ESG News from Leading Brands

Innovation & Technology

KeyBank Provides $12 Million for Workforce and Affordable Housing Development in Niagara Falls, New York

Feb 29, 2016 11:00 AM ET

Today, KeyBank announced it will provide a total of $12 million in capital to help develop the Niagara City Lofts in Niagara Falls, New York. The adaptive reuse project will convert an existing, abandoned public school, built in 1923 and vacant since 1986, into 61 units of workforce housing, affordable housing, market rate apartments, and a new commercial community space. The building has been submitted to the National Register of Historic Places for designation as a historic building.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Alliance Data Associates Help Pick Up the Rubble for North Texas Tornado Victims

Feb 29, 2016 10:30 AM ET

The day after Christmas, a tornado three and a half miles wide tore through neighborhoods in North Texas, damaging or destroying 1,110 homes and 35 businesses. More than 40 volunteers from Alliance Data's Plano office spent two mornings the past month clearing the rubble in one of the hardest hit neighborhoods.

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

Responsible Index Investing: Reimagining How to Access Returns

Feb 29, 2016 10:30 AM ET

Environment

Sustainable Resolution Tip #5: Manage your Waste & Waist

Feb 29, 2016 10:20 AM ET

It isn’t New Year’s without resolving to work out more and eat healthier. Planning your meals in advance can help you control calories and cut food waste. In your planning, perhaps you’ll think about using what’s in your pantry, buying only what you need, and repurposing leftover. Just a few years ago, Americans threw out over 74 billion pounds of food. Careful meal planning can help you save calories and our ‪#‎blueplanet.‪#‎SustainableResolutions

Environment

Big Cat Week in Europe: How a Sculpture, a Hashtag and Selfies Are Helping Nat Geo Save Big Cats Around the World

Feb 29, 2016 10:00 AM ET

Nat Geo Wild Europe launched its sixth annual Big Cat Week in February. Each year, Nat Geo Wild sheds light on the plight of big cats around the world with a week of premieres. More than a television event, Big Cat Week is an extension of the Big Cats Initiative (BCI), a long-term commitment by the National Geographic Society to stop poaching, save habitat and sound the call that big steps are needed to save big cats around the world. This global initiative actively supports on-the-ground conservation projects and education to help stem and eventually reverse the rapid disappearance of big-cat populations.

Research, Reports & Publications

Is Waste a Resource in the Wrong Place?

Feb 29, 2016 10:00 AM ET

Waste production is a serious problem for all American companies and industries. The largest 5,589 publically traded businesses in the United States sent 342 million metric tons of waste to landfills and incinerators in 2014. That is the equivalent of sending the weight of three Empire State Buildings to a landfill every day.

Environment

Ray C. Anderson Foundation is New Sponsor for “Talk with Green Guy” Show

Feb 29, 2016 10:00 AM ET

The Ray C. Anderson Foundation is the new sponsor of “Talk with Green Guy,” a rapidly growing weekly show hosted by Eric Moncrief on WGST 640 AM, which airs locally Sunday mornings at 9:00 a.m. Eastern with podcasts available at www.greenguymedia.com.

Environment

No, Coffee Pods Aren't Killing the Planet

Feb 29, 2016 10:00 AM ET

Drowsy German bureaucrats in Hamburg will soon have one less option for a mid-afternoon caffeine jolt, after the city banned single-serve coffee machines such as Nespresso from government buildings.

Environment

Equity and the Living Building Challenge

Feb 29, 2016 9:00 AM ET

An essential part of building living communities isn’t just designing housing units with a low environmental impact, but making those housing units affordable for the communities they’re in.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

HP Instant Ink Named as Intelligent Asset in Report from World Economic Forum & Ellen MacArthur Foundation

Feb 29, 2016 8:20 AM ET

Events, Media & Communications

Harry Pastuszek of PYXERA Global to Speak at Responsible Business Summit

Feb 29, 2016 4:00 AM ET

Harry Pastuszek, Vice President of Enterprise and Community Development at PYXERA Global will speak at the 2016 Responsible Business Summit this June 7 and 8.For an advanced look at the Summit, Ethical Corporation is hosting a free live webinar with Timberland’s Sustainability Director and Maersk's Head of Responsible Procurement. Tune in Tuesday, March 1 at 10 am ET / 3 pm GMT.

