Month: August 2023

Originally published on TriplePundit

The world needs to cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by almost half this decade to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius as recommended by climate scientists, the United Nation warns. As companies wrestle with how best to meet their net-zero targets, technology presents an important and powerful tool to determine which approaches will make the greatest impact.

“Technology plays a key role in untangling some of those challenges and helping organizations achieve net-zero,” says Salma Bakr, product lead at the sustainability software company FigBytes.

Several mitigation options costing less than $100 per ton of carbon dioxide equivalent could reduce global emissions by at least half by 2030 compared to 2019, according to the sixth assessment report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Examples include using more renewable power generated from sources like solar and wind, transitioning to more fuel-efficient vehicles, and using more energy-efficient technologies.

That’s good news for the more than 90 percent of business leaders who say they prioritize long-term decarbonization. “Companies play a crucial role in tackling climate change and benefit from decarbonization by reducing risks like extreme weather events and policy changes,” Bakr says. “In the long run, and as more low-carbon solutions are adopted and become more affordable, decarbonizing a business saves operational costs and enhances efficiency, for example, where you pay lower bills for your energy and waste.”

Why technology is key to unlocking solutions for climate action

In the context of decarbonizing businesses, technology comes under two categories, Bakr explains: digital technologies that enable a net-zero future, and physical technologies for climate mitigation or adaptation.

These technologies complement each other in support of net-zero targets. For example, digital technologies enable efficient and scalable processing of climate data, allowing for more informed problem detection and decision-making. They also allow companies to evaluate multiple decarbonization solutions virtually and chart the best path forward, Bakr says. Together, digital technologies have the potential to reduce emissions by up to 20 percent by 2050 if scaled and adopted in high-emitting sectors like energy, materials and mobility, according to the World Economic Forum.

Physical technologies, on the other hand, enable climate mitigation and adaptation. The IPCC’s sixth assessment report shows that several of these technologies have high potential for GHG reduction at scale. For climate mitigation, this includes solar and wind power, energy-efficient appliances and lighting, and fuel-efficient vehicles. For climate adaptation, a key example is building resilient power systems which provide a diverse and stable energy supply.

How digital technologies can accelerate progress to net-zero

Digital technologies enhance decarbonization efforts in multiple ways, Bakr says. Even more good news: Organizations of all sizes across every industry already use many of these digital tools to ease their progress toward strategic goals — making it fairly seamless to digitize their approach to climate action as well.

For example, most businesses use foundational technologies to support daily tasks of measurement, reporting, and basic analytics for data-driven insights. Examples include enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, customer relationship management (CRM) systems, and supply chain tracking systems.

“This means organizations don’t have to start from scratch,” Bakr says. “For example, they can add sustainability solutions ‘on top’ of their existing systems.”

Organizations can also use decision-making technologies as part of the daily course of doing business, where machine learning can be leveraged, for example, to imitate how humans learn and ingest new data, which can improve decision-making accuracy, Bakr says. Such technologies also allow organizations to use historical data to forecast future events, or provide actionable recommendations to inform actions around decarbonization.

Another group of digital technologies increasingly embraced on the decarbonization journey are sensing and control technologies. These range from automation, robotics and drones to enhanced connectivity through the Internet of Things. By deploying these technologies, companies can more easily collect data from physical systems and more accurately control things like office temperature, humidity and lighting based on occupancy.

Yet another category are enabling technologies that support organizations to operate more efficiently. Examples include cloud computing and mobile communication, which allow organizations to scale their resources on-demand.

Technology advances ease climate accounting

“Tracking progress is crucial,” in pursuit of climate goals, “as net-zero is all about beating the clock and making progress,” Bakr says. “That’s why climate action needs climate accounting first, including a comprehensive emissions inventory. And the main challenge in establishing an emissions inventory is a data problem: data collection, consolidation, validation, verification and so on.”

