IWBI Expands Industry Collaborations To Streamline Access to Healthy Building Products and Materials

International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 12:30:00 -0400

NEW YORK, August 12, 2026 /3BL/ - The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI), the global authority for advancing health in buildings, organizations and communities, and the Health Product Declaration Collaborative (HPDC), a U.S.-based nonprofit standards organization and steward of the Health Product Declaration (HPD) Open Standard, today announced a strategic collaboration designed to simplify how manufacturers showcase product transparency information across both organizations’ product platforms while making it easier for project teams to identify products that support healthier and more sustainable buildings.

The collaboration reflects a broader IWBI initiative to work with industry organizations and product information platforms to create a more connected, efficient and user-friendly ecosystem for healthy building products, materials and services. By aligning existing transparency tools and product information pathways, IWBI and HPDC aim to reduce duplicative work and costs for manufacturers. The joint effort will enhance user experience on the WELL Directory and the HPD Builder and HPD Public Repository, making it easier for project teams to discover products that support WELL strategies.

“As the market increasingly prioritizes health and sustainability, manufacturers and project teams need simpler, more connected ways to navigate product information,” said Jessica Cooper, IWBI Chief Product Officer. “Our collaboration with HPDC helps simplify that journey by building on existing transparency efforts, removing duplicative workload and improving access to information that supports healthier and more sustainable building decisions.”

“Manufacturers have already done the hard work of disclosing what’s in their products. This collaboration lets them put that existing transparency data to work toward the Works with WELL recognition – instead of recreating it,” said Wendy Vittori, Executive Director of the Health Product Declaration Collaborative. “By connecting our tools with the WELL Directory, we’re making it simpler for manufacturers to participate and easier for project teams to find products that support healthier buildings.”

Key highlights of the collaboration between IWBI and HPDC include:

Simplified pathways for manufacturers to use existing Health Product Declarations (HPDs) to demonstrate alignment with selected WELL Material requirements.
New pre-check and pre-qualification capabilities within HPD Builder that help manufacturers identify products eligible for Works with WELL recognition before entering the formal application process.
Incentives for early users of the pre-check and pre-qualification on HPD Builder when manufacturers apply for Works with WELL licensing.
Reduced administrative burden and costs by leveraging existing product disclosures rather than recreating information across multiple platforms and systems.
Improved product discovery for project teams through enhanced filtering capabilities on HPD Public Repository that help identify products aligned with health and sustainability goals.
Joint education and industry engagement through webinars, shared resources and collaborative programming. To kick off the collaboration and help manufacturers and specifiers take advantage of its streamlined user experience, IWBI and HPDC will host the first industry-wide educational webinar at 2 p.m. ET on August 18, 2026. Register here.

The collaboration introduces new functionality within HPDC’s product transparency tools that helps manufacturers identify products aligned with selected WELL Material features. Products meeting qualifying criteria will have streamlined pathways into IWBI’s Works with WELL program, which recognizes products and services that support WELL Certification and healthier spaces.

For architects, designers, owners and project teams, the collaboration simplifies the process of finding and evaluating products that support health and sustainability goals. New filtering capabilities across participating platforms will help users more easily navigate and compare relevant product options. The collaboration with HPDC marks the latest endeavor by IWBI to broaden its cooperation with industry organizations and platforms to make healthy building products and services more accessible to manufacturers, project teams and end users. IWBI continues to work with other industry organizations to achieve this goal.

Recently, IWBI and the Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Association (BIFMA) aligned on the ANSI/BIFMA e3 Furniture Sustainability Standard and LEVEL® so that the material transparency pathways for furnishings in WELL reference both ANSI/BIFMA e3 and M7.1 requirements for low-emitting products.

In another recent collaboration, IWBI and Ecomedes, a product search platform for healthy and sustainable buildings also agreed to streamline pathways for Ecomedes members to be pre-checked and pre-qualified for Works with WELL participation while providing access to membership incentives. The collaboration also enhances online product discovery by displaying the Works with WELL mark alongside eligible products within the Ecomedes product catalog, helping project teams more easily identify solutions aligned with WELL strategies.

About the International WELL Building Institute
The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) is a public benefit corporation and the global authority for transforming health and well-being in buildings, organizations and communities. In pursuit of its public-health mission, IWBI mobilizes its community through the development and administration of the WELL Building Standard (WELL), WELL for residential, WELL Community Standard, its WELL ratings and management of the WELL AP credential. IWBI also translates research into practice, develops educational resources and advocates for policies that promote people-first places for everyone, everywhere. Learn more at www.wellcertified.com.

International WELL Building Institute, IWBI, the WELL Building Standard, WELL v2, WELL Certified, WELL AP, WELL EP, WELL Score, The WELL Conference, We Are WELL, the WELL Community Standard, WELL Health-Safety Rated, WELL Performance Rated, WELL Equity Rated, WELL Equity, WELL Coworking Rated, WELL Residence, Works with WELL, WELL and others, and their related logos are trademarks or certification marks of International WELL Building Institute pbc in the United States and other countries.

About the Health Product Declaration Collaborative
The Health Product Declaration Collaborative (HPDC) is a U.S.-based nonprofit standards organization and the steward of the Health Product Declaration (HPD) Open Standard, the leading format for reporting product contents and associated health information. HPDC supports more than 1,000 manufacturers and thousands of project teams in advancing materials transparency, with more than 18,000 published HPDs covering over 40,000 products freely available in the HPD Public Repository. Backed by more than 350 member companies, HPDC develops the tools, standards, and partnerships that make transparent materials information accessible to everyone. Learn more at www.hpd-collaborative.org.

Media contact:
Health Product Declaration Collaborative: Jeff Toffoli, jtoffoli@hpd-collaborative.org
IWBI: media@wellcertified.com

View original content here.

Lola Blankets Founders, Tommy and Will Higham: Waking Up a Sleepy Category | GoDaddy School of Hustle With Angie K.

GoDaddy — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 12:00:00 -0400

By GoDaddy

If you've spent any time on social media lately, chances are you've seen Lola Blankets. Maybe you're even curled up under one right now. In this episode, Angie K. sits down with Tommy and Will Higham, the co-founders behind the viral brand, to talk about what it takes to scale a business and turn an everyday product into a must-have obsession. They share how they created a product customers couldn't stop talking about and transformed a simple blanket into a lifestyle brand. Additionally, GoDaddy Small Business Research Lab shares fresh insights and a founder spotlight with Tyron Harper, co-founder of Harp Vision, who shares how getting his business online became a game-changing move that allows him to reach customers even while he sleeps.

Watch the video here.

Follow @GoDaddyNews on Instagram for exclusive podcast content.

About GoDaddy School of Hustle with Angie K.

GoDaddy’s School of Hustle hosted by Real Housewives of Salt Lake City’s Angie Katsanevas examines the “reality” facing today’s entrepreneurs and secrets behind navigating the plot twists along the way to success. Each episode is a totally candid conversation with newsmakers and GoDaddy customers led by fan-favorite Angie K who was a hustler long before the Bravo cameras started rolling.

About GoDaddy

GoDaddy, the world's largest domain name registrar, helps millions of entrepreneurs globally start, grow, and scale their businesses. People come to GoDaddy to name their idea, build a website and logo, sell their products and services and accept payments. GoDaddy Airo®, the company's AI-powered experience, makes growing a small business faster and easier by helping them to get their idea online in minutes, drive traffic and boost sales. GoDaddy's expert guides are available 24/7 to provide assistance. To learn more about the company, visit www.GoDaddy.com.

How Smile Train Uses Surgical Innovation To Scale Sustainable Cleft Care

Smile Train — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 11:20:00 -0400

Surgical innovation is fundamental to Smile Train’s sustainable cleft care model because it helps local healthcare professionals provide safer, higher-quality treatment at scale. While our innovations can take the form of the newest or most complex technology, a simple training resource, affordable patient-monitoring device, or better-equipped operating room is often just as transformative for our patients and local healthcare partners. What matters most is giving medical professionals access to all of the trainings, tools, and infrastructure they need to provide consistently safe, high-quality cleft care in their own communities 24/7.

Why cleft care demands more than a single surgery

Clefts occur when parts of the lip or roof of the mouth (palate) do not join completely during fetal development. A cleft can affect the lip, the palate, or both. Around one in every 700 babies is born with a cleft, and almost five million people worldwide have an untreated cleft of some kind. Clefts are far more than cosmetic. Left untreated, they can make breathing, hearing, and speaking difficult. Sometimes, they can even cause life-threatening feeding complications.

Cleft surgery is transformative, but rarely enough on its own for those affected to thrive. Most people with clefts will also need feeding and nutrition support, speech therapy, dental and orthodontic treatment, ear and hearing care, psychosocial support, and more. Making sustainable cleft care available everywhere means building local systems that can provide these comprehensive services at the right times throughout a patient's life.

How Smile Train's sustainable cleft care model works

Smile Train’s founder, the late tech entrepreneur Charles B. Wang, understood that making his vision a reality would require much more than paying for individual surgeries. It would necessitate major investments in scaling medical knowledge sharing, surgical training, and durable, high-quality surgical tools.

That insight planted the seed for Smile Train's "teach a person to fish" model: Rather than sending foreign doctors on temporary medical mission trips to perform surgery sprints and then leave, we empower local hospitals and healthcare teams in more than 75 countries to provide year-round cleft surgery and comprehensive cleft care in their own communities. This means patients can access the multifaceted care they need on the timeline that is best for their individual treatment journey, from providers who share their language and culture, long after outside mission groups pack up and go home. Smile Train’s model ensures better outcomes for patients and families while strengthening local health systems around the world.

This approach is both sustainable and profoundly effective. In 2025 alone, Smile Train supported:

94,450+ cleft surgeries across more than 75 countries
131,875+ non-surgical cleft treatments, including:
- 25,750+ nutritional interventions
- 80,210+ speech sessions
- 25,900+ orthodontic appointments
Nearly 34,620 hours of training delivered to 2,450+ healthcare providers

Training is the multiplier in Smile Train’s model: one properly equipped healthcare professional can treat patients year after year, train colleagues, and strengthen the wider local health system. While a cleft surgery can change one person's life, a trained, properly equipped healthcare professional can care for patients year after year, share knowledge with colleagues, and strengthen all facets of local healthcare beyond clefts.

How Smile Train made cleft surgery training portable

Smile Train's earliest surgical innovations were designed to allow expert surgical knowledge to travel places it had rarely been before. In 2002, we began distributing surgical training CD-ROMs to partner healthcare centers; the following year, the Tech Museum of Innovation honored our use of technology to promote sustainable cleft care. In 2008, we distributed our first DVDs for virtually training cleft surgeons.

These tools may seem basic, but they addressed the same essential problem as more advanced solutions: How can a surgeon learn a specialized technique when the nearest expert is hundreds of miles away?

How virtual surgical simulation expands cleft surgery training

In 2013, Smile Train's digital training capacity took the next step forward with the launch of the Virtual Surgery Simulator (VSS), the first web-based, 3D, interactive surgical explorer for cleft care. Developed in partnership with the software company BioDigital and expert surgeons, it combines interactive 3D anatomy, operative footage, text, and narration. The VSS is freely available, multilingual, and designed for self-guided learning, allowing medical professionals to review complex procedures from their phone or computer from anywhere.

