A Message from Owens Corning's CEO and CSO
Originally published in Owens Corning's 2022 Sustainability Report
At Owens Corning, sustainability is at the heart of our business, embedded in our values, and reflected in our mission to build a sustainable future through material innovation. The daily efforts of our 19,000 employees in 31 countries bring our sustainability-focused mission to life – through our innovative products and customer solutions, collaborations with a wide variety of stakeholders and partners, and our sense of responsibility to make the world a better place.
Sustainability has long been core to who we are and how we operate, and we are proud to showcase Our Mission at Work in our 17th annual sustainability report. This report highlights our ongoing aspirations to increase the positive impact of our products, halve our environmental footprint, protect our people, advance inclusion and diversity, and have a positive impact in the communities where we work and live. This is what our stakeholders and the planet need from us, and we are working every day to accomplish these ambitions.
In 2022, we took the next big step in our sustainability journey by reframing our strategic priorities as follows: Operationalizing Sustainability, Building a Circular Economy Model, Leading in Key Regions, Innovating for Decarbonization, Reinforcing Our Foundation, and Living Our Values. Against the backdrop of multiple macroeconomic challenges, we continued to accelerate our progress and attain critical milestones in each of these areas in 2022.
Our 2022 Progress
Climate change requires urgent and ongoing action, and 2022 was an important year of progress for Owens Corning. During the year, we reduced our greenhouse gas emissions by driving energy efficiency in our operations and continuing to invest in alternative forms of energy. In 2022, we achieved 100% renewable electricity through investing in a virtual power purchase agreement providing certificates of origin at our manufacturing facility in Trzemeszno, Poland, formerly the largest user of electricity within Owens Corning.
Thanks to the ongoing work of our people to decarbonize our operations, we are now approximately halfway to our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions reduction goal for 2030 compared with our 2018 baseline. Our goal has been verified by the Science Based Targets initiative to be in line with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s pathway to limit global warming to 1.5° Celsius maximum above preindustrial levels.
Through our focus on building a circular economy, we continue to invest in further reducing waste and expanding recycling and reuse programs. This involves collaboration with our partners to create more uses and end markets for our manufacturing byproducts and end-of-life materials, including the establishment of shingle recycling programs that will help us meet our goal of recycling 2 million tons of shingles annually in the U.S. by 2030. We are also advocating for better glass recycling and reuse programs in multiple markets around the world. While waste remains an ongoing challenge in our business, and for the industry in general, we are actively pursuing additional waste reduction and recycling innovations and applications.
Taking care of our people and continuing to make Owens Corning an employer of choice are unwavering priorities. This starts with our unconditional commitment to safety. In 2022, one-half of our global sites were injury-free, and we are proud to have earned our place as one of the safest companies in the industry. Despite our achievements, we recognize there is still work to do. There is no end to our safety journey; it is a focus we bring every day to caring for one another in pursuit of our goal of an injury-free workplace. In addition, our support for health and well-being is intentionally comprehensive – with a focus on not only employees on the job but also outside of work and extending to their families.
We are also dedicated to fostering a welcoming culture where everyone is heard, valued, and respected. In 2022, we continued to work toward creating an inclusive environment for all and increasing diversity in our leadership teams and overall workforce. Our efforts include hiring practices that strategically addressdiversity, support for our affinity groups, and defined benchmarks to track our progress. We have set targets to achieve 35% representation by women (global) and 22% people of color representation (U.S.) within our leadership roles by 2030.
Beyond our own operations, we invest in our communities to make a brighter future possible for everyone. In 2022, we expanded our outreach and giving efforts to focus on creating safe and efficient housing, improving the lives of veterans and their families, promoting educational opportunities for those in need, and advancing health and wellness. This work, and more, moved us closer to realizing our 2030 goal of 100% of employees being actively engaged in their communities through company-sponsored activities.
All these actions, and our ongoing focus on impact and transparency, have resulted in several external recognitions that we are proud to share in this report. While recognition is never the aim of our activities, it reinforces the importance of the work we do. Our 2022 awards included: earning a place on the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World) for the 13th consecutive year, ranking No. 1 on the 100 Best Corporate Citizens list by 3BL Media for an unprecedented fourth consecutive year, and being recognized as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies by Ethisphere® for the fifth consecutive year.
Outlook
As we look ahead to 2023 and beyond, sustainability will remain at the heart of our business and a critical value creator for us, our customers, and other stakeholders – regardless of inflationary pressures, supply chain disruptions, and other macro factors. We believe such challenges provide us with significantopportunities to differentiate our business and drive innovation in collaboration with our customers and partners.
Our 19,000 employees are at the center of our efforts to further operationalize sustainability. To all our stakeholders, thank you for your interest in Owens Corning. We are inspired by your engagement as we continue our journey to fully unlock the value of sustainability.
It is truly Our Mission at Work.
Brian Chambers
Chair and Chief Executive Officer
David Rabuano
Senior Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer
