What Survived the L.A. Wildfires

International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 10:00:00 -0400

By Liz Miles

The stark images of a single home standing amid charred ruins of its neighbors are an apocalyptic memory of the Eaton and Palisades fires across Los Angeles in January 2025, 18 months ago. There was one house left standing in Malibu. Another in Altadena. One more on the westside of Los Angeles. Fewer than a dozen homes were built to resist the raging fires that devastated 40,000 acres across L.A., $30 billion worth of real estate and over $200 billion in capital losses. Insured losses were estimated at $45 billion, an indicator of many homes being uninsured or underinsured.

But how did those few houses manage to survive? And what can they teach homeowners set on rebuilding on their property in designated high-risk wildfire zones? Today, at least 44 million homes in the United States are sited in vulnerable areas - what’s called the “wildland urban interface” (WUI) - either because of homeowners’ desire to live closer to nature or because housing prices are more affordable.

Material Defense
One home in the Palisades was constructed to be fire-resistant after its owners lost their first home to wildfire in 1993. Theirs was rebuilt with steel-reinforced walls and a metal roof. Walls trimmed in cinderblock protected the seams where walls meet the ground, preventing flaming debris from blowing indoors. Notable is what’s missing from the home: eaves and roof vents which can trap heat or allow burning embers, which start fires from inside the house. Plants and brush growing near the home are cleared weekly. While all the grass and bushes in the yard were singed to nothing, the house survived where neighbors’ homes burned to the ground. Native plants, acting as natural firebreaks, can protect buildings from wildfires by singing rather than igniting, thus slowing the spread of fire.

Other homes that stood post-wildfires were largely brand new, built after 2008 California Chapter 7A rules passed, which upgraded codes to require fire-resilient features to protect structures built in wildfire prone areas. They also had vegetation-free zones around the yard, fenced off by a solid concrete perimeter wall, metal roofs with a fire-resistant underlay, and covered chimneys to prevent burning embers from slipping indoors. Some used Class A wood, which provides the highest level of fire resistance. The lone-standing home in Malibu was concrete with a fire-resistant roof and tempered double-paned windows.

Wildfire-Hardened Homes
Not all homes hardened against wildfires survive. “There are lots of examples of homes that have done everything right, but when you’re fighting millions of wind-borne embers that are flying through gusts of 70-mile per hour winds, it’s hard to keep one from going underneath your garage door,” says Alexandra Syphard, a research ecologist who studies wildfires.

The WELL for residential certification includes Fire Mitigation as a strategy for improving home safety, as the “majority of all fire injuries and fire-related deaths occur in residential buildings” and because “homes located in wildland-urban interface zones and similar areas have an increased risk of experiencing a wildfire.”

A fire suppression system may not save a home, but it will slow down a fire enough to give occupants extra time to evacuate. The key is to well-maintain such systems. One system in the Pacific Palisades with “heat and flame detectors, fire retardant, a 2,500 gallon sprinkler system to soak the property and humidify the air for an hour, and autonomy from the power grid,” slowed the fire, but didn’t save the house. Some of the sprinklers were clogged. But it was the home’s position on a canyon-edge exposed to flames racing uphill that overwhelmed the home’s extensive protective device. Where housing gets sited is a major determinant of wildfire destruction.

The Best Defense: Community Collaboration
Since wildfires are a chain reaction event, leaping quickly from one structure to the next, the most effective defense is a whole cluster of wildfire-hardened homes. A group of forward-thinking neighbors in Altadena are working together to rebuild their homes using Passivhaus methodology, in this age of climate change where droughts last longer and fire conditions are intensifying.

Homes built using Passivhaus are airtight, keeping out smoke and toxic ash, and highly insulated, which reduces the need for air conditioning and heating. It also makes maintaining high quality indoor air an imperative. Many are built all electric for health and safety reasons, omitting reliance on fossil fuels. WELL for residential also advises homeowners to minimize combustion or eliminate combustion-based products altogether from the home, as doing so significantly reduces “combustion byproducts including carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides sulfur oxides, volatile organic compounds and particulate matter” - exposure to which can lead to negative health effects such as asthma symptoms.

Short of collaborating with neighbors on brand new rebuilds with all fire-resistant materials, there are simple low-cost steps that neighbors can decide to implement together, which can dramatically reduce their homes’ vulnerability to fire. Steady maintenance and smart strategies include:

Closing a fireplace flue during wildfire season
Relocating firewood at least 30 feet from the house
Installing metal gutter guards
Enclosing under-deck areas with metal mesh screening
Clearing dry vegetation from property
Replacing mulch within five feet of buildings with non-combustible dirt, stone or gravel
Cleaning roofs, gutters, decks and the bases of walls regularly to avoid accumulating fallen leaves and other flammable materials.

An Opportunity to Strengthen
Rebuilding after widespread disasters such as the Eaton and Palisades wildfires is a slow process. Of over 22,500 homes destroyed in five of California’s most destructive wildfires between 2017 and 2020, less than 40% were rebuilt by 2025. Meanwhile, homeowners in the Pacific Palisades and Altadena who received unsatisfactory settlements from insurance companies, are selling their land to developers, who have reportedly purchased 44.6% of fire-damaged properties in these areas. For the homes that survived, there is significant smoke damage to clear as well as remediation of land strewn with debris and toxic chemicals. Eighteen months after the wildfires, renewal and rebuilding continues to be an uphill battle.

The California Wildfire Rebuilding Guide, developed by U.S. Green Building Council-California with support from Arup, contains more information for homeowners making critical decisions while rebuilding. There is also new construction using low-cost methods such as prefabricated, factory built modules that are joined into a house on site. The Altadena Prefab Showcase displayed modular homes costing just $292 to $362 per square foot compared with traditional builds that cost between $500 to $650 per square foot. Factory built modular housing also goes up on a quicker timeline, taking around 5-6 months to design and 6-8 weeks to install. Cosmic Buildings is utilizing robotic methods in its pre-fab builds that can frame a home in just 10 days and complete the build in 4-6 months. These modular builds incorporate materials and designs that improve structures’ fire resilience.

Affordable building methods combined with more resilient design and fire-hardened materials will hopefully improve upon and strengthen these communities’ structural defenses against wildfires, helping to improve long-term safety and public health in the process.

View original content here.

GoDaddy 2025 Global Stakeholder Impact Report: People & Culture | Employee Experience

GoDaddy — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 10:00:00 -0400

Originally published in GoDaddy’s 2025 Global Stakeholder Impact Report

Our employee experience is grounded in inclusivity, engagement, and belonging.

We seek individuals who will bring enthusiasm, curiosity, and a passion for what we do to their everyday work. Attracting and retaining qualified talent from a wide range of backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences is a strategic priority. We intentionally create an environment where all employees can feel represented, valued for their contributions, and comfortable sharing feedback. Once here, employees are encouraged to engage and collaborate with the community around them. We regularly evaluate our processes to incorporate feedback, reduce bias, and strengthen inclusivity across our operations, where possible.

GoDaddy employees bring our inclusive culture to life by sharing their stories through videos and posts.

GoDaddy is an incredible place to kickstart or grow a career, because this isn't just a company, it's a community that celebrates who you are. From day one you will feel the energy from the diverse groups, ERGs, different fun activities, and challenges that make your day more exciting. You’ll have endless opportunities to learn, grow, contribute to the community, and put your ideas into action.
Diksha S. Security Engineer

Inclusive Recruitment

As a global company, we are proud of the hiring practices that enable GoDaddy to be an employer of choice for talent. This includes showcasing our inclusive culture and principles, and reaching broad, diverse candidate groups. Our practices include:

Talent Partnerships: Through partnerships, we invest in talent pipelines and workforce development to support hiring across our global footprint.
Fair & Accessible Hiring Practices: We focus on reducing bias in job descriptions, supporting internal mobility through transparent role postings, and offering flexible, virtual interview experiences. In furtherance of our human-centered approach while also harnessing the power of AI, we are transparent about how we are using AI in our hiring practices, and we also provide guidelines to help candidates who choose to use AI to support their interview process. We also offer interviewer certification training focused on inclusive candidate experiences, bias mitigation, and responsible AI use. To learn more, visit our GoDaddy Careers page.
Early-Career & Workforce Development: We invest in future talent through our global internship program and programs such as the Future of Work Summer Camp and the GoDaddy Software Engineering Bootcamp Program to broaden access to technical training and career pathways.

