Tag: 3BL

KeyBank and the KeyBank Foundation announced an investment of $300,000 in Akron’s The Well CDC aimed at bolstering its Career Development Program.

Women enrolled in The Well CDC’s Career Development Program go through a 5-week cohort where they earn a customer service certification, write resumes, practice interviewing, discuss soft skills and engage in a variety of workshops (20+ hours) on mental health and emotional wellness. Before graduating from the program, participants have opportunities to meet 25+ community partners and address barriers to employment like childcare, legal backgrounds and the benefits cliff.

Grant dollars given by the KeyBank Foundation will allow The Well CDC to add a much-needed case management dimension to the program to better support students’ transition from training to job placement and long-term employment stability. The organization said they believe participants would achieve more sustainable success with seamless support – from the time they enroll until they develop the skills and habits to maintain employment stability on their own.

“At Key, we are dedicated to supporting local organizations and programs that help prepare individuals for thriving futures,” said Joe Daleiden, KeyBank East Ohio Market President. “The Well CDC has created a robust career program that is helping to meet the needs of some of our most vulnerable community members, and we’re so proud to support the expansion of the program. We value their work and are looking forward to the continued success of the Career Development Program in the years ahead.”

“We are really excited to work with the KeyBank Foundation to creatively develop workforce solutions alongside our neighbors and residents,” said Zac Kohl, Executive Director of The Well CDC. “The Well CDC is focused on building individual and family stability within a home and recognizes that also includes taking a holistic approach to Career Development. This generous grant from KeyBank will allow our team to continue to develop programming with a trauma informed lens and continue to remove barriers to support the whole person. We are grateful for KeyBank Foundation’s belief and investment into this work that will propel our programming to the next level of supporting women in finding stable, livable waged careers.”

Target outcomes from the program include:

Expansion of clients the program serves with post-graduation follow up, case management and resource coordination from 54 to 125 annually.Create and implement an Alumni Peer Support Group that would meet six times a year.Increase client placement at employer partners from 20% to 50%.Create data collection processes to collect retention and engagement information from employer partners and education providers.

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.

ABOUT THE WELL CDC

The Well CDC invests in people through the built environment while seeking a holistic approach to address systemic issues in order to improve the quality of life within the Middlebury neighborhood by fostering choice in housing, job creation and community pride.

Gardening has many positive physical and mental benefits, so don’t miss out on the opportunity to keep them going during the fall season. Whether you’re planting hearty vegetables like kale or vibrant mums, there are many varieties that can thrive–and help you thrive–in the cooler autumn air.

According to Miracle-Gro, you can achieve faster results in the season by opting for young plants as opposed to seeds. On the edible side of gardening, plants like collards, Swiss chard, curly kale and other vegetables that can tolerate frost can do well in late season.

But our favorite part of fall gardening is the simple act of getting outside and keeping the season growing. Some areas of the country can experience longer winters than others, so why not keep the garden vibes alive before the cold air comes?

By committing to fall growing, gardeners are also keeping themselves active and in touch with the earth. It gives you a chance to take a screen break while you tend to your plants. Plus, if hearty veggies are your plants of choice, it brings a late season harvest of fresh food from right at home.

Who’s ready to keep growing?!

About ScottsMiracle-Gro
With approximately $3.6 billion in sales, the Company is the world’s largest marketer of branded consumer products for lawn and garden care. The Company’s brands are among the most recognized in the industry. The Company’s Scotts®, Miracle-Gro®, and Ortho® brands are market-leading in their categories. The Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, The Hawthorne Gardening Company, is a leading provider of nutrients, lighting, and other materials used in the indoor and hydroponic growing segment. For additional information, visit us at www.scottsmiraclegro.com. 

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Trudging up an isolated dirt path at Conestee Nature Preserve in Greenville, S.C., a vast meadow comes into view. It’s a uniquely special place, surrounded by hundreds of acres of natural habitats.

Piedmont Natural Gas volunteers gathered here on a sticky summer morning – not to hike, bike or escape into nature – but to plant milkweed, a critical food source for important pollinators like bees and butterflies.

“This is our home, this is where we live, so anything that I can do to help out to make it better, I’m all for it,” said volunteer Brent Laney of Piedmont Natural Gas, a business unit of Duke Energy, and trusted natural gas provider for more than 1.1 million residential and business customers in the Carolinas and Tennessee.

