Tag: 3BL

Our approach to tax aims to align with the needs and long-term interests of our various stakeholders including governments, shareholders, employees, and the communities where we operate. When considering tax affairs, we consider the Company’s corporate and social responsibilities and reputation and the benefit of transparency on tax matters. We recognize the importance of tax systems in helping governments fund programs to meet the needs of their communities

TAX GOVERNANCE AND RISK MANAGEMENT: The policies and procedures we have in place are designed to ensure we comply fully with all applicable tax requirements in every jurisdiction where we operate. We have established robust internal controls in financial and tax reporting, and we rely on technology and appropriately qualified and capable employees across our operations to timely and accurately calculate, report, and pay our tax liabilities. Employees and external stakeholders can report tax concerns through our hotline. Responsibility for setting and implementing our tax policy and management of our tax risks ultimately sits with our Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Day-to-day responsibility for the application of the tax policy and the management of our tax affairs is delegated by the CFO to the Tax Director, who is supported by a team of in-house tax and finance professionals. Oversight is provided by the Audit Committee of the Company’s Board of Directors, consistent with our Enterprise Risk Management Framework. 

ALIGNMENT WITH OUR BUSINESS: Our tax team partners with our business operations to provide tax planning that enhances value and sustainable development and manages tax risks. Our internal policies and procedures are designed to ensure we comply with applicable tax laws, including monitoring and minimizing tax risks. We have a low tolerance for tax risk and do not engage in planning opportunities that are not in line with our values or are inconsistent with our reputation. Where uncertainty exists, and when appropriate, we seek clarification from external professional advisors. 

STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT: We are committed to maintaining professional, open, and transparent relationships with tax authorities in all jurisdictions in which we operate, including the Internal Revenue Service and U.S. state and local tax and revenue departments. In the event a tax authority disagrees with our views on the appropriate tax treatment of a given item, we will work constructively to resolve the issue in a timely manner through appropriate methods of dispute resolution. We seek to be a valued partner to governments and advocate for tax legislation that encourages innovation and growth.

Forward Looking Statement

This release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Words such as “aims,” “campaign,” “can,” “committed”, “designed,” “ensure,” “initiatives,” “long-term,” “opportunities,” “planning,” “seek,” “will,” and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements reflect management’s views of future events based on assumptions and are therefore subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, and are not guarantees of future conduct, results, or policies. Please view the Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information on page 134 of PotlatchDeltic’s 2022 ESG Report.

Originally published in the Henkel 2023 Sustainability Report

At Henkel, we consistently and successfully implemented our sustainability strategy in 2023. Here are some examples from different fields of action:

Move to Matter
In May 2023, Henkel employees attended an internal Global Sustainability Forum in Düsseldorf. Around 140 participants attended this event under the slogan “Move to Matter.” They came away inspired by the discussions and key information. The event was a great source of enthusiasm and helped to bring the attendees closer together.

Expanding Renewable Energies
We have moved another step closer to our aim of achieving climate-positive production by 2030 – with the continued expansion of renewable energies, among other initiatives. Henkel converted a further 14 sites to carbon-neutral production in 2023. We also increased the share of our purchased electricity derived from renewable sources to 89 percent.

One of the World’s Best Employers
Henkel has been named one of the best employers in the world by business magazine Forbes. The “World’s Best Employers” were chosen based on a survey of more than 170,000 employees from multinational companies.

Local Networks for a Circular Economy
Henkel partnered with the Circular Valley Foundation to help advance the circular economy. The aim is to develop the Rhine-Ruhr region into an attractive location for young companies and researchers interested in the circular economy. The cooperation gives Henkel the opportunity to engage with startups and scientists from around the world, while also expanding its local network.

“It Starts With Us”
Through targeted communication, we strive to encourage responsible-minded behavior while using our products. In our Consumer Brands business unit, we have launched the initiative “It starts with us.” Simple changes to everyday behavior can help consumers to use our products in a more resource-efficient and sustainable way, for example by using the ECO program on their washing machine.