TEXAS CONFERENCE FOR WOMEN AND TRANSFORM 2025

GoDaddy periodically participates in conferences and industry events to strengthen brand visibility and connect with the communities in which we operate. In 2025, GoDaddy attended the Texas Conference for Women and Transform 2025, to engage with professionals of various backgrounds and reinforce GoDaddy’s commitment to community and inclusive recruitment.

Employee Engagement

Engaging a global, hybrid workforce means fostering connection, collaboration, and a shared sense of purpose, no matter where employees work. We prioritize clear communication, meaningful growth opportunities, and an inclusive culture where employees feel valued.

We support these priorities through our employee engagement programs, including the GoDaddy Fun Fund, which enables team bonding activities that strengthen relationships, and Everyday Champions, our global recognition platform that celebrates and recognizes peer contributions.

Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) play an important role in fostering a workplace where all employees benefit from the opportunity to learn, grow, and succeed. ERGs are voluntary, employee-led groups open to all employees, focused on the identities, interests, and experiences that matter to our employees. They support connection, professional development, skill building, and collaboration, while advancing GoDaddy’s priorities across talent, learning, business, and community impact.

Our 11 Global ERGs:

GD Abilities in Tech¹¹
GD Asians in Tech
GD Black in Tech
GD Entrepreneurs in Tech
GD Fitness in Tech
GD Green¹²
GD LatinX in Tech
GD Next in Tech¹³
GD United¹⁴
GD Veterans in Tech
GD Women in Tech

GoDaddy Entrepreneurs in Tech (GDEIT) is a community of people who think like builders and innovators. For me, it's the perfect blend of passion and profession. In my day job I get to solve real-life problems for entrepreneurs, and through GDEIT, I help nurture that same entrepreneurial spirit within GoDaddy. It's incredibly fulfilling to support others who are curious, scrappy, and eager to create, just like the customers we serve.
Vinod S. VP Product Management, GoDaddy Entrepreneurs in Tech Sponsor

Employee Feedback

We aim to create a workplace and culture where employees feel respected and supported to do their best work. Listening to our employees is a critical part of our talent management approach, and in 2025, 79% of our employees participated in GoDaddy Voice, our annual engagement survey.¹⁵

¹¹Focused on disability inclusion.
¹²Focused on sustainability and environmentalism.
¹³Focused on early career in tech employees.
¹⁴Focused on LGBTQIA+ inclusion.

¹⁵ In 2025, GoDaddy conducted two shorter pulse surveys rather than a full census survey, as was completed in prior years. Results reflect the Q3 pulse survey.

Learn more about GoDaddy’s 2025 Global Stakeholder Impact Report.

About this Report

The GoDaddy 2025 Global Stakeholder Impact Report details our progress toward our corporate sustainability goals, strategies, and initiatives in support of our overarching purpose and values. Unless otherwise noted, this report reflects our corporate sustainability performance across our global operations covering the fiscal year period from January 1 to December 31, 2025. To demonstrate our commitment to transparent communication regarding our sustainability progress, we routinely share updates through our website and our annual reporting. We welcome your questions, comments, and feedback on this report by contacting ESG@GoDaddy.com.

This report references the Global Reporting Initiative Standards, includes select Sustainability Accounting Standards Board metrics for the Internet Media and Services sector, and the Task Force on Climate Related Financial Disclosures. We also disclose our contributions and progress toward priority UN SDGs. For additional information on how we align with these frameworks and key indicators demonstrating our sustainability performance, please refer to the Frameworks & Metrics section.

About GoDaddy

GoDaddy, the world's largest domain name registrar, helps millions of entrepreneurs globally start, grow, and scale their businesses. People come to GoDaddy to name their idea, build a website and logo, sell their products and services and accept payments. GoDaddy Airo®, the company's AI-powered experience, makes growing a small business faster and easier by helping them to get their idea online in minutes, drive traffic and boost sales. GoDaddy's expert guides are available 24/7 to provide assistance. To learn more about the company, visit www.GoDaddy.com.

Navigating Energy Regulations: Lessons From Switzerland

Inogen Alliance — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 09:50:00 -0400

In this bonus episode of Rethinking EHS, host Angelique Dickson (President, Inogen Alliance) is joined by Mariarosaria Galiotti and Sofiane Kessouar from Baden Consulting (Switzerland) to explore a real-world energy resilience case study involving a multinational organisation operating in Switzerland. The discussion examines how large energy consumers must navigate Swiss regulatory requirements while identifying practical opportunities to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions.

Listen Now

Time Stamps

00:00:00 – Introduction to the Swiss energy resilience case study
00:01:11 – Defining large energy consumers in Switzerland
00:02:13 – Legal obligations for energy efficiency and emissions reduction
00:02:31 – Regulatory compliance pathways and available options
00:03:31 – Choosing the most appropriate compliance strategy
00:04:09 – Single-site versus multi-site considerations
00:04:54 – Understanding Switzerland’s cantonal structure
00:05:22 – Local regulations and sustainable construction leadership
00:05:55 – Introduction to LEED certification
00:06:31 – Benefits of green building standards
00:07:06 – Key LEED certification categories
00:07:39 – Lower operating costs and environmental benefits
00:07:57 – Reflections on local expertise and real-world case studies
00:08:06 – Closing remarks and the value of global collaboration

Guest Quotes

Mariarosaria Gagliotti:

“By meeting the definition of a large energy consumer, the company is obligated to take action, implementing reasonable measures to optimise energy consumption.”

Sofiane Kessouar:

“The LEED certification provides a framework for designing, constructing and operating highly efficient and cost-saving green buildings.”

Motorola Solutions Foundation Champions 15 Years of the Connected by Safety Program

Motorola Solutions — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 09:40:00 -0400

For 15 years, the Connected by Safety program has demonstrated a powerful truth across Latin America: safety is more than a set of rules; it is the cornerstone of a resilient, thriving community. Created by Foro 21 and backed by grant support from the Motorola Solutions Foundation, the program unites teachers, students, first responders and local leaders around a shared belief that lasting safety begins with connection.

The Reach of a Shared Vision

What began as a bold commitment has grown into a movement spanning eight countries, including Brazil, Chile and Argentina, reaching everyone from young students to seasoned public safety officials.

Through nearly 1,400 interactive workshops, the program has engaged 65,000 participants and counting. Each session shares the same purpose: inclusive, hands-on education that empowers every community member to play an active role in keeping their community safe.

The Heart of the Mission: Cultivating a Culture of Safety

Connected by Safety equips children throughout Latin America with the tools to build safer, more inclusive and more responsible cities. By bringing school communities, security agents and volunteers together, the program creates a general connection between community members and the public safety officials who serve them. The result is a generation better prepared to navigate the world around them. Children learn to recognize risk, use communication as an early warning tool, remember emergency numbers and embrace their role as engaged community members.

A Commitment to Safety

Lasting safety demands ongoing commitment, diligence, advocacy and trust between civilians and the officials who serve them. Through its steadfast support, the Motorola Solutions Foundation invests in that brighter future.

Fifteen years in, the impact is clear and the momentum is strong. The Foundation’s commitment honors the everyday heroes and resilient communities, building a safer future for generations to come.

MetLife 2025 Sustainability Report: Responsible Investments

MetLife — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 09:15:00 -0400

MetLife

MetLife’s responsible investments seek to achieve a market financial return while considering social and/or environmental benefits that help create healthier communities and a more sustainable environment. Responsible investments focus on the core areas of infrastructure investments, green investments, municipal bonds, affordable housing and impact investments.

