Tag: 3BL

Formerly the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, Cascale kicks off a new era of impact empowering collaboration to drive equitable and restorative business practices in the consumer goods industry; co-founder Rick Ridgeway and other notable speakers attend celebratory event

AMSTERDAM, HONG KONG and OAKLAND, Calif., February 28, 2024 /3BL/ – Yesterday, Cascale, formerly the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), celebrated its rebrand with members, partners, stakeholders, and co-founder Rick Ridgeway at an event in London. The global nonprofit alliance empowers collaboration to drive equitable and restorative business practices in the consumer goods industry – its new name references scaling collective action.

Spanning over 300 retailers, brands, manufacturers, governments, academics, industry associations, and NGOs/nonprofits around the globe, Cascale’s members are united by a singular vision: To catalyze impact at scale and give back more than they take to the planet and its people. The logo’s elements symbolize the organization’s three member categories and external stakeholders, all critical players in advancing a unified strategy announced in September 2023.

For more history and context, please view the rebrand announcement press release and video; click here to view and download photos from the event, where speakers included, among others:

Rick Ridgeway, author, adventurer, former vice president of sustainability and public engagement at Patagonia, and Cascale’s co-founder: “We initially founded Cascale with the goal of scaling collective action throughout the consumer goods industry. That vision is one step closer today. I am so proud of the progress we have achieved — but there is much more to be done. Every year, we must double down on progress, including reducing emissions, and improving social justice. We need collective action at scale to save our planet and its people. With Cascale, I know we can do this together.”

Andrew Martin, executive vice president at Cascale: “With the social and environmental challenges facing the world and our industries today, the need for collective action at scale has never been greater. Building on our origins and experience with the Higg Index, which demonstrates true collaboration throughout the value chain, we believe the time for new energy is ripe. Cascale’s branding reflects not only the diverse perspectives of our members, partners, and stakeholders but also a renewed commitment and urgency focused on scaling collective action at this critical juncture. Together, we can transform the consumer goods industry into one that gives back more than it takes to the planet and its people.”

Tamar Hoek, Cascale board chair and senior policy director at Solidaridad, a non-corporate Cascale member: “Solidaridad joined Cascale because we believe in the vision of a global platform that brings together diverse voices — elevating the voices of manufacturers, in addition to brands. This is critically important. With Cascale’s members and collaborators, we have both the expertise to facilitate collective action and a common vision to be part of the solution.”

Sean Cady, Cascale board director and vice president of Global Sustainability at VF Corporation, a Cascale member: “After years of enabling positive impact for people and planet through the Sustainable Apparel Coalition’s harmonized methodology, the organization evolves into Cascale, leveraging the SAC’s learnings and tools to create even greater positive impact. We must act with a sense of urgency to elevate our collective action for scaled sustainability improvements. I’m excited about the opportunity ahead and confident, with the conviction and dedication of all stakeholders, the consumer products industries will deliver elevated sustainability performance, supported by Cascale.”

Scott Raskin, chief executive officer at Worldly, the exclusive platform for the Higg Index tools, which has become the leader in environmental and social impact data for the apparel and footwear industry: “This is not a revolution but an evolution – the partnership between Worldly and Cascale is stronger today than ever. We have spent the past fifteen years on measurement and now is the time to scale this impact to provide greater value to members. Together, we are strengthening the Higg Index tools to facilitate industry-wide harmonization, to reduce duplicative efforts, and to provide radical collaboration for tool, program, and policy adoption. We look forward to seeing the impact of our collective action and leading the transformation of the consumer goods industry.”

Paul Wright, group executive director ESG, PDS Multinational, a Cascale member: “The organization’s vision today mirrors its founding, and the significance of the Higg Index tools is even more widely felt. For years, global apparel has been the testing ground for renewed sustainability ambitions. Now, this industry has even more to gain from Cascale’s broadening network, and vice versa. I’m excited to be part of industrial collaboration within our sector for all partners within the supply chain.”

