Month: September 2023

Partnering with our supply network is key to creating a more circular economy. Science-based targets provide companies with a path to reduce emissions in line with the Paris Agreement goals for limiting global warming. In early 2022, the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) approved Sappi’s global two-component goal of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 41.5% by 2030 and encouraging 44% of our suppliers, by spend, to set science-based targets by 2026.

In procurement, the target for Sappi North America is to direct 37% of our annual third-party spend to suppliers with science-based goals by 2026. SBTi requires targets to cover at least 67% of Scope 3 emissions, and this requirement helped guide our 2026 goals.

We started our journey in 2019 at 12% of our spend with SBTi-committed suppliers. SNA suppliers already aligned with SBTi include companies from our categories of pulp, chemicals, logistics, packaging and some original equipment manufacturers. Our pulp procurement team is leading our initial discussions with suppliers about their plans for SBTi.

Internally, we are planning how best to achieve our 2026 target by gathering input from suppliers who have already committed to SBTi and by talking to key suppliers that have not yet signed up. 

In 2022, we distributed our second supplier GHG emissions survey. The goal is to obtain information that will allow Sappi to calculate and report our Scope 3 emissions from the manufacture of products that we purchase and the transportation of those products to Sappi facilities. At this point, not all of our suppliers calculate GHG emissions at the product level. We will continue to work with them to communicate the importance of this effort.

During 2022, Sappi salespeople collected data from existing and potential customers to learn what is important to them in the area of sustainability. The information includes whether those customers are signatories for SBTi. It is vital that we work together to understand our full value-chain impact on GHG emissions and, most importantly, to create options for improvement. Through this collaboration, we will be able to contribute efficiently and innovatively to a more circular economy. 

Looking to the future, Sappi is developing a supplier sustainability awards program to recognize our partner suppliers who are leaders in various areas of sustainability. We are exploring other programs that recognize suppliers in areas such as philanthropy, carbon reduction, sustainable innovation and certifications, and we hope to elevate this work as part of our supplier engagement.

September 5, 2023 /3BL/ – Paradigm for Parity recently recognized Trane Technologies’ Deidra Parrish Williams and Britt Smith as 2023 Women on the Rise. This accolade, which was made in honor of Women’s Equality Day, recognizes women who are breaking barriers in corporate leadership and show the value of gender parity in the workplace.

Here’s what Deidra and Britt had to say:

Deidra Parrish Williams, Director, Citizenship and Community Engagement

“Supporting women makes sense in every way. It helps women feel seen, respected and safe in the knowledge that the tremendous investments they make of their time, talent and loyalty will afford them commensurate opportunities for belonging, compensation and advancement, creating a healthy environment for women to innovate, take risks and fully develop. More broadly, when we support women, who remain by and large the nucleus of the family unit, their professional experiences have the ability to impact the stability of their families; to model to young girls what’s possible for them and contribute to creating healthier, more sustainable communities.”

Britt Smith, Senior Manager, Corporate Strategy

“As an African-American woman in corporate America, I feel very passionate about ensuring diverse representation in the work environment. Creating a workplace culture where diverse employees feel supported, celebrated, set up for success and can bring their authentic selves to work is an important element of why I dedicate time to this area at Trane Technologies and beyond. I am honored to be recognized for this work by Paradigm for Parity coalition, and it further motivates me to continue my efforts on breaking barriers in corporate leadership.”

Trane Technologies has partnered with Paradigm for Parity since 2017 to help address the gender gap in leadership and accelerate the pace of achieving gender parity as part of our commitment to create Opportunity for All.