Affordable Housing

MetLife invests in high-quality housing projects that seek to build financial health and bring benefits to communities. These housing investments involve partnering with nonprofit organizations that provide below-market rental homes to low-income earners.

Affordable housing is not just for social good—it is a financially material and strategically aligned investment category that can help enhance community well‑being while delivering stable long‑term value for investors. This relevance is reflected in MetLife’s financing of a portfolio of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-supported affordable housing properties across several states. Proceeds from the transaction were used to maintain and support ongoing operations of existing properties, and funded critical preservation needs to help maintain long-term affordability for residents.

Infrastructure

MetLife invests in infrastructure projects that create jobs, support resilient communities and provide economic benefits. These projects could include building or upgrading airports, ports, roads, pipelines, transmission lines and power generation. The impact of this strategy is illustrated through projects that demonstrate how long‑term infrastructure investments can strengthen connectivity, accelerate the clean‑energy transition and deliver tangible benefits for communities.

Infrastructure investment examples include:

MetLife is helping to finance Portugal’s first high‑speed rail between the country’s two largest cities, Lisbon and Porto. The line is expected to significantly reduce travel time while improving regional connectivity for millions of passengers annually.⁴ The project seeks to deliver meaningful social, economic and environmental benefits, including lower emissions, as it is expected to encourage demand to shift from road and air travel to more sustainable rail.
MetLife was also a major lender in Project Aurora, a large solar and battery storage initiative in Chile’s Tarapacá Region. The project aims to advance the country’s clean energy transition by replacing coal‑based generation with renewable power and strengthening grid reliability through storage that enables solar energy delivery, even after sunset.

Municipal Bonds

MetLife’s municipal bond investments support infrastructure, education and community services spanning 46 U.S. states and Washington, D.C. The proceeds of these investments can be used to finance or refinance environmental, water and clean energy projects, as well as projects with anticipated positive social outcomes, such as affordable public housing and school building revitalization.

MetLife invested in the Idaho Housing and Finance Association (IHFA), a self‑supporting financial institution that expands affordable housing and strengthens Idaho communities by providing homeownership lending, rental assistance, homelessness support and multifamily finance. With deep expertise in real estate development, finance and tenant services, IHFA is committed to making safe, stable and affordable housing accessible to all Idahoans.

Green Investments

MetLife invests in companies and projects that focus on the conservation of natural resources, the production and discovery of alternative energy sources, the implementation of clean air and water projects and other environmentally conscious business practices. These investments demonstrate how MetLife advances our New Frontier strategy by deploying capital into projects that seek to strengthen environmental resilience, reduce long‑term risk and support sustainable value creation.

For example:

MetLife installed solar panels on the rooftop of its Fairmont Hotel investment in Washington, D.C. The solar panels generate renewable electricity that supplies the local power grid and decreases reliance on fossil fuels. The installation supports MetLife’s broader efforts to reduce its overall carbon footprint by contributing to a greener grid.
As part of a financing agreement, MetLife partnered with Resource Management Service, LLC, on behalf of investors to enroll thousands of acres in a Working Forest Conservation Easement (WFCE) funded by the U.S. Forest Service in partnership with South Carolina Forest Commission. The WFCE preserves sensitive lands vital to clean water, wildlife habitat and recreational opportunities, while also supporting rural economies dependent on timber resources for economic development.

Impact Investments

Since the MetLife Impact Investment program's inception in 1984, MetLife has committed approximately $1 billion, with an average of $40.9 million annually for the past 10 years. The program's investments are made with the intent to generate positive financial returns alongside measurable social and environmental outcomes, such as supporting financial health and climate resilience. These impact investments are originated solely for MetLife and MetLife Foundation. See For Our Communities for more information about MetLife Foundation’s work.

Through our General Account (GA) portfolio, MetLife is a lender to the Lendable Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Fintech Credit Fund II, which aims to expand financing for micro, small and medium enterprises and consumers by lending to fintechs in frontier and emerging markets. Lendable’s work supports access to fair financial resources that unlock consistent access to food, clean water, electricity, shelter, education and income.

Read more about our responsible investments in MetLife’s 2025 Sustainability Report.

^{1 At estimated fair value as of December 31, 2025. See the}^Glossary^{for responsible investments definitions.}

^{2 Green investments include MetLife Real Estate and Agriculture investments.}

^{3 Represents impact investments originated solely for MetLife’s GA investment portfolio and MetLife Foundation.}

^{4 Railway News (July 2025).}^{https://railwaynews.net/portugal-high-speed-rail-lisbon-porto-line-funding-impact.html}^{. Accessed February 2026.}

How Whispp and Qualcomm Brought Voice Reconstruction AI to Snapdragon X Elite

Qualcomm — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 09:05:00 -0400

Originally published on Whispp

The project brought Whispp’s audio-to-audio Voice Reconstruction AI together with the on-device processing capabilities of Snapdragon X Elite. Thirty participants across nine countries used the technology during everyday calls and online conversations, providing practical feedback on performance, usability, privacy and communication quality.

Download the white paper

Bringing real-time Voice Reconstruction AI onto the device

Live voice communication leaves little room for delay, unstable processing or interruptions. For Voice Reconstruction AI to feel natural in conversation, the system needs to process audio continuously and respond almost immediately.

Whispp reconstructs whispered or affected speech into a clear, natural voice without first converting it into text. By keeping the process audio-to-audio and running it locally, the technology is designed to preserve conversational timing, expression and elements of the speaker’s identity.

For the pilot, Whispp was optimized to run on the Snapdragon X Elite platform, using its dedicated Neural Processing Unit to support real-time Voice Reconstruction AI inference.

Why the NPU matters

Running Voice Reconstruction AI on a dedicated NPU can improve both performance stability and energy efficiency. This is especially relevant for technology that needs to operate continuously during calls rather than process a single prompt or isolated task.

Testing conducted during the pilot showed that Whispp maintained processing latency of approximately 48 to 50 milliseconds when running on the NPU. CPU-based execution showed greater variation, including latency spikes and disruptions during sustained processing.

The NPU also delivered substantially longer battery runtime in the test setup. Whispp ran for approximately 310 minutes on the NPU, compared with around 130 minutes during CPU-based processing under the same conditions.

“This collaboration with Qualcomm allowed us to test Whispp where the technology ultimately needs to perform: in real conversations, on the devices people already use. Running Voice Reconstruction AI efficiently on Snapdragon X Elite shows what becomes possible when this technology moves directly onto the device.”
Joris Castermans, Founder and CEO of Whispp

Click here to read more on Whispp

Francia Páramo From DP World Named Among T21’s 100 Women in Transportation and Logistics in Mexico

DP World — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 09:00:00 -0400

Francia Páramo, Director of Freight Forwarding in DP World in Mexico, was recognized in T21’s “100 Women in Transportation and Logistics 2026,” an annual list celebrating women who are shaping the future of Mexico’s transportation, logistics, and supply chain sectors through leadership, innovation, and professional excellence.

Published by T21, one of Mexico’s leading business media outlets covering transportation, logistics, supply chains, ports, and international trade, the recognition celebrates business leaders, executives, entrepreneurs, and supply chain professionals whose careers have helped advance both their organizations and the broader logistics industry.

With more than 25 years of experience in logistics and international trade, Páramo has built a distinguished career in freight forwarding, business development, and strategic account management. Before joining DP World, she held leadership positions at global logistics companies including Kuehne+Nagel, Damco (Maersk), and CEVA Logistics, helping customers strengthen supply chains and expand international trade opportunities.

Today, as Director of Freight Forwarding at DP World in Mexico, Páramo leads the company’s freight forwarding business through an integrated end-to-end logistics model, providing solutions spanning air, ocean, and ground transportation, customs services, and supply chain management. Her leadership has strengthened DP World’s presence in strategic trade corridors supporting nearshoring and international commerce while delivering tailored logistics solutions for industries including automotive, retail, technology and consumer goods.