This is where technology is an asset, she explains. A climate accounting solution collects, validates and verifies activity data, and conducts basic emissions modeling, reporting and analytics. Making that solution cloud-hosted “helps scale data collection, cross-collaboration across teams and geographies, and stakeholder engagement, where you can collect data from anywhere in the world and scale your computations as needed,” Bakr says.

Climate accounting systems can be integrated with decision-making technologies such as machine learning to augment the intelligence of an organization’s analytics, for example, to ensure the right emission factors are applied to calculate emissions data, she adds.

Companies and organizations that have set science-based targets should also keep watch on the “Progress Framework” under development by the Science Based Targets initiative, Bakr advises. It aims to advance the measurement, reporting and verification of science-based targets, providing clear and standardized expectations and guidance on how to measure, report and verify climate action progress against those targets.

This framework will support transparency and integrity by holding companies and financial institutions accountable for their climate targets. Development is expected to be completed at the 2023 U.N. Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP28) in Dubai in December.

Overcoming the challenge of future scenario planning

After the initial steps of streamlining a baseline emissions inventory and setting net-zero targets, an important but often challenging part of the decarbonization journey is the ability to forecast future emissions scenarios and understand associated risks and opportunities. “Many organizations find challenges in defining and analyzing net-zero scenarios,” Bakr says. “It’s a tricky and complicated process.”

But organizations can overcome that challenge by better understanding what is involved in a future climate scenario, she advises. “Scenarios should challenge business-as-usual assumptions about the future, but also illustrate a credible story comprising possible and consistent future events. Scenarios should also be relevant, meaning they explore future insights relating to the various implications of climate-related risks and opportunities. They should also be distinctive by exploring different permutations and combinations of key factors impacting future developments to generate multiple decarbonization alternatives for the organization to select from.”

Again, an organization can turn to technology to do this. “A solid climate accounting solution, coupled with decision-making capabilities, can help an organization forecast and visualize the future emissions associated with various scenarios based on the various data inputs considered,” Bakr says.

At the same time, technology isn’t a panacea, and it also has its own footprint to consider. “As we consider various technologies in the transition to net-zero, we need to also understand that those digital and physical technologies do produce emissions in one way or another,” she adds. “We need to take a systemic approach to tackling emissions reduction and stay on top of the latest research and development efforts.”

Inaction is not a possibility

Taking action is the only option, Bakr points out. “The journey to net-zero is bumpy but inevitable,” she says. Organizations can set themselves up for success with a solid climate action strategy that aligns net-zero targets with the latest climate science, and leverages technology to speed up the transition.

“This will make the net-zero journey as efficient, effective and consistent as possible,” she says. Crucially, the goal should be to invest in net-zero innovation that extends beyond any single organization’s value chain: “Focus on bold reductions, first and foremost. And if your progress strays, make sure you realign by identifying more reduction potentials.”

This article series is sponsored by FigBytes and produced by the TriplePundit editorial team.

Image credit: Anders J/Unsplash

Originally published on U.S. Bank company blog

Andi Garten is a seasoned banker and market leader with more than two decades of experience in the industry, but banking wasn’t in her plans when she began her professional career.

Garten studied English in college and graduated with plans to attend law school, but the more she pursued that route, the more she knew something wasn’t right. 

“While I was figuring out my next steps, a friend let me know about an open U.S. Bank position for an assistant to the Ohio market president,” Garten said. In 2001, she took on the role, which mostly focused on event planning and project management.  

“I definitely was an accidental banker but fell in love with the industry and began to take on new opportunities,” she said.

In 2004, Garten, who grew up in Cleveland and attended Ohio University a few hours down the road, relocated to Seattle as an entry-level credit analyst. She served in that role for one year and met a female mentor through an internal development network focused on powering employees to connect across business lines and geographies. The mentor helped Garten create a development plan. 