Alexander Kohnstamm, executive director at Fair Wear, a Cascale partner: “Due diligence regulation is here to stay, and stakeholder-validated supply chain risk information is crucial for both impact and compliance. Only through education and collaboration can brands do what it takes, and Cascale facilitates this for its members. Fair Wear is happy to make our 25 years of multi-stakeholder experience in human rights due diligence available to Cascale brands, through a partnership that’s truly unique in the sector.”

Lisa Ly, senior sustainability manager at Dunelm, a home furnishings retailer and Cascale candidate member: “Dunelm is proud to work with Cascale to accelerate collective action fueled by data-driven decision making. We look forward to our continued partnership to drive further progress across home and the entire consumer goods value chain.”

ABOUT CASCALE

Cascale is the global nonprofit alliance empowering collaboration to drive equitable and restorative business practices in the consumer goods industry. Spanning over 300 retailers, brands, manufacturers, governments, academics, and NGO/nonprofit affiliates around the globe, we are united by a singular vision: To catalyze impact at scale and give back more than we take to the planet and its people. Formerly known as the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, Cascale owns and develops the Higg Index and a unified strategy for industry transformation.

LinkedIn | X | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube

National Grid

For a full decade, Glens Falls Hospital has partnered with National Grid on energy efficiency projects, leading to increased sustainability and energy savings. National Grid recently approached Glens Falls with their new Gas Demand Response program, which reduces natural gas consumption during peak usage times. The program ensures a safe and reliable system to provide natural gas when it’s needed most. In exchange for lowering use to boost grid reliability, National Grid offers monetary incentives to participating customers. Learn how we can help your large commercial or industrial business save at ngrid.com/uny-gdr.

At National Grid, we are committed to delivering safe and reliable energy to the customers and communities we serve.

We are one of the largest investor-owned energy companies in the US — serving more than 20 million people throughout New York and Massachusetts.

We are at the heart of one of the greatest challenges facing our society — transforming our electricity and natural gas networks with smarter, cleaner, and more resilient energy solutions to meet the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Every day we work with stakeholders to promote the development and implementation of more sustainable, innovative and affordable energy solutions.

We are proud of the contributions our work and our people make towards the prosperity and wellbeing of our customers, communities and investors.

by Robin John, CEO of Eventide

Over the past few years, a growing number of investors have started leaning into their faith to guide their investment choices. Morningstar found that more faith-based products launched between 2019 and 2022 than during any other stretch since 2010 and predicts faith-based investing will grow even more popular with the surge of customized investing.

The driver behind this growth in faith-based investing is, in my view, a response to the pain and suffering seen in the world and the desire of many investors to combat it by investing in good. Faith-driven values have long been a reliable framework to accomplish this goal.

Faith-driven investing communicates the ethical desires of shareholders to companies, seeking to shape corporate behavior and encouraging decisions that contribute to the human flourishing of stakeholders. Businesses have two sets of neighbors: internal and external. We define these with the acronym “CES2”. Internally, a business’s neighbors are its Customers, Employees, and Supply chain. Externally, it’s the business’s Communities, Environment, and Society. These neighbors, or stakeholders, are at the forefront of our minds while investing, not only as a way to leave the world better than we found it but also as a long-term investment strategy of investing in “good” companies. 

Read Robin’s full article here – https://greenmoney.com/love-your-neighbor-with-your-investments/

=====

PARIS and NEW YORK, February 28, 2024 /3BL/ – EcoVadis, the leading provider of business sustainability ratings, today released its 2024 Sustainable Procurement Barometer report. Co-developed with Accenture, the Barometer reveals procurement’s untapped potential to drive business value through sustainable supply chain programs, and transform into a key agent of an organization’s resilience and growth in a rapidly changing world.

In the aftermath of the pandemic, combined with business and industry risks (e.g., accelerating climate crisis, cost volatility and more), and increasing regulations, sustainability has emerged as a key force for procurement’s transformation into a central driver of an organization’s resilience and value creation. In fact, a recent study from Accenture and the United Nations Global Compact showed that more than half (54%) of CEOs are strengthening visibility into the social impacts of their supply chain and CEOs are also focused on encouraging their suppliers to adopt sustainable behaviors, with 33% of companies now incentivizing ESG outcomes for their supply chain. However, the Barometer shows a significant number of companies are still in the early stages of integrating sustainability visibility and indicators into their procurement processes and other business functions.

