Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

CITGO Petroleum Corporation, along with its Marketers and Retailers, raised approximately $30,000 in 2016 through the installation of “Spirit Pumps” at participating CITGO stations across the nation. These specially wrapped, branded fuel pumps were operational at different times throughout the year to raise money for a variety of education, charitable and community service programs.

Nov. 15, 2016 marked a historic day for the forestry sector in Indonesia and for timber legality efforts globally. Indonesia became the world’s first country to export forest products licensed under the EU’s Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan. This means that Indonesia’s forest products now automatically meet the strict requirements of the EU Timber Regulation, designed to prohibit illegal timber products from entering the EU. This milestone is particularly gratifying to me. As a member of the SCS Forest Conservation Program for more than a decade, I know first-hand the environmental and social costs of illegal forestry practices... https://www.scsglobalservices.com/blog/indonesia-becomes-worlds-first-country-to-export-forestry-products-under-eus-strict-timber

Benevity Inc., the global leader in online workplace giving, matching, volunteering and community investment software, announced that it surpassed $1 billion in donations to almost 105,000 charities in 2016. In just the last two years, donations to nonprofits through Benevity have increased fivefold.

Ecolab Inc., the global leader in water, hygiene and energy technologies and services, has awarded $1.1 million in grants to K-12 educators throughout the U.S. through the Ecolab Foundation’s 2016 Visions for Learning Educator Grants program.

PayPal reported 11 percent growth in charitable giving in 2016, processing $7.3 billion in contributions over the year, including more than $971 million raised during the holiday season alone. Proving that spirits really were brighter this holiday, the company announced today that 8 million PayPal users in 181 countries contributed $971,213,604 to 282,053 charities, making 2016 the biggest year for end-of-year donations with PayPal ever.

The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and JPMorgan Chase & Co. today announced $20 million in grants to 10 U.S. states to dramatically increase the number of students who graduate from high school prepared for careers. Developed as part of JPMorgan Chase’s $75 million global New Skills for Youth initiative, each winning state will work with government, business and education leaders to strengthen career education and create pathways to economic success.

Latest on the Champions for Social Good Podcast: Jamie Serino speaks with Yasmina Zaidman, Director of Strategic Partnerships at Acumen about how impact investing is working to fighting global poverty.

Duke Energy is powering Florida with more than electricity. Last year, the company donated more than $3 million to Sunshine State non-profit organizations.

When you are doing something disruptive, it can be difficult to get people to back your ideas. Innovative companies tend to get excited about new ideas before the rest of the pack. Slower-moving businesses, however, start embracing innovation once the proof of success is already out there.

This is my dream job. If I wasn’t building Wala I’d be building another company, solving another problem.