus Competition, hosted by Kimberly-Clark Professional. The two schools secured a $50,000 prize that will catalyze a city-wide composting collection program that serves as important step toward their large-scale commercial composting collection initiative.