For example, the research indicates only about half of companies have visibility into more than 50% of their Tier-1 suppliers, and even less for deeper tiers. Supplier engagement practices are not broad or deep enough with less than 50% of programs engaging suppliers with sustainability assessments. And only about 6%-25% of companies have programs that digitally integrate ESG into their procurement processes.

“Business is at a pivotal juncture where leaders are recognizing sustainable procurement’s strategic role for long-term business resilience and growth,” said Pierre-Francois Thaler, co-founder and co-CEO, EcoVadis. “While many companies are adjusting to this change, the most advanced programs are continuously tuning strategies and investments to accelerate the transformation needed to thrive in a new era of business that also benefits people and the planet.”

By examining best practices of the highest-performing 10% (“Leaders”) of programs surveyed, the Barometer unveils five strategies to help organizations transform their procurement programs into a key driver of sustainable growth and innovation across their business:

Engage suppliers more deeply to accelerate the adoption of sustainable practices. Activities like corrective action plans, carbon reduction, e -learning or innovation programs drive supplier ESG improvement and produce richer data and insights.Integrate supplier sustainability data into your end-to-end procurement approach. Programs with high integration are three to four times more likely to have strategic-level engagement with C-suite stakeholders.Enhance ESG technology and digital tech foundations. Data can be packaged into insights that drive tactical and strategic decisions, ultimately driving more effective and impactful sustainability initiatives.Use new tools to gain greater N-tier visibility. Risk and or hotspot mapping can inform decarbonization priorities, pinpoint risks and inform engagement strategies and investments across responsible sourcing practices.Engaging internal and C-suite stakeholders with sustainable procurement data is critical to realizing benefits and supporting program expansion. Between 72% and 93% of Leaders are able to strategically engage or operationally inform critical business functions, such as CFO/finance, sales, product design, operations, risk and compliance, with their supplier ESG data and insights, nearly double the rest of the sample.

“Financial success and sustainability aren’t mutually exclusive. Embedding sustainability practices with procurement can be an engine for broader enterprise value creation, reducing cost and improving brand reputation and stakeholder relationships,” said Matias Pollmann-Larsen, Accenture’s global lead for sustainable value chain. “Aligning procurement with broader ESG goals makes supply chains not just more compliant but also more agile and resilient overall.”

For a complete look at the key trends and issues in the sustainable procurement landscape today, download the 2024 Sustainable Procurement Barometer.

###

About EcoVadis

EcoVadis is a purpose-driven company whose mission is to provide the world’s most trusted business sustainability ratings. Businesses of all sizes rely on EcoVadis’ expert intelligence and evidence-based ratings to monitor and improve the sustainability performance of their business and trading partners. Its actionable scorecards, benchmarks, carbon action tools, and insights guide an improvement journey for environmental, social, and ethical practices across 220 industry categories and 180 countries. Industry leaders such as Johnson & Johnson, L’Oréal, Unilever, LVMH, Bridgestone, BASF, and JPMorgan are among the 130,000 businesses that collaborate with EcoVadis to drive resilience, sustainable growth, and positive impact worldwide. Learn more on ecovadis.com, Twitter, or LinkedIn.

Press Inquiries

US: Corporate Ink for EcoVadis

617-969-9192, ecovadis@corporateink.com

Further expansion of growth platform for maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) solutions with highly attractive adjacent businessStrengthen global position and expand offering in sustainability-driven, future-oriented growing and profitable marketsAccess to certified protective coating technologies and complementary applicator network for retrofitting, smart maintenance, and civil infrastructure

DÜSSELDORF, Germany, February 28, 2024 /3BL/ – Henkel has signed an agreement to acquire the US-based Seal for Life Industries LLC (“Seal for Life”) from Arsenal Capital Partners (USA). Seal for Life is a specialized supplier of protective coating and sealing solutions in a broad variety of infrastructure markets such as renewable energy, oil & gas, and water. The company operates globally and has generated sales of approximately 250 million euros in 2023. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Driven by aging infrastructure and an increasing relevance of sustainability, the demand for solutions that enable the extension of asset life of infrastructure is continuously growing. With Seal for Life, which provides proven innovative coating and sealing solutions for both existing and new build infrastructure assets, Henkel adds attractive technologies to its growing MRO platform.