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

The PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc. Is Giving $1.2 Million to the Easter Seals Dixon Center for Military and Veterans Services to Support Military Transition Assistance Programming

Feb 28, 2016 7:05 PM ET

The PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc. is giving $1.2 million to the Easter Seals Dixon Center for Military and Veterans Services to support military transition assistance programming.

Innovation & Technology

PwC Oscars Purpose Red Carpet

Feb 28, 2016 6:20 PM ET

PwC is adding a unique spin to the red carpet this year. We'll ask social entrepreneurs, educators, fashion designers and professional sports players not about what or who they are wearing, but about their purpose.

Education

Women Building Futures Partners with Transcanada to Attract More Women into the Construction Trades

Feb 27, 2016 10:30 AM ET

Women Building Futures partners with TransCanada to attract more women into the construction trades. TransCanada joins CLAC and Mammoet Canada Western as sponsors of the WBF Opportunities for Women in Construction Awareness Campaign (OFWIC).

Social Impact & Volunteering

The Power of WHY: The Key to Uniting Employees Around Your Company Vision [Webinar]

Feb 26, 2016 3:00 PM ET

VolunteerMatch's Best Practice Network free webinar series is back! On March 18th, you’ll have the chance to learn how to unite your employees around your company vision and inspire them to take part in your cause work.

Social Impact & Volunteering

A Conversation About Impact

Feb 26, 2016 2:35 PM ET

AT&T has long been a City Year champion, investing both in the national organization, as well as the community of Little Rock, Arkansas. As a team sponsor for four years, they have had an impact on many students, including this year’s senior class valedictorian, Hillary.

Events, Media & Communications

Ritz Carlton, Tata Consultancy Services, and IBM to Take the Stage at International Women's Day 2016

Feb 26, 2016 2:00 PM ET

On March 7 - 8 at the United Nations and Microsoft's New York office, The Business of Inclusion: Global Prosperity through Women and Girls Empowerment will convene more than 500 public and private sector leaders to explore inclusive solutions that create opportunities for women and girls around the world.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Linking Corporate Social Responsibility to Business Goals

Feb 26, 2016 2:00 PM ET

Social Impact & Volunteering

#GoingToBat Community Spotlight: Cole Hamels

Feb 26, 2016 1:00 PM ET

Cole Hamels hasn’t added an inch to his 6-foot-4 frame but his reach through The Hamels Foundation keeps extending its educational mission.

Events, Media & Communications

Taproot+ Webinar, Mar 2: What's the Best Way to Get Skilled Volunteers for Your Nonprofit?

Feb 26, 2016 11:30 AM ET

"I do pro bono because I wanted to find ways to volunteer some of my time and thought that doing pro bono work could be fun and useful to nonprofits. When I do pro bono, I bring with me diverse professional experience working for global companies. I am driven by innovation and appreciate nothing more than bringing a team or organization to its full potential."

Health & Healthcare

Hershey Partners with Blommer Chocolate and Olam Cocoa to Build Health Center in Cote D’Ivoire

Feb 26, 2016 11:00 AM ET

The Hershey Company partnered with cocoa suppliers Blommer Chocolate and Olam Cocoa to fund and build a community health center in Cote d’Ivoire.

Education

King Philippe Marks 500,000th Computer Donation by Arrow Electronics and Close the Gap

Feb 26, 2016 10:50 AM ET

A half-million donated computers is a milestone—momentous enough to warrant a King’s attention.

Energy

GM Woos Sustainability Execs with Electric Vehicle Test Drives

Feb 26, 2016 10:50 AM ET

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Citi Foundation Announces $4.8 Million Investment in Summer Jobs Connect to Jumpstart Career Readiness of More than 2,000 Youth

Feb 26, 2016 10:30 AM ET

Today, as part of the announcement of the Summer Opportunity Project and Champions of Change event at the White House, the Citi Foundation announced a $4.8 million grant to Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund to provide more than 2,100 low-income youth with summer jobs and access to financial education as part of Summer Jobs Connect. The program, a part of the Citi Foundation’s Pathways to Progress initiative, uses the opportunity of a first-employment experience to instill early career readiness lessons and positive financial behaviors for lifelong success.

Environment

Nestlé Waters North America Appoints Nelson Switzer to Lead Sustainability Efforts

Feb 26, 2016 10:10 AM ET

The President and CEO of Nestlé Waters North America (NWNA), Tim Brown, is pleased to announce the appointment of well-known sustainability innovator Nelson Switzer as Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer.