ESG News from Leading Brands

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Atlas Copco Wins Award for Peruvian Flood Rescue Efforts

Oct 30, 2017 9:05 AM ET

Atlas Copco has been commended by the Peruvian Government for helping communities recover from the devastating floods caused by the ‘Fenómeno del Niño’ storm. The Ministry of Labour of Peru recognised Atlas Copco’s efforts in the northern city of Piura at an awards ceremony for companies that provided immediate assistance in the wake of the natural disaster. The award grants Atlas Copco the distinctive denomination of S.O.S Company in Peru.

Environment

Wesley Community Center Increases Local Impact with $150,000 Grant from Green Mountain Energy Sun Club

Oct 30, 2017 9:00 AM ET

Wesley Community Center is increasing its capacity to support more Houstonians with the help of a sustainability grant from the Green Mountain Energy Sun Club. The Sun Club selected Wesley to receive $150,000 for solar power, energy efficiency upgrades and resource conservation for its community center and food pantry facilities. Expected energy savings made possible by the sustainability improvements will have the potential to help Wesley provide an additional 6,000 meals each year.

Environment

Nat Geo Photo Ark EDGE Fellowships Will Train Conservationists to Protect Animal Species at Risk of Extinction

Oct 30, 2017 8:45 AM ET

The National Geographic Society and the Zoological Society of London have launched a new wildlife conservation program to protect lesser-known animal species at risk of extinction. The Nat Geo Photo Ark EDGE Fellowships will support on-the-ground efforts to save some of the creatures featured in the National Geographic Photo Ark, Joel Sartore’s ongoing project to photograph every animal species in human care. Fellows will train with National Geographic and ZSL on essential conservation skills, as well as storytelling strategies that will help raise awareness of the global extinction crisis.

Innovation & Technology

Leading With Science: Tetra Tech’s Women Innovators Solve Complex Challenges

Oct 30, 2017 6:00 AM ET

As part of our Leading with Science® campaign, we asked women from across Tetra Tech to define what it means to lead with science.

Events, Media & Communications

Sustainable Brands Allures Global Brand Leaders to Copenhagen Conference

Oct 30, 2017 5:00 AM ET

Sustainable Brands® kicks off its pan-European conference SB’17 Copenhagen today at the Radisson Blu Scandinavia Hotel in Copenhagen, Denmark. Over 350 business executives from 25+ countries are convening today to continue the conversation on Redefining the Good Life, or how business can meet evolving consumer demands and continue to deliver value for their customers.

Responsible Production & Consumption

SC Johnson Leading Discussion on Transparency and Earning Consumer Trust

Oct 30, 2017 12:00 AM ET

As consumers continue to lose trust in business*, companies are being held to higher standards for disclosing the ingredients in their products. Building on its legacy and leadership in ingredient transparency, SC Johnson will come together with a panel of experts from Harvard University, GlobeScan, Marks and Spencer plc and Edie.net for an interactive discussion on the opportunities and challenges for transparency and how it affects consumer trust.

Innovation & Technology

Vodafone Asks Customers to Become Cancer Researchers

Oct 27, 2017 6:30 PM ET

As consumers spend more time on their phones, many organizations have begun brainstorming ways to engage them to do good on these compact, yet powerful machines. UNICEF tapped into the “always connected” stigma and created the wildly successful Tap Project app, which garnered over 2.6 million users and raised $1.6 million for kids in need of safe drinking water. More recently, one brand has come up with an even simpler ask in order to harness the power of smartphones and conscious consumers to support a cause.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

AEG’s StubHub Center Welcomes 3,000 Children and Families for 11th Annual Treats-n-Suites Halloween Bash

Oct 27, 2017 6:15 PM ET

AEG’s StubHub Center Foundation and the LA Galaxy Foundation hosted the 11th annual Treats-n-Suites Halloween Bash last week at StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. The sold-out event welcomed 3,000 guests, including children ages 2-11 and their families, for a series of Halloween-themed activities including trick-or-treating, arts and crafts, a costume parade and contest, hay rides, face painting, as well as the Wildlife Learning Center's Wildlife Safari Meet and Greet with a series of wild and exotic animals.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

October is #SubaruLovesPets Month

Oct 27, 2017 6:00 PM ET

October is #SubaruLovesPets Month, and to celebrate Subaru retailers are partnering with animal organizations in their communities to collect and donate pet supplies. Basic pet supplies help keep shelter animals happy and healthy, increasing their chances of finding a safe and loving home.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Carnival Corporation Raises Record $338,500 for American Cancer Society

Oct 27, 2017 5:00 PM ET

Carnival Foundation, the charitable arm of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world’s largest leisure travel company, held its second Relay For Life fundraiser Friday, Oct. 13, 2017, for American Cancer Society.

Sustainable Finance & Socially Responsible Investment

EARN in Partnership with MetLife Foundation and Other Funders Approaches Millionth Dollar Saved Nationally

Oct 27, 2017 4:00 PM ET

EARN announced today at #FinCon17 that SaverLife, EARN’s user-centric savings platform initially launched in San Francisco, is on track to pass a million dollars saved by users. To celebrate this milestone, EARN is launching SaverLife nationwide today. Designed to serve consumers making an average income of $25,000, SaverLife is transforming the way low-to-moderate income Americans can use financial technology to save money. More information is available at SaverLife.org.