But Duke Energy’s efforts to protect the beauty and diversity of our natural resources is so much more than just sweat equity. That commitment is exemplified through its proactive initiatives headed by the Natural Resources Group. By promoting conservation projects, habitat enhancement, biodiversity and other environmental initiatives, they strive to preserve our planet and create a better future for all. This vision is carried out all while ensuring utility infrastructure can be maintained and improved without harming the environment.

Lead Environmental Scientist James McRacken has spent nearly eight years protecting wildlife and habitat areas where the company operates. And he understands the importance of milkweed, a flowering plant that attracts pollinators such as butterflies, birds and bees that transfer pollen from plant to plant. This transfer of pollen contributes to a thriving ecosystem and the fruit and vegetables we consume.

Many are surprised to learn about McRacken’s job with the electric utility.

When doing field work, sightseers often approach him to ask what he is doing. “I’m a wildlife biologist for Duke Energy,” he’ll say. “And they’re so surprised that we do that. They also seem thankful to learn we’re out there doing these types of studies and caring for the many plants and animals that call this home.”

The Natural Resources Group also preserves habitats in transmission and distribution rights of ways, corridors with vital infrastructure that delivers electricity from power plants to homes and businesses. And McRacken oversees the bird hotline, ensuring nests are safely relocated when people notice a bird nesting in a meter box or other Duke Energy infrastructure. They’re not just doing the bare minimum.

“It’s about more than compliancy,” he said. “Duke Energy wants to be a good steward of the environment.”

Hank McCullough, a veteran community relations manager at Piedmont Natural Gas in South Carolina, organized the milkweed planting event at the nature preserve. Knowing these events positively and directly influence surrounding communities, McCullough is in the process of setting up more volunteering opportunities, including a sustainable tree planting event in some of the neighborhoods located in Greenville and Spartanburg counties.

“We want to be able to do things that keep the communities we serve vibrant and a place for all people, a place where families can do interesting things, where they can engage young people to understand the value of nature in the outdoors,” McCullough said.

Land, water and habitat protection

Duke Energy and Piedmont Natural Gas employees focus on all aspects of natural resource conservation and the environment, including forest management and aquatic protection among other things, such as:

The Island Habitat Program, sponsored by the N.C. Wildlife Federation and Duke Energy, encourages homeowners associations, boating groups and more to “adopt” an island. Participating groups agree to clean up litter and debris from their island, while providing data on wildlife species that occupy the land.Another initiative, the Catawba-Wateree Habitat Enhancement Program, created a Habitat Enhancement Fund to help sustain the Catawba-Wateree reservoirs and surrounding area’s ecosystem. It’s funded by fees charged to property owners and developers applying for lake use permits.Through a voluntary conservation agreement to save the monarch butterfly, Duke Energy helps the energy and transportation sectors evaluate population trends for monarchs nationwide. These insights help experts develop conservation strategies, like adjusting vegetation management practices or planting more milkweed, vital to the monarch’s survival.Duke Energy also works with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to address a decline in protected bat species. Learn more about the bat Habitat Conversation Plan.

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August 29, 2024 /3BL/ – The stakeholder forum that advises the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) on key strategic issues has appointed new leadership and members. Erdem Kolcuoglu and Constance Kane have begun their terms as Chair and Vice-Chair of the GRI Stakeholder Council, with eight new members appointed.

Erdem Kolcuoglu is Senior Consultant and a Vice-Chair at Kıymet-i Harbiye Yönetim Danışmanlık, a leading sustainability consultancy in Türkiye, and has over 15 years of experience in corporate sustainability. Constance Kane is Executive Director at Women Changemakers for Education in the USA, and brings deep expertise in the fields of women’s empowerment and education, social justice and human rights.

