Impact & Sustainability News From Leading Brands

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

BLOG | Hawthorne and ScottsMiracle-Gro Make In-Kind Donation for Hurricane Florence Recovery

Oct 23, 2018 6:10 PM ET

Two weeks after Hurricane Florence made landfall, residents of coastal communities in the Carolinas were just beginning their recovery efforts. Severe flooding still had many residents under water and left with little hope.

Meanwhile, 3,000 miles away, Hawthorne Gardening associates in Vancouver, Wash., (Sunlight Supply) were putting together one of the largest donations in ScottsMiracle-Gro’s history.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Duke Energy Signs on to Congressional HBCU Partnership Challenge

Oct 23, 2018 5:50 PM ET

Duke Energy today became the first energy company to sign up for the Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Partnership Challenge created by the Bipartisan HBCU Caucus.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

WETA Television and Classical WETA 90.9 FM Are Engaging People of All Ages in the Joy of Lifelong Learning

Oct 23, 2018 5:30 PM ET

For more than 50 years, WETA Television and Classical WETA 90.9 FM have been the Greater Washington community’s source for high-quality, educational public media. Combined Federal Campaign and workplace giving contributions from individual community members have provided vital support to help make WETA’s public service possible.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Sappi's Allentown Facility Carries "Zero Waste" Mission

Oct 23, 2018 5:00 PM ET

Sappi’s Allentown sheeting facility generates just one pound of waste for every ton of paper processed, well below industry standards for zero waste designations. With great planning, execution, and a strong vision of how recycling can lower costs and bring in new revenue, Allentown’s range of materials re-used or recycled is impressive.

Allentown’s sheeting operations stand out as an excellent example of an industrial process that’s efficient, flexible and generates nearly zero waste.

Energy

Join LG and Celebrate ENERGY STAR Day!

Oct 23, 2018 4:35 PM ET

Health & Healthcare

Building Partnerships to Combat the Opioid Crisis

Oct 23, 2018 4:30 PM ET

Public-private partnerships that align around the single goal of reversing opioid misuse and heroin use are needed now more than ever to produce comprehensive approaches that change the trajectory of the future of health. It’s with this shared goal in mind that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Discovery Education have joined forces to launch Operation Prevention—a nationwide initiative to educate and empower students with facts to help them better understand the science behind opioids’ impact on the brain and body.

Responsible Production & Consumption

Smithfield Foods Marks Significant Step Toward Zero-Waste-to-Landfill in North Carolina

Oct 23, 2018 4:25 PM ET

Smithfield Foods, Inc. is pleased to announce a key step toward achieving zero-waste-to-landfill status across its North Carolina processing facilities. Smithfield will achieve this goal with support from its newest partner, Waste Connections, in a first-of-its-kind collaboration between a food company and waste services provider. The project will create a recycling facility that processes materials specifically from food production facilities. This project is part of Smithfield’s companywide sustainability initiative to reduce solid waste to landfills 10 percent by 2020 across all locations and its goal to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 25 percent by 2025 throughout its supply chain.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Wells Fargo Pledges $1.6 Billion in Lending and Philanthropy to Help Revitalize Washington, D.C., Neighborhoods

Oct 23, 2018 4:00 PM ET

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) today announced that it will commit more than $1.6 billion in lending and philanthropy over five years focused entirely on Washington, D.C.

Environment

Walmart, SunPower Announce 23-Megawatt Solar Agreement

Oct 23, 2018 3:05 PM ET

Today, Walmart announced that it has reached an agreement with SunPower to have the commercial energy provider install solar systems at 19 stores and two distribution centers in Illinois.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Brown-Forman Recognized With Awards in Employee Engagement, Talent Acquisition, and Human Capital Management

Oct 23, 2018 3:00 PM ET

Brown-Forman was recently recognized with five awards from Korn Ferry, Talent Board, and Brandon Hall Group in the areas of employee engagement, talent acquisition, and human capital management.

Korn Ferry named Brown-Forman an Employee Engagement Award winner, one of only 52 companies in 47 countries to be recognized. These companies, in the second annual awards program, are chosen based on the largest percentage of positive responses to employee engagement questions in an employee opinion survey administered Korn Ferry. Award recipients are considered “best in class” in employee engagement.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Keep America Beautiful Selects 2018–2019 National Youth Advisory Council

Oct 23, 2018 2:35 PM ET

Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s iconic community improvement nonprofit organization, has selected 11 high school students from across the country to serve on its seventh national Youth Advisory Council. Keep America Beautiful’s National Youth Advisory Council provides a unique opportunity for high school students to participate in a service-learning and leadership development program focusing on environmental stewardship and sustainability.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

5 1/2 Things Americans Are Saying About The Arts

Oct 23, 2018 2:15 PM ET

One of the nonprofit organizations I support and volunteer with is Americans for the Arts, a national advocacy and membership organization. AFTA has recently published its latest public opinion survey on the arts entitled Americans Speak Out about the Arts. The report is based on a nationally representative sample of over 3,000 adults, and it updates a similar study that was conducted two years ago.