“Receiving this recognition is an honor because it reflects the incredible progress women are making across the logistics industry,” said Páramo. “As our industry continues to evolve, diverse perspectives and strong collaboration will be essential to building more resilient supply chains and creating opportunities for the next generation of leaders.”

Francia Páramo’s recognition reflects DP World’s broader commitment to fostering diverse leadership and creating opportunities for women across the logistics industry. By investing in talent and empowering leaders, DP World continues to strengthen the teams driving smarter, more connected global trade.

Learn more about the people driving innovation and shaping the future of logistics at DP World.

Action Against Hunger Statement in Response to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World Report

Action Against Hunger — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:00:00 -0400

NEW YORK, July 21, 2026 /3BL/ - The 2026 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) report was released today by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Food Programme (WFP), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and UNICEF. The report is the leading annual benchmark on global hunger, food access, and the affordability of healthy diets. Rotimy Djossaya, Chief Impact Officer with Action Against Hunger, available for interviews to discuss the findings.

The 2026 SOFI report, “Understanding and Addressing the High Costs of a Healthy Diet,” puts global hunger at 645 million people, 7.8% of the world’s population. This is a decrease of just 14 million from 2025’s estimate of 720 million. That decline is concentrated in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Asia; it does not reflect what is happening in Africa, where 309 million people, or 1 in 5, are hungry and 66.6% cannot afford a healthy diet. Without a sharp course correction, which includes reversing aid cuts, addressing conflict, and investing in climate-resilient food systems, the modest gains recorded elsewhere will not hold, and Africa’s trajectory will continue to worsen.

This year’s report also lands amid a prolonged funding crisis for humanitarian nutrition programs. In early 2025, the United States terminated roughly 90% of its foreign aid contracts, including $1.4 billion in emergency nutrition funding, and the effects are still unfolding. More than 13 million children across West and Central Africa alone are projected to suffer from malnutrition in 2026 as aid cuts push millions deeper into hunger. Supply chains for treatments like ready-to-use therapeutic food remain disrupted, and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz continues to push up global food prices, adding further risk for children already on the edge.

Key findings:

For the first time on record, Africa has more hungry people than Asia: 309 million, or 1 in 5 people, compared with 292 million (6%) in Asia. Latin America and the Caribbean stand at 4.8% (32 million); Oceania at 8% (3.7 million).
Africa’s hunger population has nearly doubled since 2010, from 171 million to 309 million in 2025, driven by conflict, displacement, climate shocks, and economic instability in countries including Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, and Nigeria.
Nearly one in three people worldwide (32.7%) cannot afford a healthy diet. In Africa, that figure is two in three (66.6%) – more than double the rate in Asia (28.9%) and Latin America and the Caribbean (25.7%).
Official Development Assistance from DAC donor countries fell 23.1% in 2025 compared with 2024. Action Against Hunger was forced to close more than 50 projects across 20 countries as a result, cutting services to hundreds of thousands of people, most of them in Africa. In Madagascar, the organization closed 3 of its 5 sub-bases and 10 mobile clinics stopped operating, affecting treatment for over 5,000 children with acute malnutrition. In Burkina Faso, 6 of 8 bases closed between 2025 and 2026.

“When 645 million people are hungry, that’s cause for concern. Perhaps even more alarming is the fact that this figure doesn’t yet count the ways that rising inflation, current conflicts, El Niño and other climate shocks are making hunger even worse,” said Rotimy Djossaya, Chief Impact Officer for Action Against Hunger USA.

***

Action Against Hunger leads the global movement to end hunger. We innovate solutions, advocate for change, and reach 26.5 million people every year with proven hunger prevention and treatment programs. As a nonprofit that works across over 55 countries, our 8,500+ dedicated staff members partner with communities to address the root causes of hunger, including climate change, conflict, inequity, and emergencies. We strive to create a world free from hunger, for everyone, for good.

Spokesperson available.

CONTACT:
Kara Green
kgreen@actionagainsthunger.org

Former Ben & Jerry’s CEO Matthew McCarthy Featured on ‘It Shouldn’t Be This Hard’ Podcast From Grounded World | Part 2

Grounded World — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Purpose. Profit. Politics. Few business leaders have spent more time at the intersection of all three than Matthew McCarthy.

As former CEO of Ben & Jerry's and a longtime leader at Unilever, he's spent decades navigating the collision of competing stakeholder expectations, public pressure, and business performance.

On 'It Shouldn’t Be This Hard', we talk to business leaders, sustainability professionals, and social impact entrepreneurs working at the intersection of purpose and performance—hosting lively, playful (and often provocative) discussions around why sometimes it’s so hard to do the right thing… and do the right things.

In Part 2 of our conversation with Matthew McCarthy, we tackle anti-woke backlash, the monetization of conflict, the collapse of trust, and the difficult reality of leadership in a world where outrage is increasingly stoked over collaboration and progress.

Listen to Part 2 of the interview here.

Grounded is a multi-award-winning, B Corp certified brand activation agency — thriving at the intersection of brand experience, commercial innovation, sustainability and social impact. They work with brands, retailers, startups and nonprofits all over the world, helping them transform purpose into profit, commercialize sustainability and drive positive behavior change at scale. Learn more.

Regenerative Refrigerant: From Consumable to Circular Resource

Trane Technologies — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 07:30:00 -0400

This article is authored by Santiago Martinez, Lab Manager & Core Refrigeration Lead, Trane Technologies.

If something still works, I don’t throw it away and buy something new. So, when I joined the Thermo King laboratory in Barcelona and saw that we were buying new refrigerant, running tests and then sending the used refrigerant to be destroyed, it didn’t sit right. It wasn’t sustainable, environmentally or financially.

We were paying twice — once for the new refrigerant and again to destroy the old one. Each time I signed off on another order, I thought: We’re throwing away something that still has value.

I knew something had to change.

The hidden waste problem in refrigerant testing

In engineering, we’re taught that system performance depends on the purity of the working fluid. As refrigerant circulates through a system, it picks up contaminants — mainly oil from the compressor and moisture from small leaks. Oil, in particular, degrades performance. It doesn’t transfer heat the way refrigerant does, so a contaminated charge won’t deliver the precision needed for certification testing.

That’s why the standard practice has always been to use new refrigerant. Clean input, reliable output. However, I’d seen a different approach work before. In an earlier role at Thermo King, I worked on marine refrigeration systems, where we routinely recovered and reused refrigerant. Marine compressors have very low oil circulation rates, so what you recover is almost clean. Road transport systems are different. Those compressors push much more oil into the system, so the recovered refrigerant is genuinely contaminated. That’s why we defaulted to buying new. Once I understood that, the next question was simple: what would it take to clean it properly?

Finding the solution in existing technology

I started talking to colleagues and suppliers and found that the technology already existed. Industrial processes can clean refrigerant and restore its chemical composition if it has shifted during recovery. That matters because refrigerant blends can separate. The most volatile components are recovered first, so unless you achieve a full recovery, the composition changes. Regeneration corrects for that.

There was some initial skepticism, but my team was open to trying something new, especially as it contributed to more sustainable practices. Together, we partnered with specialists who could remove contaminants, verify the composition and return the refrigerant for reuse. And so, our new system was born.

How the regenerative process works

Our process is straightforward, but technically rigorous at each step.

Before adopting this system as standard practice, we ran extensive side-by-side comparisons — new refrigerant against regenerated refrigerant, across multiple units and conditions. We only moved forward once the technicians working with these systems every day confirmed it performed to the same standard as new.

VIDEO: How Regenerative Refrigerant is Driving Circularity in Barcelona

Refrigerant regeneration process

1. Filling the units
The units are filled with refrigerant, using regenerated stock when available.

2. Recovery
After testing, the used refrigerant is collected, stored in 50 kg cylinders, and sent to our supplier once full.

3. Industrial cleaning
Our specialist partner removes oil, moisture and other contaminants using industrial separation equipment.

4. Composition calibration
If minor variations occur, the composition can be adjusted to match the original specifications.

