Month: May 2023

In a challenging economic year, Vancity stayed focused on achieving its vision of a transformed economy that protects the earth and guarantees equity for all.

We have your back, Vancity’s 2022 Annual Report, can be viewed at vancity.com/AnnualReport.

Action on the climate crisis remains a high priority. Vancity issued its first climate report this year. It includes progress on both Vancity’s commitment to achieve net-zero emissions across its loans and mortgages by 2040 and on meeting its Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) commitments. The climate report also includes disclosures on managing climate risks and opportunities, including through public policy advocacy, in alignment with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), and detailed greenhouse gas emissions data and methodology.

Vancity’s annual reporting makes a point of showcasing impactful stories about its members and their communities.

Vancity uses its assets to create long-term value in communities, including providing essential services to people resettling in Canada, developing products and services that enable an equitable transition to a low-carbon economy, and directing financial capital to underserved groups.

Report highlights include:

Commitment to the Progressive Aboriginal Relations™ certification program
Named as one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers
Financed the construction or renovation of 3,666 units of affordable housing
Opened more than 1,700 Resettlement Assistance Program accounts for members coming mostly from Afghanistan, Syria, and Ukraine
Offered specialized grants focused on emissions-reducing retrofits to non-profit housing providers
Financed 617,024 square feet of energy-efficient buildings
Launched a support service called Home Energy Advice, to provide expert advice to help members reduce emissions
Grew total assets and assets under administration from $33.2 billion to $34.3 billion
Invested $16.8 million back into community through not-for-profit organizations and businesses

Vancity’s values-based banking model is aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Vancity’s annual reporting was prepared in accordance with the International Integrated Reporting Framework, the Global Reporting Initiative Sustainability Reporting Standards, and applicable metrics of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB). This is Vancity’s third public report on how it is living up to the UN Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB), and its first time having the PRB Self-Assessment externally assured.

About Vancity

Vancity is a values-based financial co-operative serving the needs of its more than 560,000 member owners and their communities, with offices and more than 50 branches located in Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Victoria, Squamish and Alert Bay, within the territories of the Coast Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw people. With $34 billion in assets plus assets under administration, Vancity is Canada’s largest community credit union. Vancity uses its assets to help improve the financial well-being of its members while at the same time helping to develop healthy communities that are socially, economically and environmentally sustainable.

Contact

Media Relations  
Phone: 778-837-0394
mediarelations@vancity.com

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., May 11, 2023 /3BL Media/ – Direct Relief announced today that it received a donation of 2 million doses of generic medications for nonprofit healthcare providers in the U.S. and globally, thanks to the Association of Accessible Medicines’ (AAM) 4GRxANTED campaign.

Launched in February, the 4GRxANTED campaign invites people to record a video or share a story explaining who or what in their lives they take for granted. The generic pharmaceutical industry is participating in the 4GRxANTED campaign by donating its medicines to Direct Relief for patients in need.

“As the beneficiary of the 4GRxANTED campaign, Direct Relief is grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with AAM and the generic pharmaceutical industry in supporting people and communities experiencing poverty or disasters,” said Tom Roane, Vice President of Corporate Engagement & Strategy at Direct Relief. “Access to high-quality generic medicines is a vital component for maintaining or restoring health, and Direct Relief greatly appreciates the generosity of participating generic pharmaceutical companies.”

Direct Relief, one of the largest charitable providers of medical products both in the U.S. and globally, has in the past 12 months supplied 2,464 nonprofit healthcare providers in 54 U.S. states and territories and over 90 countries with more than $1.8 billion (wholesale) in medical resources, much of which was donated by generic pharmaceutical manufacturers such as Accord, Apotex, Hikma, Sandoz, Teva, Viatris, among others.

“We have partnered with Direct Relief and the member companies of our industry to help shed light on the importance of generics and how access to these medicines is far too often taken for granted,” said Christine Baeder, Chief Operating Officer, Generics and Biosimilars, Teva USA, and Chair of AAM. “We hope that the 4GRxanted campaign will not only lead to increased donations of medicines where they are most needed, but also solidify public support for an industry that does so much to safeguard the health of our nation.”

“With 4GRxANTED, the latest campaign from the Association for Accessible Medicines (AAM), the spotlight shines on the critical role generics and biosimilars play in our healthcare system and in our lives,” says Keren Haruvi, President of Sandoz Inc and board member of AAM.  “We are proud to support this initiative. As a society, we cannot afford to take this impact for granted any longer.”

The 4GRxANTED campaign will remain active throughout at least 2023, and videos can be submitted and shared through the microsite at https://4grxanted.org/ and distributed through the 4GRxANTED social media channels.

About Direct Relief  

Direct Relief, a humanitarian organization committed to improving the health and lives of people affected by poverty and emergencies, delivers lifesaving medical resources throughout the U.S. and world to communities in need—without regard to politics, religion, or ability to pay. For more information, visit https://www.DirectRelief.org.

About AAM 

AAM is driven by the belief that access to safe, quality, effective medicine has a tremendous impact on a person’s life and the world around them. Generic and biosimilar medicines improve people’s lives, improving society and the economy in turn. AAM represents the manufacturers and distributors of finished generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars, manufacturers and distributors of bulk pharmaceutical chemicals, and suppliers of other goods and services to the generic industry. Generic pharmaceuticals are 91 percent of prescriptions dispensed in the U.S. but only 18 percent of total drug spending. For more information, please visit https://accessiblemeds.org/

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