The 24 members of the Stakeholder Council represent five defined constituency groups, with diverse representation that spans global regions. The new members, who started their terms on 1 August, are:

Prabodha Acharya, Chief Sustainability Officer, JSW Group – India (business enterprise)Adekemi Adisa, General Manager, MTN Nigeria Communications PLC – Nigeria (business enterprise)Louis Coppola, Co-Founder, Governance & Accountability Institute – USA (mediating institution)Vanessa Gomes, Executive Director, Standard Chartered Bank – USA (investment institution)José Miguel Salazar, Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) Sustainability Hub Manager, PwC Poland – Poland (mediating institution)Mélanie Jeanroy, Legal Officer, International Labour Organization – Switzerland (labor organization)Gustavo Sinner, Director, AG Sustentable – Argentina (mediating institution)Markus Pfannkuch, Co-CEO, Precious Woods Holding Ltd – Switzerland (business enterprise)

Erdem Kolcuoglu, the new Chair of GRI Stakeholder Council, said:

“The multi-stakeholder approach, which can be expressed through the motto of ‘for our stakeholders, with our stakeholders’, represents the founding spirit and distinctive characteristic of GRI. It is the core ethos that shapes the way we operate, our standards activities, products and services.

The Stakeholder Council embodies the multi-stakeholder spirit within GRI’s governance structure. We place great importance on pluralism, diversity and inclusiveness in its composition. Professionals from around the world, representing a wide range of areas and backgrounds, come together to support GRI’s mission. This enables GRI to listen effectively to its stakeholders, develop standards and services that best meet their expectations, and remain relevant in an ever-changing reporting environment.”

Constance Kane, the new Vice-Chair of GRI Stakeholder Council, added:

“There are many reasons why reporting on impacts, via standard setters like GRI, is critical. These include issues like compliance, operational efficiency and risk management. More important is the matter of stakeholder trust and accountability. This is where GRI has a strong competitive advantage, particularly through the Stakeholder Council – a body which works tirelessly to ensure that all stakeholder voices are heard and incorporated into GRI’s global standards. I am thrilled to be upholding the multi-stakeholder charge in my new role as Vice-Chair.”

The core function of the Stakeholder Council is to provide advice and recommendations to the GRI Management Board, Supervisory Board and Global Sustainability Standards Board, including on GRI policy, business planning and key activities.

Appointments to the Council are on a voluntary basis and members serve a three-year term. Membership is refreshed on a regular basis with a global public call for applications.

The Chair and Vice-Chair appointments follow the outcome of elections among the GRI Stakeholder Council members, which took place in May and June 2024.

Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is the independent, international organization that helps businesses and other organizations take responsibility for their impacts, by providing the global common language to report those impacts. The GRI Standards are the world’s most widely used sustainability reporting standards, which are developed through a multi-stakeholder process and provided as a free public good.

This quarterly newsletter showcases how Truist Foundation supports Truist Financial Corporation’s purpose to inspire and build better lives and communities through strategic investments in a wide variety of nonprofit organizations centered around two focus areas: building career pathways to economic mobility and strengthening small businesses to ensure all communities have an equal opportunity to thrive. Click here to sign up to receive the newsletter via email.

The urgency of now

Truist Foundation President Lynette Bell had the honor of being a session leader at this year’s Social Innovation Summit in Chicago. This annual gathering of the best and brightest minds in social impact—including our Inspire Award finalists Centro Community Partners and Immigrants Rising—provided an opportunity for networking and hearing from change-makers like Al Roker and Dr. Chelsea Clinton.

Lynette kicked off her general session about “The Urgency of Now” with an inspiring speech on how Truist Foundation is driving intentional and critical impact in our communities—right now.
Watch Lynette’s speech
Watch the conference highlights

Coming soon: 2025 Inspire Awards

Don’t miss announcements about the 2025 Inspire Awards! Join the Inspire Awards email list from MIT Solve to stay in the know.
Sign up here 

Building partnerships at the CECP Summit

Lynette spoke about transparency, co-creating, and community decision making at the 2024 Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose Summit.
Watch now

Community-driven solutions

How are community banks with a strong regional footprint, like Truist, essential for creating generational change?
Find out 

JACKSON, Miss., August 26, 2024 /3BL/ – Extreme heat can increase electricity use and costs, and the past two summers have brought record-level temperatures to our service area and high electricity usage by our customers. Entergy Mississippi is committed to helping our customers stay cool and save money this summer with bill management tools, customer assistance events and programs.

Entergy’s newly launched online Bill Toolkit connects customers to bill management, energy efficiency and financial assistance resources. This new resource helps our customers explore simple ways they can lower their electricity use and costs.