Unlike a paper textbook, the VSS allows learners to examine anatomy from different angles and move through a procedure step by step. It does not replace supervised clinical education; rather, it gives trainees a consistent resource they can revisit before and after hands-on instruction.

In 2025, we built on this idea to create the Virtual Reality Operating Room. Here, a surgeon can put on a headset and enter a simulated operating room alone or join an instructor to practice under supervision — even when the participants are thousands of miles apart.

In one study of 20 plastic surgery residents, participants reported that the VR operating room significantly increased their understanding of cleft palate surgical techniques and boosted their confidence using VR for surgical education. Though the study did not measure long-term patient outcomes, it nonetheless demonstrates how virtual training can effectively extend expert instruction across distance.

Inside Cleft 2025 in Kyoto

Smile Train and our local partners used the world’s premier cleft conference to showcase the many ways we are transforming cleft treatment worldwide.

Read our recap

How Simulare Medical’s cleft surgery simulators support safer training

Digital tools are only one aspect of cleft surgical training technology. Surgeons also must practice the delicate, precise physical movements their craft requires in ways that no digital space could replicate, including making incisions, separating delicate tissue layers, and suturing within the tiny space of a baby's mouth and face.

Yet there was no tool for this until Drs. Dale Podolsky and David Fisher, two surgeons at SickKids Hospital in Toronto, created a lifelike, 3D-printed cleft simulator. The response was so positive that they formed a company to produce and distribute them globally, Simulare Medical. In 2020, Smile Train took on the company’s operations to place these state-of-the-art training devices into the hands of those who live and practice far from the major centers of medical training and innovation, for free.

Simulare Medical simulators are life-size and anatomically precise, with layers designed to reproduce the visual and tactile experience of operating on skin, muscle, bone, and other tissue. Since becoming part of Smile Train, Simulare Medical’s product line has expanded from cleft lip and palate models to the world’s first bilateral cleft, alveolar bone graft, and speech surgery simulators.

At supervised workshops around the world, trainees repeat difficult steps, receive feedback, make mistakes safely, and refine their technique before ever touching a real patient.

The need for these tools is not limited to lower-resource settings; after all, Simulare Medical was created out of necessity at one of the world’s premier children’s hospitals. That’s why Smile Train is now exploring strategic partnerships with some of America’s leading hospitals and medical associations to make these simulators more widely available to all who could benefit from them.

Behind the Scenes at Simulare Medical

An inside look at how our dedicated team meticulously handcrafts every Simulare Medical simulator.

Partnerships make innovation scalable

No organization and no technology can solve every challenge in global surgery on its own. Smile Train seeks out partnerships with other leading global health leaders whose expertise complements our own.

Lifebox

Co-founded by leading surgeon, author, and public health advocate Dr. Atul Gawande, Lifebox is the premier organization making surgical technologies that are standard in high-income ORs available worldwide.

In 2020, we launched the multi-year Safe Surgery and Anesthesia Initiative. The goals were to support the distribution of Lifebox’s low-cost, high-quality pulse oximeters and develop and distribute an affordable, durable capnograph designed specifically for pediatric care. The initiative was a success, and our organizations continue to work closely together to improve surgical outcomes around the world.

Kids Operating Room

Scottish charity Kids Operating Room and Smile Train are working together to transform outdated operating rooms in Africa and Asia into vibrant, comforting, and fit-for-purpose surgical spaces designed specifically for children.

We are also partnering to address an urgent and sometimes deadly issue facing surgical care across the continent: frequent power blackouts in operating rooms. Our solution: Upgrading these spaces with solar panels and battery systems that serve as critical backup power. By harnessing the power of the sun, we are keeping vital equipment running when local electrical grids fail — while saving lives and making safe, reliable surgery available to all in need, not just people with clefts.

What makes global surgery innovation sustainable?

A surgical innovation is more likely to make a lasting impact when it is:

Developed around a real clinical or training need
Practical for local teams to use and maintain
Paired with education, mentorship, and uncompromising quality standards
Available throughout the year, not only during occasional visits
Able to spread through local institutions and professional networks

That is why developing a local surgical workforce is central to Smile Train's model. Our goal is not merely to outfit our partners with more technology; it is to give them the knowledge, confidence, equipment, and institutional support they need to lead scalable cleft surgery programs themselves.

Key takeaways

Smile Train’s history of surgical innovation is not a straight line from low-tech to high-tech tools. It is an ongoing effort to identify the simplest effective solution to a problem, test it, improve it, and place it in the hands of local professionals.

From CD-ROMs and online videos to virtual reality, from solar-powered operating rooms and 3D-printed surgical models to affordable, durable anesthesia monitoring equipment and everything in-between, every surgical innovation Smile Train has fueled since our founding in 1999 has served the same purpose: helping local teams provide safer, higher-quality, and more sustainable cleft care today, tomorrow, and for generations to come.

In review

How does Smile Train improve access to surgery?

Smile Train improves access to cleft surgery by partnering with local hospitals and healthcare professionals, funding cleft treatment, and investing in training, equipment, technology, and infrastructure around the world. Because the care we support stays in communities, patients can receive treatment at the time that’s best for them rather than waiting for a visiting surgical program.

What is Smile Train's "teach a person to fish" model?

Our “teach a person to fish” model focuses on equipping local professionals to provide safe cleft surgery and other comprehensive care in their own communities. Training providers benefits many future patients and strengthens the wider local health system, making this approach more scalable than relying only on individual short-term interventions.

What is sustainable cleft care?

Sustainable cleft care is locally led, year-round treatment that communities can continue providing over time. It includes high-quality cleft surgery as well as nutrition, speech, dental and orthodontic care, ear and hearing services, psychosocial support, and other treatments as needed.

How does surgical simulation support high-quality cleft surgery?

Surgical simulation allows trainees to practice difficult procedures repeatedly without putting a patient at risk. Digital, virtual reality, and physical simulators each support technical practice, expert feedback, and preparation for the operating room in their own unique way, complementing, rather than replacing, supervised clinical experience.

Key4Entrepreneurs℠ Accelerator Awards $30,000 to Small Businesses While Expanding Access to Education, Expertise and Growth Opportunities

KeyBank — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 09:45:00 -0400

Small businesses are the backbone of local economies, but access to expertise, mentorship and growth resources can be just as important as access to capital. That's the idea behind Key4Entrepreneurs℠, KeyBank's complimentary program designed to engage, educate and empower entrepreneurs through practical education, expert guidance and meaningful connections.

One of the program's first signature initiatives recently culminated with the successful completion of a 10-week business accelerator developed in collaboration with the Lower Hudson Valley Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The accelerator brought together 53 entrepreneurs representing industries including technology, engineering, legal services, accounting, retail and professional services, providing participants with tools and strategies to help strengthen and grow their businesses.

Launched May 1, 2026, Key4Entrepreneurs was created to help business owners at every stage of growth access resources, build knowledge and develop relationships that can support long-term success. Through partnerships with organizations such as the Lower Hudson Valley SBDC and SBA, the program connects entrepreneurs with expertise that can help them navigate challenges, identify opportunities and pursue sustainable growth.

A Collaborative Approach to Entrepreneurial Success

The accelerator combined the strengths of each organization to create a comprehensive learning experience for participants. Over the course of 10 weeks, entrepreneurs participated in four expert-led workshops covering:

Crafting a Unique Brand Identity
Delivering Exceptional Client Service
Cash Flow and SBA Capital
AI for Business Growth and Pitch Preparation

The Lower Hudson Valley SBDC contributed business advisory expertise and entrepreneurial coaching, while the SBA provided guidance on available resources and capital access. Through Key4Entrepreneurs, KeyBank helped connect participants to educational programming, financial expertise and opportunities to build valuable professional networks.

Recognizing Entrepreneurial Excellence

The accelerator concluded on July 10 with a Pitch Contest, where participants presented business growth plans to a panel of judges for the opportunity to receive an award to support the next stage of their business development. A total of $30,000 was awarded to three entrepreneurs, with an additional 10 businesses receiving $1,000 honorable mention awards.

First Place: Orane Barrett, Kool Nerd Connect ($10,000) - Kool Nerd Connect provides industry and career-awareness courses to middle and high school students, helping bring real-world career exposure to young people in underserved communities. Since 2020, the organization has served more than 1,405 students across eight New York geographies.
Second Place: Theresa Weber, All Heart Baking Company ($7,000) - After years of sharing her annual holiday cookies with family and friends, Weber founded All Heart Baking Company to bring joy to customers through artisan cookies and creative flavor combinations.
Third Place: Anthony Moreno, Fusion House ($3,000) - Fusion House was created to help adults build stronger, healthier and more connected lives through expert coaching, small-group training and a supportive fitness environment. The business focuses on serving adults over 50, beginners and individuals returning to exercise after years away.

Building a Stronger Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

The Business Accelerator reflects the broader mission of Key4Entrepreneurs: helping business owners gain access to the knowledge, resources and relationships they need to thrive. Beyond educational programming, the initiative is designed to create opportunities for entrepreneurs to connect with experts, community partners and fellow business owners while strengthening local business ecosystems.

As Key4Entrepreneurs continues to expand, collaborations with organizations such as the Lower Hudson Valley SBDC and the SBA will play an important role in delivering resources and opportunities that help entrepreneurs advance their goals, create jobs and contribute to vibrant communities.

By combining education, expertise, capital access insights and community partnerships, Key4Entrepreneurs is helping entrepreneurs move from ideas to action and from ambition to growth.

CFMA#: 260806-4826528

The Ray Champions Grid Modernization Through "Speed to Power" Infrastructure Initiative

Ray C. Anderson Foundation — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 09:40:00 -0400

August 12, 2026 /3BL/ - The Ray has announced its formal response to the U.S. Department of Energy (USDOE) regarding the Accelerating Speed to Power Initiative. Their strategic blueprint offers a scalable, low-conflict pathway to unlock massive grid capacity by utilizing existing highway and rail rights-of-way (ROW) for high-voltage transmission infrastructure.

To build a replicable national model, The Ray formed a powerhouse strategic coalition of leaders in transportation, energy, and infrastructure planning:

ElectroTempo, Inc. provides machine learning to forecast grid-load zones;

Cambridge Systematics brings data-driven transportation policy expertise;

Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) serves as an innovative state agency partner helping develop approaches to safely integrate energy infrastructure into public corridors.

The collaborative effort also leverages key partners across the country, including the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) through its "Moonshot Initiative."

Solving the Gridlock: The Case for Corridors

Traditional grid expansion is frequently slowed by complex land acquisition and lengthy permitting cycles. By shifting focus to in-use public assets such as highways and rail lines, the Speed to Power vision dramatically minimizes community disruption and reduces the need to purchase private property.

Furthermore, existing transportation corridors may qualify for National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) categorical exclusions, streamlining environmental reviews and accelerating project development timelines. This optimized delivery model is critical to support the rapid growth required for next-generation economic drivers, including data centers, advanced manufacturing, and the electrification of freight logistics.

Proven Models and Emerging Corridors

The Ray's approach is grounded in real-world success. For example, they highlight the SOO Green HVDC Link, a 350-mile underground high-voltage direct-current transmission line that primarily follows the Canadian Pacific Kansas City railroad corridor. By utilizing existing transportation ROW, this $2-3 billion merchant project bypasses traditional private land acquisition conflicts to deliver 2,100 MW of capacity between regional grids.

