Month: April 2024

At FedEx, we know how important it is for customers to receive visual confirmation of their delivery with Picture Proof of Delivery. In the same way, we believe it’s important to demonstrate our commitment to conservation with Picture Proof of Planting. That’s why Picture Proof of Planting is ideal, engaging FedEx team members to support conservation projects in their hometown, from tree plantings to beach clean-ups, in over 40 communities. The goal is to unite team members as we drive forward to become One FedEx and give back in support of conservation.

This past fall, over 300 FedEx team members participated in tree plantings around the world, including Delhi, Tijuana, Vancouver, London, and Austin. Tree plantings have long-lasting environmental impacts: they mitigate urban heat, support the physical and emotional health of residents, provide valuable greenspaces, and rebalance the ecosystem for wildlife.

In collaboration with One Tree Planted, Arbor Day Foundation, and National Fish & Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), FedEx will invest over $2 million toward sustainable communities.  From March until May of 2024, FedEx will support 40 urban conservation projects around the world.

Below are just a few of the many communities where FedEx was involved:

Montreal

Kicking-off the Picture Proof of Planting global campaign was the FedEx Montreal team at Paul-Jarry primary school and in the surrounding neighborhood. Led by GRAME, this project in the Lachine borough began by removing asphalt to transform the space between the school yard and the street by adding nature. Funding from FedEx through One Tree Planted made it possible to plant trees at the school and in the local community with maintenance for the next three years.

“These projects aim to transform spaces into … much more welcoming and diverse, but above all, these are projects optimize water management,” explains Guillaume Lussier, project manager for GRAME.

Seattle

At the Woodland Park Zoo, FedEx team members clean equipment for the Amphibian Monitoring Project, supporting their valuable efforts to preserve frogs, toads, newts, and salamanders! Each year, the zoo loans supplies (including waders, clip boards, and GPS units) to community volunteers to collect scientific data on amphibians in local conservation wetland areas the Pacific Northwest. The project was made possible through the NFWF Five Star program FedEx has supported for 15 years!

“The Woodland Park Zoo Staff was impressed with how hard the FedEx Volunteers worked and how much progress we made today,” shared Tom Stingily, a Field Sales Executive and volunteer coordinator for the Seattle event.

Medellin

Team members planted trees along the Rionegro River in the El Porvenie neighborhood just south of the Medellin International Airport. Collaborating with the Fundación Red de Árboles, along with One Tree Planted, FedEx helped plant native species, including Suribio, Quiebrabarrigo, and Guamo.

“We had an excellent tree planting day,” shared Mauricio Ortiz, Manager of Operations for FedEx in Medellin. “Despite the heavy rain and cold temperatures, the team of volunteers maintained great attitude and we planted 140 trees along the banks of the Rionegro River.”

The Rionegro river is an important water source for the entire region of Antioquia. The protection of water resources is at the heart of this project; however, the addition of over 2,000 trees when complete will also assist in urban heat island mitigation and the enhancement of community health and wellness.

Istanbul

FedEx team members from Istanbul organized their first FedEx Cares tree planting activity in the Sile district, on the shore of the Black Sea. Volunteers helped plant 41 maritime and cypress trees with the Arbor Day Foundation and Aegean Forest Foundation. Funding from FedEx will support another 7,000 sapling trees to be planted soon.

“Today we helped to make the Sile area a lot greener,” said Eser Sezek, VP of Ground Operations in Turkey & South East Europe. “It was a pleasure to be part of this amazing team, full of energy and passion, to plant these trees and … help build a more sustainable future for this area. Initiatives like this are essential to our culture at FedEx to give back to the communities we serve, and this reflects who we are and guides us to deliver great results!”

The 7,000 saplings will not only support the sustainability of the Sile-Sahilkoy area of Istanbul but will be providing socioeconomic development by employing local villagers – mostly women – to plant and maintain the trees for the next three years to ensure their survival.

World Water Day is an annual United Nations Observance, held on March 22, focusing on the importance of freshwater. Access to water is a human right, yet, 2.2 billion people live without safely managed drinking water services. Water is also at the heart of adaptation to climate change, serving as the crucial link between the climate system, human society and the environment.

This year’s theme for World Water Day is “Water for Peace,” which focuses on water’s vital role in creating a more stable and prosperous world.

As part of Cisco’s Purpose to Power and Inclusive Future for All, we invest in solutions that build resiliency for communities, individuals and natural ecosystems, including equitable access to clean and affordable drinking water.

