ESG News from Leading Brands

Environment

CEOs of Major Companies Call on U.S. Congress to Set a National Price on Carbon

May 23, 2019 11:00 AM ET

Today, more than 75 businesses including eBay, Exelon, Gap, Levi's, Nike, Mars Incorporated, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Tesla and others will meet with a bipartisan group of federal lawmakers to call on Congress to pass meaningful climate legislation, including a price on carbon. Collectively, today’s Lawmaker Education & Advocacy Day (LEAD) on Carbon Pricing is the largest business gathering on the Hill to advocate for climate legislation in over a decade.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Merck Foundation Announces Grant to American Cancer Society to Improve Access to Cancer Care in Resource-Limited Settings

May 23, 2019 10:30 AM ET

The Merck Foundation (the Foundation) and the American Cancer Society (ACS) recently announced that the Foundation awarded a $1.99 million, five-year grant to ACS to improve support and access to care for people living with cancer in low-and-middle-income countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. This funding will help ACS further develop its capacity development approach to expanding patient navigation to countries with a growing burden of cancer.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Taproot+: Free Support From Business Experts at Your Fingertips

May 23, 2019 10:15 AM ET

Join Taproot Foundation’s webinar on Thursday, May 30 for all the tools you need to get started on Taproot+, the cost-free online platform that connects charitable organizations in the United Kingdom, European Union, India, United States, and Singapore with skilled volunteers for pro bono projects and consultations. During the event, Taproot staff will show you how to translate your challenges and plans into a clear volunteer request and guide you through posting your project live.

Education

Mentorship Creates Lasting Bonds

May 23, 2019 10:15 AM ET

The science community really is a small world. Nick Watkins and Rocío Mercado met years ago in chemistry lab at at the University of California, Berkeley. Mercado mentored Watkins when she was a graduate student instructor and he was a second semester undergrad. While they have remained in close contact since, it wasn’t until they were contacted for this story that they realized they shared something in common: They are both Amgen Scholars who participated in the program at Caltech, years apart.

Responsible Production & Consumption

Lab Grown Diamond Council Retains SCS Global Services to Develop Sustainability Certification for Lab Grown Diamonds

May 23, 2019 10:00 AM ET

The Lab Grown Diamond Council trade organization has retained SCS Global Services, an internationally recognized third-party certifier and standards developer, to create the first sustainability standard in the diamond and jewelry market.

Research, Reports & Publications

Bayer Animal Health and Nutreco Sign Global Research and Development Collaboration Agreement

May 23, 2019 9:25 AM ET

Bayer Animal Health GmbH and Nutreco have signed a global research and development collaboration agreement to drive the development of novel technologies and applications for the animal health and animal nutrition industries.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Bacardi Limited Announces 5th Annual Good Spirited Awards for Employee-Led Global Environmental Sustainability Programs

May 23, 2019 9:15 AM ET

In continuation of its ongoing sustainability efforts, Bacardi Limited is proud to announce the recipients of its 5th annual Bacardi Limited Good Spirited Awards. Launched in 2014, the awards recognize the employees, teams and facilities across the company’s’s global network that developed the best environmental programs across five different categories: Production Facility, Brand Innovation, Sustainable Office, Green Champions or Partnerships.

Research, Reports & Publications

Caterpillar Reports Progress on Enterprise Strategy, Sustainability

May 23, 2019 9:00 AM ET

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) has released its 2018 Annual Report and Sustainability Report. Both titled “Let’s Do the Work,” the companion reports detail the company’s progress on executing the enterprise strategy and the benefits being realized for customers, dealers, employees, shareholders and communities around the world.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Timberland x SFA Hold Haiti ‘Agricultural Revolution’ Event

May 23, 2019 9:00 AM ET

Timberland and the Smallholder Farmers Alliance, the collaboration behind a project to reintroduce cotton to Haiti after a 30-year hiatus, are set to hold an event in New York to discuss the project. February saw the groundbreaking project’s first commercial cotton harvest, marking a landmark moment in the initiative which has had positive agricultural, economic and social ramifications throughout the island nation’s communities.

Sustainable Development Goals

What Science-Based Targets Mean for the Sports and Entertainment Sector

May 23, 2019 9:00 AM ET

Today, the sports and entertainment industry has become an even more powerful voice on climate change and sustainability. This shift aligns well with the rest of the global business community, which has coalesced around a single, widely-accepted source for guidance on global climate issues, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Perhaps even more importantly, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide businesses with a universal language for focusing public conversations on the world’s most important challenges.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Merck Named One of 100 Best Corporate Citizens of 2019 by CR Magazine

May 22, 2019 7:45 PM ET

Merck has been named one of the top 100 Best Corporate Citizens in 2019 by Corporate Responsibility Magazine (CR Magazine). The publication’s list recognizes the top 100 U.S. public companies for outstanding environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

PepsiCo Partners With the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation to Invest in a Community Collaborative to Train Chicago Youth, Reentry Population for Restaurant Careers