“Strategic acquisitions to actively shape and strengthen our portfolio are an integral part of our Purposeful Growth Agenda. Seal for Life offers an attractive and highly profitable portfolio in protective coating and sealing, perfectly complementing our existing platform for the maintenance, repair and overhaul market. With this transaction we will further enhance our product portfolio in this attractive market and unlock even greater growth potential for our leading Adhesive Technologies business,” said Henkel CEO Carsten Knobel.

In 2023, Seal for Life reported sales of around 250 million euros. The company employs more than 650 people and has a global production network. The business offers innovative coating and sealing products such as heat-shrink sleeves, visco-elastic coatings, epoxy & urethane coatings, fire protection, insulation and sound dampening coatings. The application expertise of these solutions, marketed under different industry-leading brands including STOPAQ®, CANUSA®, COVALENCE®, LIFELAST®, is a pioneer in the protection and retrofitting of a variety of customer infrastructure, including pipelines and piles.

“Maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) is a strategic growth market for us, offering great opportunities for innovative solutions that help protecting, retrofitting and digitally-enabled condition monitoring of infrastructure and at the same time contributing to sustainability. This transaction marks another building block in creating and developing a growth platform in our MRO business. It will enable us to further expand our offering in sustainability-driven, future-oriented markets such as renewable energy and water supply,” said Mark Dorn, Executive Vice President and responsible for Henkel’s Adhesive Technologies business.

This document contains statements referring to future business development, financial performance and other events or developments of future relevance for Henkel that may constitute forward-looking statements. Statements with respect to the future are characterized by the use of words such as expect, intend, plan, anticipate, believe, estimate, and similar terms. Such statements are based on current estimates and assumptions made by the corporate management of Henkel AG & Co. KGaA. These statements are not to be understood as in any way guaranteeing that those expectations will turn out to be accurate. Future performance and results actually achieved by Henkel AG & Co. KGaA and its affiliated companies depend on a number of risks and uncertainties and may therefore differ materially (both positively and negatively) from the forward-looking statements. Many of these factors are outside Henkel’s control and cannot be accurately estimated in advance, such as the future economic environment and the actions of competitors and others involved in the marketplace. Henkel neither plans nor undertakes to update forward-looking statements.

This document includes supplemental financial indicators that are not clearly defined in the applicable financial reporting framework and that are or may be alternative performance measures. These supplemental financial indicators should not be viewed in isolation or as alternatives to measures of Henkel’s net assets and financial position or results of operations as presented in accordance with the applicable financial reporting framework in its Consolidated Financial Statements. Other companies that report or describe similarly titled alternative performance measures may calculate them differently.

This document has been issued for information purposes only and is not intended to constitute an investment advice or an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities.

The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth

When private chef LaToya Larkin told her son that she was going to make tamales with leftover collard greens from a Mother’s Day brunch, he seemed skeptical.

His exact words? “Mama, you trippin’,” Larkin recalls with a laugh. “That sounds weird. We need to just stick to chicken and pork and keep doing what we do.” But he fell in love with this unique fusion tamale the moment he tried it, as did Larkin’s clients (after they gave her what she terms “the crazy look”).

Tamales are an iconic dish native to Mexico and Central America – chile-spiced pork, chicken or beef wrapped in masa and steamed in corn husks. Larkin, who specializes in soul food, got to work, experimenting with fillings and flavorings that mix south of the border with the American South and the Caribbean. In addition to her best-selling collard-greens-and-smoked-turkey tamales, oxtail, red beans and rice, creole sausage, curry chicken, and jambalaya tamales are among the offerings at what she branded Black Girl Tamales in 2019.

