Month: September 2024

Originally published in Principal Financial Group 2023 Sustainability Report

Improving operational environmental performance

We remain committed to integrating responsible energy, water, and waste management practices into our business operations through efficient and sustainable solutions and improvements.

Our approach 

Energy-efficient technologies and access to renewable energy sources help us meet our broader goals and further reduce our impact on the environment.

We’re mindful of our water consumption and recycling efforts and have formulated action plans to improve our performance.

Furthermore, we’ve established a system and policy modeled after ISO14001 and designed to:

reduce energy use and GHG emissions,improve water efficiency,reduce waste to landfill, andincrease employee awareness.

While our consumption of energy and water and production of waste are not significant, we continue to routinely measure these areas of our operations to better understand our impact on the environment.

Our actions and performance in 2023 

Energy consumption and renewable energy1

From 2022 to 2023, we reduced energy consumption by 13.5% globally and by 13.2% in the U.S. This reduction resulted from our data center being moved to leased space, changes in office spaces, and the decreased need for heating this year from previous years due to warmer weather in Des Moines.

The changes in office space also contributed to a slight decrease in energy from renewable sources as compared to 2022 as these spaces primarily used renewable energy. On a global level, 47.8% of energy came from renewable sources in 2023.

In the U.S., approximately 55.6% of total energy consumption came from renewable sources—a total of 35,578.4 MWh, a small decrease from 2022 as a result of our energy mix using more fuel and less electricity than in the previous year.

Of total U.S. energy usage, 61.3% came from electricity, and approximately 90.8% of electricity consumption came from renewable sources—an increase from 2022. In 2023, we benefited from the ability of our Des Moines utility provider to provide a significant amount of energy from renewable sources. In 2023, the provider confirmed that it provided 100% renewable energy to its Iowa territory in 2022 through its wind fleet, and validated this through the Iowa Utilities Board GreenAdvantage program.

Water consumption2 

We incorporate responsible water management practices to meet or exceed Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) guidelines for water efficiency and implement water reduction measures wherever possible. Compared to 2022, we saw a 3.3% decrease in water consumption in 2023. Overall, in the last five years we’ve decreased our water consumption by 43.8%. This can be attributed to a reduction in occupancy in our buildings due to the pandemic and hybrid work arrangements, reducing our overall office usage and therefore decreasing water use.

55.6% of total energy consumption in the U.S. in 2023 from renewable sources90.8% of electricity consumption in the U.S. in 2023 from renewable sources3.3% decrease in water consumption in the U.S. in 2023

Waste and recycling3

In 2023, we diverted 69% of hazardous and nonhazardous waste produced in U.S. facilities where we measure recycling, donating, and composting efforts, with 100% of our hazardous waste being recycled. We continue to make incremental changes in our offices to reduce waste, such as an increase in signage to help employee awareness and education around appropriate waste practices, employee- led environmental initiatives, and a composting program for food service and restrooms.

Our goal is to meet or exceed LEED® guidelines for waste and recycling, which is to maintain a 50% or greater waste diversion rate annually.

69% of hazardous and nonhazardous waste produced in our U.S. facilities where we measure was diverted in 2023.

Overall we disposed of more waste this year than last year. We believe the primary contributor is an increase in employees working from the office more frequently, resulting in more non-durable goods disposal.

With the relocation of our data center to a leased location in 2023, we increased the amount of electronic waste recycled during the transition process.

Green buildings 

We use LEED® certification to ensure efficient and healthy work environments. Of the Principal owned and occupied portfolio in Des Moines, 93% is LEED® certified, as measured by square footage.

Read more in our Environmental policy

What’s next In 

November 2023, return to office guidance went into effect for our largest offices. We will monitor how our return to office guidance contributes to our environmental impact, and work to find ways to continue to prioritize responsible environmental management practices.

In 2024, we will be installing smart irrigation systems as well as enhanced cooling tower water controls to monitor and limit water usage.

We will continue to explore innovative technologies and renewable energy options to help reduce our GHG emissions across the globe. We’ll also continue to meet LEED guidelines for waste diversion, expand our composting program, and aim to reduce single-use plastics.

Finally, we are continuing to broaden our initiatives to educate our employees and provide more awareness to our stakeholders on environmental efforts and data.

To learn more, read the Principal Financial Group 2023 Sustainability Report.

12023 greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption values will be verified in Q2 2024, and final figures will be disclosed in the 2024 CDP Climate Questionnaire.

2Waste and water data represent select U.S. offices only.

3Waste and water data represent select U.S. offices only.

Insurance products issued by Principal National Life Insurance Co (except in NY) and Principal Life Insurance Company®. Plan administrative services offered by Principal Life. Principal Funds, Inc. is distributed by Principal Funds Distributor, Inc. Securities offered through Principal Securities, Inc., member SIPC and/or independent broker/dealers. Referenced companies are members of the Principal Financial Group®, Des Moines, IA 50392.​

3729297-072024

Eastman

Have you been fortunate enough to see the new McDonald’s Collector’s Meal cups that launched earlier this month? The latest set of six cups is made with Eastman Tritan™ and pay tribute to previous releases, featuring fan favorites like Barbie, Hello Kitty, Minions, and their own McDonald’s characters. The introduction has caused quite the frenzy for nostalgia seekers and created a hot market for sellers and collectors alike. 

Are you collecting? The best thing about these cups is their infinite reusability! Made with Tritan, these hot items will look amazing after repeated washing and many drops — they’re definitely worth the $100 they’re fetching on re-sale sites when you think of them this way. 

Here’s How Much McDonald’s Collector’s Cups Are Reselling For | Entrepreneur

Originally published on U.S. Bank company blog

After the youngest of Jo Murray’s two sons left home, she decided to embrace the new chapter in her life and embark on a new adventure – one that will involve rowing some 3,000 miles across the open ocean from the Canary Islands off the Coast of North Africa to the West Indies in the Caribbean.

“My children are grown up, and I thought it would be lovely to have a challenge and adventure, and if I’m not going to do it now when am I going to do it?” said Murray, senior vice president in U.S. Bank’s Global Corporate Trust.

London-based Murray is on a team with two other women training for The World’s Toughest Row, which will take place in December 2025. They’ve already been planning and training for the event for over 18 months, and preparation for the undertaking is no small feat. First, there was securing the specialized ocean rowing boat, which costs $100,000 and is designed to withstand capsizing in giant ocean waves and contains enough compartments to hold the team’s food and other supplies for the entire journey. Then there’s funding and understanding all the equipment needed to support the crossing and the extensive safety preparations, ranging from mandatory medical, sea survival and navigation training to required number of hours of documented night and open water rowing.

“Part of the reason we selected The World’s Toughest Row is we wanted to have an adventure, but we didn’t want to be stupid about it,” Murray said. “It’s part of an organized row, and there are safety precautions and rules and regulations coming out of your ears.

It’s a little like banking in that regard,” she added with a laugh.

Finally, there is the physical preparation. Murray already was an avid coastal rower, taking up the sport in earnest about six years ago. The logistics of keeping a boat rowing properly on course, night and day, without interruption for an estimated 45 days straight brings its own unique challenges. Murray is focusing on building up her core strength and flexibility so her body can withstand rowing while the boat is rolled by ocean waves that could potentially top 30 feet.

“The most important thing is not getting injured, because if something happens and one of you can’t row you are really in trouble,” she said.

Beyond the challenge of continuously rowing, the team also has to successfully navigate trading spots within the boat every two or three hours, allowing each of the team members to briefly nap or prepare food so they each can consume the estimated 4,000 calories they will need each day. Murray plans to acclimate her body for that schedule by setting her alarm for all hours of the night and hopping on her rowing machine so she knows how to competently row while profoundly sleep-deprived.

“It’s given me a renewed appreciation for what a team can accomplish when the whole is greater than the sum of its parts …That’s what work is, too – people with different experiences and skills working together for the common goal of delivering effectively to our clients.”

