Month: August 2026

Climate action is becoming an increasingly important business priority, shaping how organisations innovate, grow, and create long-term value. To make meaningful progress, businesses need clarity. They need to understand where they stand today, where they are improving, and where they can go further. Benchmarking provides this clarity. It turns sustainability from an ambition into something measurable, comparable, and actionable. Lenovo already leads in this space, as demonstrated with clear progress and transparency shared in the latest ESG report. 

To support this shift for others, Lenovo partners with ClimateChoice to help its global partner ecosystem build sustainability capabilities and accelerate climate maturity. Through structured climate benchmarking and practical capability building, Lenovo 360 Circle provides the framework that enables partners to benchmark progress, strengthen expertise, and accelerate sustainable business transformation. 

A Community for Sustainable Business Transformation 

Lenovo 360 Circle is Lenovo’s global sustainability community, designed to help partners build sustainability capabilities, connect with expertise, and accelerate sustainable business transformation. By bringing together partners, Lenovo leaders, and industry experts, Lenovo 360 Circle provides a collaborative environment where organisations can share best practices, strengthen their capabilities, benchmark progress, and create greater value for customers. 

Lenovo 360 Circle is founded on the belief that sustainable business transformation is achieved through collaboration. By connecting partners across the ecosystem, the community enables organisations to build knowledge, access practical insights, measure progress, and develop the capabilities needed to differentiate their business, support customers’ sustainability objectives, and unlock long-term growth.  

To support partners at different stages of their sustainability journey, the Lenovo 360 Circle uses a structured three-stage model: 

• Connect: partners are taking their first steps in sustainability. They are building awareness, exploring foundational concepts, and beginning to understand how sustainability fits into their business. 
• Learn: partners have started to structure their sustainability strategy. They are developing goals, building internal capability, and integrating sustainability into their operations and customer conversations. 
• Lead: partners have advanced sustainability strategies and are recognized as role models. They demonstrate strong governance, transparent reporting, and a commitment to driving progress across the wider ecosystem. 

Together, these stages create a pathway that supports partners at every point in their journey. 

What is ClimateChoice Benchmarking and Why It Matters 

ClimateChoice is an independent climate intelligence organisation that helps businesses assess and improve their sustainability performance. Its benchmarking framework evaluates companies across areas such as decarbonization, governance, strategy, emissions performance, and transparency. 

The insights help partners understand their current maturity and identify the actions that will have the greatest impact. For Lenovo 360 Circle members, the benchmark provides a structured view of climate performance and a clear roadmap for improvement. 

2026 Benchmark Results: A Community Moving Forward Together 

For the third year, ClimateChoice benchmarked the climate performance of the Lenovo 360 Circle community, Lenovo’s sustainability ecosystem of international channel partners. The 2026 benchmark shows measurable progress: the overall ClimateChoice Score increased by 12 points, reaching an average of 54 out of 100.  

The strongest improvements were achieved in Decarbonization Measures with +14 points, Strategy & Control with +13 points, and Emissions Performance with +13 points.  

These gains reflect a community that is moving from planning to execution, strengthening sustainability capabilities across the Lenovo partner ecosystem.. Partners are strengthening governance, improving emissions measurement, and embedding sustainability into their operations. 

The benchmark helps participating companies understand where they stand, where gaps remain, and which next steps matter most. It also creates a shared view of climate maturity and progress across Lenovo 360 Circle. 

From Data to Action: Expanding the Lenovo and ClimateChoice Collaboration 

Building on these insights, Lenovo and ClimateChoice are extending their collaboration from data-driven climate assessment to practical partner enablement, helping members build expertise through benchmarking, structured learning, and practical guidance. A dedicated masterclass series, delivered by ClimateChoice together with learning partner Five Glaciers, helps members strengthen their foundations in carbon accounting, decarbonization roadmapping and governance for successful climate management, with a focus on practical next steps in a world of regulatory complexity and fast-changing market needs.  

This makes the Lenovo 360 Circle community a best practice for partner engagement: benchmarking climate maturity across the ecosystem year-over-year, identifying gaps and improvement areas, building capabilities and tracking progress towards shared targets.  

“The results of this year’s ClimateChoice Benchmark are very encouraging. Seeing our Lenovo 360 Circle community improve its overall score by 12 points demonstrates the power of collaboration in accelerating climate action. The ClimateChoice Benchmark provides partners with valuable insights into their climate maturity, while our expanded enablement programme helps turn those insights into meaningful action. Together, we are building the capability, confidence, and momentum needed to drive measurable progress across the partner ecosystem. 

