Impact & Sustainability News From Leading Brands

Environment

Kate Zerrenner on the Rio Olympics

Aug 11, 2016 11:35 AM ET

If you’ve been tuning into the Olympics in Rio this week, you’ve probably watched your fair share of inspirational profiles of athletes. You may also have been following some of the stories emerging out of Brazil about the corruption, poor environmental stewardship, and social justice transgressions surrounding the Olympics.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

AIDA Supports Democracy Initiative "WE. Success Needs Diversity"

Aug 11, 2016 11:30 AM ET

In 2016, the cruise line AIDA Cruises once again offers its support to the democracy initiative “WIR. Erfolg braucht Vielfalt” (“WE. Success needs diversity”) by the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania with a donation of 5,000 euros. With this, AIDA Cruises takes a stand against right-wing extremism.
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Environment

Antea Group Case Study: EHS Passport for a Global Retail Company

Aug 11, 2016 11:15 AM ET

A United States retail company was expanding its business into Latin America and Asia.

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

Sappi’s 2020Vision

Aug 11, 2016 11:00 AM ET

This past year, Sappi Limited announced a new strategic vision to reshape our business through further diversification. Our transformation journey is not about radical change. It has been, and continues to be, an intentional evolution of the business—changing to meet market needs and opportunities.

Responsible Production & Consumption

Where Business and Sustainability Meet in the Pulp and Paper Industry

Aug 11, 2016 10:05 AM ET

Join Paige Goff, Vice President of sustainability and business communications at Domtar; and Richard Donovan, Senior Vice President and Vice President of Forestry at Rainforest Alliance, in a Q&A discussion on how sustainability plays a role in the manufacturing of pulp and paper products.

Green Infrastructure

SCS Global Services (Case Study by US Builders Review)

Aug 11, 2016 10:00 AM ET

California-based SCS Global Services has developed a highly integrated approach to sustainably built environments, providing third-party certification, auditing, testing, standards development and support services geared toward full supply chain sustainability and optimizing projects for the community, participants, and the greater environment.

Research, Reports & Publications

Sands ECO360 Report | Resource conservation

Aug 11, 2016 9:30 AM ET

Diversity & Inclusion

HP Nationally Ranked for Commitment to Diversity

Aug 11, 2016 9:05 AM ET

At HP, where diversity is part of the company’s DNA, inclusive hiring goes beyond bringing in more women, more people of color, or a broader range of experiences. And that’s why HP particularly proud of being recognized for its efforts to bring a sometimes-overlooked group into the mix—people with physical disabilities.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Akzonobel Helps Link Two Indonesian Villages for Better Quality of Life

Aug 11, 2016 9:00 AM ET

Innovation & Technology

Environment Check for New E-Class

Aug 11, 2016 9:00 AM ET

If you want to find out how environmentally compatible a vehicle is, you have to look at more than just the fuel consumption and emission figures. To obtain a full overview, it’s vital to take the vehicle’s entire life cycle into account — from the extraction of the raw materials it contains to the car’s production, its many years of use, and its eventual recycling/disposal as an end-of-life vehicle.

Environment

National Park Service Illuminates 100 Years From Brooklyn Bridge Park

Aug 11, 2016 9:00 AM ET

Energy

Eight-MW Giant Makes Offshore Wind Power Cheaper

Aug 11, 2016 8:55 AM ET

A new offshore wind turbine from Siemens is set to lower the cost of wind power generated on the high seas. Siemens believes it is well on the way to reaching its goal of producing offshore wind energy at a total cost of less than ten euro cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) by 2020.

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

Social-impact Investing Pairs Profit with Purpose

Aug 10, 2016 4:20 PM ET

Education

Here’s How You Can Help Teachers Inspire Students This School Year

Aug 10, 2016 4:00 PM ET

Summer is almost over, and children all over the country will soon be heading back to school. In order to ensure that their students have another phenomenal year of learning, many teachers purchase their own school supplies.

Environment

See the Recyclable Materials Auto Makers Use to Make Cars Environmentally Friendly

Aug 10, 2016 3:40 PM ET

When vehicles are made from reused components, they contribute to the circular economy – reducing or eliminating waste and pollution that would have resulted.

Health & Healthcare

India’s New Mental Health Care Act and the Complexity of Mental Illness

Aug 10, 2016 3:35 PM ET

On August 8, 2016, India passed the Mental Health Care Act. What does this mean for people experiencing mental illness and the services and supports they need and use?