As a Black woman, Larkin is part of the fastest-growing demographic of entrepreneurs, but one that faces significant headwinds — they are less likely to have access to outside capital and are more likely to start businesses in already crowded sectors with low margins, like the restaurant industry. That’s why Larkin is taking advantage of Strive USA, an innovative set of programs, led by the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, designed to provide entrepreneurs with tools and resources to get capital, go digital and grow their networks.

Larkin, a formally trained chef, former culinary instructor at Houston’s Spring Independent School District — where she was the first Black chef to lead the district’s culinary program — and the owner of a private chef business, Not Enough Thyme, learned the art of tamale making from her grandmother, whose first husband had been stationed in California in the 1960s. Her grandmother had been introduced to tamales by a Mexican friend, and after her marriage ended and she returned to Texas, she started making tamales as a side hustle, passing the art to Larkin’s mother, and then eventually to young Larkin.

Tamales, which may date back as far as 10,000 years, have immense historical and cultural significance. In earlier times, they were even treated as offerings to gods. Today, generations of families will gather, often at Christmas, for tamaladas, or tamale-making parties.

Larkin’s soul food tamales caused a disruption in the world of traditional tamale offerings: “Nobody is doing what I’m doing,” she says. But building Black Girl Tamales has been challenging, from managing through a break-in to fending off remarks about cultural appropriation. “I get the little comments like ‘Stick to your own food,’ ‘Do your own thing,’ or ‘If it’s not broke, don’t fix it.’”

But Larkin views her soul food tamales as innovation — combining two storied cuisines to create something new. And plenty of foodies on the lookout for daring flavors are on board — a 2020 feature in Cuisine Noir, a publication focused on connecting the African diaspora through food, drink and travel, resulted in orders pouring in from across the country.

Still, it took two years for Larkin to gain enough confidence in the business to leave her day job as a culinary educator, and even after she put in her notice, she had her doubts. “I’m gonna get five more checks, and after that it’s dollar for dollar all on me,” Larkin recalls. “I had a meltdown.”

She found inspiration in, of all things, a webinar led by a woman who made thousands of dollars a month teaching people about copper deficiency in goats. She surveyed her fellow teachers in her school and discovered that 19 out of 20 didn’t know a thing about copper deficiency in goats. “If this woman is out there making this kind of money teaching something that nobody has a clue about,” she laughs, “I know I’m gonna be OK with food.”

Gaining this confidence and believing in herself helped build the foundation of her now-thriving business. “A lot of people don’t really believe in themselves. They don’t take the chance and bet on themselves.”

Larkin plans to transform her tamale business with major retail placement and commercial food services for restaurants, hospitals and more. She’s in the process of pivoting her business model from retail and direct-to-consumer e-commerce to wholesale, and already has a partnership venture in the works with a major U.S. retailer. She also recently received a wine sommelier certification through the McBride Sisters She Can Fund scholarship program, and plans to expand the business with more events, including wine dinners with special tamale pairings, wine and cheese events and more.

For entrepreneurs, education never ends. Larkin recently took part in a 24-week training program combining Mastercard’s Digital Doors curriculum, which focuses on enhancing and securing digital operations, and Our Village United’s Elevated entrepreneurship effort, part of BeyGood’s Black Parade Route initiative for small-business owners. Elevated combines operations, marketing, sales and fundraising fundamentals with wellness support to navigate the emotional challenges of business ownership.

And recently, Black Girl Tamales was chosen from among hundreds of small businesses in the U.S. as a winner of a Mastercard Priceless Surprise — which included a social-media-ready VIP photo and video shoot to boost her marketing.

To be a small Black-woman-owned business in today’s world is to be part of a movement, Larkin says. “I’m answering my calling and I’m serving my purpose,” she says. “I love every minute of it.”

Photos credit: Enobong Houston/Arts Houston Photography

Originally published by The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth

Check out more content from The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth

For our Future magazine, we interviewed Areta Sobieraj, Global Citizenship Education Lead of Oxfam Italy. The condition of women, the fight against gender inequalities and the social effects of the climate crisis are some of the most relevant issues highlighted in the interview.

You can also read the story here: https://sustainable-procurement.sofidel.com/future-magazine/2023/05/04/gender-equity-poverty-and-climate-justice-oxfams-mission-to-fight-against-inequalities/

About The Sofidel Group  

The Sofidel Group, a privately held company owned by the Stefani and Lazzareschi families, is a world leader in the manufacture of paper for hygienic and domestic use. Founded in 1966, the Group has subsidiaries in 12 countries – Italy, Spain, the UK, France, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, Poland, Hungary, Greece, Romania, and the USA – with more than 6,400 employees. A member of the UN Global Compact and the international WWF Climate Savers program, the Sofidel Group considers sustainability a strategic imperative and is committed to promoting sustainable development.  For more information, visit www.sofidel.com.       

Media Contact:
Fabio Vitali
Fabio.Vitali@sofidel.com 
www.sofidel.com

Erin Bigley, CFA| Chief Responsibility Officer

Kent Hargis, PhD| Chief Investment Officer—Strategic Core Equities; Portfolio Manager—Global Low Carbon Strategy

David Wheeler, CFA| Portfolio Manager—Sustainable Climate Solutions; Senior Research Analyst—Sustainable Thematic Equities

Transcript

Erin Bigley: There are several different ways you can approach investing in the climate-focused space. Can you each tell me a little bit about the different styles of climate-focused investing?

Kent Hargis: One strategy is more of a core-focused approach, being more diversified across sectors, across countries, identifying high-quality companies that are at reasonable prices that are having a positive effect on climate change.

David Wheeler: A solutions approach is thinking about the challenges of climate out there. And there’s really two things. One is the need to reduce emissions, and the second is to adapt to the impacts of climate change that are already happening. So our approach is to invest in companies whose products and services are helping to address those climate challenges. And we’re seeing massive growth and investment in those areas.

Erin Bigley: You’ve both described an active investment-management approach. Can you tell me about the benefits of an active approach when focusing on climate investments?

David Wheeler: Active approach is key. Investing in companies that are thematically relevant to climate is not enough. It’s also important to invest in high-quality companies that can perform well in any environment. So when it comes to adding alpha over time and generating strong financial returns for clients, we think coupling a thematic approach with a focus on high-quality names is the best way to deliver alpha for clients.

Kent Hargis: We also think it’s important in terms of risk management. Passive approaches may have exposure to things like rising interest rates and other style exposures. And we think that an active approach would help us to mitigate some of these macro effects or the style effects to give you what you’re targeting in the portfolio that you’re choosing.

Erin Bigley: So tell me a bit about the types of companies that you’d find in some of these climate-focused portfolios.

David Wheeler: One of the biggest challenges is the need to reduce emissions. So if you think of something, let’s say airlines, and how can that business reduce those emissions, there’s one key area, and it’s renewable fuels, clean fuels. And so there’s companies that produce a sustainable aviation fuel where the emissions are about 80% lower than traditional fossil jet fuel. So companies that can produce that are going to see strong demand for that product in the years ahead, and that can lead to strong return performance for those names.

Erin Bigley: Kent, how about examples from your portfolios?

Kent Hargis: Yeah, we believe names that are in cable solutions are really an underappreciated part of investing; that they are the enablers, the backbone of the transition to renewable energy, as well as building out of the grid. And there are companies that have huge backlogs, so therefore they have strong pricing, and also aren’t forced to take speculative projects, and therefore we think will also deliver the cash flows over time as well as having this positive impact on the energy transition.

David Wheeler: Another area that’s an attractive solution to climate challenges is infrastructure. Not only is infrastructure aging, but climate change—whether it’s extreme weather, rising sea levels, water scarcity—is creating challenges, and building a more robust infrastructure is critical to addressing that. We especially like the upfront engineering, consulting and design companies; we like their business models as being very high quality, and we see demand for their services growing.

Erin Bigley: Tell me a little bit more about what comprises your style. Tell me a little bit more about the characteristics of this style.