“It definitely was a blessing to work with great leadership who saw something in me and pushed me,” Garten said. “I took some risks and that’s where you learn a lot about yourself, particularly when you move to a new city or into a new position where you must learn everything from ground zero. Leadership helped me realize my potential.” 

In 2006, she took on a client manager position and started to get a taste of leadership. She moved on to a sales manager job for several years and then into a Business Banking position in 2016 that required her to move with her husband and two young children to Los Angeles.

Within three years, she was able to move back to her Cleveland hometown to serve as market leader for Cleveland and Columbus. In 2022, U.S. Bank named Garten the Branch Banking Indiana-Ohio Market Leader, overseeing 210 branches. 

“My greatest advice is for people to trust their gut when it comes to their career path,” she said. “I never knew what the next step would look like. I find my joy in connecting with clients and our team, and watching people grow, develop and succeed. It’s important to figure out what makes you the happiest.” 

Serving customers – and tennis balls 
When she’s not traveling across Indiana and Ohio visiting with branch banking teams, Garten spends a lot of time on the tennis courts. While she didn’t start playing until 2018, Garten already earned a spot to U.S. Tennis Association’s NTRP National Championships in San Diego with her doubles partner at the 3.0 level.

“We did really well in the playoffs, winning our quarterfinal, semifinal and final match to win our playoff flight,” she said. “Overall, we left San Diego with a 3-3 record for our first Nationals experience and certainly look to earn a spot next year.” 

Garten is a member of the Cleveland Racquet Club, where she captains teams and met who she considers an amazing group of women.

“I think sports and leadership are intertwined in so many ways, especially in a sport like tennis where the mindset is more important at times than the skill or fitness level,” she said. “With sports, you learn how to win and lose with grace, how to be fair, how to problem-solve and how to adapt.” Playing tennis is the ultimate stress reliever, she said. 

“Tennis provides an outlet where I can channel my competitiveness in a healthy manner.  I also love clothes and fashion, so to me it’s a match made in heaven.”

Garten’s involvement with local tennis provides her with opportunities to teach and inspire her two young daughters. It also enables her to give back to the community and get U.S. Bank involved through organizations that include the Cleveland School District. In August, U.S. Bank will sponsor the Women in Business Forum during Tennis in the Land, which is part of the U.S. Open Series on the Women’s Tennis Association schedule. 

“Last year, 250 emerging leaders attended and that’s expected to nearly double this year,” Garten said. “It’s a great way to connect with women.” 

And just like in banking, tennis is a long game.

“I play a lot of doubles where you really have to be in lockstep with your partner and collaborate on the court,” Garten said. “There’s an element of teamwork like what you find day-to-day at work. Also, where are you putting the ball on the court? You must set yourself up for success.”

Originally published on principal.com

On Good Day DSM’s opening day at the mall, a line of people wound past several storefronts, all waiting to indulge their senses with the bakery’s colorful, sweet macarons.

Owner Anna Lam and her partners were stunned—and exhausted—after hours of nonstop transactions.

Fortunately, they were equipped with market data and practice to help ensure their readiness. Just five months earlier, they prepped and baked for the Des Moines Farmer’s Market—which attracts around 25,000 patrons each Saturday. Their tent, fees, and basic supplies were covered by the Spark DSM Minority Business Incubator program.

Launched in 2022, the program, sponsored by Principal®, supports small minority-owned businesses that operate in the Des Moines, Iowa area. Participating businesses receive help for one weekend of the farmer’s market season and have access to education and training opportunities throughout the year.

Blooming businesses like these are key to a thriving economy, as small businesses make up 99.7% of companies that pay employees in the U.S.1 Yet not all entrepreneurs have equal access to financial resources and support to get their businesses up and running.

“The incubator program provides a great opportunity to eliminate barriers by uplifting diverse businesses in our community and helping them reach new customers,” says Jo Christine Miles, director of Principal® Foundation and Community Relations.