Transparency in the Product Portfolio
In 2023, the Adhesive Technologies business unit published an assessment of the sustainability of its product portfolio. An external audit confirmed the share of sales from products that contribute to sustainability in line with criteria defined by Henkel.

Paid Parental Leave for Everyone
In 2023, Henkel issued global guidelines on paid parental leave – irrespective of gender – which are set to come into force in 2024. This means that both parents will have the flexibility to take paid parental leave. With this new policy, Henkel is living up to its commitment to diversity by supporting consistent and equal access to offers such as parental leave and childcare services worldwide.

Award for New Sleeve Technology
To improve the recyclability of the PET bottle bodies used for its fabric softeners in Europe, Henkel is using a new technology called EcoFloat® for the packaging sleeve. This material is low in density and easier to separate from PET bottles at recycling facilities. The clean separation of bottle and sleeve materials is essential to enable high-quality PET to be recovered. Henkel was presented with the AWA Award for this innovation in 2023.

Learn more about Henkel’s 2023 Sustainability Strategy and Successes in the 2023 Sustainability Report.

In this episode of ESG Talk, Steve Manocchio, head of global financial compliance and risk management at Cisco, meets with Workiva’s Steve Soter to discuss incorporating climate data into financial disclosures and how assurance, technology, and community advance ESG initiatives.

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Looking for more? Subscribe to the ESG Talk podcast on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.

ESG Talk is brought to you by Workiva, the world’s only unified platform for financial reporting, ESG, audit, and risk. Learn more at workiva.com.

With approximately 45,000 employees around the world and the majority of them working in facilities, Gildan understands its responsibility in fostering an environment where employees feel safe coming to work. From implementing workplace safety practices guided by its Global Health and Safety Policy, to providing healthcare support beyond work through on-site clinics, health fairs, free medical consultations, and mental health services, the Company is committed to ensuring the holistic well-being of its employees.

In honor of the United Nation’s World Day for Safety and Health at Work, we sat down with Mike Albright, Vice-President of Health & Safety and Human Resources Manufacturing, and Esther Hackett, Vice-President of Human Resources, to learn more about the Company’s longstanding commitment to Health & Safety (H&S) and how it has become an essential part of the Company’s culture.

Can you tell us about Gildan’s commitment to Health and Safety?

Mike: Guided by our vision of Making Apparel Better®, Gildan is committed to improving both the quality of apparel it makes and the way in which it produces it; and it’s all thanks to our incredible people who manage our manufacturing process from start to finish. Our employees are fundamental to our success, and providing them with safe working conditions, where they may work comfortably and to their full potential, is an important priority for us.

In fact, one of our values is that “we operate responsibly,” so embracing a culture of H&S is at the very core of who we are.

Esther: In 2022, as part of Gildan’s Next Generation ESG strategy, we further elevated our commitment to H&S by setting a goal to obtain the ISO 45001 certification at all Company-operated facilities by 2028. Since then, we have successfully obtained this certification in all our sewing facilities in the Dominican Republic, and we are on our way to achieving it in our other regions of operation as well.

What role do each of you play in bringing Gildan’s H&S goals to life?

Mike: I am responsible for overseeing the implementation of our global H&S management systems and processes across all our manufacturing worldwide; this includes roughly 30 facilities in the United States, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Bangladesh. Throughout my time at Gildan, I have been involved in building a strong foundation for H&S, standardizing it across our many facilities, and consistently improving it.

Esther: As the lead of the Human Capital Management ESG committee, I work with various teams across operations to drive our Next Generation ESG strategy target of obtaining the ISO 45001 certification at all our facilities.

Can you tell us more about the ISO 45001 certification? Why did Gildan choose to align itself with this standard?

Mike: The ISO 45001 is an industry-recognized, global management system which promotes H&S among factory employees through a high degree of collaboration between workers and senior management.

Esther: The great thing about the ISO 45001 certification is that it has a laser focus on H&S, so it really pushes us to take a deep dive into our existing health and safety procedures, and make meaningful improvements, tailored to our employees’ actual needs. As a Company for which the well-being of its workers is an important priority, ISO 45001 is the ideal standard against which we can enhance our existing systems.

What were some notable changes brought about by the ISO 45001 certification in the facilities in the Dominican Republic?

Esther: At Gildan, we have long encouraged a collaborative approach to H&S management. In all our manufacturing facilities, we have joint management-worker H&S committees which are responsible for reviewing safety performance and identifying opportunities and solutions for improvement.

Yet, one of the most pleasantly surprising developments resulting from the ISO 45001 certification process was an even stronger cultural shift – from factory floor to management – in how H&S was perceived by our people.

As part of this process, plant managers and senior managers engaged in Gemba walks, walking through the factory floor and interacting with employees to learn about the experiences and challenges they face in their day-to-day. This open dialogue facilitated awareness towards the importance of H&S and the ISO 45001 certification, fostering employee engagement and a sense of responsibility among people to maintain a safe work environment, all of which fed into the organization’s culture.

Mike: In addition to having our health and safety systems reviewed by external consultants, we trained internal auditors who are now equipped to consistently monitor our processes. The ISO 45001 certification has enhanced our self-sufficiency to make improvements to our H&S measures.

What are some of the challenges you face when standardizing health and safety, across your global supply chain?

Mike: With a supply chain that’s global, each of our facilities is at a different stage when it comes to H&S. While some are greenfield projects, others have been acquired, and so our focus has been to create a strong, standardized foundation for H&S.

Esther: Every day we work to continue strengthening this culture of H&S – understanding workers’ needs and including them in decision-making processes about H&S-related initiatives. For instance, the knowledge that we gained from successfully obtaining the ISO 45001 certification at our sewing facilities in the Dominican Republic through worker-management collaboration is immensely useful as we move forward with achieving this certification in the facilities of the rest of our regions.

How does Gildan communicate its H&S efforts with a workforce this large?

Mike: H&S’s importance is reinforced through every touchpoint on the factory floor, whether it be through formal announcements, updates from leaders, programs, digital communications, and much more.

Recently, we also collaborated with our communications team to identify the main messages we wanted to reinforce globally; these messages are:

Lead: Leadership leads the way in safety, setting the standard for accountability, commitment, and compliance.Empower: Empower and educate yourself and others to create a safe and healthy workplace.Act: Every action counts. Act to prevent incidents, report safety concerns, and suggest safety improvements to contribute to a safer work environment. 
 

From there, we built a comprehensive brand and communications platform that would apply to every single H&S touchpoint and rolled out the brand across all H&S initiatives. By doing this, we brought H&S under one roof to have a bigger impact. In addition, this rebrand sent a clear message to all Gildan employees that communicating, empowering, and reinforcing H&S practices across our business is a priority.

In addition to Occupational H&S, what are some other notable H&S measures Gildan takes?

Esther: Our commitment to H&S goes much beyond the workplace. In addition to ensuring occupational H&S, we provide our employees with the support they need to lead fulfilling lives. For instance, our facilities in Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Bangladesh are equipped with on-site health clinics. With healthcare being challenging to access in some of these regions, these on-site clinics provide workers with convenient access to medical services and professionals.

At many facilities, Gildan also offers mental health resources such as stress management support in the Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Nicaragua, in-person psychological counselling for employees in the Dominican Republic, and mental health training for our employees in Australia, in addition to our widespread Employee Assistance Programs.

Mike: One of my personal favourites at Gildan is the mega health fairs we host at several of our facilities. As part of these fairs, employees and their families are provided with free medical consultations, lab tests, and other wellness resources to facilitate preventative care.

H&S culture runs deep in our organization, and we are dedicated to continuing to integrate it into the daily lives of our employees. 

To find out more about Gildan’s respect for people, click here.

Join SCS Global Services for an informative webinar where we will delve into the essential components of SCS Gluten-Free Standard and how to navigate the requirements for certification. Led by Tony Hall, the Client Services Manager for our Product Claims division, he will explore key aspects of certification, including:

Discussing the significance and benefits of certificationDiving into an overview of the certification process, all the way from initial scoping through final certification decisionsReviewing the criteria and requirements that are essential for achieving SCS Gluten-Free CertificationA Q&A session for your questions and clarifications

REGISTER HERE FOR THE WEBINAR

By registering, you will get access to the webinar recording.