Using ElectroTempo's data-driven forecasting, The Ray identified five key "Emerging High-Load Corridors" where targeted investment will yield the highest impact between 2025 and 2030:

Mid-Atlantic: Richmond–Frederick–Harrisburg (Projected 8–10 GW growth).

Texas Triangle: Dallas–Austin–San Antonio (Projected 6–8 GW growth).

Midwest: Columbus–Indianapolis–Chicago (Projected ≈7 GW growth).

Southeast: Savannah–Charleston–Raleigh (Projected 5–6 GW growth).

Southwest: Phoenix–Las Vegas–Southern NV (Projected 5–6 GW growth).

The Structured Path to Execution

The Ray's strategy moves immediately from theory to execution using advanced technology, interagency coordination, and creative project financing:

Advanced Spatial Mapping: The Ray's Esri-backed ROW Transmission Deployment Tool integrates transportation and grid datasets, allowing planners to dynamically map and analyze proposed routes.

Braided Project Funding: To bridge critical capital gaps, The Ray promotes deeper coordination between USDOE and USDOT funding programs to help states braid available federal resources for transmission projects.

Policy Implementation and Technical Support: The Ray's recommendations highlight state policy models, such as Minnesota’s utility colocation law (HF 5247), and the technical assistance and coordination needed to help states advance safe transmission colocation.

Interagency Alignment: The Ray advocates for a federal ROW Transmission Interagency Working Group to cut through red tape and harmonize workflows between energy regulators and state DOTs.

By advocating for these targeted solutions, The Ray seeks to provide state leaders with the tools and technical guidance necessary to safely modernize the country's infrastructure, paving the way for a more efficient and resilient national grid.

AllianceBernstein: Conflict on Europe’s Periphery Puts Clean Energy in the Spotlight

AllianceBernstein — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 09:30:00 -0400

Jonathan Hunt | Principal—AB CarVal

Private credit is becoming the engine driving Europe’s energy transition.

We are living in an era of rising electricity demand. The electrification of vehicles and buildings, the construction of AI data centers and efforts to decarbonize industry are creating a deep pipeline of renewable energy opportunities for investors around the globe. But in Europe, there’s another catalyst: energy security.

Energy security has long been a hallmark of European Union policy. Renewable energy—primarily solar and wind—already account for more than 60% of the European Union’s installed electricity capacity—well above the share of renewables in the United States. But that isn’t enough to meet total energy demand. The United States, on the other hand, is a net energy importer (Display).

For Europe, imported natural gas typically fills the gap. But the war in Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have pushed gas prices higher and driven up electricity bills. A similar power price pike followed the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022.

This matters because European electricity prices are set by the most expensive energy source needed to meet demand—usually natural gas. When gas prices rise, electricity bills go up, even if the power was generated by wind farms. As European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen put it recently, the EU has spent an additional €24 billion on energy imports since the Iran war started “without receiving a single extra molecule of energy.”

Satisfying a Long-Term Need

At the policy level, governments are doubling down on efforts to reduce dependence on energy imports and boost domestic renewable power development. This includes plans to accelerate the shift to homegrown energy as a replacement for imported gas, oil and other fossil fuels. These efforts stand to complement other ambitious EU decarbonization goals.

EU policy also calls for maximizing the use of existing renewable energy infrastructure and working with industry leaders and project developers to secure new financing. In the words of Philip Lane, the chief economist of the European Central Bank, “a green transition leading to lower dependence on fossil fuel sources could have a triple dividend: cutting greenhouse gas emissions, reducing the impact of global energy shocks on inflation and increasing energy security.”

Private Credit Steps In

It won’t come cheaply, though. The European Commission says it will need an estimated €660 billion in annual investment through 2030 and another €695 billion per year over the subsequent decade to meet its decarbonization targets. That’s nearly three times the annual investment average between 2011 and 2020 and more than public budgets or traditional banks can provide on their own. At the same time, tighter capital rules are accelerating European banks’ retreat from many types of lending, including long-dated project finance.

We expect the recent geopolitical instability to accelerate government and private capital investment into renewable energy and storage solutions, broadening the long-term investment thesis beyond climate policy to include national security priorities, durable demand growth and the need for a reliable domestic energy supply.

For experienced lenders, this should create openings to finance projects that increase renewable energy capacity and energy security while potentially delivering strong returns driven by elevated power prices.

For investors, benefits may include:

Strong near term cash flows and structural demand tied to elevated power prices and energy security priorities
Higher pricing and better loan structures driven by today’s high cost of capital
Contracted revenues linked to inflation, which may limit erosion of real returns
Attractive risk-adjusted return potential tied to resilient demand and policy support

In the years ahead, we expect to see opportunities to provide flexible credit solutions for renewable and energy transition assets at key points in their lifecycles. This may include construction and late-stage development financing and structured solutions for solar, battery storage and other established renewable asset types.

Investment structures can involve lending directly against European solar and battery storage assets and their contracted revenues as well as providing financing to parent companies that own a portfolio of renewable assets.

For lenders with deep knowledge of renewable energy assets and strong underwriting skills, the ability to provide mezzanine—or junior-level—financing may be particularly attractive for its increased return potential.

Underwriting Experience Matters

Financing the renewable energy space can be complicated, making underwriting expertise critically important. That includes the ability to underwrite loans with conservative leverage, contracted revenues and robust covenants.

Equally important is a lender’s ability to identify and focus on projects with clearly defined timelines for long-term takeout and stabilization, which comes when the asset is connected to the grid and generating steady revenue under a long-term contract. As we see it, lenders must have a deep understanding of what are often complex financing arrangements.

Sourcing expertise also matters. While the EU sets general targets and directives, countries implement them differently. Permitting timelines, grid connection processes, tax treatment and other rules vary from country to country.

Reducing Exposure to Cycles

Solar and wind projects and battery storage facilities are typically set up as stand-alone legal entitles, with repayment supported by dedicated cash flows that are often governed by long term contracts, including power purchase agreements or regulated frameworks.

As a result, cash flows tend to be predictable over extended periods and may incorporate inflation linkage or other contractual protections that reduce exposure to economic cycles.

We expect geopolitical instability and more frequent energy shocks to speed up sovereign and private capital investment into renewable energy and storage capacity across Europe—even after current hostilities fade.

That should broaden the long-term investment case beyond climate policy to national security priorities, durable demand growth and the need for a reliable, low-cost domestic energy supply. For investors, we think private credit offers an attractive way to tap into the shift to renewable power and its potential benefits.

The views expressed herein do not constitute research, investment advice or trade recommendations, do not necessarily represent the views of all AB portfolio-management teams and are subject to change over time.

Learn more about AB’s approach to responsibility here.

DaVita Community Care Report 2025: Creating a Culture of Belonging for All

DaVita — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 09:05:00 -0400

Working Together, Working for Better

At DaVita, people are the foundation of our community and the driving force behind our pursuit of a healthier tomorrow for all. Rooted in our identity as a community first and a company second, we foster an environment where every teammate can thrive, feel supported and contribute meaningfully. Our culture is built on shared purpose, meaningful connection, authentic belonging and professional growth that inspires individuals to bring their best selves to work every day.

External Recognition as an Employer of Choice

FORTUNE® World’s Most Admired Companies¹
USA Today Top Workplaces
Newsweek America's Greatest Workplaces in Health Care
WorldBlu Certified Freedom-Centered Organization

Creating a Culture of Belonging for All
Our culture of belonging reflects how we hire, train, manage and develop our teams.

We offer every new teammate our Basics of Belonging course, and every member of our team — from front-line care to executive leadership — is encouraged to pursue our robust suite of ongoing belonging education.

According to our most recent survey, 85% of teammates report that they feel like they belong at DaVita, and 83% report that their manager successfully creates a sense of belonging.

Belonging consistently emerges as a key driver of engagement for our teammates. Our strong belonging scores helped drive a teammate engagement score of 85% in 2025, which ranks among the best in our industry and in U.S. companies overall.

A cherished DaVita program, our annual Week of Belonging, offers all teammates an opportunity to engage with intentional activities that cultivate and amplify belonging.

Our Teammate Resource Groups, open to all, continue to support teammate connection and belonging within our clinics and business offices.

We promote multiple forums for teammates to have their voice heard — from informal conversations with leaders to planned events like Town Halls and company-wide calls to our bi-annual engagement survey.

Our Belonging Behaviors

Creating Trust and Safety
Respecting and Valuing Others
Providing Consistent Support

Commitments in Action

Redwoods Campus Recruiting
A DaVita tradition since 2005, our Redwoods program is just one example of our commitment to cultivating leadership from within. Far more than standard campus recruiting, our Redwoods team works directly with campus organizations supporting students with business interest in healthcare and general management to recruit select cohorts of high-potential students, including women, students of color and military veterans. The program supports all participants with a dedicated mentor and a full two years of specific and structured leadership training.

DaVita Redwoods is proud to partner with a broad range of public and private institutions to open a unique door to professional growth.

Representation at Every Level
We're proud to have strong representation for all by hiring the most qualified talent. We meet or exceed 68% of EEO-1 benchmarks across our full teammate population as of December 31, 2025. Highlights of this reporting period include:

Fostering Diverse Perspectives in Leadership
We are committed to hiring the most qualified individuals and ensuring our programs and practices open doors for growth, opportunity and long-term success at DaVita for all teammates. We believe that diverse perspectives strengthen our leadership and enhance our ability to serve our patients, teammates and communities. We engage a broad range of high-potential candidates through our recruiting process, and we provide all teammates a variety of training opportunities to develop the skills needed to move into leadership roles.

^{[1] From Fortune, ©2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All rights reserved. Used under license. Fortune® is a registered trademark and Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies™ is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited and is used under license. Fortune Magazine and Fortune Media (USA) Corporation are not affiliated with, and do not endorse products or services of, DaVita.}

OK Today Launches Youth-Created Mental Health Education Platform at Global Gathering of Young Leaders

OK Today — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 09:00:00 -0400

NEW YORK and GENEVA, Switzerland, August 12, 2026 /3BL/ - OK Today, a youth-driven global mental health collective, launched OK Today Talks, a new mental health education platform created by young people to help their peers build mental health literacy, strengthen peer support skills and lead more open conversations about mental health.

The platform makes its global debut at the 2026 AFS Youth Assembly, where young leaders representing more than 100 countries are among the first to experience the program and bring its tools back to their schools, workplaces and communities.

Developed with guidance from OK Today's global Youth Advisory Board, OK Today Talks combines digital learning modules, interactive workshops and practical resources designed to help young people navigate mental health conversations with greater confidence, compassion and understanding. The platform reflects a core belief that young people should play a leading role in shaping solutions to one of the most pressing challenges facing their generation.

The launch builds on the momentum of OK Today, which was introduced at the AFS Youth Assembly in 2025 to create more opportunities for young people to connect, learn from one another, and challenge mental health stigma through peer-to-peer engagement. Over the past year, members of OK Today's Youth Advisory Board have helped shape OK Today Talks into a practical educational experience designed to meet young people where they are and provide tools they can use in everyday life.

At the Youth Assembly, OK Today is hosting "OK Today Talks: Real Conversations, Real Tools, Real Change," an interactive workshop led by members of its Youth Advisory Board from Italy, Pakistan, and the United States. Through guided discussions, small-group exercises, and peer learning, participants explore how mental health stigma develops, learn strategies to support themselves and others, and identify ways to create stronger, more supportive communities.