“In the face of extreme temperatures, we’re continuing to take steps to keep costs down for customers with some of the lowest electricity rates in the country,” said Robbie Kemp, vice president of customer service. “To help our customers take control of their budget and save money in extreme heat, we are connecting them with tools to monitor their energy use, manage their bills and find financial assistance.”

Track your energy usage

Bill management tools like myAdvisor empower our customers to set electricity usage alerts and monitor how much energy they use each day. Tracking electricity usage over time can help customers identify habits that contribute to higher usage and budget their monthly expenses. With their myAdvisor dashboard, customers have access to usage and cost details, bill history, bill projections and analyzer tools and more.

Manage your bills your way

Entergy Mississippi offers several flexible payment options so customers can choose when, where and how they receive their bills.

Pick-A-Date allows customers to pay their bills when it works best for them.Level Billing allows customers to “level out” seasonal energy use fluctuations, making their bills more consistent every month.PaperFREE billing allows customers to get their bills emailed as soon as they post and instant access to two years of billing history.AutoPay allows customers to avoid late fees, writing checks and paying for postage by having bills automatically deduct from their bank accounts.

Entergy Mississippi encourages customers who may need additional payment options to reach out before a payment is due. To see if customers automatically qualify for deferred payment arrangements or payment extensions, they can visit our mobile app or myEntergy.

Find financial assistance

For customers needing assistance to pay their bills, Entergy Mississippi is here to help. Throughout this summer, Entergy Mississippi is implementing a series of measures through its “Beat the Heat” program focused on helping our low-income customers and communities stay cool and pay their bills.

Most recently, the program assisted than 400 customers in Cleveland, Mississippi. Entergy volunteers partnered with local community advocate organization Boss Lady Economic Planning Development to distribute energy efficiency kits, box fans, cases of water, lawn chairs, and plastic swimming pools. Customers in Jackson received energy efficiency kits and box fans at a drive-thru event held in partnership with New Horizon Church.

In addition, Entergy Mississippi partners with local and state organizations to connect qualifying customers with financial assistance including:

The Power to Care program provides emergency bill payment assistance to older adults and customers with disabilities.Single Stop makes it easy for customers to quickly and confidentially check their eligibility for federal, state and local financial assistance.Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program provides financial assistance for energy bills and other energy-related expenses.

For more ways to save energy and money, customers can visit BillToolkit.entergy.com.

About Entergy Mississippi

Entergy Mississippi, LLC provides electricity to approximately 459,000 customers in 45 counties. Entergy Mississippi is a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation, a Fortune 500 electric company. Entergy powers life for 3 million customers through our operating companies in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. We’re investing in the reliability and resilience of the energy system while helping our region transition to cleaner, more efficient energy solutions. With roots in our communities for more than 100 years, Entergy is a nationally recognized leader in sustainability and corporate citizenship. Since 2018, we have delivered more than $100 million in economic benefits each year to local communities through philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy. Entergy is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has approximately 12,000 employees. For the latest news from Entergy Mississippi, visit the Newsroom and connect with @EntergyMS on social media.

JACKSON, Miss., August 26, 2024 /3BL/ – Extreme heat can increase electricity use and costs, and the past two summers have brought record-level temperatures to our service area and high electricity usage by our customers. Entergy Mississippi is committed to helping our customers stay cool and save money this summer with bill management tools, customer assistance events and programs.

Entergy’s newly launched online Bill Toolkit connects customers to bill management, energy efficiency and financial assistance resources. This new resource helps our customers explore simple ways they can lower their electricity use and costs.

“In the face of extreme temperatures, we’re continuing to take steps to keep costs down for customers with some of the lowest electricity rates in the country,” said Robbie Kemp, vice president of customer service. “To help our customers take control of their budget and save money in extreme heat, we are connecting them with tools to monitor their energy use, manage their bills and find financial assistance.”

Track your energy usage

Bill management tools like myAdvisor empower our customers to set electricity usage alerts and monitor how much energy they use each day. Tracking electricity usage over time can help customers identify habits that contribute to higher usage and budget their monthly expenses. With their myAdvisor dashboard, customers have access to usage and cost details, bill history, bill projections and analyzer tools and more.

Manage your bills your way

Entergy Mississippi offers several flexible payment options so customers can choose when, where and how they receive their bills.