For inquiries, contact:

Shyama Devarajan 
Senior Marketing Manager, SCS Global Services 
sdevarajan@scsglobalservices.com

Mastercard

Smart people and smart ideas are a dime a dozen, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told an audience of, well, smart people with smart ideas in Washington, D.C., last week. These were CEOs and government ministers, university presidents and United Nations officials, philanthropists and development bank leaders, data scientists, renowned athletes and faith-based changemakers, all of them gathered for the annual Global Inclusive Growth Summit.

“A brilliant policy paper, a zillion people could write,” she continued. “Actually making it happen? Operationally? That’s tough stuff.”

Figuring out how to empower billions of people to harness the power of the digital economy is tough stuff, but the people at last week’s summit, hosted by the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, had no shortage of tangible plans to turn their ideas into reality. That included ways to forge stronger public-private partnerships to speed and scale impact, reform global financial systems to relieve debt and innovate the delivery of capital, particularly to women entrepreneurs, and expand access to information and technology, notably artificial intelligence.

“You could use your phone or use you card to go spend your money on groceries, to go spend your money on the things that you need for your family,” said Shamina Singh, who founded the Center, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. “It sounds easy for us. But it is revolutionary for somebody who is living in a place that does not have access to internet, does not have access to a bank account.”

The sessions included personal stories, including music icon Elton John’s AIDS work and soccer star Megan Rapinoe’s activism, to impassioned calls to change the way we approach technology and opportunity. “We have to make it clear to folks that they’re not just leaving money on the table, they’re leaving progress on the table,” said self-described “actrivist” Rosario Dawson.

01
Women can be — and already are — agents of change for inclusive growth.

Chetna Sinha recounted her work to build a bank with rural women who were making less than $1 a day but wanted to save. Their banking license request was rejected because the women couldn’t write, and therefore couldn’t sign the application. So they applied again, issuing a challenge to the Reserve Bank of India: They couldn’t read or write, they said, but they could count. They would calculate the interest on a principal amount faster than their officers could without a calculator.

They got the license.

Today the Mann Deshi Bank, which Sinha founded, offers financial services and affordable credit to hundreds of thousands of women. “These people, they have a vision. It’s a matter of us listening to them and providing the solution,” she said. “Listen to them, and nobody will be left behind.”

In a separate panel, philanthropist Melinda French Gates led a discussion with Dawson on how to close the $160 trillion women’s wealth gap. “With the speed and the scale, if we capitalize women and if we open up their entrepreneurial nature and their possibility, we’re going to have an amazing compounding affect around the world,” Gates said. 

Dawson is the co-founder of Studio 189, a sustainable fashion brand and social enterprise that features African artisans. “Our whole motto is work, not charity. It’s very much about knowing that investing in women has an absolutely cumulative effect … It’s not just access to capital, it’s the resources, it’s the network, it’s the community. It’s the encouragement.”

02
Global financial systems must flex to meet both inclusion and climate goals.

Mia Amor Mottley, the prime minister of Barbados and co-chair of the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals Advocates group, underscored the challenges facing nations like hers, simultaneously struggling to pay down debt, strengthen health care and education and build up coastal infrastructure to avoid climate migration.

Restructuring debt is imperative, particularly for small island nations being battered by both climate change and economic instability. Without that, she said, “We may save the planet but lose the people.”

Mechanisms like early warning signs can reduce debt vulnerability, said V. Anantha Nageswaran, the chief economic adviser to the government of India, which held the G20 presidency in 2023. Low-income countries could also benefit from the scaling of blended finance — the combination of development finance and commercial capital for sustainable development projects, said José Viñals, group chairperson for the bank Standard Chartered.

And the relationship between donor countries and beneficiaries may need to be reconsidered. Lisa Nandy, the shadow secretary of state for international development for the U.K., called for a rebrand of what the world has  traditionally termed aid: “We call it long-term economic growth … Countries around the world, particularly across the Global South, have left us in no doubt that they don’t want Western partners to come in and save them. They want Western partners who come in and walk alongside them as genuine partners for the long term to help them achieve their own ambitions, not imposed on them.”

