The Taproot Foundation's U.S. Pro Bono Summit is an annual gathering of leaders from across sectors and industries with a shared vision to make the talents and skills of the business community accessible to social change organizations.

Vacations are essential for improving employee quality of life. A major U.S. longitudinal study of 12,000 middle-aged men found that taking an annual vacation is associated with reduced risk of death due to heart disease. Vacations also improve employee performance. Iowa State University economics professor Wallace Huffman found vacations can boost productivity as much as 60 percent for up to two months following the vacation. Yet, Glassdoor.com reports that many employees are not using their full paid-time off allotment.

As summer swings into high gear, it’s vacation season in offices across America. With temperatures high and the kids out of school, it behooves employers to encourage employees to use some of their paid time off.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) today announced a total of $500,000 in donations to four local nonprofits to help revitalize El Paso neighborhoods through the Wells Fargo NeighborhoodLIFT® program.

KeyBank has been recognized by Points of Light, the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service, as one of the most community-minded companies in the United States. In addition to honoring KeyBank on the 2017 Civic 50 list, Points of Light also designated Key a 2017 Sector Leader in Financials. The Civic 50 provides a national standard for superior corporate citizenship and showcases how companies can use their time, skills and other resources to improve the quality of life in the communities where they do business.

It’s summer. School is out. Time to reflect, prepare, appreciate; to review the past and think about the year ahead.

Albert, an 8th grade student in Nairobi, dreams of becoming an architect so he can help develop his country. Mukesh Mittal, Qualcomm’s Senior Director of Engineering, explains how mobile technology makes Albert’s dream possible.

When #GivingTuesday launched in 2012, it provided a counterpoint to two massive celebrations of consumerism: Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year, and Cyber Monday. Now some of us will do just about anything to avoid shopping, but both days are intended to lure people out of their post-Thanksgiving food coma to jumpstart the holiday retail season.

FedEx is proud to announce it has been recognized by Points of Light, the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service, as one of the most community-minded companies in the United States. The Civic 50 provides a national standard for superior corporate citizenship and showcases how companies can use their time, skills and other resources to improve the quality of life in the communities where they do business.

In 2016, Ecolab Inc., the global leader in water, hygiene and energy technologies and services, helped customers save 161 billion gallons of water at more than one million locations around the world. These savings, equivalent to the annual drinking water needs of more than 558 million people, are highlighted in the company’s 2016 Corporate Sustainability Report, available at www.ecolab.com.

Claire Meier is a Senior Analyst in Fixed Income at Northern Trust Asset Management, responsible for global sovereign and agency research. She also plays a key role in asset allocation decisions working closely with the chief strategist and chief economist.