Market to storefront 

Prior to opening Good Day DSM in Des Moines’ Valley West Mall, Lam was running shop out of a makeshift kitchen in her brother’s garage. In May of 2022, she and her sister-in-law and business partner started selling homemade macarons at a small weekly market. But they’d always had their eye on something grander, so when they heard about the incubator program, they jumped at the opportunity.

That October, they got their chance. The sisters-in-law spent weeks prepping, baking, and gathering spooky décor to stock their booth at the Des Moines Farmer’s Market—and sold out.

“It was a great experience and gave us the confidence boost we needed to move forward with opening a storefront,” Lam says. “We were able to reach so many new customers and see what it’d be like to sell at a busy market without having to commit to the whole season.”

That November Lam purchased her stand in the mall—becoming a second-generation vendor (her mother previously owned a nail salon a few storefronts down). She spent the next few months renovating and opened on Feb. 4, 2023.

Since then, business has been humming—selling macarons exclusively on Saturdays and offering signature coffee drinks and sweets during the week. Sure, people miss the macarons during the week, but that hasn’t shaken the strategy to only deliver fresh, quality product.

“We just do what we believe in, and people have been really responsive to that,” Lam says.

Believing in herself—and allowing others to, too

Lam is no novice when it comes to running her own business. Before launching Good Day DSM, she ran a wedding photography business. This time, though, she’s all in. And so is her fiancé, who recently left his corporate job to support Good Day DSM full-time. “It will likely be a pay cut, and we don’t have benefits now, and those are things we’re working through this first year,” Lam says. “But the tradeoff is doing something we really enjoy and spending more time together.”

For other aspiring entrepreneurs wavering on whether to take the plunge, Lam says, go for it.

“Des Moines is a strong, diverse community for small businesses,” Lam says. “No matter what your background is, if there’s something you’re passionate about, it’s worth pursuing.

“You don’t have to go 100% right away. That’s why things like the incubator program are great to test the waters and just see if you like it.”

Testing the waters has worked out great for Lam and Good Day DSM. The bakery has already outgrown its stand in the mall and is planning to move to a building across the city late this summer.

“We are so excited to make the next space our own and come back even bigger and better,” Lam says.

Learn more about how we support financial empowerment in the communities we serve. 

1U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), March 2023

This communication is intended to be educational in nature and is not intended to be taken as a recommendation. ​

Principal community relations supports the communities where affiliates of the Principal Financial Group®, Des Moines, IA 50392 operates. Insurance products and plan administrative services provided through Principal Life Insurance Company®, a member of the Principal Financial Group, Des Moines, IA 50392.

Principal Financial Group Foundation, Inc. (“Principal® Foundation”) is a duly recognized 501(c)(3) entity focused on providing philanthropic support to programs that build financial security in the communities where Principal Financial Group, Inc. (“Principal”) operates. While Principal Foundation receives funding from Principal, Principal Foundation is a distinct, independent, charitable entity. Principal Foundation does not practice any form of investment advisory services and is not authorized to do so. © 2023 Principal Foundation.

3009067-072023

Originally published by Walgreens Boots Alliance

DEERFIELD, Ill., July 11, 2023 /3BL/ – Walgreens announced its participation as the premier sponsor of Children with Diabetes (CWD), a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing education and support to families living with type 1 diabetes, at their upcoming Friends for Life (FFL) conference. Walgreens will serve as the exclusive pharmacy sponsor for the annual event, hosted July 4th – 9th in Orlando, Fla. FFL gathers dedicated experts, adults, children, and families with diabetes for a weekend geared toward inspiring and connecting the community.

“As a person thriving with diabetes, I’ve experienced first-hand the difference it makes having resources and a community pharmacist available when navigating my condition,” said Tracey Brown, EVP and President, Walgreens Retail & Chief Customer Officer. “Walgreens is thrilled to be sponsoring Children with Diabetes’ FFL event as we work together to make a difference in the lives of the 122 million people living with diabetes and pre-diabetes so they can live a more joyful life through better health.”