Kent Hargis: So we think that you can build a diversified approach to a climate-focused portfolio across enablers, implementers and beneficiaries. We think key enablers would be names in analog semiconductors, which are reducing the cost of some of these electrification and transition to renewable energy.

David Wheeler: Those power semiconductors are picks and shovels that allow companies to implement more energy-efficiency practices. We see that in manufacturing, we see that in the electric grid. It’s also critical inputs for EVs and renewable energy.

Kent Hargis: And we see that coming all together with the retailers who are the beneficiaries; and really, the collaboration across the enablers, the implementers and the beneficiaries is how we’re going to reduce the carbon emissions of many of those end retailers.

Erin Bigley: How do you see climate-focused investing evolving over the next several years?

David Wheeler: There’s been a lot of focus, especially in the media, around things like renewable energy and electric vehicles. But if you think about the challenge of reducing emissions, we’re going to have to do that across a diverse set of solutions, including things like heating and cooling, manufacturing, infrastructure, agriculture. So to me, one way that it’s going to change is recognition that we’ve got to do an “all of the above” approach to address the climate challenge.

The views expressed herein do not constitute research, investment advice or trade recommendations and do not necessarily represent the views of all AB portfolio-management teams. Views are subject to change over time.

AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein (AB) is a leading global investment management firm that offers high-quality research and diversified investment services to institutional investors, individuals, and private wealth clients in major world markets. We believe corporate responsibility, responsible investing and stewardship are intertwined. To be effective stewards of our clients’ assets, we strive to invest responsibly—assessing, engaging on and integrating material issues, including environmental, social and governance (ESG), and climate change considerations in most of our actively managed strategies. We also believe that strive to hold ourselves as a firm to similar practices that we ask of issues. Our stewardship practices, investment strategy and decision-making are guided by our purpose, mission and values.

Our purpose—pursue insight that unlocks opportunity—inspires our firm to act responsibly. While opportunity means something different to each of our stakeholders; it always means considering the unique goals of each stakeholder. AB’s mission is to help our clients define and achieve their investment goals, explicitly stating what we do to unlock opportunity for our clients. We became a signatory to the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) in 2011. This began our journey to formalize our commitment to identify responsible ways to unlock opportunities for our clients through integrating material ESG factors throughout most of our actively managed equity and fixed-income client accounts, funds and strategies. AB also engages issuers where it believes the engagement is in the best financial interest of its clients.

Because we are an active manager, our differentiated insights drive our ability to deliver alpha and design innovative investment solutions. ESG and climate issues are important elements in forming insights and in presenting potential risks and opportunities that can have an effect on the performance of the companies and issuers that we invest in and the portfolios that we build.

Our values provide a framework for the behaviors and actions that deliver on our purpose and mission. Values align our actions. Each value emerges from the firm’s collective character—yet is also aspirational.

Invest in One Another means that we have a strong organizational culture where diversity is celebrated and mentorship is critical to our success. When we invest in one another, we empower our employees to reach their potential, so that they can help our clients realize theirs. This enables us to partner with clients to design and deliver improved investment outcomes.Strive for Distinctive Knowledge means that we collaboratively identify creative solutions to clients’ economic, ESG and climate- related investment challenges through our expertise in a wide range of investment disciplines, close collaboration among our investment experts and creative solutions.Speak with Courage and Conviction informs how we engage our AB colleagues and issuers. We seek to learn from other parts of our business to strengthen our own views. And we engage issuers for insight and action by sharing ideas and best practices.Act with Integrity—Always is the bedrock of our relationships and has specific meaning for our business. Unlike many other asset managers, we’re singularly focused on providing asset management and research to our clients. We don’t engage in activities that could be distracting, or create conflicts—such as investment banking, insurance writing, commercial banking or proprietary trading for our own account. We are unconflicted and fully accountable.

As of September 30, 2023, AB had $669B in assets under management, $458B of which were ESG-integrated. Additional information about AB may be found on our website, www.alliancebernstein.com.

Learn more about AB’s approach to responsibility here.

