Impact & Sustainability News From Leading Brands

Environment

Volkswagen Brand Supports 100 CSR Projects Throughout the World

Jan 6, 2017 9:00 AM ET

The Volkswagen core brand is actively engaged in 100 environmental and social projects worldwide. All CSR themes are presented in the sustainability Report. In Mexico, 1,000 young people were trained as environmental "angels" and ambassadors called "EcoChavos".

Social Impact & Volunteering

Georgia Tech Students Help CSX Create the Future of Freight Rail

Jan 6, 2017 8:00 AM ET

An essential piece of rail safety – elastic fasteners, or “e-clips,” which secure rails to metal plates – have been installed by sledgehammer since the 1930s.

Environment

Cargill Connects Global Supply Chains and Joins Shipping Effort to Act On Climate

Jan 6, 2017 7:55 AM ET

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Making the Holidays Happier: How Avnet Employees and The Salvation Army Impact Children’s Lives

Jan 6, 2017 7:45 AM ET

Employees at Avnet’s Global Solutions Center in Chandler, Ariz., raised more than $26,000 to help the Salvation Army’s Christmas Angel program, an effort that supports more than 50,000 people in the Phoenix metro area. The employee-led effort dates back to 2007 and has resulted in $282,000 in donations.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

HPE’s Antonio Neri Discusses How Sustainability Impacts Customer Purchasing Behavior

Jan 5, 2017 9:05 PM ET

HPE Executive Vice President Antonio Neri shares how businesses are increasingly factoring sustainability into their consideration of total cost of ownership, and how it’s shifting the innovation agenda for companies like HPE.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Sustainable Brands Welcomes Senior Director to Corporate Membership Team

Jan 5, 2017 4:15 PM ET

Sustainable Brands® announced today that Darren Beck has joined the company’s leadership team as Senior Director of Corporate Membership to further develop and enhance the growing SB Corporate Member Network.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Hundreds Come Together to Help Make Sure Kids Don't Go Without

Jan 5, 2017 3:00 PM ET

When school isn’t in session, children can sometimes go hungry.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

The Advent of the Corporate University and How it Impacts Your Company

Jan 5, 2017 12:30 PM ET

Business schools are gaining some competition. But it’s not from one another, it’s actually from corporations.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Aflac’s Top Lawyer Honored for Raising the Bar on Corporate Ethics

Jan 5, 2017 12:00 PM ET

Environment

Rays of Hope for 2017

Jan 5, 2017 11:40 AM ET

Donald Trump’s picks for his cabinet and advisors created a climate denier’s dream team, and their promises to renege on the Paris Climate Agreement and dismantle the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency are firing up the global Green movement big time.

Education

Attending the 2016 Japan Amgen Scholar Symposium

Jan 5, 2017 11:30 AM ET

The Amgen Scholar Japan Symposium was a global gathering of passionate young scientists. The Amgen Scholars Japan Program is the only one of Scholar’s three programs to accept applications from any country which leads to a very diverse group; this year 48 Scholars from 17 countries participated.

Events, Media & Communications

Join U.S. Surgeon General and Business Leaders for the Health Means Business National Summit!

Jan 5, 2017 10:30 AM ET

Registration today for the inaugural Health Means Business National Summit and Healthy10 Awards! Hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the National Summit will convene innovative businesses of all sizes to discuss the link between business and health and inspire action.

Social Impact & Volunteering

#GoodNews: First Braille Library Opens in Guwahati with 200 Books

Jan 5, 2017 10:05 AM ET

The first library for visually-impaired students was set up in Guwahati at the Blind High School on Wednesday. The library offers the braille versions of a variety of academic books and journals, self-help, general knowledge books, which students otherwise find hard to procure, as reported by The Tribune

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Consumers Energy Receives National Recognition for Promoting Crime Prevention Awareness

Jan 5, 2017 10:00 AM ET

Consumers Energy has received a National Electric Utility Award from the National Association of Town Watch for its participation in the 2016 National Night Out (NNO) crime and drug prevention program.