Virginie Kristell Mari Le Barbu Executive Director, Global Sustainability, International Markets Lenovo. 

“The Lenovo 360 Circle community shows what effective ecosystem engagement can look like: benchmark climate maturity, identify improvement areas, build capabilities and track progress over time. This is how climate data moves from a reporting requirement into successful business action.” 

Yasha Tarani, Co Founder and CEO, ClimateChoice 

Looking Ahead 

As climate ambition grows across the industry, the focus is shifting toward execution. The next leap forward will come from partners who embed sustainability into their operations and long term strategies. 

Lenovo 360 Circle is demonstrating the value of ecosystem collaboration in accelerating sustainable business transformation. By bringing together partners, industry experts, and Lenovo leaders, the community is helping organisations build sustainability capabilities, benchmark progress, share best practices, and create greater value for customers. As sustainability continues to shape the future of business, Lenovo 360 Circle provides a pathway for partners to strengthen their capabilities, differentiate their business, and unlock long-term growth. 

Interested in learning more? Visit the Lenovo 360 Circle community page on the Lenovo Partner Hub to explore our available resources and learn how Lenovo 360 Circle can help your organisation build sustainability capabilities and accelerate sustainable business transformation. 

Cascale staff recently attended Bharat Tex 2026 in New Delhi, India.

The event drew more than 124,000 attendees and 1,600+ exhibitors, along with knowledge sessions featuring C-suite decision-makers from leading textile organizations across India.

Key Takeaways:

• Cascale members, staff showcased a strong turnout at Bharat Tex.
• Actionable decarbonization projects, emerging textile legislation, and India’s unique craft history were focal points in the programming.
• Many attendees made note of Higg Facility Environmental Module (Higg FEM) as a solution amid ongoing audit fatigue.

The event’s theme “Sustainable, Circular, and Competitive Bharat” prioritized actionable roadmaps over high-level commitments. Dedicated hubs showcased technical advancements in circular design, resource optimization, and ethical sourcing, positioning sustainability as a core driver of global competitiveness.

Many Cascale members exhibited at the event: among them were Arvind Limited, Shahi Exports, Cotton Connect, Solidaridad, and PDS. Attending Cascale staff included Canelia Mbida, manager of manufacturer member activation; Deepak Kashyap, senior manager, Higg Facility Tools; Isha Agnihotri, manager, Higg facility tools; Prasanth Nandakumar, manager, stakeholder engagement, APAC; and Yasotharan Manivel, manager, decarbonization program.

Audit fatigue remains a top concern for Indian manufacturers, according to one session titled “Decarbonizing Textile Clusters in India: From Commitment to Action.” Workshop facilitators included Cascale members Solidaridad and Fashion For Good, among others, where the discussion centered on how mid-to-medium-sized enterprises increasingly seek greater alignment around standards to ease administrative burdens. In other conversations, member representatives repeatedly cited Higg FEM, stewarded by Cascale and exclusively available on Worldly, as a critical component of the audit solution, showcasing the Higg Index as a trusted industry standard.

Policy conversations were also featured prominently. India’s government-led Mission on Cotton Productivity shared how it aims to boost cotton yields through seed research, modernized farming techniques, and upgrades to 2,000 ginning mills — part of India’s broader “5F” vision (“Farm to Fiber, Fiber to Factory, Factory to Fashion, Fashion to Foreign” initiative). The new India-UK Free Trade Agreement generated optimism among attendees about expanded market access.

Still, India’s supply chain is at an inflection point like the wider industry. Artificial intelligence, research and development, and smart manufacturing practices were cited as priorities by executives for providing newfound resilience. Meanwhile, India’s history of craft and reuse – an estimated $350-billion circular industry – supports ongoing strides for durable design and extended producer responsibility (EPR).

Panels also touched on the importance of financial incentives in nurturing India’s textile sector while preparing it for the future.

Cascale staff recently attended Bharat Tex 2026 in New Delhi, India.

The event drew more than 124,000 attendees and 1,600+ exhibitors, along with knowledge sessions featuring C-suite decision-makers from leading textile organizations across India.

Key Takeaways:

• Cascale members, staff showcased a strong turnout at Bharat Tex.
• Actionable decarbonization projects, emerging textile legislation, and India’s unique craft history were focal points in the programming.
• Many attendees made note of Higg Facility Environmental Module (Higg FEM) as a solution amid ongoing audit fatigue.