5. Chromatography verification
A full chemical analysis confirms the refrigerant meets AHRI 700 standards’ purity levels. Any that do not must be destroyed, though none have failed since the process was implemented.

6. Reuse
The refrigerant is returned to the lab and reused in the testing cycle as new.

The cost and emissions impact of refrigerant regeneration

The shift to regenerative refrigerant delivered measurable benefits across three closely tracked areas.

5-10% - Loss per cycle, the rest stays in circulation
80% - Less expensive per kg than new refrigerant
CO2e - Significantly lower emissions, we only buy new once

We now handle around 200–300 kg of refrigerant per year in the Barcelona lab. That’s a modest volume in the grand scheme of things. But the impact is visible. There’s a clear reduction in both cost and in the kilograms of new refrigerant purchased, contributing to Trane Technologies' Gigaton Challenge — our commitment to reduce one billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from customers’ carbon footprints by 2030.

Sustainability beyond the lab

Of course, our lab is one small part of a much larger, global sustainability effort. But this work shows that meaningful change doesn’t always require a mandate or breakthrough technology. For our team in Barcelona, it started by noticing something wasteful and asking whether there was a better way.

To me, this is what circularity looks like in practice. Not as a single initiative, but as something built into our daily work, decision by decision, to challenge what’s possible for a more sustainable world.

See how we're making sustainability scalable - Read our latest Sustainability Report

Smile Train and Dentsply Sirona Mark World Cleft Awareness Day with a Milestone: 7,000 Cleft Surgeries Enabled — and $470 Million in Economic Impact

Smile Train — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 15:05:00 -0400

NEW YORK, July 20, 2026 /3BL/ - In recognition of World Cleft Awareness Day, Smile Train and Dentsply Sirona are celebrating a major milestone in their partnership—the 7,000th cleft surgery enabled since 2021—and sharing new data that quantifies its impact well beyond the operating room.

Behind that single number sits a wider story the partners are telling for the first time. Alongside the surgeries themselves, Smile Train and Dentsply Sirona are now sharing the long-term economic and human impact of this work as clear evidence that restoring a child’s smile reverberates through families, communities, and economies for decades.

Impact that outlasts the operating room

Using the framework of Smile Train’s Economic Impact Report, the surgeries enabled by Smile Train and Dentsply Sirona between 2021 and 2025 are projected to generate more than $470 million in economic value over the patients’ lifetimes. The figure reflects a straightforward truth: a child who can eat, speak, and breathe normally can go to school, find work, and contribute fully to their family and community—opportunities an untreated cleft can quietly foreclose.

The same surgeries are estimated to have averted more than 45,000 disability-adjusted life years (DALYs)—a standard global-health measure in which one DALY represents one year of healthy life lost to disease or disability. Put simply, this work has restored the equivalent of more than 45,000 years of healthy living to children who might otherwise have spent them struggling to eat, speak, or breathe.

“When you give a child cleft care, you give them back their childhood,” said Susannah Schaefer, President and CEO of Smile Train. “On top of that, you give a community a future contributor. The economic impact we’re sharing today puts a value on how a healed cleft changes a life, and changed lives change the world around them.”

An impact built to last

Founded in 2021, the five-year partnership between Smile Train and Dentsply Sirona is focused on advancing digital cleft care globally, combining Smile Train’s global network of trained local providers with Dentsply Sirona’s digital dental technologies and know-how. Rather than delivering care through short-term surgical missions, the partners invest in local clinicians and equipment so that safe, high-quality, comprehensive cleft care is available in communities year-round.

“Behind every one of these 7,000 surgeries is a child who can now eat, speak, and smile without barriers, and a family whose future just changed,” said Rainer Seemann, VP, Chief Clinical Officer at Dentsply Sirona. “What moves me most is that this is not charity in the traditional sense. By equipping local clinicians with digital solutions and training, we’re building care that takes root in the community and stays there. That’s the kind of impact our people are proud to stand behind.”

The milestone is being marked on World Cleft Awareness Day, observed July 20, which spotlights the diverse experiences of the global cleft community and the importance of comprehensive medical, emotional, and social support. Cleft conditions are common—impacting roughly one in every 700 children worldwide—yet remain widely misunderstood, and in many regions timely, comprehensive care is still difficult to access even though proven solutions exist.

About Smile Train

Smile Train empowers local medical professionals with training, funding, and resources to provide free cleft surgery and comprehensive cleft care to children globally. We advance a sustainable solution and scalable global health model for cleft treatment, drastically improving children’s lives, including their ability to eat, breathe, speak and ultimately thrive. To learn more about how Smile Train’s sustainable approach means donations have both an immediate and long-term impact, please visit smiletrain.org.

About Dentsply Sirona

Dentsply Sirona is the world’s largest diversified manufacturer of professional dental products and technologies, with over a century of innovation and service to the dental industry and patients worldwide. Dentsply Sirona develops, manufactures, and markets a comprehensive solutions offering including dental and oral health products as well as other consumable medical devices under a strong portfolio of world-class brands. Dentsply Sirona’s innovative products provide high-quality, effective and connected solutions to advance patient care and deliver better and safer dental care. Dentsply Sirona is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Company’s shares are listed in the United States on Nasdaq under the symbol XRAY. Visit www.dentsplysirona.com for more information about Dentsply Sirona and its products.

Media Contact

Emily Gay | Public Relations
egay@smiletrain.org | (561) 308-0089

Lenovo Foundation, David Beckham, and Street Child United Create Life-Changing Opportunity for Young Leaders at FIFA World Cup 2026™ Final

Lenovo — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 11:35:00 -0400

NEW YORK, July 20, 2026 /3BL/ - Lenovo Foundation and Street Child United (SCU) celebrated two exceptional young leaders, Samantha Richards and Deyna Mamani Meji, with the presentation of tickets to the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Final, recognizing their leadership, resilience and commitment to creating positive change in their communities. The special presentation took place in New York and featured Sir David Beckham, alongside Lenovo Chairman and CEO Yuanqing Yang, Gina Qiao, Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Strategy Officer at Lenovo, SCU President and Founder John Wroe and SCU Head of Sponsorship Devin Moss.

The experience highlights Lenovo Foundation’s partnership with Street Child United, an organization that uses the power of sport to ensure street-connected young people are seen, heard and able to influence the decisions that affect their lives.

As part of the partnership, Lenovo Foundation is supporting Street Child United’s mission through technology access, digital skills development and funding initiatives designed to help young people develop critical skills for the future. Support includes donations of Motorola smartphones to help participants stay connected and share their stories, Lenovo PCs for SCU Young Leaders and staff, and funding for AI digital literacy training.

The two Young Leaders honored today were selected from Street Child United’s Young Leaders Program, which supports former participants who have demonstrated exceptional leadership and a deep commitment to their communities. As champions for the rights of street-connected young people, they represent the voices and experiences of their communities on national and international stages.

“At Lenovo Foundation, we believe that access to technology and education can unlock opportunity and transform lives,” said Calvin J. Crosslin, Vice President, Chief Inclusion Officer and President of Lenovo Foundation. “These two young leaders represent the extraordinary potential that exists in young people everywhere when they are given the tools, support and opportunity to succeed. Through our partnership with Street Child United, we are helping equip young leaders with the skills and technology they need to tell their stories, strengthen their communities and shape their futures. It is an honor to celebrate their achievements on one of the world’s biggest stages.”

John Wroe, CEO of Street Child United said: “We are delighted that Lenovo Foundation are providing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to our Young Leaders. Partnerships like this are vital in helping us turn create opportunity for street-connected young people.”

The recognition builds on Lenovo Foundation’s broader support of Street Child United, including the donation of Lenovo PCs and Motorola smartphones and $25,000 in funding support for AI digital literacy training for SCU Young Leaders.

The partnership aligns with Lenovo Foundation’s mission to provide access to technology and education for communities that need it most while demonstrating how sport has the power to enable inclusion, opportunity and social impact around the world.

By combining the global reach of sport with access to technology and digital skills, Lenovo Foundation and Street Child United are helping ensure that young people from underserved communities have the opportunity to develop as leaders, advocates and changemakers.

