ESG News from Leading Brands

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

GRI Podcasts: Beyond Reports - Episode 4, Tamara Barker

May 17, 2016 9:30 AM ET

Research, Reports & Publications

Investors Care More About Sustainability Than Many Executives Believe

May 17, 2016 9:00 AM ET

Sustainability is increasingly important for investors, as evidence mounts that companies' environmental, social, and governance performance has an impact on long-term financial success.

BCG’s seventh sustainability report in collaboration with MIT Sloan Management Review found that 75% of senior executives in investment firms see a company’s sustainability performance as materially important to their investment decisions—and nearly half would not invest in a company with a poor sustainability track record.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Cerro Verde, a Freeport-McMoRan Company, Wins National Award for Environmental Excellence

May 17, 2016 8:35 AM ET

The Cerro Verde mining company was awarded the Green Life seal for its innovative conservation efforts to protect the Peruvian long-snouted Bat (Platalina genovensium). Cerro Verde received the highest score from Peru's Agency for Environmental Assessment and Enforcement in the Annual Environmental Excellence Ranking.

Health & Healthcare

Novartis Foundation and Partners Launch Innovative Hypertension Program in Vietnam

May 17, 2016 7:00 AM ET

On the occasion of World Hypertension Day 2016, the Novartis Foundation and its partners, including the international nonprofit organization PATH, are announcing the launch of the Ho Chi Minh City Communities for Healthy Hearts Program, which is designed to improve health outcomes of adults with hypertension living in low-income households in urban Vietnam.

Innovation & Technology

Twitter Chat Recap: How to Leverage Free Tech to Further Your Mission

May 17, 2016 7:00 AM ET

In this Twitter Chat recap, nonprofit tech experts share how organizations can accelerate their mission with free technology.

Social Impact & Volunteering

Sodexo Supports Gonzaga University Students in Fight Against Hunger

May 16, 2016 5:25 PM ET

240 people enjoyed a meal at the Salvation Army in Spokane, WA, on April 26, prepared and served by Gonzaga University students and the Sodexo management team. This is the third year that Sodexo and Gonzaga students have sponsored an event as part of the company’s Stop Hunger Servathon held every April and it is just the most recent example of how the company and campus community have partnered to combat hunger.

Research, Reports & Publications

Walmart 2016 Global Responsibility Report | Advocating for the Customer

May 16, 2016 4:00 PM ET

Winning with customers means being actively on their side – making their daily lives better. As we share in our Annual Report, customers should be able to shop on their own terms – in a great store or club, with a quick pickup stop on the way home from work, or with items reliably arriving at the front door.

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

JPMorgan Chase and Bloomberg Philanthropies Announce $7.5 Million to Prepare New Orleans Students for High-Demand Jobs

May 16, 2016 4:00 PM ET

JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bloomberg Philanthropies today announced $7.5 million to expand young people’s access to economic opportunity in New Orleans. As growing industries in Greater New Orleans require a more skilled workforce, these grants are designed to dramatically increase the number of young people graduating from the city’s public high schools with opportunities to secure well-paying, high-demand jobs.

Social Impact & Volunteering

TransCanada Stands Strong with Fort McMurray

May 16, 2016 3:50 PM ET

From providing fuel to desperate evacuees, to shelter at work camps for displaced residents of Northern Alberta communities and fundraising for short- and long-term relief efforts, TransCanada is there.

Diversity & Inclusion

Inclusive Employment is a Team Effort

May 16, 2016 3:30 PM ET

Inclusive employment is a team effort between the person, their parents, residential specialists, employment specialists, and businesses. In this blog post, we’re going to focus on teamwork between employment specialists and residential specialists.

Environment

Aramark Kicks Off Summer Travel Season with New Partnerships, Upgraded Amenities, Centennial Celebrations

May 16, 2016 3:05 PM ET

With travelers finalizing their summer vacation plans, Aramark (NYSE: ARMK), the award winning food and hospitality partner for national and state parks and other leading leisure and cultural attractions across the country, is kicking off the travel season by celebrating new and continuing partnerships, debuting enhancements to its portfolio of properties and attractions, and introducing promotions to celebrate the National Park Service’s Centennial.

Events, Media & Communications

VM Summit 16 to Bring Good Companies and Causes Together in Chicago, IL

May 16, 2016 3:00 PM ET

VolunteerMatch, the web’s largest volunteer engagement network, announced today that it has opened registration for VM Summit 16, which will be held on October 25, 2016 in Chicago, IL.

