Month: August 2023

Originally published by Forbes

Braskem has been committed to process safety, environmental excellence and respect for human rights since its inception through various mergers in 2002. The global chemical and plastics company has been hailed as an exemplar in an industry known for its contamination of air, soil and water.

When Braskem’s salt mines under the town of Maceió in the north of Brazil were allegedly associated with cracks that destabilized homes, leading to the relocation of thousands of people in the affected communities, the company took immediate action.

“This was clearly a moment to show leadership not only by taking action to safeguard lives, but also by taking our social engagement to the next level,” said Elaine Santos de Santana, Social Responsibility and Human Rights Manager at Braskem.

Promoting human rights

Speaking at SAP Sapphire in São Paulo, de Santana explained that for Braskem, delivering sound business to the communities where it operates is an important pillar of its sustainable development strategy, a commitment strengthened after the Maceió events.

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In a world where medical advancements are vital for our well-being, life sciences businesses play a key role in transforming healthcare. Life sciences, simply put, involves the study of living organisms, encompassing critical sectors such as pharmaceutical manufacturing, organ and tissue donation, blood banks, plasma donation and more. At the core of it, all lies the need for reliable temperature assurance, as some life-saving medications and vaccines require strict temperature control, ranging from +4°C to as low as -80°C.

A rapidly evolving landscape

The pharmaceutical industry has evolved significantly over the years, with the rise of biologics or biopharmaceuticals. Unlike traditional synthetic drugs, biologics are derived from living organisms, presenting unique challenges due to their heat sensitivity and susceptibility to contamination – increasing the need for sophisticated equipment and temperature control systems in ensuring the safe production, storage and transportation of these delicate drugs.

The industry also accounts for almost 5% of greenhouse gas emissions globally and toxic air pollutants on a similar scale. The industry’s carbon intensity has sparked a pressing need for enhanced operational sustainability, particularly when the impacts of a warming planet correlate to so many underlying health risks for people. Proactive efforts to mitigate environmental impact involve various strategies, such as adopting lower global warming potential (GWP) and natural refrigerants, optimizing equipment efficiency, and integrating passive renewable cooling technologies. These measures aim to decrease reliance on previously energy-intensive methods and pave the way for more earth-friendly approaches.

Advancing innovation

Looking to the future, the life sciences industry continues to push the boundaries of medical innovation, such as cell and gene therapy, which promises personalized medicine targeting specific diseases. These advanced therapies, while transformative, present challenges in terms of manufacturing cost and temperature-sensitive logistics.

Another area of focus is RNA-based immunotherapies, which have shown remarkable potential in treating diseases like cancer. These therapies, too, require precise temperature control throughout their production and distribution. With the help of artificial intelligence, the drug discovery process can be accelerated, allowing for faster, more flexible, and cost-effective solutions.

Equity aided by technology

As an already capital-intensive research and development process, the industry needs technology and solutions that address how to ensure lifesaving drugs reach remote regions lacking sophisticated cold chain infrastructure – and increase affordability of these groundbreaking treatments. The complexity of the global supply chain and the delicate nature of the drugs make this a challenging task. Our work centers around collaboration with pharmaceutical companies and logistics partners to minimize handling time and ensure medicines arrive safely and effectively to patients in need.

A notable area where global access equity has room for improvement is the demand for human plasma, vital for over 400 lifesaving therapies worldwide. While North America’s donation and collection systems are well-established, other regions experience a significant supply-demand gap. Efforts are focused on preserving every liter of donated plasma by safeguarding it throughout the cold chain due to its immense value.

The life sciences industry remains at the forefront of healthcare advancements, playing a pivotal role in developing and delivering life-saving medications and vaccines worldwide. We are proud to stand alongside this essential business sector, contributing innovations that improve the environmental health of the planet and equip the health system to support the well-being of people now and in the future.

Hear more from Holly Paeper on the Healthy Spaces podcast episode on Vital Innovations.

It’s been just over a year since we launched “Sidekicks Conversations,” a video series where I sit down with some of the brightest minds and talent in tech, business, sports and beyond to discuss their unique journeys and diverse perspectives. Our goal was to create a show that felt like two friends chatting in a bar. No prescribed agenda, just real conversation. And that’s exactly what Sidekicks — which takes its name from our iconic Sidekick flip phone AND the pub on campus at our Bellevue headquarters — has become.

No topic is too small or too big. For example, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff cast artificial intelligence as “not just the most exciting technology of OUR lifetime, but the most exciting technology of ANY lifetime.” AI is certainly going to change how companies like ours operate.