Cisco and the Cisco Foundation, through our cash grant programs and technology donations to nonprofit organizations, support organizations that are working to raise awareness of global water issues, increase access to safe drinking water, and protect this precious natural resource. It’s one example of how our social impact and environmental sustainability efforts come together in support of an inclusive future. In honor of World Water Day, we would like to shine a spotlight on four of these nonprofits – to learn more about them, please keep reading!

Cool.org

Cool.org has supported educators and parents with online, real-world, evidence-based education resources for 15 years.

With an emphasis on environmental sustainability, Cool weaves content from industry experts and scientific organizations to create real-world resources that empower students to address big environmental challenges.

Since 2019, Cisco has been instrumental in supporting Cool to ensure their platform and systems are best in class. This support has played a crucial role in the development of their new educator-customized platform, saving time for educators and ensuring access to exceptional resources for all educators globally.

Cool creates and supplies teaching resources about water – from the water cycle to marine biology, from hydropower to geothermal energy, from conservation and adaptations. These resources provide teachers with a myriad of opportunities to bring water into the classroom. Through engaging activities, students can explore the wonders of water through Cool resources and develop a profound appreciation for its role in sustaining all life on Earth.

Join For Water

Join For Water changes lives by guaranteeing water for people and for nature. They operate in Benin, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Mali, Uganda, Ecuador and Peru. Their projects focus on drinking water, water for food production, sanitation, environmental management, and conscious water consumption in upper income countries.

Starting in 2020, Cisco provided several product grants of both hardware and subscriptions to Join For Water. Initially these grants consisted of five collaboration endpoints and supporting Webex subscription, which allowed for improved inter-office collaboration. The most recent grant in 2023 provided a complete Meraki network solution, now installed in the Belgian office. Cisco is currently working with Join For Water and a Cisco partner to equip five of the remote offices with a similar Meraki network, allowing for a more secure and easy experience in managing their global network.

These donations have helped Join For Water reduce costs and CO2 emissions related to airplane travel. They have also enhanced connections between teams in Africa and South America that used to work separately from each other.

Join For Water says that Cisco support is contributing to their efforts to improve quality of life for 420,000 people over 5 years – most of them women. This includes enabling 67,000 people to get access to decent drinking water, 50,000 farmers to produce sufficient food through irrigated fields, and 7,000 people, mainly school children, to gain improved access to toilets. Join For Water also anticipates protecting and conserving 237,000 hectares of freshwater ecosystems during that five-year period (2022 through 2026).

WaterAid

WaterAid transforms lives by improving access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in the world’s poorest communities. They work with local partners and influence decision-makers to maximize their impact.

With 40 years as an industry leader, WaterAid places special emphasis on evidence-based, sustainable solutions that help communities prosper in the long term. They strengthen systems at the community and the national level. WaterAid has reached 29 million people with clean water, 29 million people with decent toilets and 28 million people with good hygiene.

WaterAid is working to transform the lives of people in rural La Guajira, Colombia, who are forced to drink untreated water, exposing them to a range of deadly diseases, microbiological contaminants, elevated salinity levels, and heavy metals.

Thanks to a Regional Solutions Grant from the Cisco Foundation in 2023, WaterAid rolled out the first mobile water quality lab in La Guajira. By analyzing water quality data, communities can identify maintenance and repair needs, ensuring the longevity and effectiveness of water systems. Now there are fewer gastrointestinal illnesses, cases of dehydration, and related fatalities. The partnership has been key to multiplying the impact of a large-scale WASH investment project recently launched by WaterAid and Colombia’s Ministry of Housing.

One Acre Fund

One Acre Fund supports smallholder farmers in nine countries across sub-Saharan Africa in gaining the knowledge and means to achieve big harvests, support healthy families, and cultivate rich soil. One Acre Fund is now elevating their farmer-facing model with technology and is pursuing a remote-sensing strategy to offer farmers data-driven recommendations that will improve their farm yields and offer critical climate protection. This guidance may include an alert for when a major shock like a flood is coming.

Providing accurate flood prediction is crucial because in recent years, heavy seasonal rains in East Africa have increasingly led to devastating floods. Poor land management practices and extreme droughts can lead to erosion and dry soil, reducing the land’s ability to absorb water and increasing surface runoff during heavy rains. For farmers that are heavily reliant on rain-fed agriculture, flooding can lead to crop destruction, loss of livestock, damage to infrastructure such as irrigation systems and roads, and displacement of local communities, all of which can pose threats to livelihoods and food security in the region.