Social Impact & Volunteering

More Bang for Your Buck: How to Ensure Effective Company Giving

Jan 5, 2017 9:55 AM ET

Community investment, as demonstrated through philanthropy, community engagement, corporate partnerships and more, is essential to staying relevant in today’s competitive landscape. In fact, nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of job seekers won’t take a position if the potential employer doesn’t have strong corporate social responsibility practices, according to a recent study on millennial employee engagement.

Responsible Production & Consumption

Connecting Supply with Demand: An Experiment in Regional Healthcare Plastics Recycling

Jan 5, 2017 9:35 AM ET

The Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council and Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS) facilitated a cooperative, first-of-its-kind regional recycling program in the Chicago area and the results of this innovative pilot are in.

Environment

The Dirt on Starting a Composting Program at your Facility

Jan 5, 2017 9:00 AM ET

Starting a composting program at your facility can save money, decrease your environmental footprint, improve employee job satisfaction and fulfill customer demands for sustainable business practices.

Education

Arrow-sponsored Student Team Takes Fifth Place at Global Robotics Competition

Jan 5, 2017 9:00 AM ET

Arrow Electronics sponsored a team of three 14-year-old German students to compete in the 2016 World Robot Olympiad (WRO) in Delhi, India last month. The Arrow-sponsored team, named “The Mindfactory,” took fifth place within their category at the competition.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

US EPA Includes SCS Global Services' Standards, Ecolabels and Certifications in its Recommendations to Federal Purchasers

Jan 5, 2017 8:30 AM ET

U.S. EPA now recognizes SCS Global Services' suite of indoor air quality ecolabeling standards (SCS Indoor Advantage, Indoor Advantage Gold, FloorScore®) for low-emitting furniture, building materials and flooring products in its Recommendations of Specifications, Standards and Ecolabels to federal purchasers.

Diversity & Inclusion

Deloitte CEO Cathy Engelbert: Yes, Women Can Have It All

Jan 5, 2017 8:25 AM ET

Cathy Engelbert is the chief executive of a 75,000 person company yet still manages to attend most of her teenage daughter's lacrosse games.
Ask the Deloitte chief how she manages to balance work and family—that well-worn cliché—and she references a piece of advice she received early in her career when she was deciding whether to remain in the workforce or leave it and stay home with her kids: "You can do it all as defined by you."

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

Wells Fargo Launches 2017 Veteran Scholarship and Emergency Grants

Jan 5, 2017 8:00 AM ET

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) and Scholarship America are now accepting applications for the 2017 Wells Fargo Veterans Scholarship and Wells Fargo Veterans Emergency Grant Programs. Wells Fargo has committed $2 million over a four year period to fund the programs and help veterans and their families to successfully integrate back into civilian life. Since both programs launched in 2016, Wells Fargo and Scholarship America have awarded 22 scholarships and 25 emergency grants to support education and vocational training for veterans and the spouses of disabled veterans.

Environment

Australian Companies' Negligence on Tackling Climate Change Will Cost Us

Jan 5, 2017 3:30 AM ET

As you contemplate the coming year, what it might bring, and your own personal goals and hopes, here's a little fact to help orient your thoughts: planet Earth has just experienced its warmest year since records began.

Green Infrastructure

Food Waste + Tech = Reducing Emissions + Renewable Energy

Jan 4, 2017 7:00 PM ET

Forty percent of the food produced in the U.S. ends up in landfills.* We know it means wasted food, but it also leads to excessive production of methane gas – a major contributor to the shrinking ozone layer.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

11 Expert CSR Predictions for 2017

Jan 4, 2017 5:40 PM ET

As millennials begin to dominate the workforce and consumer market, the way our world looks at the products and services we buy has changed for the better. Today’s consumers are more careful, cautious and educated about where and with whom they spend their hard-earned money.

Events, Media & Communications

Enjoy Chocolate to Benefit Keystone Human Services at Chocolatefest Weekend

Jan 4, 2017 5:05 PM ET

How much chocolate is too much? Keystone Human Services puts it to the test during its annual Chocolatefest Weekend, held on January 28-29, 2017 at Hershey Lodge in Hershey, PA as we raise funds to support our life changing services.