ESG News from Leading Brands

Education

The Top 10 Classroom-Ready Computational Thinking Resources for K-12

Apr 19, 2018 4:20 PM ET

The need to prepare students for the future of work is now imperative. To address essential 21st century skills in our nation’s K-12 school system, educators are turning toward a new framework for problem-solving: computational thinking.

Diversity & Inclusion

How Your Auto Shop Can Make More from an Overlooked $300 Billion Market

Apr 19, 2018 3:50 PM ET

You may be staring right at a $300 billion auto service and repair market opportunity, but not seeing it at all: women. Your competitors are starting to take note, though, which means either you do the same, or you give away your share of what is now an essential source of auto shop revenue.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Bristol-Myers Squibb Named One of America’s 2018 “Best-of-the-Best” Corporations for Inclusion by National Business Inclusion Consortium

Apr 19, 2018 3:00 PM ET

The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC), the business voice of the LGBT community, in collaboration with its partners in the National Business Inclusion Consortium (NBIC), has named Bristol-Myers Squibb to its annual Best-of-the-Best list of corporations in America committed to diversity and inclusion across all communities for a third consecutive year.

Responsible Production & Consumption

Smithfield Foods Invests in Sustainable Agronomics: Q&A with Bill Gill

Apr 19, 2018 2:55 PM ET

In early December 2016, Smithfield Foods became the first major livestock company to set an absolute supply chain goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The world’s largest pork producer committed to cutting emissions in its US supply chain 25% by 2025.

“We’re getting a lot of input from our customers, NGOs, and different groups as to how we can participate in an effort to reduce our carbon emissions,” says Bill Gill, assistant vice president for sustainability at Smithfield Foods.

Gill, who has been with the company for just over 30 years, heads up environmental and sustainability efforts there. He says that Smithfield has partnered with the University of Minnesota and the Environmental Defense Fund to develop a science-based approach for reducing emissions.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Moving from Reactive to Proactive Healthcare in Rwanda

Apr 19, 2018 2:20 PM ET

Think globally; act locally. This is the mentality CARITAS Rwanda embraces to achieve its mission. As one of Rwanda’s largest international NGOs, CARITAS manages nearly 30 percent of healthcare facilities in the country, each treating a range of health issues from HIV to malaria. The organization firmly believes that all interventions should address issues raised by the community, which is why it relies on CARITAS community volunteers and Community Health Workers, a government-funded national health program that places trained health workers in every village, to collect and report paper-based health data. Without their reporting support, CARITAS would not have accurate data at a scale sufficient to understand its target market.

Social Impact & Volunteering

The National Diversity Council Stands With Starbucks

Apr 19, 2018 1:30 PM ET

The National Diversity Council (NDC) is proud to support Starbucks in their efforts to educate employees on racial tolerance after two black men were arrested last week in one of their Philadelphia stores.

Events, Media & Communications

Earth Day Flash Sale Happening Now!

Apr 19, 2018 1:30 PM ET

Join the Chamber Foundation’s fourth annual Sustainability and Circular Economy Summit: Translating Value to Ignite Action May 9—10 in Washington, D.C. Come learn the practical knowledge, skills, and applications needed to most effectively communicate sustainability and the circular economy, both within and outside your organization.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

New Erb Institute Business Sustainability Toolbox | Climate Change Strategies for Detroit Small Businesses

Apr 19, 2018 1:15 PM ET

The Erb Institute partnered with the Detroit Climate Action Collaborative (DCAC) to produce the toolbox Climate Change Strategies for Detroit Small Businesses. This newest toolbox in the Erb Institute’s Sustainability Management Toolbox series lays out four broad climate change goals that apply to all businesses and institutions, large and small alike. In an interview with Erb Institute Managing Director Terry Nelidov, he explains how this toolbox was created and how Detroit small businesses can leverage it to create change.

Education

Tyson Foods’ Workforce Education Initiative Continues to Expand

Apr 19, 2018 12:00 PM ET

Tyson Foods’ Upward Academy, an in-plant education program that provides classes at no cost, recently surpassed 100,000 hours of instruction to more than 1,000 of the company’s team members.

Upward Academy launched in 2016 at one of the company’s plants in Springdale, Arkansas, and is now offered in 27 facilities in Arkansas, Missouri, Texas and North Carolina. Forty plants are projected to offer the program by the end of September 2018, and expansion will continue over the next several years to cover the company’s entire footprint.

Supply Chain & the Circular Economy

To Go Circular, First Go Vertical

Apr 19, 2018 11:55 AM ET

In a world where there is growing regulatory (and economic) momentum for companies to manage the full life cycle of products, vertical integration provides a key step toward the circular economy by managing waste and providing raw materials to secure demand for recycled materials.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

At Bloomberg, We Work on Purpose

Apr 19, 2018 11:45 AM ET

It’s been over 35 years, and we’re still growing strong. Bloomberg now has almost 20,000 employees — and our products and services are dramatically more sophisticated than they were when I first started here, 21 years ago. But our culture is still largely the same.

Environment

Less is More: Our World is Overflowing with Plastic

Apr 19, 2018 10:35 AM ET

Sustainable Development Goals

DOZN: Advancing How We Evaluate the Greenness of Chemicals

Apr 19, 2018 10:20 AM ET

Samy Ponnusamy, a green chemistry fellow at MilliporeSigma, explains the development of DOZN’s scoring system to Chem.info, saying, “We wanted to differentiate ourselves from other companies offering to perform similar testing, so we decided to take these principles and use them as our basis for evaluating products. We developed a complex algorithm for each principle. Then, using our 300,000 product portfolio, we tested relative greenness against each of the 12 principles, and from there produced an aggregated score from zero to 100, with zero being the best possible score, meaning the most green.”