Pick-A-Date allows customers to pay their bills when it works best for them.Level Billing allows customers to “level out” seasonal energy use fluctuations, making their bills more consistent every month.PaperFREE billing allows customers to get their bills emailed as soon as they post and instant access to two years of billing history.AutoPay allows customers to avoid late fees, writing checks and paying for postage by having bills automatically deduct from their bank accounts.

Entergy Mississippi encourages customers who may need additional payment options to reach out before a payment is due. To see if customers automatically qualify for deferred payment arrangements or payment extensions, they can visit our mobile app or myEntergy.

Find financial assistance

For customers needing assistance to pay their bills, Entergy Mississippi is here to help. Throughout this summer, Entergy Mississippi is implementing a series of measures through its “Beat the Heat” program focused on helping our low-income customers and communities stay cool and pay their bills.

Most recently, the program assisted than 400 customers in Cleveland, Mississippi. Entergy volunteers partnered with local community advocate organization Boss Lady Economic Planning Development to distribute energy efficiency kits, box fans, cases of water, lawn chairs, and plastic swimming pools. Customers in Jackson received energy efficiency kits and box fans at a drive-thru event held in partnership with New Horizon Church.

In addition, Entergy Mississippi partners with local and state organizations to connect qualifying customers with financial assistance including:

The Power to Care program provides emergency bill payment assistance to older adults and customers with disabilities.Single Stop makes it easy for customers to quickly and confidentially check their eligibility for federal, state and local financial assistance.Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program provides financial assistance for energy bills and other energy-related expenses.

For more ways to save energy and money, customers can visit BillToolkit.entergy.com.

About Entergy Mississippi

Entergy Mississippi, LLC provides electricity to approximately 459,000 customers in 45 counties. Entergy Mississippi is a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation, a Fortune 500 electric company. Entergy powers life for 3 million customers through our operating companies in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. We’re investing in the reliability and resilience of the energy system while helping our region transition to cleaner, more efficient energy solutions. With roots in our communities for more than 100 years, Entergy is a nationally recognized leader in sustainability and corporate citizenship. Since 2018, we have delivered more than $100 million in economic benefits each year to local communities through philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy. Entergy is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has approximately 12,000 employees. For the latest news from Entergy Mississippi, visit the Newsroom and connect with @EntergyMS on social media.

The Clorox Change Makers initiative spotlights people who actively celebrate diversity, promote inclusion and practice allyship, making a positive impact on our business and culture.

In this installment, we focus on Cassie Hairston, a senior engineer for our Glad and Brita businesses in our Supply Chain organization. Cassie was nominated by Kendall Stout, a technology lead, also in Supply Chain. We spoke with them to learn more about what Cassie’s allyship looks like in action.

Why did you nominate Cassie as a Change Maker? What makes her an ally?

Kendall: Cassie has been instrumental in eliminating the stigma surrounding mental health. She is heavily involved in her local chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and is a chief of staff for our Mental Health Champions ERG. She openly shares her experience as a suicide survivor, letting others know they are not alone, and is a safe place and haven for anyone to reach out to if they are struggling.

How has Cassie’s allyship made an impact for you and others at Clorox?

Kendall: While Cassie has been sharing her story in small forums for years, she was recently a speaker during our global IDEAcon. She has the unique ability to listen, support, learn and grow, which has enabled her to find intersectionalities between mental health and our ERGs. By working at a plant, she’s also been able to tailor our ERG content to reach production teammates while also driving an improved culture across all our ERG communities.

What does IDEA, and specifically allyship, mean to you?

Cassie: IDEA is about creating a space where everyone feels valued, respected and supported. Specifically, allyship and mental health, for me, means standing up for those who are struggling, advocating for open conversations and ensuring that mental health is treated with the same importance as physical health. It’s about being a voice for those who might not have one, and fostering an environment where people feel safe to express their needs and to seek help without judgment.

What tips do you have for others to put allyship into action in their day-to-day lives?

Cassie: To put allyship into action, you can begin by listening — and I mean really listening to your colleagues when you ask them how they’re doing. And make sure we educate ourselves about mental health challenges that others may face that we may not understand. The greatest way to be an ally is to speak up any time you see stigma or discrimination happening. Remember that allyship is about consistent, everyday actions that make an impact on those around us.

To live our purpose and values, we must build a workplace where every person can feel respected and valued, and fully able to participate in our Clorox community. We aim to lead by example, at every level within the company, and to continually challenge ourselves to do better.  Learn more about our inclusion and diversity efforts here.

