Month: August 2024

EMERYVILLE, Calif., August 15, 2024 /3BL/ –

SCS Standards is pleased to announce that version 4.0 of the SCS-110 Certification Standard for Zero Waste is now available for public review.

The Standard was first introduced in 2022 as a series of three zero waste standards for facilities, events and projects that are now being consolidated into one. The SCS Zero Waste Standard provides a basis for certifying the diversion of municipal solid waste from landfill and incineration (without energy recovery) at a facility, project, or event.

Key updates in version 4.0 include:

Timeline for reducing the allowance of waste-to-energy as a diversion method has been added: by 2040 the allowed amount of waste material that can be sent to a waste to energy facility is 10%New approach for auditing facility portfolios: Operators that have multiple facilities of the same type in scope, site audits of a percentage of these facilities only will be requiredOperators can now claim prevented waste as a diversion method for up to five years from the implementation of a redesign process which resulted in the prevention of waste

The public is welcome to comment on the version 4.0 updates to the standard until Monday, September 16, 2024. To submit comments, please reach out to standards@scsstandards.org, or please visit https://www.scsstandards.org/standards/certification-standard-zero-waste.

About SCS Standards

SCS Standards is a non-profit organization committed to the development of standards that advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Standards are developed in alignment with best practices and guidelines provided by internationally recognized bodies to ensure a robust, transparent and collaborative approach. SCS Standards is an affiliate of Scientific Certification Systems, Inc., and is its official affiliate standards development body.

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Victoria Norman 
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Taco Bell Blog

Taco Bell International is home to over 1,100 restaurants in 31 countries outside the US. From building the brand in new markets, to disrupting the food industry with culturally relevant innovations, our international teams embody the Restless Creativity spirit in their efforts of taking the Taco Bell magic worldwide. As we head into what we’re calling “The Summer of International”, we’ll be sharing their personal journeys, exciting adventures overseas, and career growth stories that have quite literally taken them across the globe.

Daniel first got his start at The Bell a few years ago working on consumer experiences, which even led to him living in Singapore for about a year! Now, he leads Technology for Taco Bell International traveling across the world, experiencing new cultures and seeing our brand grow in fruitful ways. Get to know more about him and his career below.

TACOMA, Wash., August 15, 2024 /3BL/ — KeyBank has announced a grant of $180,000 to Rainier Scholars – Tacoma as the nonprofit seeks to rapidly grow its services to underrepresented students of color in the greater Tacoma area. The goal is to provide youth with the academic, social, and emotional support needed to excel in school and earn college degrees.

Over the next three years, the program will welcome additional cohorts of students, develop curriculum to meet their needs as they advance into middle school and high school, and establish a second entry-point for 7th grade students at First Creek Middle School. Rainier Scholars – Tacoma was designed as a unique public-school partnership that collaborates alongside fellow educators to improve the outcomes of students who face the biggest barriers to success. It is helping to realize the mission of Rainier Scholars: to cultivate the academic and leadership potential of underrepresented students of color through rigorous, transformative opportunities that increase college graduation rates and empower new generations of leaders.

Funds from the KeyBank grant will be used to support program implementation including staffing, material development and supplies.

“At KeyBank, our mission is to help our communities thrive, and we know that an important building block is helping underserved youth realize their full potential and develop the skills that will lead to successful and fulfilling careers,” says South Puget Sound Market President Brian Marlow. “An educated workforce is at the heart of a prosperous regional economy.”

“The heart of our cohort model is the 12-year commitment we make to each scholar and their family from fifth grade through college graduation,” said Rainier Scholars Tacoma Associate Executive Director Jennifer Ward. “By systematically removing barriers to a college education, we work to ensure that students of color are afforded the same opportunities as their classmates and can realize their dreams with boundless options.”

About Rainier Scholars 
Rainier Scholars offers a pathway to college graduation and career and leadership development for underrepresented students of color in the greater Seattle and Tacoma communities. Founded in 2000, our comprehensive 12-year program starts in fifth grade and provides personalized academic enrichment, leadership training, and career development support to students and their families. We believe that providing access to opportunities is key to building a more equitable society. For more information, visit https://www.rainierscholars.org/

About KeyCorp

KeyCorp’s roots trace back nearly 200 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation’s largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $187 billion at June 30, 2024.

Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,000 branches and approximately 1,200 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank Member FDIC.

Originally published on Aflac Newsroom

134 hours. Dozens of colleagues. One meaningful, shared purpose.

Over the past six months, teams of Aflac employees have volunteered at Feeding the Valley Food Bank, part of the Feeding America network, to help provide nearly 45,000 meals for children and adults living with food insecurity in the Chattahoochee Valley in Georgia and Alabama — over 53,800 pounds of food so far this year.

Aflac’s long history with Feeding the Valley includes a recent $290,000 donation toward a much-needed expansion at its Midland, Georgia location. In addition to other amenities, the new space has an air-conditioned area dedicated to volunteering — the Aflac Hunger Action Center — with twice as much room as the previous volunteer space.

“Since 2017, we’ve been able to increase our footprint by 75% — that equates to storage space that can accommodate an additional 2 million pounds of dry food and enable distribution of more than 5 million pounds of lean meats and fresh produce per year,” said Frank Sheppard, President and CEO at Feeding the Valley. “And, with the expanded Aflac Hunger Action Center, we have double the space to accommodate our amazing community volunteers who help us get food packaged and ready to be placed into the hands of those in need.”

Last year, more than 15 million pounds of food were provided to individuals and more than 350 partner food pantry organizations throughout 17 counties in Georgia and one in Alabama.

Volunteering at Feeding the Valley has become a regular activity for the Aflac Sales Resolution team, who packed 390 mobile pantry boxes and 80 buddy packs during a recent outing. Feeding the Valley’s mobile pantries provide boxes of canned goods and groceries to more than 12,000 families per month where there is limited access to a grocery store or an emergency food pantry. And, because hunger doesn’t take the weekend off, their Buddy Pack program is there to help bridge the gap between the school week and the weekend, when free breakfasts and lunches are not available.

“We always leave feeling like we have really participated in something worthwhile and are making a difference in our community, said Mike Tucker, manager, Aflac Sales Resolution. “This is also a great team-building event and brings us closer together as a team.”

Jon Sullivan, director, Aflac Corporate Communications, agrees. His team recently gathered at Feeding the Valley to help sort and pack boxes of canned goods, juice, rice and other nonperishable items.

“Taking the afternoon recently to pack mobile pantry boxes at the new Aflac Hunger Action Center was hard work, but it was also a great experience for our team,” said Sullivan. “Not only were we able to help address a tremendous need within our community, but we also found great value in spending quality time together in service to others. We work as a team at the office every day, but realizing the difference our teamwork can make outside of our daily jobs was a true morale boost.”

For more information about Feeding the Valley, visit FeedingTheValley.org, and learn more about how Aflac gives back to the community at Aflac.com/AboutAflac.

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