VolunteerMatch’s annual conference, officially known as VM Summit, brings companies and nonprofits together in one place to learn and collaborate on how to create better, more impactful partnerships, and harness the power of corporate volunteering for real community impact.

Diversity & Inclusion

Dare to Be Yourself: Lily Chang

May 16, 2016 1:45 PM ET

No matter the role, level within the organization, or location in the world, our people are empowered to lead at VMware. And for Lily Chang, VP of R&D – Central Engineering, harnessing her platform as a leader is inspiring people across the globe to grow as leaders and is helping redefine how people view making an impact at work and in the broader community. Discover how a defining moment in Lily’s life sparked her drive to lead in life.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Businesses Expected to Excel and Grow in Infrastructure and Innovation (SDG 9)

May 16, 2016 12:50 PM ET

This week, Global Sourcing Council's 17 Weeks for 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) explores SDG 9 with examples of corporate action for building resilient infrastructure, promoting sustainable industrialization and fostering innovation.

Green Infrastructure

The Charge Ready Program Pilot is Increasing the Availability of EV Charging

May 16, 2016 12:00 PM ET

To encourage SCE customers to use electric cars, the company has launched Charge Ready, a program to expand the infrastructure for electric vehicle charging stations. The program targets locations where vehicles are parked for four hours or more.

Health & Healthcare

Achal Agarwal: Children can Move the Needle on Sanitation

May 16, 2016 11:40 AM ET

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Booz Allen EVP Joe Sifer honored with DMAX Foundation Leadership Award

May 16, 2016 11:30 AM ET

Events, Media & Communications

TOMS and AT&T Help Consumers Take a “Walk in Their Shoes”

May 16, 2016 11:15 AM ET

TOMS has given more than 60 million shoes to children in need, but as a consumer buying a pair of TOMS shoes, it can be hard to feel the real impact of each purchase. To solve for that, TOMS enlisted the help of AT&T to create "A Walk in Their Shoes," a story of a TOMS customer who travels from California to Colombia to meet the child who benefited from his purchase.

Environment

SCE Provides $450 Rebate for New and Used Electric Vehicles

May 16, 2016 11:00 AM ET

Starting today, Southern California Edison is offering a $450 reward to customers who drive all-electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles.
The incentive, which is being offered through SCE’s Clean Fuel Rewards Program, applies to new, used and leased vehicles. Unlike most rebate programs, second and third owners of a vehicle are also eligible for the payment.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

AIAG 2016 Quality Summit

May 16, 2016 11:00 AM ET

The AIAG 2016 Quality Summit, "Surviving and Thriving Through Industry Transformation", will be focused on helping organizations - from global OEM's, to mega-sized system suppliers, to sub-tier parts, materials, and service providers - adapt their systems and prepare their personnel to not only survive, but thrive and excel, during the transformation of the automotive industry.

Events, Media & Communications

Can One Organization Democratize Design Thinking for Everyone?

May 16, 2016 11:00 AM ET

Tyson Weinert is a lively and ingratiating veteran trainer, who after 18 years of service, separated from the U.S. Coast Guard last year. Since then, he has traveled the country training groups of people from all walks of life to embrace the application and benefits of human-centered design. He had come to D.C. with a simple mission: to induct our group of 18 wannabe designers into the discipline of developing solutions in the service of people.

Events, Media & Communications

Two Weeks Left to Register for Youth Education Roundtable in Boston

May 16, 2016 10:30 AM ET

Today’s business leaders are redefining business success by how their companies work and impact society, driving the need for a deeper understanding of the relationship between environmental, educational and economic demands.

Social Impact & Volunteering

CITGO and Artist Boat Restore Vital Coastal Heritage Preserve in Southeast Texas

May 16, 2016 10:15 AM ET

As part of its ongoing commitment to environmental conservation and restoration, under its Caring for Our Coast program, CITGO Petroleum Corporation partnered with preservation organization Artist Boat to host a volunteer workday at the Coastal Heritage Preserve in Galveston. TeamCITGO volunteers helped Artist Boat staff plant native prairie vegetation, treated sections of the preserve for invasive fire ants and learned about the habitats and wildlife of the preserve.

Environment

4 Tech Companies are Making a Difference with Sustainability and Energy Efficiency Programs

May 16, 2016 10:10 AM ET

Across the nation, companies large and small are realizing both the environmental and operational benefits of sustainability and energy efficiency programs. We’d like to take some time to recognize inspiring technology companies that are successfully using these programs to reduce their environmental impact and make the world a better place.

Environment

The California Drought: Companies Take Action to Foster Sustainable Water Solutions

May 16, 2016 10:00 AM ET