Sustainability

Earth Day is upon us, and it’s time to end plastic pollution. All living things have an intrinsic value, and each plays a role in the complex web of life. Disposable items used and forgotten force many animals to the edge of survival.

Thanks to pioneering advocacy groups and researchers like Dissanayake, that voice is growing stronger. And a growing number of companies like DXC Technology, SAP, Microsoft, EY and others are making the case for why neurodiversity should be part of the way companies address D&I. Hiring neurodiverse individuals has been shown through studies by La Trobe University and others, including the Harvard Business Review, to present a competitive advantage for companies, said Dissanayake, who has specialized in autism research since 1984.

Shipping containers play a major role in global trade, helping companies around the world to move goods securely from A to B. However, until recently, containers manufactured in China were painted using solvent-heavy coatings. This endangered the health of local communities due to the release of high concentrations of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere.

At VMware, we’re optimistic about the power of technology to help solve big societal problems and are committed to leading responsibly. One of our key focus areas is about changing our relationship with energy. According to the U.N.’s report, as a society we need to shift 70-85 percent of electricity to renewable energy sources by 2050 to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Data centers are responsible for two percent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions—roughly the same as global air travel.

We are excited to share the latest edition of ICYMI! A Magazine for Business Sustainability Professionals. In each edition of ICYMI!, we share the latest research, teaching and engagement from the Erb Institute. Our cover story for this edition is by Erb faculty member, Sara Soderstrom. She shares how she’s working to bring awareness to gender issues in academia.

Annie’s started looking at the market for recycled materials, and learned a major source of recycled HDPE plastic came from old milk jugs. Then the idea almost formed itself: Annie’s saw an opportunity to close a loop in consumers’ minds, and turn milk jugs into the packaging for cereal that people pour milk over in the morning.

Today, Harris operates his farm as an ecosystem, grazing cattle, sheep and poultry in rotations, using the Savory Institute’s holistic planned grazing model. Through holistic planned grazing, animals are frequently moved between paddocks with time between grazings built in for plant recovery. This process aims to mimic the way that wild herds of ruminants move across grasslands. As herds graze, dung, urine and old plant matter are trampled into the ground where they can decompose and enrich the soil’s network of microbial life. Dung beetles and other beneficial insects aerate the soil and move resources into the soil.

Fair Trade USA announced today that it will increase its minimum price and premium for cocoa by 20 percent as of October 1, 2019 to move farmers closer to a living income and reduce the extreme poverty and child labor that is prevalent in West Africa’s cocoa fields.

Timo Schmidt-Eisenhart is, since 2013, the president of Timberland for Emea (Europe, the Middle East and Africa). The German executive also worked for another brand of VF Corporation, The North Face, where he was the general manager of the brand for Europe for three years. His career, however, began in the US giant Nike, where he was in charge of different sales executive departments for seven years.

When she was in seventh grade, Kylee Guenther was told by a teacher that she would never be good at math because “you’re a girl.”

Today, Guenther, with the backing of Silicon Valley tech investors, is blazing a path forward by taking on one of the most widely used yet environmentally taxing materials in the world — plastic.