Responsible Production & Consumption

3TG is Just the Starting Point for Supply Chain Investigation

Aug 10, 2016 3:25 PM ET

Approximately 1,200 publicly-traded companies filed Conflict Minerals Reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) this year, in accordance with Dodd-Frank Section 1502 (Conflict Minerals Rule). As the filings period for the 2015 reporting year has drawn to a close, companies are already preparing for the 2016 reporting year.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Hidden Hunger and What Young Leaders are Doing to Help

Aug 10, 2016 2:10 PM ET

Actively engaging young people in their community can result in positive and meaningful social change. Learn more about how to engage young people by reading Six Steps to Engage Millennials in Social Change and utilizing the complimentary Youth Engagement Toolkit.

Social Impact & Volunteering

How Time Warner Cable, The Connectory, and VolunteerMatch Collaborated for Mutually Beneficial Results

Aug 10, 2016 2:00 PM ET

At VM Summit 16, Erin Hogeboom of National Girl Collaborative will present a session called The STEM Trifecta: How Time Warner Cable, The Connectory, and VolunteerMatch Collaborated for Mutually Beneficial Results. Learn more about Erin and her session in this Q&A, including why she is looking forward to VM Summit 16.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Going Behind-the-Scenes at the Rio Olympics

Aug 10, 2016 1:35 PM ET

"And Shawn Johnson takes home the gold for USA Gymnastics!" Those were the words my heart clung to as I, then an 11-year-old girl, watched from my family’s living room as my favorite gymnast stood tall atop the podium in Beijing in the summer of 2008. I have always reserved a special reverence and excitement for the Olympics. After all, it is during the Olympics that the world pauses briefly, setting feuds and tensions aside, to celebrate the pinnacle of human athletic achievement.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Sustainability-Led Innovation: Imperative in a Volatile Economy

Aug 10, 2016 1:00 PM ET

Striking a balance between managing for the short term and re-tooling for a future is not easy. It is not enough to craft a new marketing campaign; in fact starting with marketing, before getting the product and offer right, can backfire. Bringing a truly sustainable brand to market in the 21st century requires a whole new mindset and new set of methods, tools and partners. Sustainability-led innovation is imperative in a volatile economy.

Environment

Capturing Rainwater Will Save GM Plant Millions of Dollars

Aug 10, 2016 12:35 PM ET

A new project to capture stormwater at GM Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly – home of the Chevrolet Volt – is slated to save the plant nearly $2 million every year. The initiative, two years in the making, now allows the plant to reuse rainwater for manufacturing processes throughout the 4 million square foot facility.

Responsible Production & Consumption

Forest Management: Killing The Goose

Aug 10, 2016 12:30 PM ET

A curious dilemma has emerged for the environmental community seeking to encourage companies to adopt sustainable production practices through the vehicle of market-based, voluntary certifications. Until this dilemma is resolved, it could drive the very companies who are engaged in the best practices away from participation in these certification programs.

Energy

DuPont 2020 Energy Goal Case Study: Changing the Way We Power Our Labs

Aug 10, 2016 12:05 PM ET

As a world leader in science-based innovation, DuPont is constantly pursuing new frontiers in agriculture and nutrition, advanced materials, and bio-based industrials. The science of transforming the world requires a lot of things --- perseverance, world-class scientists and engineers, and cutting edge research and development facilities to name a few. And, it also takes a lot of energy. In 2014, DuPont used approximately 27 million megawatt hours (direct and indirect) of energy, the equivalent consumption of 2.5 million U.S. homes over the course of a year.

Energy

Opening of Landside Power Plant Altona: AIDAsol Connected to Power Supply in Altona

Aug 10, 2016 11:30 AM ET

The June arrival of the AIDAsol marked the official opening of the landside power plant in Altona. In addition to Olaf Scholz, Mayor of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, Jens Meier, Chairman of the Management Board HPA, Dr. Monika Griefahn, Director for Environment and Society AIDA Cruises, and Michael Westhagemann, CEO of the Siemens AG Region Hanse and Chairman of the Cluster Renewable Energy Hamburg, Federal Environmental Minister Dr. Barbara Hendricks and Andreas Boschen, HEAD of INEA CEF (Connecting Europe Facility) also attended the event.