Positive Change

Shakira and her Pies Descalzos Foundation, the Ministry of Education with its Financial Fund of Educational Infrastructure, Cartagena’s Major’s office, the District Educational Secretary, Mario Santo Domingo Foundation, Costa Cruises and the program of Economic Cooperation and Development of the Switzerland Embassy in Colombia with the Architecture Department of the ETH Zürich, announce the beginning of the construction of a new Educational Institution in Cartagena city.

In January 2018, the Hall Family, Hallmark Cards, Inc. and Crown Center, were awarded the J. Philip Kirk, Jr. Award from the Downtown Council of Kansas City, Mo., for downtown vision and stewardship. This award is presented annually to leaders whose vision, guidance and commitment have helped set downtown on a clear path for revitalization.

Technology has the power to unlock amazing new possibilities for our customers and the world. Through pro bono service learning, we translate the incredible potential of digital transformation from the corporate sector to our communities. Recently, I was fortunate to see this potential unfold—and watch a community transform.

Xylem colleagues toured one of YES Prep Schools facilities in Houston, TX last week in celebration of the completion of a new school building. Xylem Watermark donated to YES Prep to support building classrooms in response to the devastation from Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Xylem also participated in water monitoring educational events at the time, adding to its efforts to solve water and educate youth about water issues. YES Prep School is committed to providing students in underserved communities access to superior educational opportunities, and Xylem is proud to support this effort.

The innovative change-makers in charge of PayPal's giving and volunteering program were eager to engage more employees across their global workforce. They knew their program had the potential for even more social impact, and they wanted to support their people's passions for environmental sustainability. See how they engaged more employees globally and saw tangible results in their sustainability efforts.

Lockheed Martin employees participated in dozens of volunteer events in communities around the world this October as part of the company’s annual “Month of Giving.” These “Be the Difference” days highlight employees’ commitment to service and giving back.

For Kite’s Week of Service, employees spent the day decorating for Halloween with local chapters of Boys & Girls Clubs of America in Santa Monica and Venice, which offer programs to inspire young people to reach their full potential as productive, caring and responsible citizens.

The only voice in the corporation that can authentically stand for purpose is the voice of the employee. Explore with us how companies are entering the conversation about corporate citizenship and civic engagement and how you can connect your company’s purpose and values to the activism of employees.

Today, American Express, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and Main Street America announced the winners of the 2018 Partners in Preservation: Main Streets campaign. The 11 winning historic sites will receive a total of $1.6 million in grants to fund their respective preservation projects. At the outset of the campaign, an additional $400,000 was allocated to the 20 Main Street communities that participated in the program to increase public awareness of the importance of these historic places and build grassroots support for the participating Main Street districts.

212 companies—including Okta, Tiffany & Co., Rackspace® and Major League Baseball—have joined Benevity's growing community of over 500 enterprise clients since this time last year.