03
To drive change, we need to think big about thinking small.

Technology and connectivity have shrunk the world, and that will help bring hundreds of millions of people into the formal financial system, including small business owners and smallholder farmers. For example, said Michael Schlein, the CEO of the nonprofit Accion, “it used to be that with distances, it was hard to know our clients, but today with data and data analytics, we can know someone remotely.”

Achim Steiner, the administrator of the U.N. Development Programme, pointed to its network of accelerators in nearly 100 countries that is working to make technology “instantly accessible, increasingly affordable and, above all, also usable.” In India, for example, climate data is now available to small-scale farmers, helping them become more productive and resilient.

In Puerto Rico, the U.S. Department of Energy is making microgrids accessible to Puerto Ricans, whose island has been devastated by hurricanes. “There continues to be this feeling among many of the development banks that it’s not worth helping people unless we can build them a modern grid powered by nuclear power,” said Jigar Shah, director of the department’s loan programs office. “It’s just a travesty when you think about all of the devices that we have innovated where we can give people access to modern energy for $12.”

In Africa and India, Mastercard’s Community Pass is making smallholder farmers visible to banks by digitizing the agricultural value chain. It creates transaction histories for farmers that help them prove their creditworthiness in a sector where a $100 loan can make a huge difference, says founder Tara Nathan. It also connects them to multiple buyers, helping them fetch higher prices. “The digitization of agriculture can start to grow single smallholder famers into entrepreneurs, into larger entrepreneurs. They can build businesses where they now become employers themselves.”

04
The opportunities (and challenges) of AI need to be shared globally.

AI can be both a tool for advancing inclusive growth and a source of exclusion. Raimondo recounted the impact of technology access during the COVID-19 pandemic — small businesses able to embrace e-commerce and online delivery thrived; schoolchildren who transitioned to video learning benefited. Those without resources or reliable access struggled. “AI will be on that on steroids,” Raimondo said. “Those of us in the public sector and in the private sector have to make it so that everyone has equal access to the best technology.”

Manu Chopra is the co-founder and CEO of Karya, a nonprofit that pays its Indian workers far above the minimum wage to train AI systems — building the data sets that not only power the products and services that are transforming our lives but making them more equitable. These workers also earn royalties on the future sales of their data sets.

“If you want to build inclusive AI, you need to include people,” he said. “The real risk will be repeating the mistake of the Internet. Imagine 30 years from now, at another Global Inclusive Growth Summit: ‘AI changed your life and my life but 2.9 billion people have no access to AI.’”

Originally published by Mastercard

Follow along the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth’s journey to advance equitable and sustainable economic growth and financial inclusion around the world.

Originally published by Built In

Imagine for a moment that you’re facing down your closet and getting ready to leave the house. Whether you’re choosing a bag that will fit your laptop en route to the office or the right boots for a snowy evening out, there’s never just one concern in mind. 

Each choice possesses multiple facets: Does it fit your personal style? Does it suit the occasion, the weather and the needs of your day? 

At Tapestry, these considerations are foundational to each item created by the Coach, Kate Spade New York and Stuart Weitzman brands. But there’s another core tenet to consider: sustainability.

Continue reading here.

Foundation grant will help NYC-based nonprofit expand reach of its innovative curriculum to 50 schools in Baltimore and Houston

Funding will also support film screening tour of award-winning documentary to highlight importance of health equity through STEM-based nutrition education 

SECAUCUS, N.J. and BRONX, N.Y., April 26, 2024 /3BL/ – The Quest Diagnostics Foundation today announced an expanded collaboration with Green Bronx Machine (GBM), a transformational educational nonprofit helping students and teachers turn classrooms into agricultural learning experiences. The Foundation grant will help extend the reach of Green Bronx Machine’s school-based model to additional communities and raise awareness for the importance of nutrition education and access in advancing health equity.