Read more here about Lenovo’s partnership with FIFA and the FIFA World Cup 2026™.

Digital Financial Education Sparks Transformation for Microentrepreneurs in Bolivia

FedEx — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 11:00:00 -0400

Authors: Tannaz Daruwalla, Leonardo Tibaquira, Miquel Jordana (republished with permission of Accion)

Every morning in El Alto, Bolivia, Yoselin has dozens of financial considerations to think about before her first customer arrives. How much oil should she buy this week? Will rising food prices cut into her profits again? Will there be enough left at the end of the month to support her family?

At just 26 years old, Yoselin runs a small storefront where she serves salchipapas — a local dish of sausage and fries — and hamburgers to her customers, primarily young people from the surrounding community. She started the business to generate additional income for her family, but like many first-time entrepreneurs, she quickly discovered that hard work alone is not always enough to sustain and grow a business.

Managing and tracking inventory was time-consuming, producing high-quality food for her growing customer base was demanding, and she also had to contend with rising costs for her ingredients, making planning unpredictable. And like many small business owners operating informally, she relied mostly on instinct to manage expenses and cash flow.

That began to change when she connected with BancoSol, Accion’s longtime partner in Bolivia. Through BancoSol, Yoselin accessed a small business loan that helped stabilize her operations and invest more confidently in her business. She also participated in Ovante, Accion’s digital financial capability program supported by FedEx, designed for microentrepreneurs to strengthen financial skills and decision-making through practical, accessible learning.

These may sound like small changes, but for entrepreneurs operating on very thin margins, understanding cash flow and planning ahead can make the difference between surviving week to week and building long-term stability. The Ovante modules, offered to BancoSol’s customers via an online mobile platform and delivered in workshops, have had immediate benefits for women entrepreneurs like Yoselin. It has also proved beneficial for her family, including Yoselin’s mother, who was unfamiliar with the concept of formal budgeting for her household and business finances.

Digital tools have further expanded Yoselin’s reach. Through WhatsApp groups, she now communicates with her customers to let them know when she’s open and what’s on the menu. Recently, Yoselin started experimenting with TikTok to attract new customers and build her brand.

In communities like El Alto, where many women entrepreneurs operate informally and face constant economic uncertainty, access to practical financial tools can have a huge impact. The challenge is often not lack of ambition, but lack of access to tools, systems, and support that help microentrepreneurs make informed decisions and plan for growth. That is where programs like Ovante can play an important role. By combining financial education with digital accessibility, the platform helps entrepreneurs build not only technical knowledge, but also confidence and agency.

With improved confidence and decision-making power, women entrepreneurs are better able to contribute to their household income and plan for the future. Yoselin is setting an example for other women in her community, demonstrating that small changes in financial habits can build resilience against economic uncertainty.

Ovante’s digital financial education, delivered in partnership with BancoSol, is more than just a learning platform; it’s a catalyst for positive change. Since 2020, Accion has launched Ovante in Mexico, Colombia, Bolivia, and India, reaching over 150,000 customers — two-thirds of whom are women.

Equipping microentrepreneurs with practical skills, confidence, and accessible tools enables them to thrive, adapt, and dream bigger in the face of adversity. For Yoselin, the transformation is deeply personal. She still faces rising costs and uncertainty, but today she approaches those challenges differently: with greater confidence, stronger financial habits, and a clearer vision for what her business, and her future, could become.

Click here to learn about FedEx Cares, our global community engagement program.

A Tampa Family Finds Peace Under a New, Hurricane-Ready Roof

Verizon — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:50:00 -0400

Verizon

At a glance

Devastating Impact: Hurricane Milton severely flooded and destroyed the home of Michelle and her family in Tampa, leaving them temporarily displaced and without a safe place to live.
Resilient Partnership: Verizon’s Community Disaster Resilience initiative partnered with Habitat for Humanity to build and repair homes nationwide using storm-resistant, “FORTIFIED” construction standards that protect against future extreme weather.
A New Beginning: Through this partnership, Michelle and her family will now live in a brand-new, disaster-resilient home in a 23-home development in Brandon, Florida, restoring their sense of safety and peace.

When Hurricane Milton tore through Tampa, Florida, on October 9, 2024, Michelle watched as floodwaters destroyed everything in her home—including clothes, furniture, and bedding—and shattered her sense of security.

“That was the scariest moment of my life,” Michelle says. Although it wasn’t in a flood zone, water cascaded throughout her parents’ house, where Michelle was living with her sons and granddaughter. The family survived the storm but the house was uninhabitable. They bounced between a shelter and family members’ homes for months.

Michelle and her family weren’t alone. Back-to-back-hurricanes caused widespread devastation in the Tampa Bay area that autumn, flooding homes and destroying roofs.

To help people recover from the storm, Verizon Community Disaster Resilience, an initiative to help communities prepare for, respond to and recover from extreme weather events, partnered with Habitat for Humanity, a global non-profit organization that helps families in need of affordable housing. The partnership works to build new homes, repair homes and provide homeowners with essential, disaster-resilient structural improvements.

For homes in Florida, such upgrades include storm shutters, hurricane-resistant windows and garage doors, as well as roof trusses and roof straps to help buildings withstand hurricane-force winds. This type of FORTIFIED construction in a home like Michelle’s leads to fewer insurance claims and greater cost savings for homeowners after disasters, reducing loss frequency by as much as 69 percent and loss severity by up to 32 percent.

“Building disaster-resilient homes brings stability to these families, and the security that they have a place to go during a storm—and they know after the storm, they’re going to have a place to live and feel safe,” says Richard Rogers, chief development officer for Habitat for Humanity of Tampa Bay Hillsborough.

Community Disaster Resilience sponsored the construction of a new home for Michelle, her adult sons, and her granddaughter. At a dedication ceremony, the family was welcomed to a brand-new, 23-home development in Brandon, Florida.

When a natural disaster happens, we are on the scene recovering the networks, but we also want to help build empowered and prepared communities.
Donna Epps
Senior Vice President and Chief Responsibility Officer at Verizon

“When a natural disaster happens, we are on the scene recovering the networks, but we also want to help build empowered and prepared communities,” explains Donna Epps, senior vice president and chief responsibility officer at Verizon. “[Community Disaster Resilience] was born to help communities and families prepare for natural disasters with strength, respond with urgency, and in this case, recover with resilience.”

Having a house where her family can feel safe and secure is what is most important to Michelle. “It’s your sense of peace, sense of comfort, a sense of family,” she says. “That’s what home means to me.”

For more information and to learn more, visit Verizon Community Disaster Resilience.

^{Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ) powers and empowers how its millions of customers live, work and play, delivering on their demand for mobility, reliable network connectivity and security. Headquartered in New York City, serving countries worldwide and nearly all of the Fortune 500, Verizon generated revenues of $138.2 billion in 2025. Verizon}^’^{s world-class team never stops innovating to meet customers where they are today and equip them for the needs of tomorrow. For more, visit verizon.com or find a retail location at verizon.com/stores.}

Annual Louisiana Fishing Rodeo Reels In More Than $190,000 for the Power To Care

Entergy Corporation — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:00:00 -0400

By Jordyn Martin

Earlier this June, Entergy Louisiana hosted the third annual Watt-A-Catch Fishing Rodeo — and thanks to the extraordinary generosity of our employees, partners and sponsors, this year’s event made an even bigger splash for families in need across our state.

The poker‑style tournament and silent auction brought together anglers from across the region, all united by a shared purpose: supporting The Power to Care, Entergy’s longstanding program that offers emergency bill assistance to older adults and customers with disabilities. Together, participants raised more than $190,000 — an impressive $55,000 increase over last year’s total, and a testament to the heart and commitment of the Entergy community.

This achievement was made possible through the leadership of William Sones, vice president of power delivery chief engineer; Victor Herrington, director of reliability performance; and William McDonald, director of field mentoring programs, whose dedication ensured a seamless and impactful event.