The event’s theme “Sustainable, Circular, and Competitive Bharat” prioritized actionable roadmaps over high-level commitments. Dedicated hubs showcased technical advancements in circular design, resource optimization, and ethical sourcing, positioning sustainability as a core driver of global competitiveness.

Many Cascale members exhibited at the event: among them were Arvind Limited, Shahi Exports, Cotton Connect, Solidaridad, and PDS. Attending Cascale staff included Canelia Mbida, manager of manufacturer member activation; Deepak Kashyap, senior manager, Higg Facility Tools; Isha Agnihotri, manager, Higg facility tools; Prasanth Nandakumar, manager, stakeholder engagement, APAC; and Yasotharan Manivel, manager, decarbonization program.

Audit fatigue remains a top concern for Indian manufacturers, according to one session titled “Decarbonizing Textile Clusters in India: From Commitment to Action.” Workshop facilitators included Cascale members Solidaridad and Fashion For Good, among others, where the discussion centered on how mid-to-medium-sized enterprises increasingly seek greater alignment around standards to ease administrative burdens. In other conversations, member representatives repeatedly cited Higg FEM, stewarded by Cascale and exclusively available on Worldly, as a critical component of the audit solution, showcasing the Higg Index as a trusted industry standard.

Policy conversations were also featured prominently. India’s government-led Mission on Cotton Productivity shared how it aims to boost cotton yields through seed research, modernized farming techniques, and upgrades to 2,000 ginning mills — part of India’s broader “5F” vision (“Farm to Fiber, Fiber to Factory, Factory to Fashion, Fashion to Foreign” initiative). The new India-UK Free Trade Agreement generated optimism among attendees about expanded market access.

Still, India’s supply chain is at an inflection point like the wider industry. Artificial intelligence, research and development, and smart manufacturing practices were cited as priorities by executives for providing newfound resilience. Meanwhile, India’s history of craft and reuse – an estimated $350-billion circular industry – supports ongoing strides for durable design and extended producer responsibility (EPR).

Panels also touched on the importance of financial incentives in nurturing India’s textile sector while preparing it for the future.

NEW YORK, August 19, 2026 /3BL/ – Sustainability consulting and research firm Governance & Accountability Institute (G&A) has released a new issue brief describing the OECD’s Guidance for Responsible AI Due Diligence and how it can be used to inform each company’s enterprise-wise strategy. The brief also explains how the Guidance maps to existing global legislation on AI use.

The brief, titled “New Guidance from OECD on Responsible AI: What Companies Need to Know,” presents a world map highlighting major evolutions in AI governance frameworks in recent years, so companies can identify where the OECD guidance is interoperable with guidance or legislation in their jurisdictions. The brief also provides a detailed breakdown of the OECD Guidance, outlining: stakeholders of concern, enterprise applicability, and value chain implications.

As enterprise AI use continues to skyrocket, potential negative impacts on the environment, human rights, and governance standards become more important to identify, assess, and mitigate.

The new brief from G&A’s expert analysts covers:

• Overview of current landscape of AI use by companies
• Recent capital investments in enterprise-scale AI systems
• Types of AI-related risk that can arise throughout the value chain
• Developments in global AI regulations
• A breakdown of the OECD Guidance, including:
  • Which enterprises and stakeholders are in scope?
  • What are the main requirements of due diligence for responsible AI?
  • How can companies implement practical strategies across their enterprises?

The report is available through G&A’s research hub.

About G&A Institute, Inc.
Founded in 2006, Governance & Accountability Institute (G&A) is a New York–based sustainability consulting and research firm with deep advisory experience supporting corporate leaders and investors in integrating sustainability into governance, risk, enterprise performance, and evolving regulatory and stakeholder expectations.

Backed by rigorous disclosure research and one of the industry’s most comprehensive benchmarking databases, we deliver insight that strengthens transparency, enhances competitiveness, and drives measurable return on investment.

G&A has published numerous research papers, issue briefs, and quick reference guides covering global sustainability reporting regulations and frameworks, including the CSRD, ISSB standards, and other emerging mandates.

For more information, visit G&A Institute.

Media Contact:
Louis D. Coppola
Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc.
Tel 646.430.8230 ext 14
Email: lcoppola@ga-institute.com

At Covia, we believe that thriving communities lead to a brighter, more prosperous future for all. With the help of our team members, we invest our time, talent, and financial resources to give back to our communities. We collaborate with hundreds of local organizations to strengthen our communities through in-kind contributions, charitable donations, and volunteerism.