The program expansion with Green Bronx Machine was funded by a grant from the Foundation as part of its Quest for Health Equity (Q4HE) initiative, which provides resources, funding, donated testing services, and education to address health disparities in marginalized communities across the U.S. The expansion also furthers the investments Q4HE has made in communities in Baltimore and Houston.

Recently recognized as a 2024 Most Innovative Company by Fast Company, Green Bronx Machine is inspiring a movement rooted in the belief that by increasing access to nutrition education at the school level, we can create better health outcomes and advance health equity throughout communities. The program currently serves 275,000 students and 10,000 teachers in the US and across 20 countries.

Fifty under-resourced schools in Baltimore and Houston will be able to implement the nonprofit’s indoor gardening curriculum through a grant from the Foundation. Additionally, the grant will help support a film screening tour of Green Bronx Machine’s award-winning documentary, “Generation Growth,” highlighting Green Bronx Machine’s successful school-based model and how it helps children eat better, become more engaged in school, and provide pathways for jobs.

The Quest Diagnostics Foundation and Green Bronx Machine first teamed up in 2022 to help the nonprofit expand the reach of its “Cultivating Health Equity” school program to 30 schools in Colorado, Ohio, and New York.

“We have seen first-hand the true impact of Green Bronx Machine’s mission and are proud to extend additional support to help spread their programming to additional schools and communities,” said Jim Davis, Chairman, CEO, and President. “It’s important to raise awareness about this unique approach to addressing health equity in under-resourced communities. Green Bronx Machine’s focus on creating healthier communities aligns perfectly with our Purpose of working together to create a healthier world, one life at a time.”

The schools selected in Baltimore and Houston will be provided with resources to implement Green Bronx Machine’s immersive, project-based learning curriculum centered around Green Bronx Machine’s iconic Tower Gardens® aeroponic growing system. The curriculum aligns the art and science of growing vegetables with daily academic instruction and access to nutritious food. Plant life is used as a lens to teach multiple subjects including science, math, and language arts and inspire students’ curiosity.

“One student at a time, one classroom at a time, one school at a time, we grow vegetables, our vegetables grow students, and our students and teachers grow high-performing schools and happier, healthier communities,” said Stephen Ritz, founder of Green Bronx Machine. “Together with the continued support of the Quest Diagnostics Foundation, we’re creating a movement and growing something greater rooted in the shared belief that by investing in our schools and our communities, we can change the way children eat, learn, live, and access health equity and opportunities. When you change a classroom, you change a school, and when you change a school, you change a community, and when you change a community, you change lives. I urge folks everywhere to learn more, get involved, and join our movement.”

The screening tour of Green Bronx Machine’s “Generation Growth” documentary will span across the U.S. to raise awareness of how access to STEM-based nutrition education and healthy food can advance health equity. The documentary aims to educate and inspire young people to create healthier habits and better health outcomes for their communities.

Individuals or groups interested in hosting a “Generation Growth” in-person or virtual screening or learning about additional ways to get involved in supporting Green Bronx Machine’s mission can visit generationgrowthfilm.com.

###

About the Quest Diagnostics Foundation

The Quest Diagnostics Foundation was formed in 2001 to promote the benefits of healthcare and wellness, drive the prevention, early detection, monitoring and treatment of disease, and educate the general public and healthcare professionals on healthcare issues. Together with Quest Diagnostics, the Foundation sponsors Quest for Health Equity.

About Quest for Health Equity

Quest for Health Equity (Q4HE) is a $100+ million initiative launched in 2020 focused on eliminating health disparities in underserved communities across the U.S. Q4HE began with a comprehensive effort to provide access to COVID-19 testing and other critical resources in communities hit hardest by the pandemic. Today, Q4HE supports programs focused on increasing health equity through education, outreach, and greater access to healthcare. By joining forces with like-minded community stakeholders, Q4HE addresses the specific needs of the communities it serves while producing outcomes at scale. Q4HE is an initiative supported by Quest Diagnostics and the Quest Diagnostics Foundation.