– Jo Murray

Daunting as all of that sounds, Murray is invigorated by the scope of the undertaking and the bonding she’s already experienced with her two teammates, one of whom is a longtime friend she met through coastal rowing and the other who joined the team later and has become a dear friend too.

“I really like the idea of an adventure with a group of women who rely on each other,” she said. “We’ve formed that same kind of friendship and bond that you have with your close friends as a child.”

Murray is doing all of this while working full-time at U.S. Bank, heading the business management function within the bank’s Corporate Trust group in Europe. Corporate Trust supports issuers of debt, including institutional clients, corporations, other banks and investment managers. Preparing for The World’s Toughest Row has underscored the value of teamwork for Murray that she carries through to her work at the bank.

“It’s given me a renewed appreciation for what a team can accomplish when the whole is greater than the sum of its parts,” she said. “We are three women, and friends, who row together but we all have different backgrounds and skill sets. That’s what work is, too – people with different experiences and skills working together for the common goal of delivering effectively to our clients.”

Murray says her manager and colleagues have “all been incredibly supportive, but they also think I’m mad.”

When the event begins in December 2025, Murray and her team will have to complete the row completely unassisted. Any resupplies of food, potable water or other supplies will result in disqualification. Their boat will have beacons so it will be visible to ships and the boat must carry three satellite phones, but the team will mostly be out of touch with friends and family in England until they land on the shores of Antigua.

Murray’s team, named The Only Way is Rowing, is raising money with their adventure for three nonprofit organizations with their endeavor – Rewilding Britain, Wilderness Foundation UK and Shelter. The nonprofits’ missions are closely tied to team’s love of nature, helping preserve it or expand access to improve mental health and wellbeing.

“I love rowing on the open water – it’s so lovely. Being out in nature to helps to balance you,” she said. All of the team members “get so much pleasure from being out in the nature, and we want to give some of that back.”

TORONTO, September 12, 2024 /3BL/ – As part of its Helping Canadians Shine™ initiative, Sunlight® laundry detergent, a Henkel brand, is proud to announce that it is supporting expansion of Free Laundry Access, a charity that helps Canadians in need access laundry services.

Sunlight® laundry detergent will help Free Laundry Access expand to a total of four locations across Toronto, Hamilton and Vancouver. Since its launch in 2021 by Toronto laundromat and café owner, Nancy Seto, Free Laundry Access has been providing its services from a single location in the west end of the city.

“During the pandemic, I saw many individuals and families struggling to pay for washing and drying their clothes in our laundromat,” says Seto. “I asked myself, ‘How can I help?’ which inspired the launch of our Free Laundry Access program. Thanks to the Sunlight brand’s tremendous support, not only was I able to continue providing free laundry access from my own laundromat, but they are now helping us expand our program, providing hope, dignity and happiness to those in need.”

For many people, having clean clothes can provide the confidence needed to work, socialize, and participate in daily activities. “The Sunlight brand is very proud to support the Free Laundry Access program, including its efforts to provide more Canadians in need with these important free laundry services,” says Margarita Bajzelj, Director of Marketing, Henkel Consumer Brands Canada. “The work of Free Laundry Access very much fits with our belief in shining a light on goodness and making a difference, one small act of kindness at a time.“

The purchase of Sunlight® laundry detergent products will help support Henkel’s donation of $100,000 to Free Laundry Access, which will feature monthly free laundry events at the following locations:

Toronto, Ontario:

Yummi Café Laundromat (956 St. Clair Avenue West)Wishy Washy Laundromat (3003 Danforth Avenue)

Hamilton, Ontario:

King Coin Laundromat (831 King Street East)

Vancouver, British Columbia:

East Van Laundry (183 East 16th Avenue)

Participation in the program is at the discretion of Free Laundry Access, and free laundry access is not guaranteed. For details on Free Laundry Access events, dates, and eligibility, please visit sunlightcanada.ca/en/helping-canadians-shine.