A New Approach to Youth Mental Health Education

Around the world, mental health stigma continues to prevent many young people from seeking support or talking openly about their experiences. OK Today Talks was created to provide practical, preventive education that helps young people develop the skills and confidence to support themselves and one another before a crisis occurs. The experience gives participants access to free learning resources, tools for navigating conversations about mental health and opportunities to engage with peers from diverse backgrounds and experiences.

Youth Voice at the Center

"Mental health is something that touches every person, yet too many young people still grow up believing they have to struggle in silence or that asking for help makes them weak. This curriculum challenges that narrative. For too long, these conversations have either been avoided or approached only when someone is already struggling. OK Today Talks is only the beginning of thousands of conversations that have the potential to change lives.”

—Ludovica Deo, Youth Advisory Board Member, OK Today

Learn More

For more information about OK Today Talks or to join the global community, visit OKToday.org.

About OK Today

OK Today is a youth-driven global collective on a mission to transform how the world sees and talks about mental health. Founded through collaboration between youth leaders, partners, and advocates, OK Today works to reduce stigma, strengthen peer support, and create opportunities for young people to lead change in their communities. Through education, storytelling, and global engagement, OK Today is building a future where every young person feels empowered to talk openly about mental health and access support that fits their lives.

About the Global Gateway Advisors Foundation

The Global Gateway Advisors Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing initiatives that create positive social impact through communication, education and community engagement. Global Gateway Advisors, a leading New York-based strategic communications firm, established the Foundation as an outgrowth of its work in social impact, education and global citizenship. The Foundation supports organizations and changemakers working to address critical global challenges and expand access to opportunities that improve lives and strengthen communities. Through strategic partnerships, grantmaking and capacity-building, the Foundation helps mission-driven organizations amplify their impact and accelerate meaningful change.

About the AFS Youth Assembly

The AFS Youth Assembly is a global platform that cultivates an international network of young leaders and changemakers through exchange, education, action, and impact. The Assembly empowers youth to lead solutions to global challenges, including mental health, sustainability, and peacebuilding. The Youth Assembly is organized by AFS Intercultural Programs, an international, voluntary, non-governmental, non-profit organization that provides intercultural learning opportunities to help people develop the knowledge, skills and understanding needed to create a more just and peaceful world. Learn more at https://www.youthassembly.org.

About the Partnership

OK Today Talks is a collaborative initiative between OK Today, the Global Gateway Advisors Foundation, and the AFS Youth Assembly. Together, the organizations are working to empower young people around the world with the tools, resources, and community needed to reduce mental health stigma, support their peers, and lead meaningful change through conversation, connection, and action. The global launch of OK Today Talks at the AFS Youth Assembly marks the beginning of a shared effort to make mental health education and peer support more accessible to young people everywhere.

What Is Data Center Cooling? How It Supports Sustainable AI Infrastructure

Trane Technologies — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 09:00:00 -0400

AI is increasing the demand for digital infrastructure, and data centers are expanding rapidly as these technologies grow. The associated increase in energy needs is a global concern. But, there is an alternative path: improving the efficiency of the AI infrastructure we already have, while prioritizing data center sustainability in new infrastructure.

Sustainable AI infrastructure starts with improving how energy demand is managed, not just building more expensive energy supply infrastructure, like power plants and transmission lines. Data center cooling is a critical part of that equation, and one of the most important tools we have to improve data center energy efficiency and reduce energy waste as AI infrastructure scales.

What is data center cooling?

Data center cooling refers to the technologies and solutions used to remove the heat created by data center servers, chips, power systems and supporting infrastructure. Effective thermal management helps data centers operate reliably while using energy more efficiently.

As data centers process ever-more complex workloads, they generate more heat, making cooling one of the most important systems within the facility. Data center cooling is about more than temperature control. It’ about managing heat intelligently to support higher-performance computing, greater resilience and more efficient operations

Depending on the application, data center cooling solutions can include air-based systems, heat exchangers, chilled water systems and liquid cooling data center technologies designed for higher-density environments. The right cooling system depends on several factors, including power density, workload intensity, space constraints and performance requirements.

Benefits can extend beyond energy efficiency. Better cooling technologies could also help data centers make more efficient use of space by allowing more computing power to fit into the same footprint, reducing some of the buildout and energy needs associated with traditional air cooling approaches.

How does data center cooling work?

Modern data center cooling combines equipment, controls, sensors, monitoring and connected systems to manage heat throughout the facility. The goal is not just to make the server room colder. It is to remove heat efficiently and adapt in real time as conditions change.

For example, AI-powered connected controls can adjust cooling based on shifts in the weather or changes in computing demand. Liquid cooling data center solutions can bring cooling closer to the source of heat, helping support higher-density workloads. Heat exchangers and chilled water systems can help remove heat efficiently while helping maintain performance. And thermal management systems can use real-time data to optimize cooling throughout the facility. For AI infrastructure, improved cooling technologies like these can mean stronger efficiency, greater resilience and less energy waste.

Thermal management solutions for data centers are already advancing across the industry. Trane Technologies has expanded its capabilities in these areas through Liquidstack, a global leader in liquid cooling data center technology. By combining Trane Technologies’ thermal management expertise with LiquidStack’s high-density liquid cooling data center solutions, including immersion and direct-to-chip technologies, we’re broadening our capabilities to address data center heat, from whole-facility temperature management down to the chip level.

Also in 2026, we completed the acquisition of Stellar Energy, a provider of turnkey, modular data center cooling solutions. Together, these additions are expanding our ability to advance new technologies for data center energy efficiency while supporting a broader range of data center cooling needs.

How data center cooling supports sustainable AI infrastructure

As the digital economy grows, cooling is becoming one of the most important levers available for improving data center energy efficiency. The International Energy Agency (IEA) projects that energy needs from accelerated servers are projected to grow by 30% annually, making data center cooling central to both performance and sustainability.

Advanced cooling technologies can also create value by turning waste heat into a resource. At Infomaniak’s Geneva, Switzerland data center, Trane Technologies’ high-efficiency heat pump technology helps recover heat that would otherwise be wasted and then uses that heat for nearby homes. At full capacity, the system can recover enough heat to warm 6,000 homes during the winter months.

And at the Aalsmeer Energy Hub in the Netherlands, data center cooling technologies at the NorthC data center are helping meet the energy needs of the surrounding community. A custom electric heat recovery system cools the data center, capturing excess heat and transferring it to nearby facilities, including a childcare center, a local sports complex and a plant nursery. The closed-loop system helps avoid nearly 400 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually, while saving the project’s partners close to 210MWh in electricity each year.

Advanced research is helping shape the future of data center cooling. Through the Center for Energy-Smart Electronic Systems (ES2), Trane Technologies is collaborating with leaders from industry, academia and government to develop the next generation of advanced data center cooling technologies to reduce energy use and improve performance.

Research areas like advanced air cooling, intelligent thermal controls, chip-level cooling and advanced waste heat recovery will help the industry move towards new innovations that can make data centers more efficient and lower carbon emissions while increasing resilience.

The future of data center cooling

The challenge is not just to build more AI computing power. It is to improve our use of energy by building the infrastructure behind AI more intelligently. To meet that challenge, data centers need to become more efficient and integrate effectively with broader energy systems. This is essential for both reducing energy use and making progress towards data center sustainability goals.

Cooling technologies play a critical role in that equation. By reducing energy waste while helping improve performance, advanced data center cooling can support the next generation of sustainable AI infrastructure.

Learn how we are continuing to lead the way in climate innovation. - Read our latest Sustainability Report.

Las Vegas Sands Donates $450,000 to The WASH Foundation

Las Vegas Sands — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 08:05:00 -0400

Published by Las Vegas Sands

LAS VEGAS, August 12, 2026 /3BL/ - Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) has contributed $450,000 to The WASH Foundation, totaling more than $6.5 million in contributions since 2014 for the organization’s efforts to bring safe water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) to the 4.2 billion people globally who lack access to these resources.

The 2026 Sands Cares investment supports three foundational priorities: assembling and donating hygiene supplies for people facing hardships through the annual Sands Cares Global Hygiene Kit Build, funding innovative water initiatives in Sands’ regions through The Drop By Drop Project and providing general funding for The WASH Foundation’s programs to strengthen its organizational capacity.

“This year’s contribution reflects something rare in corporate partnerships – after more than a decade, Sands’ commitment to our mission has only deepened,” Shawn Seipler, founder and CEO of Clean the World Global and chairman of The WASH Foundation board, said. “The 2026 Sands Cares investment touches every dimension of our work, from hygiene kits reaching families in crisis, to water stewardship in the company’s home regions, to the operational backbone that lets us scale what works.”

Sands was an early supporter of the foundation’s WASH programs and its affiliate Clean the World’s efforts to collect discarded hygiene amenities for recycling and distribution to vulnerable individuals and families. Over the course of the partnership, Sands, Clean the World and The WASH Foundation have diverted more than 667,000 pounds of waste from landfills and collaborated to distribute 4.6 million bars of soap to people in need.

Together, Sands and the foundation launched the annual Sands Cares Global Hygiene Kit Build with Clean the World in 2014, when the company also funded the transition of Clean the World’s LasVegas recycling center into a full soap manufacturing operation through a $1 million donation for both initiatives. Sands also provided seed funding for the foundation’s launch of the Fresh Start WASH and Wellness Program, which offers mobile shower services to people facing homelessness. Another innovative collaboration is The Drop By Drop Project, which provides grants for water stewardship and conservation programs in Sands’ operating regions of Macao and Singapore.

Continuing these long-standing priorities, the 2026 Sands Cares contribution to The WASH Foundation supports the following initiatives.

Global Hygiene Kit Build: In a series of builds in Macao, Singapore and Las Vegas, Sands Team Members will assemble 65,000 hygiene kits for distribution by The WASH Foundation to people facing hardships and crisis situations in these regions. The annual Sands Cares Global Hygiene Kit Build with Clean the World has yielded more than 1.1 million kits produced by Sands Team Members since 2014.

The Drop By Drop Project: The Sands Cares donation continues underwriting grants for Macao and Singapore projects that increase water resiliency, reinvigorate ecosystems, incubate new water solutions and engage the community in these areas.

In 2026, the program will support three impactful initiatives focused on sustainable water access, climate resilience and community restoration. Projects include the installation of household rainwater harvesting and filtration systems, innovative coastal ecosystem research programs, and the restoration of community spaces while strengthening local education, training and environmental monitoring efforts.

Capacity-Building Support: The third component of the Sands Cares funding is earmarked for capacity-building programs, operational needs and the foundation’s annual gala, enabling the organization to maintain the infrastructure needed to effectively deliver, manage and scale WASH programs.

“Our WASH Foundation partnership continues to be a key Sands Cares priority as it’s the only global nonprofit engagement in which all of our regions participate,” Ron Reese, senior vice president of

global communications and corporate affairs, said. “Over the years we’ve collaborated with the foundation to bring many important programs to our regions, with our annual kit build growing to be one of our top Team Member and community engagement initiatives. It’s an important symbol of our culture of service around the world.”

To learn more about other global Sands Cares community engagement initiatives, visit https://www.sands.com/responsibility/communities/.

To learn more about The WASH Foundation, visit https://thewashfoundation.org/.