May 22, 2019 6:15 PM ET

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Omaha Homeownership to Get $3.9 Million Boost

May 22, 2019 4:45 PM ET

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC), NeighborWorks® America and Family Housing Advisory Services (FHAS), Inc., today announced the NeighborhoodLIFT® program will expand for Omaha with a $3.9 million commitment by Wells Fargo to boost local homeownership.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Strengthening Communities in San Jose and Around the World

May 22, 2019 4:20 PM ET

At PayPal, our values are the driving force guiding how we can best serve our customers and communities. Our values reinforce our mission to democratize financial services globally and to further the financial health of those who have not been well served by the financial system.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Disney and Points of Light Announce National Search for the "Volunteer Family of the Year" in Honor of Thriving Volunteer Movement

May 22, 2019 3:30 PM ET

Disney and Points of Light announced the national search for the Volunteer Family of the Year. Nonprofits and schools registered for the Disney Family Volunteering Reward Program can nominate an exceptional volunteer family for this contest.

Innovation & Technology

GM Digital Vehicle Platform Debuts, Enables Adoption of Future Technologies

May 22, 2019 3:00 PM ET

General Motors has debuted the company’s all-new electronic platform necessary for its next-generation of vehicles, EVs, active safety, infotainment and connectivity features, and the evolution of the Super Cruise driver assistance feature*. These and many other advancements are central to GM’s vision for a world with zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Aflac Remains Committed To Columbia As A Business Hub And A Community

May 22, 2019 3:00 PM ET

Building on more than 20 years of ongoing support for The Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Aflac helps underwrite treatment for children, funds essential research, contributes to more than 50 children's hospitals nationwide, and supports child-life programs to improve quality of life and help children cope with their illness. Among its South Carolina efforts, the company sponsors a wing at Prisma Health Children’s Hospital-Midlands.

Research, Reports & Publications

STMicroelectronics Reports Progress Towards 2025 Sustainability Goals

May 22, 2019 3:00 PM ET

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM), a global semiconductor leader serving customers across the spectrum of electronics applications, announced the publication of the Company’s 2019 Sustainability Report.
The 22nd report contains details and highlights of ST’s sustainability performance in 2018 and presents the Company’s ambitions and longer-term goals for 2025.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

This Older Americans Month, Help Fight Senior Hunger

May 22, 2019 2:50 PM ET

Older Americans Month, which was originally called "Senior Citizens Month" and takes place in May each year, was designated in 1963 by President John F. Kennedy and the National Council of Senior Citizens as a time to pay tribute to the contributions of past and current older persons to our country. At that time, only 17 million living Americans had reached their 65th birthday. Today, about one in every seven Americans is over the age of 65 and by 2040 that number will swell to one in five.

Events, Media & Communications

Cultivating the Business Leadership Required for a More Sustainable, Inclusive and Equitable Economy

May 22, 2019 2:00 PM ET

John A. Lanier, author of Mid-Course Correction Revisited to speak at Sustainable Brands SB19

Innovation & Technology

Lockheed Martin and Drone Racing League Announce 2019 AlphaPilot Teams

May 22, 2019 1:35 PM ET

Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) and Drone Racing League (DRL) today announced the nine teams that were accepted into the 2019 AlphaPilot Innovation Challenge, an open competition to develop artificial intelligence (AI) for high-speed racing drones. These teams have earned a coveted spot in DRL’s inaugural autonomous drone racing series, the Artificial Intelligence Robotic Racing (AIRR) Circuit, which kicks off later this year.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Consumers Energy, Grand Rapids Public Schools Name Finalists for Seventh Annual Student Art Competition

May 22, 2019 1:35 PM ET

Ten Grand Rapids Public Schools students have been selected from a record number of entries in an annual art competition focused on energy-related subjects. The artwork will be on display this fall during Project 1 by ArtPrize through collaboration with the district and Consumers Energy.

Environment

CEOs of Major Companies Call on U.S. Congress to Set a National Price on Carbon

May 22, 2019 1:20 PM ET

CEOs and other representatives of more than 75 U.S. businesses and trade associations, with combined market valuations of nearly $2.5 trillion, call for federal climate action including carbon pricing.

Environment

What Does the Future Hold for Sustainability in the Beverage Sector?

May 22, 2019 1:00 PM ET

Increasing optimism and opportunity with a splash of insularity. Fast-paced innovation and growing accountability with a twist of stakeholder pressure. Big gains shaken and stirred with mounting challenges.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Amplifying the Nonprofit Voice Using Resources and Talent from the Business Community

May 22, 2019 12:45 PM ET

There are several reasons why businesses choose to partner with charities. Among them, providing financial support through workplace giving, matching gifts, and volunteer time are effective and critically important ways for companies to demonstrate their commitment to the community. And leveraging those initiatives to engage employees can also help businesses accomplish recruitment and retention objectives and other corporate philanthropy goals.