AI is just one of several hot topics that have surfaced so far during 10 Sidekicks episodes, which for me have reinforced the importance of mindful, active listening. CEOs by nature do a lot of talking, so I’ve come to appreciate the opportunity that Sidekicks gives me to turn the tables and listen. And in doing so, I’ve found that my colorful and well-accomplished guests open up not only about their professional successes, but also reveal the personalities that what make them who they are. As I learn from their experiences, our audience does, too.

Listening isn’t new for T-Mobile. For more than a decade and going strong, listening to customers and then disrupting and innovating on their behalf has been the centerpiece of our “Un-carrier” strategy.

My leaders and I regularly travel around the country, popping into Customer Experience Centers, retail stores and town halls to hear directly from the heartbeat of our company — our employees. We’ve built a culture around employees being unafraid to call out dumb policies or ways of doing things that don’t make sense — things that big companies lose track of if they’re not careful. In fact, this month we rolled out an “Un-carrier Ideas” initiative for employees to submit ideas for spending smarter while making it “better over here” for customers. Within a few days, hundreds of ideas poured in! I can’t wait to see what actions we take based on these ideas.

Unfortunately, there aren’t many great listeners among us. Globally, 86% of employees feel people at their workplace are not heard fairly or equally, according to a 2021 Workforce Institute report. Sometimes it seems like people are more interested in talking rather than listening, doesn’t it? Case in point: Communication expert Julian Treasure’s Ted Talk on “How to speak so that people want to listen” has 38 million YouTube views versus his “5 ways to listen better” speech, which has 4.2 million views. Clearly, we have room to improve.

Listening with curiosity is key to my Sidekicks Conversations. Some guests have talked about what helped them grow and succeed. Accenture CEO Julie Sweet adopted her “you-can-do-anything” mindset from her mother, who worked part time and graduated from college while raising three kids. Thanks to his Italian-immigrant father’s emphasis on education, Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci was inspired to study aircraft engineering at a Canadian military academy. And the entrepreneurial roots of Marcelo Claure, chairman and CEO of Claure Capital, and a member of T-Mobile’s board of directors, go back to his childhood in Bolivia when he secretly sold his mother’s dresses.

And channeling my own passion for aviation, I asked Lt. Cmdr. Chris Kapuschansky about becoming an elite Blue Angels fighter pilot. We shared a laugh about how “Cheese” came to be his call sign but also focused on the critical nature of his work: “We base everything we do on trust.” I witnessed that trust in action when I flew with the Blue Angels during this summer’s Seafair Airshow in Seattle — the most exhilarating experience of my lifetime!

There have been moving moments, too — like when we took Sidekicks on the road to Washington, D.C. NAACP president and CEO Derrick Johnson encouraged us to find commonalities in each other instead of looking at how we differ. Something he said really stuck with me: “Learn how to accept and appreciate people’s uniqueness.”

This powerful bit of wisdom is relevant in every aspect of our lives. I think about it often at T-Mobile, where the uniqueness of our employees helps improve how we work. Which reminds me of my first Sidekicks guest, Kendra Lord, who after 10 years in the United States Air Force transitioned into a pivotal geospatial engineering and analytics role at T-Mobile.

Whether hosting Sidekicks Conversations or seeking customer and employee feedback, I’m learning a lot through others’ visions, values and ideas to drive to success. And — perhaps even more apparent — I recognize the need for mindful listening in building deeper, more empathetic relationships.

WASHINGTON, August 23, 2023 /3BL/ – During World Water Week 2023, Global Water Challenge (GWC) and Cargill announced the launch of new projects in Brazil in partnership with Brazilian-based non-profit organizations. This initiative supports Cargill’s global commitment to addressing local water challenges and specifically improving access to safe drinking water in communities in priority regions.

Cargill and GWC launched its Cargill Currents platform in 2021 to address water challenges faced by local communities. The program supports access to safe drinking water and sanitation, and enhanced water security in priority regions by tailoring to the specific needs of the target communities. The global program is expected to benefit more than 150,000 people by the end of 2024. Building on this partnership, Cargill and GWC are expanding their efforts across Brazil by constructing sanitation facilities and water supply systems, which will significantly improve drinking water provision, community health and the overall well-being of Brazilian community members throughout seven projects across five municipalities and watersheds.

The new projects in Brazil, managed by GWC through the Cargill Currents platform, are designed to build community resilience, promote economic development and deliver multiple socio-economic and sustainability co-benefits beyond water access alone. These initiatives will prioritize efforts to promote community health and livelihoods by improving access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). 