About Quest Diagnostics 

Quest Diagnostics works across the healthcare ecosystem to create a healthier world, one life at a time. We provide diagnostic insights from the results of our laboratory testing to empower people, physicians and organizations to take action to improve health outcomes. Derived from the world’s largest database of de-identifiable clinical lab results, Quest’s diagnostic insights reveal new avenues to identify and treat disease, inspire healthy behaviors and improve healthcare management. Quest Diagnostics annually serves one in three adult Americans and half the physicians and hospitals in the United States, and our nearly 50,000 employees understand that, in the right hands and with the right context, our diagnostic insights can inspire actions that transform lives and create a healthier world. www.QuestDiagnostics.com.

About Green Bronx Machine

Green Bronx Machine builds healthy, equitable, and resilient communities through inspired education, local food systems, and 21st Century workforce development. Dedicated to cultivating minds and harvesting hope, our school-based model uses urban agriculture aligned to key school performance indicators to grow healthy students and healthy schools and transform communities that are fragmented and marginalized into neighborhoods that are inclusive and thriving. Individuals or groups interested in hosting a “Generation Growth” in-person or virtual screening or learning about additional ways to partner with Green Bronx Machine’s mission can contact Stephen Ritz at Stephen.Ritz@greenbronxmachine.org. All other information is available on our website.

On this episode of BuzzHouse, hosts Don Bernards and Garrick Gibson sit down with the founding partner of Norris George & Ostrow PLLC, R. Wade Norris as he breaks down the complexities of municipal bond markets and how low rates and massive inflows have shaped tax-exempt bond funds in recent years. Press play and discover this informative and enlightening episode!

Special guest

R. Wade Norris | Norris George & Ostrow PLLC

R. Wade Norris, a founding partner of Norris George & Ostrow PLLC, is widely recognized as one of the country’s leading experts in the field of multifamily housing bond finance. Mr. Norris has served as underwriter’s or special disclosure counsel in a wide variety of general and revenue bond obligation financings. In the past year and currently, Mr. Norris and his colleagues are using their decades of experience working with clients on innovative structures to maximize loan proceeds and minimize borrowing costs in the current inverted yield curve high interest rate environment. This includes combining short-term cash-backed bonds with tax-exempt private placements to substantially increase tax credit basis and proceeds and the prudent, creative use of derivatives to dramatically lower borrowing costs.

Multifamily housing resources

For articles, webinars and additional resources for developers, housing authorities, property managers, state housing credit agencies and lenders, visit the Baker Tilly multifamily housing page.

Benevity’s 2024 Corporate Goodness Awards Celebrate Groundbreakers in Social Impact 
Awards recognize purpose-driven brands for their extraordinary approaches to social impact, corporate philanthropy and employee engagement

PALM SPRINGS, Calif., April 26, 2024 /3BL/ – Benevity Inc., the leading global provider of social impact software, today announced the winners of its 2024 Corporate Goodness Awards, also known as “The Goodies,” acknowledging leading-edge brands for their innovative and inspirational approaches to social impact, employee engagement and corporate philanthropy. The 2024 Goodie Awards were presented to the winners on April 25 in Palm Springs, CA at Benevity Live!, the company’s flagship conference, which brings together more than 700 purpose-driven professionals to share insights and strategies about the future of corporate impact.

This year saw a record-breaking 197 nominations from 99 of the world’s most iconic and purpose-driven brands. The winners were recognized across various categories based on the innovative, inclusive and creative ways they are making a difference in the world through their giving, volunteering and community investment programs.

“The Goodie Awards winners and finalists are doing incredible things to challenge the status quo, catalyze positive action in meaningful ways and creatively solve critical issues facing society. We are so inspired by these innovative companies and people for creating deeply impactful programs that truly reflect their core values.”

– Kelly Schmitt, Benevity’s Chief Executive Officer

“The Goodie Awards winners and finalists are doing incredible things to challenge the status quo, catalyze positive action in meaningful ways and creatively solve critical issues facing society,” said Kelly Schmitt, Benevity’s Chief Executive Officer. “We are so inspired by these innovative companies and people for creating deeply impactful programs that truly reflect their core values.”