Walgreens is proud to help children living with diabetes and their caregivers learn how to start and maintain an optimal regimen and routine to live a healthy life. As a trusted member of their healthcare team, Walgreens offers specialized comprehensive pharmacy expertise, services and products. The retailer is the largest provider of continuous glucose monitors and has an expansive assortment of diabetes products including Walgreens brand health and wellness items like blood glucose meters and testing strips, at-home A1C test kits, vitamins and supplements.

“Friends for Life is about empowering families and people living with diabetes to live healthy, enriched lives, and with Walgreen’s support, we’re able to do just that,” said Jeff Hitchcock, Founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Children with Diabetes. “Every year, the conference serves as an opportunity to educate the community about the variety of cutting-edge diabetes management tools, including some of Walgreens’ very own offerings. It’ll be great for our attendees to be check out those products in-person in Orlando.”

As part of its commitment to the event’s mission, Tracey Brown and Shauna Markes-Wilson, Walgreens director of pharmacy and retail operations for the Georgia/Florida North region, will be speaking throughout the conference. In addition, Walgreens will be showcasing how it is driving the next generation of clinical trials during a session led by Kendal Whitlock, head of digital optimization for Real World Evidence Clinical Trials, and Ebony Scott, senior manager of patient and community engagement digital optimization for Real World Evidence Clinical Trials.

Walgreens is also collaborating with Instacart to stand up an in-conference pop-up shop for Walgreens brand diabetes supplies, first-aid essentials and sun care items, and more at the retailer’s booth. The pop-up shop will be powered by Instacart’s Scan & Pay technology. To shop, customers may simply use their mobile device’s camera to scan product barcodes in their cart then check-out quickly using digital payment. This is the first time Instacart’s Scan & Pay technology will be used at an event.

For more information on diabetes management and support services at Walgreens, please visit www.Walgreens.com/Diabetes and www.Walgreens.com/DiabetesESP for Spanish in-language support. For the Spanish version of this communication click here.

About Walgreens

Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) is included in the U.S. Retail Pharmacy and U.S. Healthcare segments of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (Nasdaq: WBA), an integrated healthcare, pharmacy and retail leader with a 170-year heritage of caring for communities. WBA’s purpose is to create more joyful lives through better health. Operating nearly 9,000 retail locations across America, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, Walgreens is proud to be a neighborhood health destination serving nearly 10 million customers each day. Walgreens pharmacists play a critical role in the U.S. healthcare system by providing a wide range of pharmacy and healthcare services, including those that drive equitable access to care for the nation’s underserved populations. To best meet the needs of customers and patients, Walgreens offers a true omnichannel experience, with fully integrated physical and digital platforms supported by the latest technology to deliver high-quality products and services in communities nationwide.

About Children with Diabetes

Children with Diabetes is an Ohio-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to providing education and support to families living with type 1 diabetes. Our official corporate name is T-1 Today, Inc. (Ohio Charter 2231845) with a Trade Name Filing for Children with Diabetes. Most people know us as Children with Diabetes.

On Tuesday, June 13th more than 1,400 KeyBank Northeast Ohio teammates spent the afternoon volunteering at more than 130 projects on the 32nd annual Neighbors Make the Difference Day.

Neighbors Make the Difference Day launched in 1991, with a group of KeyBank employees in Alaska who volunteered for service projects. By 1993, KeyBank extended the concept to many of the communities it served, making it an official day of employee volunteerism. Now, Neighbors Make the Difference Day is a hallmark program and leading corporate volunteerism effort in America, showcasing KeyBank’s commitment to communities.

