Corporate Social Responsibility

Last week, JetBlue sponsored the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals (OBAP) Annual Conference and Career Expo held in Orlando. JetBlue has worked with OBAP for several years to help diversify the aviation industry and provide access to those from traditionally under-represented communities to the variety of careers within the industry.

Gender equality remains a global issue and achieving equality requires an inclusive approach. Scotiabank is supporting the UN Women Solidarity Movement, HeForShe, with their efforts towards gender equality as one way for employees to advocate inclusion.

I joined Barclays in 2010 on their graduate scheme and now work in the Tokyo office as an Analyst. My job is to support our sales team who mainly deal with structured Barclays products. I first started volunteering after the Tohoku disaster in 2011, when my colleagues and I organised a trip to Otsuchi town to help with the relief effort. Although there were many people who wanted to assist, at the time there was not a lot of organised support.

Sustainable Brands® recently announced program details for the upcoming conference, SB’17 Copenhagen, running October 30th - November 1st at the Radisson Blu Scandinavia Hotel in Copenhagen, Denmark. Over 450 brand and sustainability leaders are expected to gather and collaborate on how redefined societal aspirations are transforming the ways brands deliver value for their customers.

Water covers 70% of our planet, and it is easy to think that it will always be plentiful. However, as the world’s population continues to soar, so does the need for fresh water that makes up only 2.5% of the world’s water supply. The reality today is that the need for clean, safe water for drinking and sanitation far exceeds the readily available amount.

The need is severe. That’s why Xylem Watermark, Xylem’s corporate citizenship program, provides and protects safe water resources for many of the world’s most vulnerable communities and educates individuals around the globe about water issues.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), an independent body that has pioneered sustainability reporting from a niche practice to one now adopted by organizations around the world. Read what GRI's Chief Executive Tim Mohin has to say about the growth of sustainability reporting, the importance of transparency, competition between reporting methods and his hopes for his own legacy.

When it comes to the disclosure of non-financial information, it’s understandable that many businesses come begrudgingly to table. But when sustainability reporting is focused on a few, truly relevant issues, it creates vital data that can help companies contribute to sustainable development and be more profitable in the process.

At this year's United Nations high-level political forum, 43 countries presented their voluntary national reviews on the progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. GRI took this opportunity to investigate how the private sector in particular has been included in these reviews. Here we present a quick overview of three emerging trends on the private sector role in the 2030 Agenda.

By participating in a hands-on experience where they were able to see the amount of trash at the floodgate, these Xylem volunteers realized the importance of keeping water sources clean. Through their participation in this event, they helped to protect the water quality of the Delaware River and surrounding water sources.