Companies who were selected as Goodies finalists contributed more than $153 million in donations and $7.9 million in grants and tracked more than 1.7 million volunteer hours through the Benevity platform in 2023.

Benevity’s 2024 Goodies Finalists and Winners

The Bestie Awards: For best-in-class approach and overall impact 
The Bestie Award is selected from all finalists and recognizes the company with the best-in-class approach to corporate purpose, driving impact for their nonprofits, communities and employees.

USAA (WINNER for Enterprise)Vancouver Airport Authority (WINNER for Mid-size)

The BeCause Award: For dedication to causes 
The BeCause Award recognizes companies making a big impact on societal or community issues by removing barriers for nonprofits so they can operate with more autonomy, flexibility and speed.

eBay (WINNER)HPEHootsuiteIBMRobert Bosa Foundation

The Buzz Award: For catalyzing purpose through communications and storytelling 
The Buzz Award recognizes companies that bring their corporate purpose programs to life, by embracing true storytelling over “numbertelling” and by sharing impact stories from employees, customers and/or nonprofits.

Elevance Health Foundation (WINNER)Activision BlizzardCienaOktaRelativity

The Community Hero Award: For best in class approach to community investment 
The Community Hero Award recognizes companies taking a strategic yet creative approach to community investment to create greater impact with its nonprofit partners.

DaVita (WINNER)CSAA Insurance GroupPrincipal Financial GroupSequoia Healthcare DistrictVancouver Airport Authority

The Moonshot Award: For boldness and creativity 
The Moonshot Award recognizes companies that have developed a creative, bold and impactful corporate purpose program and engages their communities, employees or customers in interesting ways to maximize their social and business impact.

Coast Capital Savings (WINNER)First Tech Federal Credit UnionFTI ConsultingGibson EnergyUSAA

The NewB Award: For most transformative approach 
The NewB Award recognizes new Benevity clients that have created significant impact through a best-in-class corporate purpose program launch and have implemented best practices to engage stakeholders.

Alberta Investment Management Corp. (WINNER)ENMAXKLA FoundationTractor SupplyVeritiv

The People Power Award: For promoting purpose through people’s passions 
The People Power Award recognizes companies that build a culture powered by its people and creates significant impact by putting the power of goodness in the hands of employees to address critical issues.

Ciena (WINNER)AppfireF5Gilead FoundationSymetra Life Insurance Company

The Buffy Award: For individual leadership, innovation and impact 
The Buffy Award celebrates outstanding individuals who exemplify passion, innovation, imagination and leadership in the corporate purpose space.

Kelly Petrich, Director, Community Impact, CiscoEstelle Roth, Global Head Giving & Volunteering, Novartis

The Change Champion Award: For an executive who champions a purpose-driven culture 
This new category celebrates an executive who is a shining example of what it looks like to lead with purpose. They foster diversity, equity and inclusion; they champion social action; and they inspire others with their commitment to purpose, people and profit.

Kristina Karnovsky, FactSet

Employee Catalyst Award: For an employee whose passion creates movements 
The Employee Catalyst Award recognizes passionate employees who go beyond their day-to-day job to engage employees and community members in opportunities to do good, helping to fuel a culture of purpose.

Tom Mahatdejkul, ARM

Learn more about this year’s Goodie Awards winners and their exciting programs here.

About Benevity 
Benevity, a certified B Corporation, is the leading global provider of social impact software, providing the only integrated suite of community investment and employee, customer and nonprofit engagement solutions. Recognized as one of Fortune’s Impact 20, Benevity offers cloud solutions that power purpose for many iconic brands in ways that better attract, retain and engage today’s diverse workforce, embed social action into their customer experiences and positively impact their communities. With software that is available in 22 languages, Benevity has processed more than $15 billion in donations and 79 million hours of volunteering time to support 470,000 nonprofits worldwide. The company’s solutions have also facilitated 1.3 million micro-actions and managed 845,000 grants worth $16 billion. For more information, visit benevity.com.

Media Contact 
Zamira Tasneem│Media & Communications Manager │ 1.416.451.6511 │ press@benevity.com