About Sands (NYSE: LVS)

Sands is the leading global developer and operator of integrated resorts. The company’s iconic properties drive valuable leisure and business tourism and deliver significant economic benefits, sustained job creation, financial opportunities for local businesses and community investment to help make its host regions ideal places to live, work and visit.

Sands’ portfolio of properties includes Marina Bay Sands® in Singapore and The Venetian® Macao, The Londoner Macao®, The Parisian® Macao, The Plaza® Macao and Four Seasons® Hotel Macao, and Sands® Macao in Macao SAR, China, through majority ownership in Sands China Ltd.

Dedicated to being a leader in corporate responsibility, Sands is anchored by the core tenets of serving people, communities and the planet. The company’s ESG leadership has led to inclusion on the Dow Jones Best-in-Class Indices for World and North America, as well as Fortune’s list of the World’s Most Admired Companies. To learn more, visit www.sands.com.

About The WASH FOUNDATION: Improving Health. Transforming Lives.

The WASH Foundation is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to transform the lives of women, children and communities worldwide, and improve their health by providing them with enhanced access to clean water, improved sanitation, hygiene education and critical hygiene supplies for disaster relief. The WASH Foundation partners with local governments and nongovernmental organizations to strengthen community policies, systems and infrastructure for future generations.

Since its establishment in 2009, The WASH Foundation has helped serve more than 17.8 million people, provided disaster relief supplies to over 1.7 million people, and distributed over 95.7 million bars of soap and 7.5 million hygiene and comfort kits. To learn more about The WASH Foundation and its global impact, please visit https://thewashfoundation.org/.

Contacts:

Kristin Koca
Sands
702.923.9142
Kristin.Koca@sands.com

Sara Weaver
The WASH Foundation/Clean the World Global
321.368.5719
sweaver@cleantheworld.org

SCS Standards and Assurance Systems Releases Final Revised SCS-111 v 2.1 for Rigid Core Resilient Flooring

SCS Global Services — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 08:00:00 -0400

SAN FRANCISCO, August 12, 2026 /3BL/ - SCS Global Services and SCS Standards and Assurance Systems announce the release of the updated SCS‑111 Certification Standard for Rigid Core Resilient Flooring and the ASSURE(R) CERTIFIED program underpinned by the standard. Version 2.1 incorporates the ASTM F3781 test method, requiring certified rigid core flooring to meet a defined edge‑strength threshold. This update delivers an independently validated measure of how floor locking technologies perform under real‑world stress increasing the trust value this already robust certification program delivers to the market.

Rigid core flooring is one of the fastest‑growing segments in the flooring market. The ASSURE CERTIFIED program and mark build added trust with consumers, retailers, and builders in the performance and safety of the products. The addition of ASTM F3781, Standard Test Method for Measurement of the Fracture Resistance of a Modular Resilient Flooring’s Profiled Edge(s) to an Applied Vertical Force, into SCS‑111 Version 2.1 adds a new layer of confidence. Certified products are now required to achieve a minimum of 17 pounds-force (lbf) in vertical edge‑strength testing, providing an independently validated, reproducible measure of this critical performance factor.

“By incorporating the ASTM F3781 edge‑strength requirement, we’re giving manufacturers a clear, science‑based way to focus on a key component of edge durability. This new component of ASSURE CERTIFIED joins key testing for ortho-phthalates, heavy metals content, indoor air quality and other performance factors. This update strengthens the ASSURE CERTIFIED program and helps raise the bar for the entire industry,” said Victoria Norman, Executive Director of SCS Standards and Assurance Systems.

The new ASTM test method was developed through a multi‑year, multi‑stakeholder collaboration coordinated by the Resilient Floor Covering Institute (RFCI) and supported by three inter‑laboratory studies, including a blind‑coded evaluation of numerous products representing a range of locking technologies. The outcome is an accessible test method grounded in scientific consensus and industry participation.

"ASSURE CERTIFIED has always been based on rigorous testing, verified performance, and on-site inspection of manufacturing facilities. Incorporating ASTM F3781 gives certified products another layer of proof — one that directly reflects the stresses floors undergo in homes and businesses. It’s a meaningful step forward for product transparency,” states Rob Emelander, Operations Director for Flooring at SCS Global Services.

Organizations seeking to get ASSURE Certified will be audited against V2.1. Existing certificate holders seeking to recertify will be required to transition to the new version at their next annual audit. At the latest, all certificate holders must be audited against version 2.1 by May 31, 2027.

To download a copy of the standard, please visit the SCS Standards Website: Certification Standard for Rigid Core Vinyl Flooring | SCS Standards

For SCS-111 Certification Services, please visit the SCS Global Services Website: ASSURE CERTIFIED™ | SCS Global Services

About SCS Global Services

SCS Global Services is an international leader in third-party environmental and sustainability verification, certification, auditing, and testing. Its programs span a cross-section of industries, recognizing achievements in climate mitigation, green building, product manufacturing, food and agriculture, forestry, consumer products, and more. Headquartered in San Francisco, California and celebrating over 40 years in business, SCS Global Services has representatives and affiliate offices throughout the Americas, Asia/Pacific, Europe, and Africa. Its broad network of auditors are experts in their fields, and the company is a trusted partner to companies, agencies, and advocacy organizations due to its dedication to quality and professionalism. SCS Global Services is a chartered Benefit Corporation, reflecting its commitment to socially and environmentally responsible business practices. It is also a participant of the United Nations Global Compact and adheres to its principles-based approach to responsible business. For more information, visit www.SCSGlobalServices.com.

About SCS Standards and Assurance Systems

SCS Standards and Assurance Systems is an organization committed to the development of standards that advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Standards are developed in alignment with best practices and guidelines provided by internationally recognized bodies to ensure a robust, transparent, and collaborative approach. SCS Standards and Assurance Systems is the official standards development body for Scientific Certification Systems, Inc. For more information, visit www.SCSstandards.org.   

Media Contact:

Rachel Barnhart

Director of Corporate Communications & Public Relations
SCS Global Services

rbarnhart@scsglobalservices.com

Our People: Mia Lombardi’s Passion for Service Grows Community From the Ground Up

Marathon Petroleum — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 17:00:00 -0400

Key Points

Through her leadership and volunteer efforts, Marathon Petroleum attorney Mia Lombardi is helping breathe new life into the Community Gardens of Hancock County, Ohio.
The gardens provide free opportunities for residents to grow fresh food, learn new skills and connect with their neighbors.
Lombardi's passion for the project has inspired volunteers, partners and community members to get involved and make a difference.

For Mia Lombardi, giving back is more than showing up. It is about helping something meaningful take root and thrive.

As Chief Counsel in the Law - HESS&PQ (Health, Environment, Safety, Security and Product Quality) organization at Marathon Petroleum, Lombardi spends her workdays navigating complex issues and supporting operations and product quality.

Outside of work, she pours that same energy into a cause close to her heart by leading the Community Gardens of Hancock County in Findlay, Ohio. Established to help address food insecurity, the Gardens provide free plots where community members can grow fresh produce, connect with neighbors and learn new skills.

Located next to CHOPIN Hall, the area’s primary food bank and the Gardens’ current sponsor, the program had served the community for nearly a decade before a three-year hiatus. Lombardi took on the role of restarting and managing the Gardens in 2025. She now also serves on CHOPIN Hall’s board of directors, helping advance the organization’s broader mission of serving neighbors in need.

“Beyond my love for spending time outdoors and around nature, I truly believe community spaces like these are so important,” Lombardi said. “When I learned more about the Gardens and their mission, it felt like a natural fit.”

“Mia has brought incredible energy and passion to the Gardens. She has helped create a renewed sense of purpose around the program.”

Bringing the Gardens back to life

Lombardi has been a driving force in breathing new life into the Gardens, helping coordinate improvements, recruit volunteers and build momentum around the program.

“Like a lot of volunteer-driven efforts, the program just needed a little TLC,” she said. “It’s an important community resource, and it takes people stepping in to help keep it going.”

In spring 2025, despite less-than-ideal weather, Lombardi worked alongside neighbors and nearly 30 Marathon colleagues during the United Way of Hancock County’s annual Days of Caring. Together, they helped give the Gardens the restart they needed almost overnight.

“I felt so lucky to have that kind of support, especially from so many people at Marathon,” she said. “It meant a lot to me and reminded me what community and teamwork really look like.”

More than 60 Marathon volunteers returned in fall 2025 and spring 2026, building on that progress and further strengthening the program.

“I work with Mia day-to-day supporting environmental efforts at Marathon, so I’ve never doubted the commitment and determination she’d bring to a project like the Community Gardens,” said Jason Tansey, Senior Environmental Engineer at Marathon. “Whether she’s at work or volunteering in the community, her passion for making a difference is contagious, and she’s always finding ways to inspire others to get involved.”

A hands-on effort, rooted in passion

For Lombardi, the Gardens are about more than planting and maintaining beds. They’re also about education and connection, especially for neighbors who may need a little extra support or lack access to fresh food. Some of her most meaningful moments have come from hearing how the program has made a difference in people’s lives.

“With this, you can actually see it happening,” Lombardi said. “You can witness the community coming together, working side by side, and feel that you’re making a real difference, no matter the size.”

Lombardi works closely with Ron Rooker, Executive Director of CHOPIN Hall, who has seen firsthand the impact her leadership has had on both the program and the people it serves.

“Mia has brought incredible energy and passion to the Gardens,” Rooker said. “She has led the team in transforming a simple plot of land into a thriving, vibrant green space. Mia has poured her time, energy and heart into this project, ensuring our neighborhood has a beautiful place to connect with nature and one another. She has created a renewed sense of purpose around the program.”

That impact can be felt by community gardeners like Melody Flick, who says the Gardens are a place where more than just tomatoes, honeydew melons and pumpkins can flourish.

“If it’s been a stressful day, I go out to the garden to watch the bees fly from flower to flower or marvel at sunflowers taller than I am,” Flick said. “It has been a joy to work alongside Mia and everyone who makes this place special. We share crops and gardening advice, but more importantly, we’re building a community that means so much to all of us.”

Looking ahead

Building on that success, Lombardi is excited to keep the momentum going. Today, more than 100 garden beds are available to community members who want to grow their own food and connect with others.

“When you build something like this, it’s not just the gardens that grow,” said Lombardi. “The community around them also grows.”

That sense of connection keeps Lombardi involved. While the Gardens have become one of her most visible volunteer efforts, her commitment to serving others extends well beyond the garden beds. She also volunteers with Habitat for Humanity, local cancer patient services, the Hancock Historical Museum, United Way and the Community Foundation.

“Whether it’s hands-on work at the Gardens or helping in other ways, it all reflects the same values I see every day at Marathon,” Lombardi said. “Getting involved locally is how I put those values into action. Knowing our combined efforts are enhancing the lives and places we call home is what keeps me going.”

Entergy’s John Hudson Honored With the 2026 Whitney M. Young Jr. Service Award

Entergy Corporation — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 14:30:00 -0400

By Cristina del Canto

Scouting America’s Southeast Louisiana Council has selected John O. Hudson III, chief external affairs officer and president of the Entergy Charitable Foundation, as one of the 2026 Whitney M. Young Jr. Service Award honorees. The other honorees include Constable Lambert C. Boissiere Jr., attorney Kim M. Boyle and Dr. Margaret Montgomery. This prestigious recognition, presented by Scouting America’s Southeast Louisiana Council, celebrates individuals whose lifelong commitment to equity, opportunity and community advancement reflects the enduring legacy of Whitney M. Young Jr.