We periodically recognize employees who demonstrate exceptional commitment to giving back and making a difference in their communities. This month, we are proud to recognize Joe Forristal, a Specialty Operator at Covia’s Black Lab Chardon plant. For more than 20 years, his dedication and commitment to volunteerism has positively impacted the Village of Rock Creek.

According to Kurt Krebs, Senior Plant Manager at Black Lab, “Joe has been a great member of the Black Lab crew from day one. He works extremely hard and sets the bar high for the younger generation working alongside him.”

That same work ethic extends far beyond the workplace. Joe has volunteered for the Village of Rock Creek for over 20 years. Situated in the northeastern part of Ohio’s Ashtabula County, Rock Creek is a close-knit rural community renowned for its covered bridges, wineries, and a strong sense of community pride.

Just this year alone, Joe has dedicated hundreds of volunteer hours to helping the village. His contributions include painting the community pavilion, replacing boards on the handicap ramp at the village hall, trimming roadside bushes to ensure school buses can safely pick up children, replacing smoke detectors for community members, helping maintain the village maintenance garage, planting flowers throughout the community, and creating holiday decorations from recycled pallets.

“I’ve always believed that if you have the time and ability to help, you should. It’s rewarding to see the difference even small projects can make in the community.” said Joe.

Joe has tackled countless projects over the years, but he is especially proud of a project from several years ago when he helped the community during a sewer line break. Before joining Covia, he worked in the oil fields, where he gained experience working with piping systems. When the sewer line failed, he put his knowledge to good use by helping to dig up and repair the damaged pipe. When asked what it was like to work on a live sewer line, Joe laughed and said, “It wasn’t that bad!”

Joe’s commitment to serving others continues today. Currently, he is refurbishing candy cane decorations made from scrap materials that would otherwise be discarded. He is helping to give them new life for the community to enjoy during the holiday season.

We are proud of Joe and the many employees who dedicate their time and talents to supporting the communities where they live and work. Joe’s commitment to volunteerism is a great example of how our employees make a meaningful difference through service. To learn more about our volunteer efforts, visit https://www.coviacorp.com/corporate-responsibility/positive-social-impact/the-covia-foundation/.

Originally published by Branches

This past Monday, families at Branches Florida City celebrated the start of a new school year with an evening of community, fun, and support during Branches’ annual Back to School Night, made possible through the generosity of CVS Health and Aetna, a CVS Health company.

At this event, CVS Health presented Branches with a donation of $100,000 to support its work with children and families. The organization also sponsored the evening’s family celebration, which featured dinner, an ice cream bar, bounce houses, face painting, and activities for students and their families. Many company volunteers were also on site helping serve meals, scoop ice cream, distribute donated supplies, and set up for the festivities.

During the event, Branches’ Grow and Climb students at the Florida City site received new backpacks filled with essential school supplies to help them begin the school year prepared for success. Families also received hygiene kits, helping ease some of the costs associated with the back-to-school season.

“The start of a new school year is an important milestone for students, families and communities, and every child deserves to feel prepared, supported and ready to succeed,” said Jenny McColloch, Chief Sustainability Officer and Vice President of Community Impact, CVS Health. “Across the country, we’re investing in back-to-school efforts that connect students and families to essential resources. Through this collaboration with Branches, we’re helping to ensure children in Florida City are prepared for the school year ahead, while supporting the organization’s ongoing work to strengthen families and create healthier, more resilient communities.”

“Back-to-school season can be one of the most expensive times of the year for families,” said Brent McLaughlin, President & CEO of Branches. “We’re grateful to CVS Health and Aetna for investing in Branches’ families and helping create an evening that not only provided essential school supplies but also gave families the opportunity to celebrate the start of a new school year together.”

Please click here to check out the photos from Back to School Night.

Branches’ Back to School Night provides students and families with the resources they need to begin the school year with confidence while strengthening the sense of community that helps children thrive both inside and outside the classroom.

For more information, please visit branchesfl.org or contact Isabelle Pike at 305-206-5689 or ipike@branchesfl.org

About Branches
For more than 50 years, Branches has partnered with families in Miami-Dade County to build educational and financial assets, community, and hope. Through its Grow, Climb, and Achieve programs, Branches provides a continuum of support that helps children thrive and families achieve financial wellness. By connecting families with educational opportunities, financial wellness services, and meaningful community relationships, Branches is building brighter futures across South Florida. Learn more at www.branchesfl.org.