A legacy of community support

Since 2008, The Power to Care has worked alongside local nonprofits, Entergy employees and generous customers to reach those who need help most. To date, the program has provided essential support to more than 250,000 individuals facing financial hardship and has raised over $50 million to assist customers during challenging times.

This year’s rodeo not only adds to that legacy, it strengthens it. Each dollar raised helps ensure that when our most vulnerable neighbors face unexpected hardships, they aren’t navigating those moments alone.

Making a difference beyond the day

The impact of The Power to Care continues long after the fishing rods are packed away. The program provides year‑round assistance, offering comfort, stability and hope to customers who need it most.

To learn more or to support The Power to Care, visit the donation page here. Your contribution helps power life and uplift communities throughout Louisiana.

View original content here.

4,000+ Refurbished Fridges: How Whirlpool Corporation Is Scaling the Fight Against Food Insecurity and Waste

Whirlpool Corporation — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:00:00 -0400

Whirlpool Corporation announced today that its Feel Good Fridge program has officially reached a major milestone, deploying more than 4,000 refurbished refrigerators across the United States. The company originally had a goal of deploying 3,000 fridges by 2030 nationwide. However, the company has bypassed this goal ahead of schedule through strengthened partnerships and the hard work of dozens of employee volunteers.

The program, originally launched by Whirlpool Corp. in 2021, is designed to solve a critical bottleneck in the food access pipeline. While fresh produce and healthy meals can be available for donation, community networks and food pantries sometimes lack the necessary refrigeration infrastructure to keep items fresh. By donating refurbished refrigerators, Whirlpool Corp. effectively diverts appliances from landfills while actively connecting vulnerable communities to fresh food.

“To exceed our goals so quickly speaks volumes to the urgency of the cause, the strength of our community partnerships, and the dedication of our 75-member core employee team,” said Feel Good Fridge program lead Kyle Trewhella.

Feeding America^® is also pleased to recognize this milestone.

By pairing the Feeding America network's supply of fresh food with fridge donations from Whirlpool Corporation, we’re removing barriers for people experiencing food insecurity and we’re glad to have such a strong partner to help end hunger.

“Access to nutritious food is vital for a healthy community,” said Diane Letson, vice president of food industry partnerships at Feeding America. “By pairing the Feeding America network's supply of fresh food with fridge donations from Whirlpool Corporation, we’re removing barriers for people experiencing food insecurity and we’re glad to have such a strong partner to help end hunger."

A Sustainable Solution
The Feel Good Fridge program operates as a collaboration that leverages corporate capabilities and non-profit expertise. Whirlpool Corporation provides the refurbished appliances and logistical infrastructure, while Feeding America® coordinates with local food banks to ensure the units remain continuously stocked with fresh food options for people facing hunger.

Measurable Impact
Since its inception in 2021, the Feel Good Fridge program has delivered:

4,000+ refurbished refrigerators deployed nationwide, keeping appliances out of landfills.
250,000+ Pounds of fresh food successfully delivered to food-insecure areas.
25,000+ Families reached across the country.

Expanding Our Footprint
The program now spans 20 states and the District of Columbia, providing vital support to urban and rural communities alike: Arizona (93 Feel Good Fridge units), California (515), Colorado (35), Florida (228), Georgia (346), Illinois (120), Indiana (205), Iowa (66), Massachusetts (28), Michigan (980), Minnesota (49), New York (62), North Carolina (50), Pennsylvania (111), Tennessee (28), Texas (506), Virginia (384), Washington (16), District of Columbia (2), Wisconsin (179)

To learn more about the Feel Good Fridge program, visit whirlpoolcorp.com/feel-good-fridge.

View original content here.

SungEel HiTech Implements Rockwell Automation’s PlantPAx® DCS for Eco-Friendly Battery Recycling

Rockwell Automation — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:00:00 -0400

SungEel HiTech, a global recycling specialist, is establishing a secondary battery recycling infrastructure to actively support the realization of a circular economy in the electric vehicle era and the transition to an eco-friendly industry.

In line with domestic and international environmental policies and market changes, the company plays a key role in the global battery recycling sector and is committed to developing technologies and expanding business for a more sustainable future.

Recent international environmental regulations such as the strengthened EU Battery Directive require improved recovery rates of valuable metals like lithium, nickel, and cobalt, as well as the adoption of eco-friendly processes.

SungEel HiTech is proactively responding to these changes by advancing technology and focusing on expanding production infrastructure. The main process involves recycling lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles, mobile phones, and energy storage systems (ESS) to extract valuable metals.

“Previously, individual unit processes such as discharging, disassembly, crushing, melting, and hydrometallurgical refining were managed by different systems for each process, leading to complexities in operation and maintenance, as well as challenges in ensuring process efficiency,” said Kim Taekyung, Manager of SungEel HiTech. “Therefore, SungEel HiTech determined that introducing a stable and efficient solution capable of integrally managing all processes on a single platform is urgently needed.”

To achieve integrated control and optimization of these processes, SungEel HiTech implemented Rockwell Automation’s PlantPAx® Distributed Control System (DCS). The PlantPAx DCS solution enables unified control of the entire battery recycling process on a single platform. This standardizes engineering and maintenance platforms, delivering high availability and performance while ensuring long-term technical support.

“Being able to manage complex processes on a single integrated platform has greatly improved efficiency not only in process operations but also in maintenance,” Taekyung said. “Additionally, by collecting and analyzing data across the entire process in real time, we have enabled smart factory-based operations that enhance productivity, quality control, and early detection of equipment abnormalities.”

Through the implementation of the PlantPAx Distributed Control System, SungEel HiTech has realized automation based on real-time process data, significantly improving production efficiency and quality stability. This has reduced quality variations and enabled consistent product output.

By securing full visibility of all processes and equipment conditions, the company can respond swiftly to abnormal situations. The automated safety management system has enhanced workplace safety and reduced the risk of accidents. Additionally, the environmental monitoring features ensure effective compliance with strengthened domestic and international environmental regulations.

The predictive maintenance capabilities of the PlantPAx DCS help to prevent equipment failures in advance, maximizing uptime and reducing maintenance costs, and greatly improving operational efficiency. Furthermore, this system deployment accelerates SungEel HiTech’s transition to a smart factory and establishes the foundational infrastructure to adopt advanced technologies such as AI and big data in the future.

Find additional details about this story, including a video interview with SungEel HiTech, on the Rockwell Automation website.

Schlumberger Foundation Honors Nine Women Scientists and Engineers With the 2026 Faculty for the Future Impact Prize

SLB — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 09:30:00 -0400

The Schlumberger Foundation is proud to announce the nine recipients of the 2026 Faculty for the Future Impact Prize, a merit-based award that recognizes Fellows who are translating their scientific and engineering expertise into initiatives with demonstrated potential for wider impact.

For more than two decades, the Schlumberger Foundation’s Faculty for the Future program has supported women scientists and engineers from emerging and developing economies in pursuing advanced STEM research and developing their leadership.

Today, their achievements demonstrate that the program’s influence extends far beyond individual academic journeys. Across countries, disciplines and generations, Faculty for the Future Fellows are turning advanced scientific and engineering expertise into breakthrough solutions that open new pathways, strengthen communities and generate wider change across people and systems.

The Faculty for the Future Impact Prize recognizes proven initiatives and accelerates their next stage of development. Through funding, visibility and connection to the wider fellowship, the scientific and business community it helps recipients extend their reach and deepen their impact.

The 2026 Impact Prize recognizes outstanding initiatives in three areas:

Educational Outreach
Technology Innovation
Social Impact

“Faculty for the Future began by investing in the education and potential of exceptional women scientists and engineers. What we now see is how that investment continues to multiply as Fellows open pathways for others, build institutions and apply their expertise to urgent challenges in their communities. The Impact Prize allows us to recognize this leadership, connect it across the fellowship and help it travel further,” said Capella Festa, President of the Schlumberger Foundation.

