Impact & Sustainability News From Leading Brands

Social Impact & Volunteering

How VM Summit 16 Speaker Alicia Koch of Groupon "Scouts Out" CSR Innovation

Aug 2, 2016 9:05 AM ET

On October 25, 2016, CSR and nonprofit professionals will come together in Chicago at VM Summit 16 to talk corporate volunteerism. In this series of Q&A blog posts, we’ll introduce you to the numerous experts who will make an appearance as Summit speakers. Get your VM Summit 16 ticket.

Name: Alicia Koch
Title: Program Manager, Employee & Community Engagement
Company: Groupon

Environment

Black & Veatch Adds Enterprise-level Sustainability Solutions to Service Offerings

Aug 2, 2016 9:00 AM ET

To address rapidly evolving shareholder requests for environmental sustainability programs, Black & Veatch experts will help large, enterprise-level consumers of power, water and other critical resources achieve resource efficiency and enhanced resilience.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Corporate Social Responsibility: What's At Stake

Aug 2, 2016 2:35 AM ET

MicroEdge recently conducted a study of over 100 CSR and sustainability professionals across 26 industries who shared how their corporate responsibility programs are faring – from the top challenges they faced to internal perceptions. Learn why it's so important, and what's actually at stake with a robust CSR program.

Innovation & Technology

Living Progress Challenge Works to Advance Digital Inclusion Using Tech-Based Solutions

Aug 1, 2016 6:50 PM ET

Helping vulnerable communities to achieve financial stability. Combating the illegal trade of fisheries products. Tracking the root causes of school absenteeism. Transforming how people find volunteer opportunities.

Diversity & Inclusion

How I became a techie: Guy Kayombya

Aug 1, 2016 6:15 PM ET

“I’ve always liked creating things that are autonomous; it’s like giving life to this thing that’s going to interact with its environment.” — Guy Kayombya

Environment

General Motors Corporate Responsibility Newsletter - August 2016

Aug 1, 2016 5:15 PM ET

Chevy Bolt EV Plant Ranks 8th Among Green Power Users
The General Motors Orion Assembly plant that builds the Chevrolet Bolt EV ranks as the eighth largest user of green power generated onsite in the United States among the Environmental Protection Agency’s Green Power Partnership Partners. Over half of the plant is powered by methane captured from decomposing trash in a nearby landfill.

Innovation & Technology

The ‘Why’ Behind Women’s Leadership Conference

Aug 1, 2016 5:00 PM ET

MGM Resorts International is committed to helping even the playing field for women in the workplace. In 2007, our nonprofit organization MGM Resorts Foundation partnered with Las Vegas diversity and community organizations to create an event that has evolved into our annual Women’s Leadership Conference.

Environment

Substance Regulations RoHS and REACH Continue to Expand Globally and Undergo Restriction Updates

Aug 1, 2016 3:50 PM ET

RoHS and REACH are two of the most commonly addressed and highest profile substance regulations worldwide. The EU has set an example that many other countries worldwide have followed by adopting their own similar versions of RoHS and REACH.

Research, Reports & Publications

Caesars Entertainment 2016 Citizenship Report: Sustained Progress and Leadership

Aug 1, 2016 3:00 PM ET

In 2015 Caesars Entertainment Corporation (NASDAQ:CZR) and related entities generated $4.4m of contributed value for every $10m in revenue, according to the company’s seventh annual Corporate Citizenship Report.

Environment

Georgia Historical Society Magazine Highlights Ray C. Anderson Collection

Aug 1, 2016 3:00 PM ET

Ray C. Anderson Collection featured in Georgia Historical Society magazine.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

VSP Teams Up with DeMarcus Cousins to Host Free Basketball Camp

Aug 1, 2016 2:00 PM ET

In Case You Missed It: VSP Global and NBA Star DeMarcus Cousins teamed up for a free basketball camp and eye care clinic for kids in Sacramento.

Diversity & Inclusion

How to Tell if Self Employment Is the Right Option for a Person with a Disability

Aug 1, 2016 1:25 PM ET

When we as a society think about employment for people with disabilities, we rarely think about self-employment. In fact, in can be difficult for anyone’s family and friends to imagine their family member or friend as an entrepreneur. Yet self-employment can be a wonderful opportunity for people with disabilities.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Care Counts™ School Laundry Program Exposes Link Between Clean Clothes and Attendance

Aug 1, 2016 1:15 PM ET

Teachers around the country estimate that nearly one in five students struggle with access to clean clothes. This seemingly small barrier can have a significant impact on a student’s academic experience. More than half of teachers surveyed believe these students are more likely to struggle with absenteeism, a critical issue impacting an estimated five to 10 million students each year.