“Because of our position as a connector of the food system, Cargill has the unique ability to develop holistic water solutions that drive impact-at-scale. That’s why we’ve set a global ambition to enable a water positive impact across our operations, supply chains and communities by 2030,” said Michelle Grogg, Vice President of Corporate Responsibility at Cargill. “Partnering with organizations like Global Water Challenge is just one way we are working to strengthen local water systems. Together we will continue to drive sustainable change in communities where it is needed most.”

Following a Call for Proposals and a rigorous review process, Cargill and GWC have selected and partnered with the following organizations to drive and implement the in-country execution of the project’s goals and initiatives:

ChildFund is a child-focused international development organization that helps deprived, excluded and vulnerable children to have the capacity to improve their lives and the opportunity to become young adults, parents and leaders who bring lasting and positive change in their communities. In Brazil, ChildFund has been working since 1966 to address challenges impacting Brazilian children living below the international poverty line. These challenges include inadequate education, poor health care and lack of access to safe drinking water. ChildFund works with local partners to provide support, protection and care for children so that they grow up healthy and strong. This work also includes improving water quality and preventing water-borne diseases and infant mortality.Instituto de Projetos e Pesquisas Socioambientais (IPESA) is a Brazilian NGO comprising experts and environmental activists working to build a sustainable society that balances economic growth, preservation of natural resources and social justice. IPESA has worked extensively in Brazil to train on appropriate water management and improving water and sanitation access in rural communities.

These two organizations will play an instrumental role in ensuring that project activities are implemented in collaboration with the local communities in the following Brazilian municipalities: Luís Eduardo Magalhães, São Desidério, Santarém, São Félix do Xingu and Rio Verde. Key interventions include community upliftment and improving clean water access through the construction and rehabilitation of water supply and distribution systems, the development of water treatment systems, the promotion of effective water systems management, WASH education and training – particularly to reduce water-borne diseases and the empowerment of communities through training in financial and entrepreneurship skills.

“This World Water Week, we celebrate the power of collective action and partnerships that galvanize sustainable solutions to address water access challenges,” said Monica Ellis, CEO of Global Water Challenge. “Cargill’s global commitment to addressing critical needs in priority regions and building community resilience is commendable. As the partnership is at the core of GWC’s water stewardship programs, we are excited to be a part of these continued efforts through the expansion of our partnership with Cargill into Brazil. Brazil will form part of a growing list of countries and communities where livelihoods are being positively impacted through our partnership.”

The Cargill Currents platform is one example of how Cargill is working toward its global ambition to enable water-positive impacts across their operations, supply chains and communities by 2030, in alignment with United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6. The Cargill Currents program, in partnership with GWC, started in 2021 and has implemented 13 projects in Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, India and the United States, positively impacting nearly 48,000 people to date. The newly launched projects in Brazil are expected to benefit an estimated 41,000 people with improved water access, sanitation and hygiene. By the end of 2024, Cargill Currents initial investments aim to benefit up to 150,000 people with improved WASH in priority communities and basins around the world. Additional projects are in development for Europe, North America and West Africa.

Across the world, Cargill is dedicated to effectively balancing and addressing the shared water challenges of availability, quality and access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene, using an approach that is informed by local context. You can learn more about Cargill’s commitment to water here.

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About Cargill

Cargill helps the world’s food system work for you. We connect farmers with markets, customers with ingredients, and families with everyday essentials – from the food they eat, to the ground they walk on. Our 160,000 team members worldwide innovate purposefully, empowering our partners and communities as we work to nourish the world safely, responsibly, and sustainably raise feed. This includes our 11,000 colleagues in Brazil, where we have worked since 1965 to make our global vision a local reality. The possibilities are limitless, from feeds that reduce methane emissions to renewable fuels based on waste from feeds meal synergies. But our values remain the same. We put people first. We got further. We do the right thing. And that’s how Cargill meets the changing needs of the people we call neighbors and the planet we call home – today and for generations to come. For more information, visit Cargill.com.

About Global Water Challenge (GWC) 

Global Water Challenge (GWC) is a coalition of leading organizations deploying expertise and networks to advance global water security and achieve universal access to safe and affordable drinking water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in communities around the world. Since 2006, GWC has positively impacted over 3 million across Africa, the Americas and Asia with clean water access, and its campaigns, tools, data, and best practices reach millions more. In collaboration with multi-sector partners, GWC engages in action – catalyzing financial resources and driving innovative programming for sustainable, local solutions. For more information, please visit globalwaterchallenge.org.

Press Information 
Emily Webster – media@cargill.com 
Madeline Flamik – madeline.flamik@globalwaterchallenge.org