Watch the video above to see how Key teammates made a difference in Cleveland. Video can also be viewed on YouTube: https://youtu.be/aCD7mTWB4Bs 

For more than 170 years, PNC has been committed to improving the financial lives of the people we serve and the places they call home. While we’ve grown in size and capabilities, we’ve remained true to our main street values — doing business with integrity and respect, making our customers the center of all we do, focusing on teamwork and performance, nurturing and growing a talented, diverse and inclusive workforce and improving quality of life for all our stakeholders. Today, PNC is committed to delivering on these values coastto-coast through our main street bank model.

We continue to serve as trusted advisors, responding to client demand for support in the transition to a low-carbon economy with a strategic approach that has deepened our relationships with clients. As an extension of our ongoing support for our clients’ transition plans, we expanded our environmental finance commitment announced in 2021 from $20 billion to $30 billion. This commitment mobilizes financing in renewable energy, green buildings, clean transportation, and sustainability-linked bonds and loans.

We’ve also made great strides in strengthening our strategy to manage our own environmental risks. We enhanced our approach to integrating climate risk into our overall enterprise risk management framework and established a new climate risk committee with a cross-functional group of impacted stakeholders. You can learn more about these efforts in this report and in our Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures progress update. From an operational standpoint, we’re proud to announce new, ambitious environmental targets inclusive of our significantly expanded footprint as a result of the BBVA USA acquisition.

Also stemming from the acquisition of BBVA USA is our $88 billion Community Benefits Plan, which began on January 1, 2022. Through this plan, we pledged $47 billion in financing for residential mortgage and home equity lending, $26.5 billion in small business loans, $14.5 billion for community financing loans and investments, and an additional $500 million in charitable giving over a four-year period. One year into the plan, we’ve deployed $35.1 billion to bring this commitment to life. That’s lending, investing and generational wealth-building that is empowering and transforming our communities. Building a more inclusive financial services system is important to us. It’s why we focus on financial wellness, accessible banking services, expanded access to capital and enabling customers to move forward financially.

In the past year, we’ve made significant progress toward many of our goals and objectives and it is a testament to the strength and talent of the 61,000 teammates who bring our values, priorities and business to life in our communities in the country. Over the past year, PNC has:

PNC partnered with Guild to give employees access to a catalog of tuition-covered professional certificates, college prep courses, and associate’s and bachelor’s degrees to help advance career mobilityPNC Employees volunteered a total of 64,072 volunteer hours and earned $154,000 in volunteer grants in 2022The launch of our Minority Business Development Group and PNC Certified Minority Business Advocate (cMBA) program with 1,000 PNC employees earning cMBA certificationWe expanded our previous three-year, $1.257 million commitment to Coralus (formerly SheEO), by $220,000 and launched the new PNC Bank + Coralus Collective, a cohort of entrepreneurs and financial advisors collaborating for growth and successThe expansion of PNC’s PartnerUP program from the Pittsburgh market to serve all 30 high schools in the Cleveland Metro School districtPNC Deployed $35.1 billion, nearly 40% of the total $88 billion CBP committed, deploying:$25.1 billion to affordable homeownership (of $47 billion total commitment)$5.2 billion to small business loans (of $26.5 billion total commitment)$4.8 billion to community development lending and investments (of $14.5 billion total commitment)$120.9 million in charitable giving (of $500 million total commitment)$335.7 million with diverse suppliers (Tier 1 and Tier 2) exceeding our goal of increasing spending with diverse suppliers by a minimum of 20 percentWe provided 1,000 financial education classes reaching more than 18,600 LMI individualsSaved our customers more than $425 million in overdraft and non-sufficient funds feesIncreased our commitment to mobilize environmental financing from $20 billion to $30 billion$9.1 Billion Environmental finance pledge committed (of $30B)Established new environmental targets inclusive of the BBVA USA footprint with a 2022 base yearEnhanced PNC’s data protection strategy, through the implementation of Data Vault, which is designed to maintain a cyber-resilient data storehouse that will enhance protection of critical PNC data and allow us to recover from cyber events

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Kristen Pillitteri, SVP, Communications Director, Corporate Responsibility

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