ESG News from Leading Brands

Diversity & Inclusion

How and Where Diversity Drives Financial Performance

Feb 20, 2018 10:55 AM ET

A new survey of 1,700 companies shows the benefits of diversity and inclusion go deeper than innovation for companies around the world.

Education

Did You Know First-Year Students Can Also Be Amgen Scholars? Meet Yulia Kostina

Feb 20, 2018 10:30 AM ET

Before I was accepted into the Amgen Scholars Program, I was quite sure about a career in academia, but this summer ultimately convinced me that university-based research is a job with which I would be happy.

Media & Communications

Purpose: Everyone Wants It, But What Does It Actually Mean?

Feb 20, 2018 10:15 AM ET

Purpose has become a catch-all phrase that means different things to different people. Consumers are demanding that companies do more than make a profit and are basing their decisions on what to buy and where to work based on a company's responsible business practices and support of social and environmental issues.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

A Conversation with Connie Lindsey

Feb 20, 2018 10:00 AM ET

There was standing-room only at The Baumhart Center’s first event of the Kelly Tyrrell Conversation Series on Tuesday, January 30th. The Tyrrell Conversations aim to engage Loyola students in monthly dialogues with foremost social impact, enterprise, and responsibility leaders; this month’s conversation with Northern Trust’s Executive Vice President and Head of Corporate Social Responsibility and Global Diversity & Inclusion, Connie L. Lindsey, was a perfect start to the series.

Innovation & Technology

Ideagen Reveals Global 100 Innovators List of 2018

Feb 20, 2018 10:00 AM ET

Ideagen Global revealed Global 100 Innovators list at Global Innovation 2030 Summit, encompassing industry luminaries who facilitate innovation in their fields.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Join Aramark Campaign and Help Children and Families Live Healthier Lives

Feb 20, 2018 9:35 AM ET

Aramark (NYSE: ARMK), a global leader in food, facilities and uniforms, announced that it will donate $1 to local community centers when consumers join or follow its Feed Your Potential 365 health campaign* at FYP365.com/community or on Instagram @Aramark. Funding from this effort will be distributed through the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities, a respected national community action network, and will be earmarked to support nutrition and cooking educational experiences that help children and families in underserved communities lead healthier lives.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

How Sustainable Are Corporate Pensions?

Feb 20, 2018 9:20 AM ET

Climate change, the low-carbon transition and sustainable development pose some of the greatest challenges of the 21st century. The global transition is well underway and has urgent and wide-ranging implications for companies, policymakers and investors. This requires integrated thinking across the board from corporates - but do workplace pensions schemes and business strategies sufficiently reflect this?

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

How CBRE Develops Competitive Advantage: Q&A with Global Director of CR David Pogue

Feb 20, 2018 9:05 AM ET

“Commercial real estate is at the nexus of many issues — waste, water, energy, emissions, health,” says David Pogue, global director of corporate responsibility for CBRE. “We have a particular responsibility as a real estate services company to help our clients and the whole industry move forward.”

For CBRE, this means adopting a strategy that takes shared values into consideration. Recently, Environmental Leader caught up with Pogue to learn how the company is integrating corporate responsibility into its business practices, and what kind of competitive advantages this can produce.

Research, Reports & Publications

Consumers Want Brands to Put a Stake in the Ground on Issues That Matter

Feb 20, 2018 9:00 AM ET

More than ever before, consumers want brands to put a stake in the ground. It is not simply about reacting to today’s news cycle, but rather knowing where you stand and standing strong when issues arise.

As traditional corporate philanthropy efforts have ceased to capture the love and loyalty of consumers, it is time to rethink old models of CSR and consider how your brand’s purpose can translate to more meaningful and culturally relevant efforts that excite and engage consumers.

Education

Internship: Sustainability Reports Data Analyst

Feb 20, 2018 9:00 AM ET

G&A is offering unpaid internship opportunities for qualified students interested in learning more about corporate sustainability and corporate ESG performance (“Environmental, Social, Governance”) issues. G&A Institute interns learn important elements about the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards for sustainability reporting as well as other common frameworks such as CDP, RobecoSAM CSA (DJSI), SASB, IIRC, SDGs, and concepts in sustainability such as materiality, stakeholder engagement, assurance, balance, comparability, and many others that can be used in their future work situations.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

CNH Industrial Top Stories: Hands-On Help With Lessons in Life

Feb 20, 2018 8:55 AM ET

Through an education project in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, and training programs in Rajasthan and Karnataka, CNH Industrial and its brands have been closely involved in community initiatives that are helping to lift hundreds out of poverty in India. The Company’s sustainability initiatives are inspired by the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and these three particular projects in India are directly related to SDG 8 - Decent work and economic growth. By giving underprivileged children access to education, and by training unemployed youth in useful skills, CNH Industrial hopes the next generation will have a brighter future.​​

Supply Chain & the Circular Economy

WBCSD Insider Perspective: GreenBiz 2018

Feb 20, 2018 8:25 AM ET

Last week, over 1,100 sustainability professionals from around the world gathered in Phoenix, Arizona for the tenth annual GreenBiz conference. The conference focused most notably on sustainable and resilient supply chains; how investors are stepping up their scrutiny of companies' environmental, social and governance (ESG) data; what it takes to create circular products and business models; and the energy procurement landscape.

