Responsible Production & the Circular Economy

FY18 was a significant year for CSR in many ways – Blackrock’s CEO Larry Fink came out strong in his annual letter titled, “A Sense of Purpose,” emphasizing the importance that business considers their impact on society and the environment. Companies continued to take a public stand on issues such as equality, immigration and more. At Cisco, we recognize we cannot solve the world’s problems on our own, but we have an opportunity and a responsibility to do our part. Last week we launched our 2018 Corporate Social Responsibility Report, celebrating our achievements to date as well as how we are addressing the areas where we can do more. Here are highlights from this year’s report across our three CSR pillars of People, Society and Planet; your “cheat sheet” to CSR at Cisco in FY18.

A lot happened in 2018. The U.S. made some notable progress with the first Muslim and Native American women elected to Congress, and SpaceX, the world’s most powerful rocket, launched. (I also became a first-time dad! And remember Yanny vs. Laurel?). And we experienced some major lows, with hundreds of innocent lives lost to multiple mass shootings and families torn apart due to the current administration’s troubling immigration policies. Now, with 2018 coming to a close, attention is being redirected to the year ahead.

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) honored 10 companies for superior supply chain performance and delivering optimum solutions that reduce costs, enhance performance, maintain high levels of service, and provide innovative and sustainable solutions.

Here are 7 more brands you can find at Whole Foods Market giving to support microloans for women entrepreneurs this holiday season.

During the month of December, these brands are donating money for every item sold at Whole Foods Markets to Whole Planet Foundation.

The New Hampshire Liquor Commission (NHLC) and Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey are reminding the public to serve and consume alcohol responsibly this holiday season through their award-winning Live Free & Host Responsibly campaign. The innovative and interactive campaign offers holiday-themed food and drink recipes, tips for responsible entertaining and videos on the responsibility-focused webpage: www.LiquorandWineOutlets.com/responsibility.

Sodexo, a food services and facilities management company committed to Quality of Life, is pleased to welcome Connecticut Service Plazas to its portfolio through a new relationship with Project Service LLC. The new 25-year relationship leverages Sodexo’s market research to deliver innovative, high-quality customer experiences at 23 service plazas throughout the state.

Cisco technology and people are accelerating global problem solving in ways that have never been attempted before. From solving customers’ business challenges to tackling the toughest social and environmental issues of our time, we are helping to make the impossible possible.

As the year draws to a close, Cone evaluated a year’s worth of purpose-driven news, activities, campaigns and announcements to bring you the top 10 trends of 2018.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) recently launched a new video that tells the story of how its local and international partners are developing a commercially viable, conflict-free supply chain for artisanal minerals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Tetra Tech is supporting the USAID Capacity Building For Responsible Minerals Trade (CBRMT) project to help scale-up conflict-free mineral certification and traceability systems in the region. View the video to learn more about how responsible mining is becoming a reality in DRC.