Sands China’s long-standing commitment to advancing local businesses is most notably headlined by the annual Sands Shopping Carnival, which offers a free platform for Macao businesses, including small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and Sands retailers, to showcase their goods and services to the community.

The fifth annual Sands Shopping Carnival held July 18-21 at The Venetian® Macao’s Cotai Expo was another resounding success, drawing 120,000 visitors – the highest number since the event’s inception. Guests enjoyed a wide array of shopping opportunities, performances and activities for all ages over the four-day extravaganza.

Introduced by Sands China in 2020 to help spur business recovery during the pandemic, the Sands Shopping Carnival is the largest sales event in Macao.

The 2024 Sands Shopping Carnival offered more than 580 booths, with 325 booths dedicated to SMEs, another record for the event. Nine exhibition zones featured Sands retailers, household products, parenting and family goods and services, gourmet food and wine, a food court, green living products, Macao cultural and creative items, play and fun activities, and Macao specialties and souvenirs.

Family entertainment is a hallmark of the Sands Shopping Carnival, which this year included the popular BOC Smart Kids Presents: Little Master Chef Workshop, a food-prep and decorating activity led by Sands China’s food and beverage team. More than 530 children and parents prepared tacos, spring rolls, sushi and more. Two new additions to the event lineup – the Bank of Communications Presents – Rising Stars: 2024 Kids Talent Showdown and the ICBC ePay Presents: National Essence: Hanfu Styling Contest – attracted participants from the Greater Bay Area, adding spectacular entertainment to the carnival.

As in past carnivals, Sands China integrated community service organizations throughout the four-day event. In the carnival’s food court, four social enterprises that offer vocational training for their clients sold food and drinks. Macau’s oldest charity, Tung Sin Tong, offered herbal tea and soup packs in the gourmet food and wine zone. In addition, 10 community organizations showcased their goods and services in the Macao cultural and creative zone.

Participation in the Sands Shopping Carnival provided community service organizations with visibility, as well as created job opportunities for their service recipients.

Sands Cares Ambassadors, Sands China’s Team Member volunteer corps, accompanied beneficiaries of community service organizations to experience the event’s attractions, which included taking clients of the Caritas Macau Fountain of Love and Joy Integrated Family Service Center to enjoy go-karting and game booths. Ambassadors also facilitated the participation of parents and children from the Macau Child Development Association in the BOC Smart Kids Presents: Little Master Chef Workshop.

As was done at last year’s carnival, Sands China offered a unique opportunity for Macau Special Olympics members to role-play as news reporters and editors who conducted interviews, took photographs, captured video, and then wrote, edited and produced carnival news reports.

The Sands Shopping Carnival also promotes Sands’ focus on environmental stewardship, which was spearheaded by the Sands ECO360 team at the event. Sands Cares Accelerator member Green Future and Sands ECO360 ambassadors demonstrated effective methods for recycling cardboard, plastic and metal to exhibitors. In addition, items such as used laundry baskets and weight scales were provided as free giveaways to visitors who made purchases from local businesses at the carnival.

“Over these five years, we have maintained a steadfast partnership with the Macao SAR Government, the Macao Chamber of Commerce, and other supporting entities, providing relentless support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through the Sands Shopping Carnival,” Dr. Wilfred Wong, Sands China’s executive vice chairman, said. “This year also marks the momentous 20th anniversary of Sands Macao. As a long-standing pillar of Macao’s business landscape, we have deep ties with the local community. Our commitment to supporting local SMEs is unwavering, and we embrace the philosophy of growing with SMEs.”

The 2024 Sands Shopping Carnival supports the Macao SAR government’s economic revival efforts. Sands China’s co-organizer was the Macao Chamber of Commerce, and the company received the full support of the Economic and Technological Development Bureau, the Macao Government Tourism Office, and the Macao Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute. The carnival was sponsored by BOC Macau, ICBC (Macau), Bank of Communications Co., Ltd. Macau Branch, and BNU.

To learn more about Sands’ commitment to creating growth opportunities for local businesses in its host regions, read the company’s latest ESG report: https://www.sands.com/resources/reports/.