Hudson’s dedication to strengthening communities is evident across every facet of his leadership. Through his roles at Entergy, he has championed initiatives that expand access to critical resources, empower underserved populations, and uplift families throughout the Greater New Orleans area and the Gulf South region. His work has helped drive meaningful change for youth and families, ensuring more people have opportunities to thrive.

“Whitney M. Young Jr. was a leader who believed in the power of opportunity, equity and service. He understood that real progress happens when we uplift others, create pathways for people to succeed, and ensure that every child — no matter their background — has a chance to thrive. Tonight’s honor is meaningful because it reflects those values, and it underscores the work so many people here continue to champion every day,” said Hudson.

Additional Entergy employees who volunteer with Scouting America also attended the ceremony to celebrate Hudson’s recognition. Among them were Nicholas Hamilton and Phillip Durocher, whose ongoing involvement with Scouting America reflects Entergy’s shared commitment to youth development and community service.

A tireless advocate and thoughtful mentor, Hudson is known for leading with compassion, integrity and an unwavering commitment to service. Under his guidance, Entergy’s charitable programs have grown in impact and reach, supporting education, workforce development, economic mobility, and community resilience. His leadership continues to inspire colleagues across the company and partners throughout the region.

The Whitney M. Young Jr. Service Award highlights Hudson’s deep and lasting influence on the young people served by Scouting America. His long-standing support for youth development, mentorship, and community-building efforts aligns closely with the values at the heart of the award.

Learn more here about Entergy’s initiatives that are making a positive impact in our communities.

View original content here.

Scope 1, 2, and 3 Carbon Measurements Show Big Variations Among Data Sources

CSRHub — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 12:30:00 -0400

As previously seen on the CSRHub blog.

By Bahar Gidwani

CSRHub has had a unique opportunity to track how much climate data is generated each year since 2008. As you can see below, the total number of climate-related indicators in our system has grown steadily, currently providing more than 4,000,000 data points per year.

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We see information from a wide range of sources—major Wall Street ratings groups such as MSCI, ISS, S&P Global Trucost, NGOs, academic researchers and government organizations. There have been many efforts to coordinate and standardize the types of carbon information companies and governments report. However, we’ve not yet seen any signs of consolidation in climate metrics.

https://2489059.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hub/2489059/hubfs/blog-2026-scope-carbon/climate-indicators-count.png?width=1000&name=climate-indicators-count.png

We were recently asked to look at the estimates for Scope 1, 2, and 3 carbon for a set of 60+ AI companies such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Alphabet, Meta, and Alibaba. We used data from three of our sources to construct an average estimate for each company. While the estimates were similar in some cases, there were many cases of huge (e.g., 1X to 10X) differences in estimate. As a result, the standard deviation of the estimates is large.

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Note that the variance in estimate increases as we move from Scope 1 to Scope 3. We believe this is because Scope 1 is better defined than Scope 2 and 3, and Scope 3 is often estimated or “modeled”. The 94% standard deviation in the Scope 3 numbers we examined says that only 65% of the numbers we see are within 94% of the average number and 35% are more than 94% away from it. This suggests that two attempts to sum carbon across a supply chain (a typical use for Scope 3 estimates) could result in estimates that are 2X or more different from one another.

These results confirm our view that a simple review of carbon metrics is not likely to be a good way to judge an entity’s climate performance. Other factors such as commitments to targets, the management level at which climate measurement sits, and comparison against other entities with similar product or geo profiles should be considered.

CSRHub benchmarks 62,000 entities based on twelve subcategories. The Energy & Climate Change subcategory measures a company’s effectiveness in addressing climate change through appropriate policies and strategies, energy-efficient operations, and the development of renewable energy and other alternative environmental technologies. The subcategory includes energy use, emissions to air of CO2 and other Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG). This benchmark is a strong signal of performance of climate performance.

CSRHub helps you compare performance against peers with a consensus view, not one source. We identify the factors shaping your ratings and help you focus improvement efforts where they will have the greatest impact. For more information, we welcome hearing from you. Please contact us here.

About CSRHub

CSRHub provides access to the world’s largest corporate social responsibility and sustainability database, powered by expert consensus sustainability ratings, information, and tools. Clients use CSRHub’s decisive data platform for global benchmarking, supply and value chain risk assessment and compliance readiness solutions. Founded in 2007, CSRHub covers 62,000 public and private companies, and provides ESG performance scores on 42,000 companies from 134 industries in 158 countries. Our Big Data platform uses algorithms to aggregate, normalize and weight ESG metrics from 1,000 sources to produce a strong consensus signal on corporate sustainability performance.

Bahar Gidwani is CTO and Co-founder of CSRHub. He has built and run large technology-based businesses for many years. Bahar holds a CFA, worked on Wall Street with Kidder, Peabody, and with McKinsey & Co. Bahar has consulted to a number of major companies and currently serves on the board of several software and Web companies. He has an MBA from Harvard Business School and an undergraduate degree in physics and astronomy. He plays bridge, races sailboats, and is based in New York City

GreenMoney: Our Best – Articles, Videos and Podcasts (August ’26 Issue)

GreenMoney Journal — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 10:00:00 -0400

Welcome to the latest issue of GreenMoney. We are completing our 33^rd year of award-winning publishing on - Impact Investing and Sustainable Business - with this August issue that features some of Our Best articles and Most Popular videos and podcasts. Enjoy and lets us know if you have any ideas for future content, - Cliff Feigenbaum, founder & publisher

• A Wealth of Uncertainty: Climate Change and Financial Well-Being in the 21st Century by Dan Carreno of Natural Investments

• Change the Lending Paradigm: A Model of Success in Native Agriculture Finance by Skya Ducheneaux of Akiptan

• Investing in Ocean Resilience: A Sea Change in Climate Finance by Karen Sack of Ocean Risk & Resilience Action Alliance

• From Honest to Just: How Coca-Cola’s Fumble with Honest Tea Turned into an Unexpected Gift by Seth Goldman of Eat the Change and Just Ice Tea

• Grid Investments in the Age of Electrification, AI and Data Ascendency by Ron Pernick of Clean Edge, Inc.

• How I Found My Way to Impact Investing & Why I Hope More Women Will Join Me by Jenn Pryce of Calvert Impact

• The Largest Climate Catastrophe That No One Knows About by Philippe Cousteau Jr. and Ashlan Cousteau of SeaVoir Wellness

• Farming Smarter: How AI Can Help Farmers Regenerate Land, Empower Workers and Feed the Future by Craig Wichner of Farmland LP

• The Power of the Purse: Investing Her Money Where it Matters Most by Betsy Biemann of Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI)

• The Key to a Net-Zero Future is Lower Carbon Buildings Today by Beau Engman of PACE Equity and Lucas Pappas of Calvert Impact

Also find a variety of our most popular Videos and Podcasts including the GreenMoney Talks series with Amy Domini of Domini Impact Investments.

Find all of this and more at- https://greenmoney.com

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Unique Attractions Bring Unparalleled Experiences to Sands’ Resort Guests

Las Vegas Sands — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 10:00:00 -0400

Las Vegas Sands

As major tourism generators in Singapore and Macao, Sands’ integrated resorts deliver an array of amenities and attractions to attract global visitors. While known for its luxury hotels and world-class gaming, the company’s resorts also are home to a number of other offerings that create reasons to visit – and revisit, all part of the company’s mission to deliver unparalleled experiences that drive high-value tourism to its regions and ensure Sands’ resorts remain on the leading edge of hospitality.

Delivering unique experiences at the intersection of arts, culture and sustainability is a core niche for Sands, and attractions in both Singapore and Macao have established the company’s integrated resorts as places to be entertained and inspired – from unique immersive, digital experiences to exhibitions by world-renowned creators and up-and-coming regional artists.

ArtScience Museum at Marina Bay Sands

Upon arrival at Marina Bay Sands, guests get a glimpse of one of the most distinct cultural landmarks in Singapore in the visage of the property’s ArtScience Museum. Designed by renowned architect Moshe Safdie, the museum’s exterior is inspired by the shape of a lotus in full bloom, with each frond containing a different gallery. The building is a key component of Marina Bay Sands’ – and Singapore’s – iconic architecture.

Since 2011, ArtScience Museum has curated a slate of exhibitions and programs, from science and future-focused technologies to design and pop culture – a body of work that blends all-time greats with contemporary visionaries.

The museum’s permanent exhibition is teamLab Future World, which features immersive art installations and interactive projects from the international art collective formed in Japan in 2001. teamLab comprises an interdisciplinary group of artists, programmers, engineers and architects who create digital artworks based on borderless art that leverages technology to surround visitors in interactive worlds where they can explore nature and its creations.

The museum also curates original in-house exhibitions and spotlights local and regional talent across both its own productions and world-class exhibitions. It is home to a VR Gallery, ArtScience Cinema and ArtScience Laboratory, where visitors can delve into educational experiences that merge of art, science and technology.

ArtScience Museum’s program in the first half of 2026 demonstrates the diversity and innovation that define its offerings. The year kicked off with “Insects: Microsculptures Magnified,” a collaboration with the American Museum of Natural History featuring 37 striking, high-magnification portraits of insects from the Oxford University Museum of Natural History’s collection.

Launching during Singapore Art Week in January, “NOX: Confessions of a Machine,” marked the first solo show in Southeast Asia by 2024 Frieze London Artist Award recipient Lawrence Lek. This exhibition explored themes of artificial intelligence, automation and machine consciousness while prompting reflection on agency and coexistence beyond human-centric systems.

In March, the museum marked its 15^th anniversary with “Flesh and Bones: The Art of Anatomy,” developed in dialogue with the Getty Center in Los Angeles. Bringing together art, science and history, it offers a compelling cross-cultural examination of how the human body has been studied, represented and understood across centuries and cultures.

In early June, the museum premiered “Into the Ocean: Journey Beneath,” a landmark collaboration with OceanX, one of the world’s leading ocean exploration organizations. The multi-sensory exhibition blends art, science and cutting-edge technology to immerse visitors in the mysterious depths of the deep ocean.

Rounding out the first half of 2026, ArtScience Museum announced London-based visionary experiential artist collective Marshmallow Laser Feast as its 2026-2027 ArtScientist-in-Residence. The collective will present a trilogy of works across the museum’s 2026 and early-2027 exhibition program, marking its most extensive engagement in Asia to date.

“ArtScience Museum has long been a space for curiosity, dialogue and discovery, bringing together art, science, technology and culture to explore the questions that define our time,” Angelita Teo, newly appointed vice president of attractions at Marina Bay Sands, said. “By connecting visionary artists, pioneering institutions and new ways of thinking, it has created a distinctive platform for ideas to be experienced, challenged and shared.

“I am honored to steward the museum’s next chapter and look forward to strengthening our collaborations as we continue to develop a program that not only inspires new ways of seeing the world, but also celebrates the curiosity, creativity and craftsmanship that define human excellence. At a time when technology is transforming how we live and work, museums have an increasingly important role in reminding us of what it means to be human and in inspiring us to imagine what we can achieve together.”

teamLab SuperNature Macao at The Venetian Macao

After years of success in Singapore, Sands extended its relationship with teamLab to The Venetian Macao, where teamLab SuperNature Macao opened in 2020. This captivating attraction blurs the boundaries between the human body and art in an interactive space spanning 5,000 square meters and works that soar to eight meters in height. A highlight is the “Floating Flower Garden: Flowers and I are of the Same Root, the Garden and I are One,” in which more than 8,000 living orchids suspend from the ceiling and move as visitors navigate the space.

