Month: May 2024

Originally published on USA Today

DAVID ALLEN

PepsiCo Foods North America

Doritos are delicious. Quaker Oats are nutritious. And Funyuns are… well, fun. But can snacks be sustainable? To prove they can be, PepsiCo in 2021 launched PepsiCo Positive, or pep+, a strategic initiative to put sustainability at the center of its global operations.

Leading the charge at PepsiCo Foods North America — the $26 billion snack and convenient food business that includes Frito-Lay North America and Quaker Foods North America — is Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer David Allen.

“It’s incumbent on us as a large organization with a large amount of reach to be leaders in this,” Allen explains.

A key focus of pep+ is agriculture. In 2023, PepsiCo announced a seven-year partnership with Walmart to scale water- and soil-improving regenerative agriculture practices across 2 million acres of farmland for nearly 4 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emission reductions and removals by 2030. Eventually, farmers will adopt similar practices across the company’s entire agricultural footprint — approximately 7 million acres, Allen says.

In pursuit of net-zero emissions by 2040, PepsiCo also is working to decarbonize its fleet. Last year alone, it put into service more than 700 new electric vehicles. Meanwhile, it plans to design 100 percent of its packaging to be recyclable, compostable, biodegradable or reusable by 2025. In fact, Frito-Lay and Quaker last year opened a new “Greenhouse Learning Center” dedicated entirely to the development of compostable packaging.

Given PepsiCo’s size — more than 300,000 people operating in more than 200 countries — change won’t come easy. But it will come, Allen promises.

“We’re clear-eyed about the challenges, but I’m really excited and very optimistic about the trajectory we’re on,” he says, citing the CSO role as a key enabler. “I think of myself as being a head coach of sustainability. … It’s about listening and learning from the diverse talent that exists within the organization, then bringing all of their ideas to bear so we can get to the best solution to make as much progress as we can, as fast as we can.”

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CHARLOTTE, N.C., May 6, 2024 /3BL/ – Global edtech leader Discovery Education today announced the recipients of the inaugural Discovery Education Awards. The Discovery Education Awards honor districts, schools, and educators who accelerate achievement among students by tapping into their natural curiosity and desire to learn.

For the first time this May, the Discovery Education Awards recognized U.S. districts, schools, and educators who have impacted student learning by adapting and personalizing instruction to better pique curiosity and engagement. Recipients were selected through a competitive nomination and application process which highlighted participating districts,’ schools,’ and educators’ commitment to fostering student growth. The recipients of the 2024 Discovery Education Awards include:

Districts of the Year

Kansas City School District, Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Collier – MissouriPasco County School District, Superintendent Dr. Kurt S. Browning – FloridaRichland County School District Two, Superintendent Dr. Kim D. Moore – South Carolina

Schools of the Year

Franklin Regional Intermediate School, Principal Dr. Robert Buffone – Murrysville, PennsylvaniaMadison Rose Lane Elementary School, Principal Mr. Andre’ Reyes – Phoenix, Arizona

Educators of the Year

McKenna Akane, Middle School Educator, Alberton School District – MontanaFrank Bogden, Instructional Facilitator of Technology, Loudoun County Public Schools – VirginiaRodney Crouse, Elementary School Educator, Guilford County Schools – North CarolinaDebbie Martin, Instructional Technology Coach, Frederick County Public Schools – VirginiaRita Mortenson, Educational Technology Coach, Verona Area School District – Wisconsin

To learn more about each of these distinguished winners, visit the Discover Education Awards website here.

Discovery Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital solutions learning wherever it takes place. Serving 4.5 million educators and 45 million students worldwide, Discovery Education helps educators nurture student curiosity through award-winning multimedia content, instructional supports, innovative classroom tools, and corporate partnerships.

“The districts, schools, and educators we honor today with the Discovery Education Awards share this goal and go above and beyond the call of duty to nurture student curiosity and drive the academic success of all learners,” said Jeremy Cowdrey, Chief Executive Officer of Discovery Education. “Congratulations to all who participated in this inaugural event. Discovery Education is proud to be your collaborative partner as you work to capture students’ attention, inspire exploration, and achieve ambitious learning goals.”

For more information about Discovery Education’s award-winning digital resources and professional learning solutions visit www.discoveryeducation.com, and stay connected with Discovery Education on social media through X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

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About Discovery Education  
Discovery Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place. Through its award-winning multimedia content, instructional supports, innovative classroom tools, and corporate partnerships, Discovery Education helps educators deliver equitable learning experiences engaging all students and supporting higher academic achievement on a global scale. Discovery Education serves approximately 4.5 million educators and 45 million students worldwide, and its resources are accessed in over 100 countries and territories. Inspired by the global media company Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. Discovery Education partners with districts, states, and trusted organizations to empower teachers with leading edtech solutions that support the success of all learners. Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com.

Contacts  
Grace Maliska 
Discovery Education