In many countries in the Global North, flood maps are usually made using stream gauges that track rising water levels, which are not readily available in East Africa due to limited financial resources and poor infrastructure. Cisco Foundation supports One Acre Fund’s pilot program to develop remote sensing capabilities through analysis of data from modeling programs and on-the-ground validation.

Learn more about how Cisco and the Cisco Foundation support nonprofit organizations on our ESG Reporting Hub.

View original content here.

Originally published on Bristol Myers Squibb News & Perspectives

PRINCETON, N.J., April 2, 2024 /3BL/– Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) today published its 2023 Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Report detailing the company’s meaningful progress, evolved strategy, and aspirational goals toward its ESG efforts. The company’s ESG strategy is embedded in its mission to discover, develop, and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases.

“For more than 130 years, BMS has enabled positive change for our patients around the world. As we navigate an increasingly complex global landscape, our ESG strategy has never been more important to driving long-term business value and fulfilling our purpose,” said Christopher Boerner, Ph.D., Board Chair & Chief Executive Officer, Bristol Myers Squibb. “We recognize ESG is a journey of continuous improvement, and our entire team is committed to advancing sustainability.”

In 2023, BMS conducted a global ESG materiality assessment to understand evolving stakeholder views and ensure its business priorities reflect the rapidly changing landscape. These insights enabled the company to evolve its ESG strategy, focusing on three key pillars: advancing patient health around the world; expanding the boundaries of science; and fostering a high-performing and inclusive global workforce. At the same time, BMS will continue to amplify its strong performance across material topics such as patient safety and product quality, ethics and conduct, as well as environmental sustainability.

Highlights from the ESG Report:

Advancing Patient Health Around the World

Advanced tailored access programs in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to help improve access to BMS’ innovative portfolio. Through new pathways, BMS has expanded access to 12 transformative products for patients across more than 80 LMICs. We have established an aspirational goal that 100% of late-stage assets will have access plans in 2024 and a commitment to reach more than 208,000 patients in LMICs by 2033.Progressed health equity efforts through 277 grants and donations, totaling $19.4M.

Expanding the Boundaries of Science

Made clinical trials more accessible to underrepresented groups, by embedding 58% of U.S. clinical trial sites in racially and ethnically diverse metro areas of the U.S., surpassing its initial goal of 25% set in 2020.Worked to ensure research efforts better reflect patient populations, BMS exceeded goals for racially diverse clinical trial participants in the U.S. with 26% vs. target 20%; achieved 23% ethnically diverse patients, exceeding goal of 18%. Moving forward, BMS is focused on increasing the percentage of racially and ethnically diverse patients enrolled in clinical trials globally across key indications, including Lupus, Multiple Myeloma, Pulmonary Fibrosis and Alzheimer’s Disease.

Inclusive Global Workforce: Inclusion, Diversity and Culture

Sustained workforce representation: 47.4% of employees at the executive level are female.Increased community engagement: BMS employees logged nearly 9,000 volunteer hours worldwide in 2023 to help improve the communities where they live and work.

Sustaining Our Planet and Improving Health: Climate and Environment

Advanced climate action goals: In 2023, BMS published its inaugural Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) Report and submitted science-based targets to the Science Based Targets initiative for external validation.Increased renewable energy footprint: In November 2023, BMS announced a second 15-year virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) with National Grid Renewables for 145 megawatts of solar at the Texas-based Blevins Solar Project in line with its 2030 goal of 100% purchased electricity from renewable sources.

Ethics and Conduct: Operating with Integrity

Incorporated new ESG metrics into the executive compensation program, measuring achievement against environmental and social goals and better aligning executive bonuses with company strategy.Advanced data privacy and cybersecurity efforts: In 2023, BMS developed the Next-Generation Privacy Program focused on ensuring broad global market coverage, accountability for decision rights and privacy ownership, and data inventories, which will be implemented in early 2024.Established Principles for Responsible Artificial Intelligence: BMS defined and published ethical standards and practical requirements for the development, deployment, and use of artificial intelligence.

Click here for BMS’ full 2023 ESG Report.

About Bristol Myers Squibb

Bristol Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases. For more information about Bristol Myers Squibb, visit us at BMS.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding, among other things, the Company’s goals, strategies, and performance in accordance with its 2023 Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Report. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Forward-looking statements in this press release should be evaluated together with the many risks and uncertainties that affect Bristol Myers Squibb’s business and market, particularly those identified in the cautionary statement and risk factors discussion in Bristol Myers Squibb’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, as updated by our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made only as of the date of this document and except as otherwise required by applicable law, Bristol Myers Squibb undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise.

Media

Media@bms.com

Source: Bristol Myers Squibb