Sustainability matters, ensuring the long-term health and well-being of our planet, economy and society. Perhaps surprisingly, there are also other benefits to embracing sustainable initiatives. According to a Capgemini report, 77% of companies say their sustainability initiatives actually increase customer loyalty, for example, and other perks can include lower costs and economic growth.

Circularity can and should play a large role in any sustainability strategy, not only helping to reduce emissions, but also to cut waste and manage resources more effectively. While it can be difficult to know where to start when it comes to sustainability and circularity, we’ve had plenty of experience here at Lenovo.

The growing importance of sustainability

The push for sustainability is largely driven by several key factors. There’s the need to protect the environment, for starters, preserving natural resources and ecosystems. Climate science suggests we need rapid and deep emissions cuts to achieve global net-zero and prevent the most damaging effects of climate change.

We only have one planet and finite resources, making it critical that we look after them. Sustainability can contribute to the well-being of communities, with sustainable practices helping to ensure that resources are available for all. The benefits from a fairer and better society can help to support the general concept of sustainability, making sustainable businesses more attractive to consumers.

This leads us nicely onto the third key factor, which is the economic benefits of sustainability. Not only do sustainable initiatives help when it comes to cutting emissions, managing resources and increasing customer loyalty, they can also lead to economic growth by promoting innovation, efficiency and long-term planning.

Businesses that adopt sustainable practices can see reduced costs through energy savings and waste reduction, while also opening up new markets and opportunities for sustainable technologies and products.

Lenovo’s commitment to sustainability

As such, it’s no surprise that sustainability is hugely important to us here at Lenovo. It’s at the centre of everything we do. That’s why we’re committed to achieving Net-Zero emissions by 2050, and our targets have been validated by SBTi (Science Based Targets initiative).

Our primary strategies to reduce emissions include cutting the environmental impact of our products, harnessing innovation to increase sustainable manufacturing, and decreasing emissions across our entire operations and value chain.

While we’re focussing on the big picture when it comes to sustainability, the smaller details also add up, which is why we’re embracing innovative manufacturing techniques such as soldering at lower temperatures to help conserve energy. Of course, there’s more to sustainability than simply cutting emissions, and we have solutions that can help our customers at every step of their IT sustainability journey.

An innovative approach to the circular economy

Circularity plays a key part when it comes to sustainability, especially for technology. E-waste makes up 70% of overall toxic waste, after all, and only 20% of it is currently formally recycled.

Lenovo is committed to incorporating post-industrial recycled content (PIC) plastics, post-consumer recycled content (PCC) plastics, and closed-loop post-consumer recycled plastics (CL-PCR) into our products, along with introducing new materials such as ocean bound plastics (OBP) and recycled metals.

Designing products to be manufactured from recycled materials not only saves natural resources and energy, but also diverts materials from landfills. We try to design our products to be long-lasting, easily repaired and easily refurbished.

As part of the recycling process, Lenovo’s Asset Recovery Service (ARS) helps to mitigate the environmental and data security risks associated with end-of-life asset disposal, but it’s also worth considering how to extend the lifecycle of existing products.

Our Certified Refurbished solution can help here, giving a second or even third lease of life to devices, which are certified, backed with Lenovo warranty, and offer significant cost savings for customers.

Leveraging AI for sustainability ambitions

Of course, picking the best products, knowing where to start when it comes to your sustainability journey, or even knowing when and where it makes sense to opt for refurbished devices can seem like a daunting task. That’s why we’re also leaning on AI to help our customers to make educated choices.

LISSA (Lenovo Intelligent Sustainability Solutions Advisor) is Lenovo’s internal AI-powered tool, created to help customers make data-driven sustainability choices. LISSA makes it possible to unlock the estimated emissions reductions opportunities across the IT lifecycle from different Lenovo services. By including emissions reductions as part of your IT purchases from the beginning, LISSA helps influence a positive shift from traditional IT procurement to more conscious IT decision making.

We want to put our customers in the driver’s seat, making it easier to choose the preferred pathway to meet their own IT sustainability goals.

An approach that works for you

Perhaps the biggest thing to understand is the fact that every organisation is different. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, and of course we’re not expecting customers to immediately check every single sustainability box.

By exploring the potential of emission reduction opportunities, making conscious decisions, and implementing circular IT solutions into your tech stack, it’s easier to make inroads into achieving your sustainability ambitions.