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

eBay Launches ‘Retail Revival’ Program to Boost Small Businesses

Feb 20, 2018 8:05 AM ET

Partnering with the City of Akron, Ohio, eBay will empower local entrepreneurs to harness the power of technology and ecommerce.

Environment

Greening Mardi Gras: Recycling Effort Targets Parade Trash

Feb 19, 2018 3:00 PM ET

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

No One Left Behind: The Recovery of the Gunga Din

Feb 19, 2018 1:50 PM ET

There were more than 300 American casualties during the Battle of Kwajalein that took place from Jan. 31 to Feb. 3, 1944. There are at least eight known aircraft with 11 missing-in-action (MIA) service members that went down within the Kwajalein Atoll lagoon. In 2011, a non-profit group made up of island contractor residents was organized with a mission to find the remaining planes, and even more meaningfully – the missing service members – to give closure to MIA families.

Environment

Consumers Energy Announces Clean Energy Breakthrough Goal: 80 Percent Reduction in Carbon Emissions, Zero Coal by 2040

Feb 19, 2018 1:45 PM ET

Consumers Energy and CMS Energy today announced Consumers Energy’s plans to meet Michigan’s energy needs reducing carbon emissions by 80 percent and no longer using coal to generate electricity by 2040. The company also said today that more than 40 percent of the energy produced will come from renewable sources and energy storage by 2040.

Media & Communications

Question: Can a Country Provide a Quality of Life Existence and Be Sustainable for the Long-Term? Perhaps – None Do so Today

Feb 19, 2018 1:20 PM ET

This week’s top story choice for you is quite fascinating. How can a country provide a quality way of life for its citizens and also strive to be more sustainable over the long-term? Researchers at two universities collaborated to see what countries are doing / and need to do / to provide quality of life for their citizens and to be sustainable (at the same time) to protect the planet. The researchers explain where we are and where we need to go to achieve both (in balance).

Education

Cisco VIDEO | Empowering New Orleans’ Youth with Digital Skills

Feb 19, 2018 11:25 AM ET

As Deputy Director of the Cisco Foundation, I am fortunate to be at the center of investing our technology, expertise, and cash grants to empower global problem solvers that make a positive impact on our world. Last year alone, our investments in innovative digital solutions positively impacted 154 million people in some of the most economically underserved parts of the world. We are committed to positively impacting 1 billion people by 2025 and have reached 232 million people to date.

Environment

EPA Policy Update: Reclassification of Major Sources As Area Sources

Feb 19, 2018 10:15 AM ET

Antea Group blogs about the EPA’s withdrawal of the “once in always in” policy for the classification of major sources of hazardous air pollutants.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Teaching Trust, the Hardest Part of Foster Care Adoption

Feb 19, 2018 10:00 AM ET

Did you know that some children in foster care have been adopted, only to be returned to foster care? It’s what social workers call a disrupted adoption. It’s more than a disruption to the child though. It’s heartbreaking, heart wrenching and they are often left feeling alone, rejected and like they had done something wrong or didn’t deserve a family.

Environment

GM Expands Composting Program at Its Global Headquarters

Feb 19, 2018 9:45 AM ET

General Motors is taking its composting program – one of its most successful examples of circular economy – to a whole new level at its global headquarters located in the Renaissance Center (GMRENCEN) in Detroit.

Health & Healthcare

WELL Tip: Navigating Preconditions for the Nourishment Concept

Feb 19, 2018 9:05 AM ET

Have you ever considered a WELL precondition and wondered where to begin? Not to fret! We’ve launched a Navigating preconditions series to help project teams get started incorporating a number of preconditions from different WELL concepts into their project’s design and policies.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

iCause to Increase Nonprofit Engagement

Feb 19, 2018 9:00 AM ET

iCause seeks to simplify volunteerism and community involvement by bridging the gap between nonprofits and individuals, to make their engagement more sustainable.

Social Impact & Volunteering

2018 Sands Cares Heroes of the Year Announced

Feb 19, 2018 8:55 AM ET

On January 26, Team Members around the world were congratulated after learning they had been selected as Sands Cares Heroes of the Year, as well as finalists for The Sheldon G. and Dr. Miriam Adelson Citizenship Award presented by Sands Cares. Sands Cares is the corporate giving program of Las Vegas Sands, where we make our communities better places to live through philanthropic giving, volunteerism and other in-kind support to local organizations.

Sustainable Development Goals

Tetra Tech Conducts Hawaiʻi State Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment

Feb 19, 2018 8:00 AM ET

According to a new report released by the State of Hawai‘i, the impact of sea level rise poses an imminent danger to the islands of Hawai‘i, with the potential to cause the loss of roads, utilities, and structures across the state. Tetra Tech developed the “Sea Level Rise Vulnerability & Adaptation Report”—the first statewide assessment of its kind—in conjunction with the State of Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources, Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands. The accompanying, interactive Hawai‘i Sea Level Rise Viewer illustrates projected impacts to coastal areas.