Social Impact & Volunteering

The Knitting Factor: Making Skills-Based Volunteering Stick

Apr 19, 2018 10:15 AM ET

What has emerged from nearly twenty years of practice is something Common Impact calls the “The Knitting Factor”, coined in our recent Stanford Social Innovation Review article, “The Promise of Skills-Based Volunteering. The Knitting Factor brings together three key conditions that enable skills-based engagements between the private and nonprofit sectors to create strengthened, sustainable solutions that don’t come undone when partners part ways.

Innovation & Technology

Caterpillar Partners With FIRST to Build a Better World

Apr 19, 2018 10:05 AM ET

Caterpillar is dedicated to building a global engineering talent pipeline, critical not only to our continued global growth and competitiveness, but also to the success of our communities. Caterpillar encourages students around the world to pursue STEM careers by investing significantly in STEM programs and initiatives.

Research, Reports & Publications

General Mills Reports Progress on Global Responsibility

Apr 19, 2018 10:05 AM ET

General Mills released its 2018 Global Responsibility Report, outlining the company’s approach to creating environmental, social and economic value in the countries where it operates. The progress made by General Mills in 2017 demonstrates the company’s long-term commitment to protect and restore the resources upon which its business and communities depend, with an increased focus on improving the resiliency of its supply chain.

Environment

Periódico Digital: Departamento de Estado de los Estados Unidos lanza concurso: “El Poder de Crecer”

Apr 19, 2018 10:00 AM ET

El Departamento de Estado de los Estados Unidos, el World Environment Center (WEC), Le Groupe-conseil baastel Itée (Baastel), y RioSlum Studio anunciaron el lanzamiento del concurso “El Poder de Crecer”. Este concurso ha sido impulsado por una coalición de organizaciones denominada La Red de Innovación e Impacto y financiado con fondos del Departamento de Estado de los Estados Unidos. La iniciativa está destinada a buscar organizaciones que se especialicen en el desarrollo de la mipyme en la región y reconocer su labor en el crecimiento económico de los países otorgándoles recursos.

Social Impact & Volunteering

How Nike Trained Up Volunteer Champions for Their CSR Program

Apr 19, 2018 10:00 AM ET

Every CSR leader wants to make it easier for employees to be engaged in their communities, but facilitating connections between team members and local charities is often challenging. Learn how Nike overcomes this challenge by training up their people as volunteering champions and helps charities garner more support for their causes through the Benevity platform.

Environment

Periódico Digital: US Department of State Launches “Power to Grow” Challenge

Apr 19, 2018 10:00 AM ET

The US State Department, the World Environment Center (WEC), Le Groupe-conseil baastel Itée (Baastel) and RioSlum Studio announced the launching of the “Power to Grow” Challenge. The challenge has been promoted by a partnership called La Red de Innovación e Impacto, funded by the US State Department and formed by different organizations. The initiative aims to find organizations specialized in the MSME development in the Central American region and reward their contribution to the economic growth of the countries by providing them with resources.

Research, Reports & Publications

Leading Companies Outline How to Implement a Meaningful Carbon Price

Apr 19, 2018 9:35 AM ET

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) released a new in-depth guide for policymakers on carbon pricing. The organization and its members believe that carbon pricing is one of the most efficient means of driving the transition to a low-carbon world.

Education

Detroit News: STEM Talent is Critical

Apr 19, 2018 9:25 AM ET

We need Michigan’s brightest minds to help us meet the energy challenges of a new millennium such as rebuilding our electric and natural gas infrastructure and adding more renewable sources to our generation mix. And that need is urgent because, like many companies, a large number of our most talented and experienced employees are beginning to leave the workforce.

Research, Reports & Publications

General Mills Reports Progress on Global Responsibility Commitments and Investments

Apr 19, 2018 9:00 AM ET

General Mills released its 2018 Global Responsibility Report, outlining the company’s approach to creating environmental, social and economic value in the countries where it operates.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

Keep Indiana Beautiful’s David Forsell Recognized With J. Sterling Morton Award

Apr 19, 2018 9:00 AM ET

The Arbor Day Foundation has announced today that David Forsell has been awarded the Foundation’s J. Sterling Morton Award which recognizes an individual who has had a positive impact on the environment due to his or her lifelong commitment to tree planting and conservation. The individual will have demonstrated a commitment to advancing tree planting and care through a record of education, work experience, talent and temperament.

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

Emerging Challenges in Gender Lens Investing

Apr 19, 2018 8:15 AM ET

I am a fan of highlighting advances made by women, just as I am a fan of highlighting advances made by a host of other pockets of the population. I am also a fan of women in management, having founded more than one entity myself. Domini Impact Investments boast females in the positions of Chair, CEO, CFO, and General Counsel. Nonetheless, it is clear that managing a portfolio with even the simplest gender standards is an uncomfortable position to find myself in. I hope that by my rising to the challenge, future generations will discover my path is easy to find and follow, but it will be, in my opinion, those future generations that make real progress towards bringing true diversity of any and all sorts into the higher levels of corporate management and oversight. We are not there yet...

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

SCS' Sustainably Grown® Program Achieves Silver Level Equivalence with SAI Platform’s Farm Sustainability Assessment Tool

Apr 19, 2018 7:00 AM ET

The Sustainable Agriculture Initiative Platform (SAI Platform) and SCS Global Services (SCS) are pleased to announce the outcome of a benchmarking effort between SCS’ Sustainably Grown® Certification Program and SAI Platform’s Farm Sustainability Assessment (FSA) tool. Sustainably Grown has earned Silver level equivalence to the FSA Version 2.0. This accomplishment means that products certified as Sustainably Grown can also be recognized at FSA silver level and contribute to many SAI Platform members’ sustainable sourcing targets.