Corporate Responsibility

On the 25th September 2015 in New York a document entitled Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was endorsed by the 193 countries of the UN General Assembly. The Agenda set out 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets covering a range of issues facing humanity including action on ending poverty, combating hunger, universally improving health and education, making our cities more sustainable, tackling climate change, and protecting our oceans and forests.

Financial literacy is a key pillar for financial inclusion, and a critical success factor to achieve at least nine of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). For instance, eliminating poverty and achieving gender equality is simply not possible when two thirds of adults worldwide remain financially illiterate and women continue to trail men in financial decision making.

Relationships between environmental groups and businesses were not ‘normal’ when I came to Midland, Michigan in 1988 to start my career at The Dow Chemical Company. At best, there were periods of détente, interrupted by conflict, much of which took place in the courtroom or with the media. Had someone suggested that we could find a way to collaborate with environmentalists for mutual benefit, they would have been laughed from the conference room. ‘Tolerate’ was the best we could imagine then. That changed with the Michigan Source Reduction Initiative (MSRI) that launched Dow into a collaborative approach and opened eyes and minds to both the need and power of business to help the world achieve sustainable development.

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon is an award-winning program that challenges collegiate teams to design, build, and operate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive. Bob Bissen imagines a Solar Decathalon 2.0.

The gas-powered car has remained the dominant mode of transportation since it first began fueling motor vehicles in 1886. But the internal combustion engine is finally starting to lose its stranglehold on the market. The disrupter? Electric vehicles (EVs).

In this article, Tetra Tech’s Catherine Courtney, the University of Connecticut’s Robert Pomeroy, and the U.S. Agency for International Development's Stephen Brooks developed and tested an assessment framework and process to assist national and subnational governments to assess progress in meeting the Voluntary Guidelines on Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines).

In December 2018 Tetra Tech’s Catherine Courtney, along with the University of Connecticut’s Robert Pomeroy and the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Stephen Brooks, published a paper in the Marine Policy Journal in which they developed an assessment framework based on the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries (SSF Guidelines).

With the support of our members and partners, the Tree City USA program has strengthened and sustained urban forests across the country. From the Gulf of Alaska to the Gulf Coast, more than 153 million Americans are living in Tree City USA towns and cities that pay particular attention to tree planting, management, and care.

The Arbor Day Foundation has announced finalists for its annual recognition program with the winners to be announced prior to National Arbor Day on April 26, 2019. Since 1972, the Foundation has presented awards for work at the international, national, state and community levels to recognize conservation efforts such as tree planting and care, Arbor Day celebrations, education, community projects and roadside beautification.

For nearly two decades, Ideas that Matter has been a cornerstone in Sappi North America’s corporate responsibility efforts. By supporting the work of designers who are creating print communications to help solve complex social issues, Ideas that Matter is an important participant in the design for social good movement.