2026 Faculty for the Future Impact Prize Recipients

The Schlumberger Foundation is delighted to announce the nine recipients of the 2026 Faculty for the Future Impact Prize:

1- Dr. Darshana Joshi

VigyanShaala: STEM Access for Women and Rural Communities in India

2- Dr. Angela Tabiri

The Mathsqueen National STEAM Circuit

3- Dr. Novalia Pishesha

Future Southeast Asian Scientist (FSAS)

4- Dr. Chao Mbogo

Mentorship Infrastructure for Holistic Technologists

5- Dr. Hifza Rasheed

Empowering Women and Communities with Climate-Resilient Water

6- Professor Edu Inam

Scaling a Research Equipment Database for Equitable Access in Nigeria

7- Professor Bridget Bannerman

Empowering African Women to Eliminate Cervical Cancer

8- Dr. Tonthoza Uganja

Profitable Agroforestry for Smallholder Farmers in Malawi

9- Dr. Zita Nodjikouambaye

Community-Based Screening for Cervical and Breast Cancer in Chad

Selected from 156 applications from 61 countries, the nine winning initiatives reveal the breadth of what Faculty for the Future Fellows are building through science and engineering. They create pathways into STEM, strengthen access to research and healthcare, and develop practical responses to challenges in water, agriculture and climate resilience.

The Impact Prize marks a new chapter for Faculty for the Future. Building on more than two decades of support for advanced STEM education, it strengthens a global fellowship in which the scientific and engineering leadership of Fellows is recognized, connected and amplified.

About the Schlumberger Foundation

The Schlumberger Foundation is an independent nonprofit organization founded by SLB in 1954. Its mission is to support education and promote excellence in science, technology, engineering and mathematics education. Established in 2004, Faculty for the Future supports women scientists and engineers from emerging and developing economies in pursuing PhD and postdoctoral STEM research at leading institutions worldwide. In 2026, the program reached the milestone of funding 1,000 Fellows globally.

For more information about the Schlumberger Foundation and Faculty for the Future program, visit https://schlumbergerfoundation.com/.

Faculty for the Future Impact Prize Global Press Kit

Carnival Corporation Expands Surplus Meal Donation Program to The Bahamas

Carnival Corporation — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 09:00:00 -0400

MIAMI, July 20, 2026 /3BL/ - One year after celebrating the grand opening of Celebration Key on Grand Bahama Island, Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL), the world’s largest cruise company, has another reason to celebrate, today launching its surplus meal donation program in The Bahamas. The expansion into The Bahamas marks another step in the company's ongoing efforts to redirect surplus food through partnerships that create meaningful community impact around the world.

As part of Carnival Corporation’s Less Left Over food waste reduction strategy, the program’s first donation in The Bahamas was offloaded from Carnival Freedom and Carnival Conquest, where more than 318 pounds of prepared, unserved meals were safely redirected to the Grand Bahama Children’s Home, as well as to the Urban Renewal Authority, for distribution within the local community. The meals were collected, rapidly chilled, stored and transferred ashore using established food safety protocols and in compliance with local regulatory requirements. This milestone establishes a framework for future donations from ships and deepens the company’s expanding network of partners across the region.

“This expansion in The Bahamas is really about the strength of the partnerships we’ve built across the Caribbean,” said Marie McKenzie, senior vice president, government and destination affairs. “Working alongside government leaders and community organizations, we’re able to connect what happens on board our ships with real needs on shore – creating a simple, reliable way to get high-quality surplus meals to people who can benefit from them. It’s a shared effort that reflects what we can accomplish together.”

“The Bahamas has long benefited from strong partnerships that create meaningful opportunities for our people and communities,” said Minister for Grand Bahama, The Honourable Ginger Moxey M.P. “This initiative reflects a shared commitment to addressing real needs in a practical way, ensuring that quality meals can reach those who need them most. We welcome this expansion and appreciate Carnival Corporation’s efforts to support communities throughout The Bahamas.”

The launch reflects Carnival Corporation’s broader commitment to The Bahamas, where its investments, operations and community partnerships extend well beyond tourism. The company’s exclusive destinations include Celebration Key on Grand Bahama and RelaxAway, Half Moon Cay, both part of Carnival Cruise Line’s Paradise Collection.

Beyond its destinations, Carnival Corporation supports communities across The Bahamas through ongoing ship donation and volunteer efforts. Since late 2025, the company has completed more than 20 ship donations across Nassau, Grand Bahama and Eleuthera, redirecting furniture, clothing, bicycles and other household goods from Carnival Cruise Line vessels to local families, schools, community centers and charitable organizations. Recipient organizations span sectors critical to community wellbeing, including disaster relief, youth development, education, healthcare and social services, with a total of 19 organizations benefiting from these donations across The Bahamas.

The surplus meal donation initiative is a key component of Carnival Corporation's Less Left Over strategy, which focuses on reducing food waste across its operations while creating meaningful community impact. By safely redirecting high-quality surplus meals, the initiative helps address both environmental and social challenges – minimizing waste while providing support to those in need. The effort is supported by carefully managed onboard processes and local partnerships that ensure meals can be redistributed safely and effectively within the community.

Since its launch in 2017, the program has expanded to 20 ports around the world, helping address food insecurity in port communities where the company’s ships visit. The addition of The Bahamas continues the company’s momentum in scaling the model across Latin America and the Caribbean, following recent launches in Roatan, Honduras and the Dominican Republic. As of year-end 2025, the program has provided more than 320,000 meal portions globally.

###

About Carnival Corporation

Carnival Corporation is the largest global cruise company and among the largest leisure travel companies, with a portfolio of world-class cruise lines – AIDA Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, and Seabourn. Carnival Corporation Ltd. trades under the ticker symbol CCL on the NYSE and is a member of the S&P 500.

For more information, please visit www.carnivalcorp.com, www.aida.de, www.carnival.com, www.costacruises.com, www.cunard.com, www.hollandamerica.com, www.pocruises.com, www.princess.com, and www.seabourn.com.

To learn more about Carnival Corporation's purpose and our commitment to sustainability, go to Our Impact.

Carnival Corporation Media Contacts:

Jody Venturoni, Carnival Corporation, jventuroni@carnival.com

Janna Rowell, Carnival Corporation, jrowell@carnival.com

Hank Green Joins Arbor Day Foundation Podcast in Latest Episode

Arbor Day Foundation — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 08:04:00 -0400

LINCOLN, Neb., July 20, 2026 /3BL/ - Hank Green, science content creator, joins the Arbor Day Foundation in the seventh episode of its podcast, “Unearthing Optimism.” Hank Green’s engaging educational content has earned him a combined social media following of over 20 million people. He is also a novelist, CEO of online educational media company Complexly, and co-founder of Good Store.

In a conversation with Arbor Day Foundation CEO and host Dan Lambe, Green explores the significance of the Internet in the environmental movement and what meaningful engagement can look like.

“Hank has made his corner of the Internet a space for both education and positive action. I deeply admire his passion and commitment to making the world a better place. I think people are going to walk away from this episode feeling inspired,” said Lambe. “In a time when it’s easy to feel overcome by challenges, this podcast is a way for people to embrace hope. We’re grateful for the many listeners who are joining us on this journey.”

“Unearthing Optimism” is a new kind of conversation about the planet, featuring a series of influential and trusted voices shaping culture, science, and how we understand our changing world. It’s available to stream or download on all major podcasting platforms including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music.

The podcast is produced in part by the Arbor Day Foundation, the world’s largest tree planting nonprofit. Since its founding in 1972, the Arbor Day Foundation has helped to plant more than 500 million trees.

About the Arbor Day Foundation

The Arbor Day Foundation is a global nonprofit inspiring people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees. They foster a growing community of more than 1 million leaders, innovators, planters, and supporters united by their bold belief that a more hopeful future can be shaped through the power of trees. For more than 50 years, they’ve answered critical need with action, planting more than half a billion trees alongside their partners.

And this is only the beginning.  

The Arbor Day Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit pursuing a future where all life flourishes through the power of trees. Learn more at arborday.org.

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