Research, Reports & Publications

Erb Featured Business Sustainability Case Study: Cargill: The Risky Business of Integrating Climate Change and Corporate Strategy

Oct 27, 2017 3:45 PM ET

The complex and fragmented agribusiness sector has been resistant to legislation surrounding greenhouse gas emissions and other climate change regulations. Cargill, one of the largest agribusiness companies and the largest privately held company in the U.S., has the ability to become a significant driver of the climate change conversation and set new industry standards.

Diversity & Inclusion

Tupperware Brands Recognized for Accelerating Gender Diversity in the Boardroom

Oct 27, 2017 3:40 PM ET

Social Impact & Volunteering

Working ‘Miracles’ With Baseball

Oct 27, 2017 3:30 PM ET

Wells Fargo volunteer George Baskerville devotes hundreds of hours every year to bring baseball to kids with disabilities. “I wouldn’t trade this for anything,” said Baskerville of his work with The Miracle® League of Richmond, which has grown from about 40 participants in its first year to more than 110 today.

Events, Media & Communications

Major Leaguers to Build Homes and Raise Funds for Natural Disaster Victims Through a Pair of Dallas Events in Late November

Oct 27, 2017 3:30 PM ET

The Major League Baseball Players Trust announced it will be hosting a pair of events in Dallas, TX on Wednesday, November 29 to help provide housing for Houston flood victims and raise funds and awareness for those suffering in the wake of natural disasters in California, the Caribbean, Florida, Mexico and Texas.

Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

Video: GRI Standards One Year On

Oct 27, 2017 3:00 PM ET

Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) released the first global standards for sustainability reporting a year ago. In this video, GRI Chief of Standards Bastian Buck speaks about the uptake of the GRI Sustainability Reporting Standards, one year after their release.

Social Impact & Volunteering

TransCanada People Get Empowered for Their Communities

Oct 27, 2017 2:00 PM ET

Every year, TransCanada employees and contractors participate in a month-long giving and volunteering campaign called Get Empowered. The 2016 campaign raised almost $1 million in personal and company-matched donations and tracked more than 6,370 volunteer hours across Canada, U.S. and Mexico.

Energy

Mike Bloomberg Contributes $64 Million to Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign

Oct 27, 2017 1:05 PM ET

The Trump Administration with Scott Pruitt leading the charge may be dismantling the Clean Power Plan, but former Mayor of New York City is doing his part to advocate for cleaner sources of power in the U.S. Hours after President Trump made his plans for the Clean Power Plan clear, Bloomberg announced he would contribute $64 million to the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal program.

Social Impact & Volunteering

How Can I Help?

Oct 27, 2017 1:05 PM ET

Flooded streets, collapsed buildings, growing inequality, healthcare, citizenship and more. Of course we’re all wondering how we can help and wishing we knew precisely how and where to show up.

Health & Healthcare

New Elton John AIDS Foundation Funding to Combat HIV Epidemics

Oct 27, 2017 1:00 PM ET

EJAF has announced new funding initiatives to increase advocacy and service delivery for people living with and at-risk for HIV and hepatitis C.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Visa Makes Commitment to Universal Postal Union to Increase Financial Services for Underserved Communities

Oct 27, 2017 1:00 PM ET

Visa has made a three-year financial commitment to help the Universal Postal Union, which is the primary forum for cooperation in the global postal system, advance financial inclusion through its new Financial Inclusion Technical Assistance Facility. Of the world’s 661,000 post offices, 91 percent offer some form of financial services, and the UPU aims to increase the number of payment accounts held by posts by 250 million by 2020.

Environment

HBR’s Top 100 CEO’s List Used CSRHub ESG Metrics

Oct 27, 2017 11:45 AM ET

Harvard Business Review just released their much anticipated The Best-Performing CEOs in the World 2017 list. CSRHub is honored to have our ESG (environmental, social, and governance) metrics included again this year as part of the methodology for ranking the world’s top 100 CEOs.

Health & Healthcare

Products with a Purpose

Oct 27, 2017 11:45 AM ET

Three years into remission, Justin Fairfax was working for a company that helped produce events for Hormel Foods when he heard someone onstage mention the Hormel Vital Cuisine™ brand, the company’s line of specialty products that help with recovery.

“I thought, ‘Holy cow, why didn’t I know about this when I went through treatment?’” Fairfax remembered. “It made a big impact on me that a big company was dedicating its research and development efforts to making the lives of people who are going through cancer better and more comfortable.”

Environment

Long Island Students Win Top Water Innovation Prize

Oct 27, 2017 11:35 AM ET

Two childhood friends have won the top prize at the 2017 Stockholm Junior Water prize sponsored by Xylem. Ryan Thorpe and Rachel Chang, seniors at Manhasset Secondary School on Long Island, N.Y., have created a system that uses biosensors to detect individual colonies of four of the most common pathogenic bacteria found in water, paving the way for applications in regions where clean water is a luxury.

Events, Media & Communications

Sunny Verghese Appointed as WBCSD Chair for 2018

Oct 27, 2017 11:15 AM ET

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development today announced that Mr Sunny Verghese, Co-Founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of Olam International, has been appointed as the new Chair of WBCSD. Mr Verghese’s term begins on 1 January 2018 for a duration of two years.