Environment

Ecocentricity Blog: Tomorrow's Child

Aug 1, 2016 1:15 PM ET

Tomorrow’s Child contains a message that resonates deeply within me as I hold my newborn son. It reminds me of how precious life truly is.

Environment

Chevrolet Volt Achieves 100,000 Sales in the United States

Aug 1, 2016 12:25 PM ET

Chevrolet is announcing the sale of 100,000 Volts, giving those owners a no-compromise electric driving experience with a plug-in vehicle offering an EPA-estimated 53 miles of electric vehicle range and a total range of 420 miles between gasoline fill-ups or full recharges*.

Diversity & Inclusion

Darden for Life | Shirley Wells of Olive Garden

Aug 1, 2016 11:35 AM ET

For some of our team members, creating great dining experiences for our guests is so fulfilling that it becomes their life’s work. Today we hear from Shirley Wells, a 35-year Darden team member, has been a cook at the Olive Garden in Springfield, IL, for 21 years. She was honored with a culinary trip to Italy in 2006.

Health & Healthcare

Gerber, Rutgers, Newark Fairmount Promise Neighborhood, and Program for Parents Recognize Graduates of Early Childhood Nutrition Program

Aug 1, 2016 11:30 AM ET

Events, Media & Communications

The Body Shop Turns to Tinder for Cause Marketing

Aug 1, 2016 11:15 AM ET

As we move firmly into the digital age, one of the tenets of marketing has become "meet consumers where they are," whether that's a phone, tablet, computer or smartwatch. And as marketers in the cause space get increasingly savvy, we're seeing innovative ways to integrate a company's social impact messages into consumers' everyday experiences, including a smart appliance that triggers a donation, harnessing emojis for fundraising and a fitness tracker just for kids with a cause tie. The newest example has taken to dating apps – interjecting to educate consumers on an important issue while they surf for a date.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

The Idea Of Adoption & The Dave Thomas Foundation

Aug 1, 2016 11:00 AM ET

I’ve thought over and over again about this, and I can’t get past the idea of adopting a teen into our family. Teenagers are less likely to get adopted, often leaving the foster care system at the age of 18 with no support, no jobs, and no idea how to move through life.

Education

'Subaru Loves Learning' Initiative Kicks off to Help Educate and Inspire Students Across the Country

Aug 1, 2016 11:00 AM ET

This August, Subaru of America, Inc. will once again spotlight its “Subaru Loves Learning” initiative, part of the brand’s Love Promise philanthropic platform dedicated to supporting causes and passions that Subaru and its customers care about.

Research, Reports & Publications

Caterpillar's Breakthrough Workshop for Women Leaders

Aug 1, 2016 11:00 AM ET

“The Breakthrough Leadership for Women workshop was by far the best course I’ve taken at Caterpillar in the nine years I’ve been here. It made me learn about myself, gave me confidence and made me really connect with women at work for the first time.”

Energy

National Grid on Investing for Impact: Energy-Driven Economic Development in Upstate New York

Aug 1, 2016 11:00 AM ET

It’s no secret that Upstate New York – once recognized nationwide as a manufacturing leader – has yet to fully stake its claim in a globalized economy. What might still be a secret to some is how close the region is getting to reclaiming that leadership position. I won’t pretend to be an expert in the emerging fields getting us there: nanotechnology, advanced manufacturing capabilities, or anaerobic digesters enabling process waste to be converted into electricity, to name a few. But I can tell you, from my travels throughout our service regions, our customers understand them. In fact, they’ll tell anyone who’ll listen. At National Grid, we’ve made listening part of our mission.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Improving Lives by Improving Sight

Aug 1, 2016 10:55 AM ET

Essilor International, the world’s leading ophthalmic optics company with a mission to improve lives by improving sight, has joined the Business Call to Action (BCtA) with a pledge to create 40,000 primary eye care workers in underserved regions by 2020. The company expects its broadening inclusive business models to improve health outcomes, productivity and wellbeing for more than 50 million low-income people in the next four years.

Diversity & Inclusion

Practitioner Spotlight – Chris Brossia

Aug 1, 2016 10:50 AM ET

Let's take a closer look at one of Antea Group's most valuable resource--its people! Next up is health and safety consultant Chris Brossia, who talks to us about what he loves about health and safety, his first job, how he describes his job to strangers, and what he would do with a month off.

Energy

Clean Power Helps Build Chevrolet Electric Car

Aug 1, 2016 10:35 AM ET

Efficient vehicles aren’t the only thing produced at GM’s Orion Assembly plant in Michigan. The home of the Chevrolet Bolt EV also generates more than half of its energy from renewable landfill gas – a feat that got the attention of the U.S. EPA’s Green Power Partnership that tracks such activity. The facility now ranks as the eighth largest user of green power generated onsite in the U.S. among Green Power Partnership Partners.