Another artwork is “Valley of Flowers and People: Lost, Immersed and Reborn,” which captures nature’s changes by tracking the life cycle of flowers. The flowers react to visitor movements and interact with them, creating a continuously changing installation so that each visit is a singular experience. In “The Infinite Crystal Universe,” light points are used to create three-dimensional objects, and visitors can use their smartphones to select elements that make up the universe by dragging them and releasing them into the artwork, which is forever changing and evolving in relation to people in the space.

Sands Gallery at The Grand Suites at Four Seasons

Because promoting arts and culture is important to the Macao community and tourism landscape, Sands China expanded its arts offerings in 2022 with the opening of Sands Gallery at The Grand Suites at Four Seasons.

The permanent art space enables guests to explore diverse and ever-changing art exhibitions such as last year’s “Echoes of a Golden Age: Macro Events through the Micro Visions of Macao’s Legendary Contemporary Artists,” which featured 120 visual art works from nine Macao artists, and “Beyond the Frame: International Contemporary Masterpieces,” in which artists employed diverse mediums to break conventional frameworks through distinctive visual languages. Since opening, Sands Gallery has curated 12 diverse exhibitions from more than 60 esteemed Chinese and international artists.

Currently, the gallery is showcasing a tribute to the centenary of the founding of Iec Long Firecracker Factory, which Sands China has helped revitalize since 2023. The factory represents an important era in Macao’s industrial history and has been reimagined as a cultural symbol in which heritage is renewed through innovation.

“A Century of Iec Long Firecracker Factory in Radiance” runs through August and pays tribute to the history of the firecracker industry in Macao. The exhibition is a collaboration with the Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST), the Macao Museum and the Archives of Macao. Professor Ung Vai Meng at MUST curated the historical exhibits to present Macao’s firecracker history in its fullest and most authentic form.

In rejuvenating this integral chapter of Macao’s past at Sands Gallery, the public has free access to discover the brilliance, creativity and craftsmanship that underpinned Macao’s firecracker industry as inspiration for younger generations and visitors to appreciate Macao’s cultural heritage.

“We have always been committed to fostering the development of Macao’s diverse arts and culture,” Dr. Wilfred Wong, executive vice chairman of Sands China, said at the exhibition’s opening. “Since taking on the revitalization of the Iec Long Firecracker Factory in 2023, we have actively invested resources to breathe new life into this important era of Macao’s industrial history, reimagining it as a cultural symbol where heritage is renewed through innovation.”

For an overview of Sands’ portfolio of properties visit: https://www.sands.com/properties/

To learn more about these unique attractions, visit:

ArtScience Museum

teamLab Supernature Macao

Sands Gallery

Elanco’s CLiK™ Extra (Dicyclanil Topical Suspension) Wound Spray Receives FDA Emergency Use Authorization for Application on or Around Wounds for Prevention of New World Screwworm in Variety of Livestock and Captive and Captured Wildlife Species

Elanco — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 09:45:00 -0400

Emergency Use Authorization for Elanco’s CLiK Extra provides livestock producers with a vital tool in the prevention of New World screwworm infestations.
Elanco also offers producers Negasunt^®Powder (coumaphos, propoxur, and sulfanilamide topical powder) and Tanidil^®, which received emergency authorizations earlier this year, as well as EPA-registered Catron™ IV.
Elanco’s technical experts emphasize “eyes on livestock” and early intervention are the most effective ways to minimize animal injury and prevent the parasite’s spread.

INDIANAPOLIS, August 11, 2026 /3BL/ - Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE: ELAN) has announced it has received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for CLiK Extra (dicyclanil topical suspension) wound spray for application on or around wounds to prevent infestations of New World screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax) larvae (myiasis) in sheep, cattle, goats, swine and camelids, as well as captive and captured cervids, American bison, bighorn sheep and Sonoran pronghorn.

Livestock producers and veterinarians can apply Elanco’s CLiK Extra spray on or around wounds, including those associated with birth and following surgical procedures, on animals to help prevent infestations of New World screwworm larvae before they occur. However, if a wound is already infested or an infestation develops after administration, alternative treatment will be necessary since CLiK Extra has not been shown to treat active New World screwworm infestations.

Elanco’s Negasunt Powder and Tanidil received emergency authorizations for prevention and treatment of New World screwworm earlier this year. These products will be available only through the U.S. Animal Plant Health and Inspection Service (APHIS) and its National Veterinary Stockpile as distributed in coordination with state animal health officials and federally recognized tribal agencies. 

Elanco also offers producers Catron IV, one of the few EPA registered products labeled for treatment against screwworm in a variety of livestock species. This screwworm and ear tick spray can help producers kill and control screwworm flies and maggots on beef and dairy cattle, sheep, goats, hogs and horses.

The reentry of New World screwworm into the U.S., which was confirmed by the United States Department of Agriculture in June, poses a critical risk to farmers and ranchers, pet owners and the veterinary community.ⁱ Unlike other pests, screwworm larvae aggressively consume the living flesh of their hosts, making them a danger to any warm-blooded animal, ranging from livestock and companion animals to wildlife and humans.ⁱⁱ

"Education is a producer's most powerful tool in this fight," says Dr. M. Wayne Ayers, DVM, Senior Technical Consultant for Elanco. Ayers advises that staying informed through trusted experts and knowing exactly where the fly is active are top priorities.

"The second pillar of protection is prevention,” he says. “By checking animals as often as possible and using appropriate wound care for any noticeable lesions or sores, producers can potentially avoid conditions that might lead to New World screwworm larvae infestations. Speed is crucial. It minimizes injury to the animal, lowers the risk of death, and most importantly, prevents the next generation of flies from completing their lifecycle and expanding the outbreak."

“Now that New World screwworm is back in the United States, we want producers to know they don’t have to figure this out alone,” Ayers continued. “Elanco is here to help. We can look at your current situation to help you see where you can sharpen your protocols and ensure you’re reaching for the right product at exactly the right moment to protect your animals.”

CLiK Extra will be available for purchase by animal health professionals, livestock producers and those managing captive and captured wildlife through standard product channels. 

To learn more about New World screwworm using the following resources: 

Emergency Use Authorization of CLiK Extra (dicyclanil topical suspension) Wound Spray for New World Screwworm (NWS)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the emergency use of the unapproved product CLiK Extra for application on or around wounds for the prevention of infestations caused by New World screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax) larvae (myiasis) in sheep, cattle, goats, swine, camelids, and the following captive and captured wildlife species: cervids, American bison, bighorn sheep, and Sonoran pronghorn. CLiK Extra is not approved for this use. 

For additional information on the EUA and for complete safety information, please refer to the CLiK Extra NWS Fact Sheet. 

Limitations of Authorized Use 

It is a violation of Federal law to use this drug product other than as directed in the fact sheet. 

Sheep, cattle, goats, swine, cervids, American bison, and bighorn sheep must not be slaughtered or harvested for human consumption within 86 days of treatment. 

For captured cervids, captured American bison, and captured bighorn sheep, use only when there is a reasonable certainty that the treated animal will not be slaughtered or harvested for human consumption within 86 days of treatment. 

Treated Sonoran pronghorn and camelids may not be used for human consumption.

A milk discard time has not been established for this product. Do not use in animals producing milk for human consumption. 

A withdrawal period has not been established for this product in pre-ruminating calves. Treated calves and calves born to treated cows must not be processed for veal. 

CLiK Extra is authorized for this use only for the duration of the declaration that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of the emergency use of CLiK Extra under Section 564(b)(1) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act), 21 U.S.C. § 360bbb-3(b)(1), unless the declaration is terminated or the authorization is revoked sooner.

Additional Important Safety Information

Not for use in humans. Keep out of reach of children. Use disposable gloves and protective clothing when handling this product, and wash hands after use. In case of accidental ingestion, do not induce vomiting; seek medical advice immediately. For external use only. CLiK Extra will not treat an active NWS infestation. If a wound is already infested, or an infestation develops after CLiK Extra administration, alternative treatment for the animal is necessary. Treated animals should be kept away from surface waters for at least one hour after treatment due to serious risk to aquatic life. 

Emergency Use Authorization of Negasunt Powder (coumaphos, propoxur, and sulfanilamide topical powder) for New World Screwworm (NWS) 

WARNING: Neurotoxicity. Read full Fact Sheet for complete information.  

Coumaphos and propoxur can cause neurotoxicity. May be fatal if swallowed. May be fatal if inhaled. Harmful if absorbed through skin. Causes moderate eye irritation. Do not breathe dust. Avoid contact with eyes, skin, or clothing.   
Use only with appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE): coveralls worn over long-sleeve shirt and long pants, shoes, socks, and protective eyewear; chemical-resistant gloves made of  barrier laminate, butyl rubber (≥ 14 mils), nitrile rubber (≥14 mils), neoprene rubber (>14 mils), natural rubber (≥14 mils), polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) ≥14 mils, or Viton (>14 mils); and a minimum of a NIOSH-approved elastomeric half mask respirator consisting of protection factor (PF) 10 fitted with organic vapor (OV) cartridges and combination  R or P filters; or a NIOSH-approved gas mask with OV canisters; or a NIOSH-approved powered air purifying respirator with OV cartridges and combination HE filters.   
This product is toxic to mammals, birds, fish, and aquatic invertebrates.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the emergency use of the unapproved product Negasunt Powder for the prevention and treatment of infestations caused by New World screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax) larvae (myiasis) in cattle, swine, goats, sheep, horses, donkeys, domestic hybrid equids, and captive wild, exotic, and zoo mammals. Negasunt Powder is not approved for this use. 

For use by employees of federal, state, local, and federally recognized tribal agencies, and persons working under their authority and at their direction. Also for use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian in NWS infested zones and adjacent surveillance zones as defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).  

For additional information on the EUA and for complete safety information, please refer to the Negasunt Powder NWS Fact Sheet. 

Limitations of Authorized Use  

It is a violation of federal law to use this drug product other than as directed in the authorized Fact Sheet.  

Treated animals must not be slaughtered for human consumption within 28 days of the last treatment.  

A milk discard time has not been established for this product; do not use in animals producing milk for human consumption.  

A withdrawal period has not been established for this product in pre-ruminating calves; treated calves and calves born to treated cows must not be processed for veal.  

Do not use in horses intended for human consumption. Do not use in domestic indoor pets (e.g., dogs, cats, rodents, rabbits) nor in residences. Do not use in birds. Do not use in free-ranging wildlife.  

To avoid overexposure, each individual person cannot treat more than 3 large wounds (>2 inches diameter) a day or more than 30 small superficial wounds (≤2 inches diameter) a day (or an equivalent thereof) with Negasunt Powder or any other coumaphos-containing products.   

Negasunt Powder is authorized for this use only for the duration of the declaration that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of the emergency use of Negasunt Powder under section 564(b)(1) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act), 21 U.S.C. § 360bbb-3(b)(1), unless the declaration is terminated or the authorization is revoked sooner.  

