At the Annual Meeting of the Global Chagas Disease Coalition in Barcelona, Spain, Novartis announced that it is joining the Coalition as a member contributor. In addition, the company announced its commitment to launch a multinational, prospective, randomized study with heart failure drug, Entresto® (sacubitril / valsartan), in people with chronic Chagas cardiomyopathy, one form of heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. This is the first definitive morbidity and mortality study to assess a potential therapy for cardiac disease in this underserved patient population.

Xylem Inc. has announced execution of its new $800 million Senior Unsecured Revolving Credit Facility. With this transaction, Xylem has replaced its five-year $600 million revolving credit facility, while adding a sustainability-linked pricing mechanism to the new facility. The deal is one of the first sustainable improvement loans in the U.S. and the first in the General Industrial Sector. The interest rate is index-linked to Xylem’s overall sustainability performance as rated by Sustainalytics, a leading independent global provider of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) ratings. Improvements in Xylem’s sustainability performance will reduce interest rates under the facility.

Three years ago, CECP came together with its partner organizations around the world and established the Global Exchange as an opportunity to expand corporate impact and develop a shared voice on how companies are a force for good around the world. The spark for these partnerships came about because of Giving Around the Globe research.

Read about EHS trends in southeast Asia in Antea Group’s blog on Andrew Young, who lives in Singapore and is a member of global EHS&S network, Inogen.

Gardening is not about immediate success or instant gratification. The same can be said about social purpose.

As a company for gardeners, ScottsMiracle‑Gro has a succinct purpose: “helping people express themselves on their own piece of the Earth.” Cultivating a thriving garden takes care, commitment, and flexibility to adapt as conditions change. With that, creativity – and expression – can blossom.

Impact investing has emerged as a major force in philanthropy. Last year GIIN conducted a survey showing that the estimated value of the impact investing sector doubled between 2017 and 2018, increasing from $114B to $228B. There’s a growing demand for investments that actively produce measurable positive social and environmental outcomes.

OmniVis is developing a handheld device that works with smartphones to detect cholera in water samples. With the help of IoT technology, it can analyze and identify the bacteria within 30 minutes of collection.

Naked, a PepsiCo. brand, has been proudly supporting Whole Planet Foundation since 2007, donating $800,000 to alleviate global poverty through microcredit.

Today, Smithfield Foods, Inc. and Albertsons joined forces to donate more than 40,000 pounds of protein to Three Square Food Bank. Smithfield’s contribution was part of the company’s 2019 Helping Hungry Homes® donation tour. Helping Hungry Homes® is Smithfield’s signature hunger-relief initiative focused on alleviating hunger and helping Americans become more food secure. The donation, equivalent to more than 169,000 servings, will help families fight hunger across Southern Nevada.

Subaru of America, Inc. today announced its donation of nearly $24 million to national and local charities as part of the 2018 Subaru Share the Love Event, bringing the total donated throughout the life of the program to $145.7 million. Held from mid-November to the end of the calendar year since 2008, the Subaru Share the Love Event donates $250 to the purchaser’s choice of charities for every new Subaru vehicle sold or leased at 631 participating Subaru retailers nationwide.