Education

Scholarship America, Wells Fargo Invite Students to Apply for Disability Scholarships

Oct 23, 2018 1:40 PM ET

In honor of National Disability Employment Awareness Month, Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) and Scholarship America announce the People with Disabilities Scholarship Program call for applications. In 2016, Wells Fargo committed $1 million over four years to Scholarship America to develop and implement the program. 2018 marks the third year of the program.

Environment

Rising Insurance Costs May Convince Americans That Climate Change Risks Are Real – Andy Hoffman in the Conversation

Oct 23, 2018 12:45 PM ET

Environment

Harnessing the Power of Wind Energy

Oct 23, 2018 12:15 PM ET

Climate change is a shared, global challenge and every individual and company must pitch in to be a part of the solution. At General Mills, our goal is to reduce our energy emission levels by 28 percent by 2025. One way that we are getting closer to reaching our greenhouse gas emission reduction goals is by signing a virtual power purchase agreement last June with Southern Power, a leading U.S. wholesale energy provider and subsidiary of Southern Company, through their 148-megawatt Cactus Flats Wind Facility in Concho County, Texas.

Energy

LG Celebrates “ENERGY STAR Day” with Energy Efficient Upgrades for Local Non-Profit

Oct 23, 2018 11:30 AM ET

LG is committed to supporting local communities and helping others pursue a more environmentally sustainable future. In honor of “ENERGY STAR® Day” 2018, LG has partnered with Bergen Family Center in Englewood, N.J., to bring much-needed energy efficient kitchen and TV upgrades to support their high quality service to thousands of local children, seniors and families. We look forward to working with Bergen Family Center on their sustainability journey!

Innovation & Technology

Sodexo Seniors, in Partnership With Connected Living, Introduces New “Smart Living” Program for Senior Living Residents Using Alexa in the US

Oct 23, 2018 11:30 AM ET

Sodexo, a food services and facilities management company committed to improving Quality of Life, is now offering a new “Smart Living” program for senior living residents to easily engage within their community and in the community at large by simply using their voices. The “Smart Living” program integrates Sodexo menus with Connected Living content management systems to allow residents to simply ask Alexa for community information and much more.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Cisco Employees Donate Their Skills and Their Time

Oct 23, 2018 11:20 AM ET

Pro Bono is a fancy term for donating your unique skill set — as an engineer, program manager, salesperson, and more — to partner with nonprofit organizations and help take their impact to the next level. It’s an opportunity to sharpen leadership skills while also making a meaningful impact in your community or around the world. Over the past year, employees from Cisco Global Virtual Sales and Customer Success answered the call to “donate your skills, not just your time.”

Environment

Before You Sign on the Dotted Line, Ask Your EHS&S Consultant These 10 Questions

Oct 23, 2018 11:15 AM ET

Antea Group shares the questions you should be asking your prospective EHS&S consultant to help you make a well-informed decision.

Green Infrastructure

Don't Risk Resilience: 5 Threats & 5 Opportunities

Oct 23, 2018 11:10 AM ET

Organizations need resilience in the face of an increasingly broad and unpredictable risk landscape. This is especially true when it comes to energy and sustainability.

Investors and customers alike recognize the effects of climate change and other factors that increase volatility. And the pressure these and other groups are applying to drive change can no longer be ignored.

Events, Media & Communications

Pro Bono Perspectives Podcast: Episode 6 - Rachel Hutchisson, Blackbaud

Oct 23, 2018 11:05 AM ET

We are thrilled to welcome Rachel Hutchisson, Vice President of Corporate Citizenship and Philanthropy at Blackbaud to Pro Bono Perspectives. In her day to day role, Rachel is responsible for global corporate social responsibility, leading the company’s 3,300 associates in efforts to serve and give professionally and personally. She is committed to the core philosophy that “good is for everyone,” championing positive change and inspiring individuals to integrate service into their development.

Environment

The Potential of Agroforestry to Enhance Land Degradation Neutrality: Case Study From Tanzania

Oct 23, 2018 11:05 AM ET

Judith Nzyoka of the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) and colleagues explain in a chapter of a new book — A better world: actions and commitments to the Sustainable Development Goals: life on land — how agroforestry can support countries achieve LDN using a case study from Tanzania.

Sustainable Development Goals

Verizon Innovative Learning School Named One of America’s Best Urban Schools

Oct 23, 2018 11:00 AM ET

School is a lot different today than it was two years ago at P.S. 171, Patrick Henry Preparatory Academy in Harlem, NY. In 2016, when teachers wanted students to use computers in class, they rolled in the computer cart. Students lined up, took the laptops from the cart and brought them back to their seats. At the end of class, students lined up again to put the laptops back in the cart so they could be rolled over to the next classroom.

Research, Reports & Publications

New Resource: Pro Bono As a People Strategy

Oct 23, 2018 10:45 AM ET

Taproot has long made the case that a strong corporate pro bono program is a triple win—nonprofits receive the support they need, companies build deeper relationships with their communities, and employees have the opportunity to apply their skills in new and meaningful ways. While a good deal of evidence supports pro bono as a powerful social impact strategy, practitioners often struggle to articulate the business case for pro bono.

Innovation & Technology

Students Invited to Take a Peek into the Future of Mobility

Oct 23, 2018 10:45 AM ET

Rather than take a bus on a field trip, this October, Toyota and Discovery Education will bring the latest in automotive technology to students in their classrooms.