Federal law prohibits the extra-label use of this drug. 

Additional Important Safety Information 

Not for use in humans. Keep out of reach of children. Only handlers wearing required PPE may be in the area during application.  Do not apply in a confined, non-ventilated area; provide thorough ventilation. Call a poison control center or doctor immediately for treatment advice if Negusant Powder is swallowed, inhaled, on skin or clothing, or in eyes. Sulfonamides are contraindicated in animals that are hypersensitive to them and in animals with severe renal or hepatic impairment. For external use only on animals.  Do not contaminate water, feed, troughs, feed handling equipment, or milk or meat handling equipment. Use with caution in very young, weak, or debilitated animals.  In the case of overdose, treat with atropine sulfate or pralidoxine chloride (2-PAM) as soon as possible. The most common adverse reactions associated with organophosphate and carbamate toxicity in animals include frequent urination and defecation, muscle twitching, and watering eyes. 

Important Information about Tanidil 

Tanidil™ is an unregistered product for distribution and use only under a Section 18 emergency exemption. The Section 18 labeling must be in the possession of the user at the time of pesticide application. This product may only be used to prevent or control New World screwworm in and on animal wounds on labeled animal host species. 

For use only by federal, state, local, and federally recognized tribal agencies, and persons working under their supervision; personnel at quarantine stations and areas; veterinarians; veterinarians or certified applicators at livestock and game facilities, zoos, wildlife facilities, animal rehabilitation centers; and wildlife professionals.  

Read the entire label. This product must be used strictly in accordance with this label's precautionary statements and use directions, as well as with all applicable state and federal laws and regulations. Please visit the Tanidil fact sheet for more information. 

Use Period: This exemption is effective on April 27, 2026 and expires on April 27, 2029. No applications of Tanidil may be made under the emergency exemption before its effective date or after its expiration date.  

ABOUT ELANCO

Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE: ELAN) is a global leader in animal health dedicated to innovating and delivering products and services to prevent and treat disease in farm animals and pets, creating value for farmers, pet owners, veterinarians, stakeholders and society as a whole. With 70 years of animal health heritage, we are committed to breaking boundaries and going beyond to help our customers improve the health of animals in their care, while also making a meaningful impact on our local and global communities. At Elanco, we are driven by our vision of Food and Companionship Enriching Life and our purpose – all to Go Beyond for Animals, Customers, Society and Our People. Learn more at www.elanco.com.

PM-US-26-1426

^{i USDA Confirms Presence of New World Screwworm in the United States | Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service}

^{ii New World Screwworm.” www.aphis.usda.gov, www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/cattle/ticks/screwworm.}

CVS Health Earns Two Gold and One Silver Stevie® Awards for Great Employers

CVS Health — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 09:45:00 -0400

Originally published on CVS Health Company Newsroom

WOONSOCKET, R.I., August 11, 2026 /3BL/ - CVS Health® (NYSE: CVS) announced that its AI Learning Academy earned two Golds and one Silver at the 11th Annual Stevie Awards for Great Employers, a global honor recognizing organizations for excellence in employee development, training and workplace culture. The company earned Gold in the Employee Upskill/Reskill Training and AI Workforce Innovation Team of the Year categories, and Silver in AI in Learning and Skills Development Achievement.

Launched in February 2026, the AI Learning Academy used a phased, persona-based learning model to build practical AI capabilities across the enterprise. The program generated more than 18,500 live session attendances, achieving up to a 72% improvement in colleague confidence using AI. Thirty days after training, up to 90% of participants reported sustained productivity gains of 45-60 minutes per week, and enterprise-wide adoption of AI tools has continued to climb.

The judges were glowing in their remarks. One said, “This is an exceptionally strong and strategically mature training program submission that demonstrates enterprise-scale impact, measurable behavioral change, and clear alignment between learning outcomes and business transformation.” Another wrote, “The Academy's fusion of role-specific design, responsible AI guardrails, and measurable adoption sets a strong benchmark for the health care sector.”

Putting colleagues at the center of AI adoption

“Technology alone doesn't transform an organization, people do,” said Sherif Kamel, SVP, Chief Digital & Technology Officer, CVS Health. “This program puts our colleagues at the center, meeting them where they are with the skills, confidence and context they need to make AI work for the business.”

“AI won't define the future of work, people who know how to leverage AI will,” said Greg Karanastasis, SVP, Talent & Development, CVS Health. “Our AI Academy is one of those enablers.

The Academy was built through a cross-functional coalition of business leaders, Learning and Development teams, technology domain experts, and AI platform and adoption analytics teams, embedding responsible-AI training directly into the curriculum.

2026 Stevie Award wins to date

The Great Employers honor is CVS Health's second Stevie Award recognition of the year. In April 2026, the company was named a Stevie Award winner at the American Business Awards for its enterprise-scale AI work:

Gold, Enterprise AI —Predictive Modeling, Clinical Authorization & Claims Orchestration
Silver, Customer Experience AI — Agentic Twins

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About CVS Health

CVS Health is a leading health solutions company simplifying health care one person, one family and one community at a time. As of March 31, 2026, the Company had approximately 9,000 retail pharmacy locations, more than 1,000 walk-in and primary care medical clinics and a leading pharmacy benefits manager with approximately 88 million plan members. The Company also serves an estimated more than 37 million people through a broad range of health insurance products and related services. The Company’s integrated model uses personalized, technology driven services to connect people to simply better health, increasing access to quality care, delivering better outcomes, and lowering overall costs.

About the American Business Awards

The American Business Awards are the nation’s premier business awards program. All organizations operating in the U.S. are eligible to submit nominations — public and private, for profit and nonprofit, large and small.

Media contact

Ethan Slavin
860-273-6095
Ethan.Slavin@CVSHealth.com

MetLife 2025 Sustainability Report: Benefits and Well-Being

MetLife — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 09:40:00 -0400

MetLife

MetLife offers extensive benefits and resources for our employees to prioritize their health, financial security and overall well‑being—so they can thrive at work and beyond. MetLife tailors Company-paid and/or subsidized benefits, including healthcare, dental insurance, disability, life insurance and retirement benefits, to the needs of each market, and offers competitive paid time off in all markets.

Embedding Well-Being Every Day

Our global BeWell initiative demonstrates our commitment to everyday, holistic wellbeing by connecting employees to health and wellness resources, individual support and leader tools. We raise awareness of our benefits through storytelling, leader messages and awareness campaigns. MetLife’s new Ask HR chatbot helps our U.S., Japan and Chile employees find information on benefits and other HR topics quickly and easily to better understand and utilize the services available to them.

Benefits available to eligible employees cover physical, financial and mental health, and may extend to family members, with offerings tailored to each market. MetLife’s medical plan for U.S. employees provides access to free health improvement programs that address digestive health, cancer care, family building, menopause, back and joint pain, pelvic health, managing diabetes or high blood pressure and smoking cessation.

Mental health continues to be a focus at MetLife, especially for employees who handle emotionally heavy interactions, such as our customer care associates. Our Employee Assistance Program, available in several markets, offers free and confidential counseling and coaching, advice on emotional, mental and financial well-being, and more. We encourage employees globally to take micro-breaks throughout the day to support their mental and physical well-being, offering an app integrated into our everyday work experience that guides movement and breathing breaks.

U.S. employees can access ancillary benefits such as legal advice, caregiving support, back-up child and elder care, resources for individuals with disabilities, college advice, parenting support, grief resources, financial wellness benefits and work-life support. They also have access to the online child safety features available through our partnership with Aura.¹

Find out more about MetLife’s benefits in our U.S. Employee Programs & Benefits document, including information on parental leave.

¹ Please visit metlife.com for a list of product disclaimers.

Wesco Anixter Recognized As Fundraiser of the Year Award Winner by Chesterfield FC Community Trust

Wesco International — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 09:30:00 -0400

Wesco Anixter has been recognized as Fundraiser of the Year 2026 by Chesterfield FC Community Trust (CFCCT), celebrating the generosity, energy and community spirit shown by colleagues across a year of fundraising and volunteering.

The award recognizes the collective effort of Wesco Anixter colleagues, whose support helped raise funds, donate time and strengthen a local partnership focused on inclusion and opportunity. From the Family Fun Day to the Day of Caring, colleagues played an active role in turning good intentions into practical support for the Chesterfield community.

Family Fun Day brought colleagues, families and supporters together to raise vital funds in a way that felt personal, inclusive and rooted in the local community. It reflected the strength of colleague-led fundraising, with people giving their time, ideas and enthusiasm to support a cause that matters, close to home. On the day, the team raised an incredible £2,091 which was matched 2:1 through Wesco Cares to £6,273.

The Day of Caring built on that commitment, with colleagues volunteering their time to support community activity through CFCCT. Together, these moments show how fundraising and volunteering can create impact beyond a single donation, building stronger relationships and helping colleagues connect directly with the communities they support.

Sophie Whitfield, Sustainability Leader, Electrical and Electronic Solutions EMEA said: “We are incredibly proud to be recognized as Fundraiser of the Year by CFCCT. This award really belongs to our colleagues, who have given their time, energy and generosity throughout the year. Whether through Family Fun Day, Day of Caring or the everyday support behind the scenes, their commitment helped strengthen a partnership that is about people, inclusion and creating meaningful local impact.”

Keith Jackson, Deputy Head of Community at Chesterfield FC Community Trust, said: "The Award for Wesco Anixter is absolutely deserved, as their colleagues have been incredibly supportive of Chesterfield FC Community Trust from the minute we started our partnership. The money raised on the Family Fun Day, Day of Caring and the sponsorship of the SEND Football project makes a huge difference and a life changing impact on our participants. The Wesco Anixter team actively supports us with their time and generosity and we are extremely grateful for it."

During the awards ceremony, Sophie Whitfield, Sustainability Leader, Electrical and Electronic Solutions EMEA, also presented four awards to the SEND youth and adult football teams to celebrate their achievements.

Wesco Anixter’s support forms part of its wider commitment to community engagement, inclusion and social value through its Wesco Cares program. Wesco Anixter also extends its sincere thanks to the CFCCT for its valued partnership and shared commitment to making a meaningful difference in the communities where we live and work.

About Wesco Anixter

Wesco International (NYSE: WCC) builds, connects, powers and protects the world. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Wesco is a FORTUNE 500® company with approximately $24 billion in annual sales in 2025 and a leading provider of business-to-business distribution, logistics services and supply chain solutions. Wesco offers a best-in-class product and services portfolio of Electrical and Electronic Solutions, Communications and Security Solutions, and Utility and Broadband Solutions. The Company employs approximately 21,000 people, partners with the industry's premier suppliers, and serves thousands of customers around the world. With millions of products, end-to-end supply chain services, and significant digital capabilities, Wesco provides innovative solutions to meet customer needs across commercial and industrial businesses, technology companies, telecommunications providers, and utilities. Wesco operates more than 700 sites, including distribution centers, fulfillment centers, and sales offices in approximately 50 countries, providing a local presence for customers and a global network to serve multi-location businesses and global corporations.

About CFCCT

Chesterfield FC Community Trust delivers life-changing programmes that support health, education, and wellbeing for people of all ages. From toddlers to older adults, from grassroots football to mental health support, our work is shaped by local need and driven by impact. We use the power of the Chesterfield FC badge to connect with our communities, create opportunity, and deliver over £5 million in social value each year.