As a people-driven business, AEG recognizes the power of sports and live entertainment to influence culture.

To kick off Black History Month, on February 7, 2024, the company held a presentation, “The Business of Culture,” with renowned marketer and cultural translator, Dr. Marcus Collins that provided employees with a better understanding of how culture shapes our choices, actions, and identities in the workplace and beyond.

Hosted by its Black Equity@AEG employee network group, GV Black, and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Employee Engagement teams, the inspiring session focused on the impact that cultural dynamics plays in human behaviors and gave employees insights into how businesses can create deeper and more meaningful connections with their target audiences. Throughout the talk, Collins shared stories from his career as well as provocative examples of how culture influences people’s beliefs and behaviors.

“‘The Business of Culture’ with Dr. Collins was an engaging, inspirational, and thought-provoking event,” said Matt Lawler, a member of AEG’s Black Heritage Month Planning Team. “His conversation with our employees broke down how culture drives business, and he gave us a framework for how to turn those learnings into action. He has a world class pedigree and his proven ability to create impactful culture through sports and music is a blueprint for everyone at our company.”

Dr. Marcus Collins is an award-winning marketer and cultural translator. His deep understanding of brand strategy and consumer behavior has helped him bridge the academic-practitioner gap for blue-chip brands and startups alike. He is a recipient of Advertising Age’s 40 Under 40 award and Crain’s Business’ 40 Under 40 award, and an inductee into the American Advertising Federation’s Advertising Hall of Achievement. Most recently, he was recognized by Thinkers50 with the Radar Distinguished Achievement Award for the idea most likely to shape the future of business management. To learn more about Dr. Collins, please click here.

Additional AEG Black History Month programming included a video interview series thatspotlighted Black employees, GV Black Artists to Watch, and a Parents@AEG + BE@AEG Resource Guide.

GV BLACK is a resource group at Goldenvoice created to guide the venues, festivals, and company forward in the mission to expand on racial justice work. Working hand-in-hand with Goldenvoice and Coachella, GV BLACK and a diverse group of employee allies have been leading tough conversations and guiding progressive action in our continued efforts to enhance equity and inclusion. To learn more about GV Black, please click here.

Black Equity@AEG is an employee led, self-directed group that offers opportunities to grow, learn, and network internally. Our intent is to attract a diverse employee base, to provide the inclusion of ideas and solutions, and to create opportunities for mentoring and career development.

BOWLING GREEN, Ky., February 28, 2024 /3BL/ – In a recent initiative to foster teamwork and knowledge sharing, the Jackson, Tennessee, Dixie team joined their counterparts in Bowling Green, Kentucky, for a transformative training experience.

With a shared commitment to growth and development, over 40 employees from Jackson trained with their peers, delving into topics such as innovation, equipment utilization and fundamental skills.

This collaborative endeavor not only enhanced individual capabilities but also laid the groundwork for the startup of the Jackson facility in the summer of 2024, signaling the team’s readiness for a successful launch.

Georgia-Pacific broke ground on the more than $425 million facility in September 2022 and raised the final beam in the fall of 2023. It’s the largest single investment in the city’s history.

The 900,000-square-foot facility sits on 241 acres west of Jackson. The fully air-conditioned workspace will include a printer, associated plate-forming converting assets, and other state-of-the-art manufacturing technology. Anticipated hiring for the new site will eclipse 220 by 2025.

Once operational, the state-of-the-art facility will significantly increase the supply of disposable tableware products—namely, plates and bowls—in the marketplace, while supporting the Livingware and GP Pro business segments.

“Although we have invested to expand existing sites, this is the first new Dixie® plant the company has built since 1991,” explains Fernando Gonzalez, president of the consumer business at Georgia-Pacific. “This added capacity will help us meet the needs of our customers as consumer demand for high-quality, durable paper plates and bowls continues to grow.”

Georgia-Pacific directly employs approximately 460 people and operates six facilities in Tennessee.

A team of nine Jackson employees is laying the groundwork for a successful startup in 2024. Georgia-Pacific has a long history of investing in people, and the Jackson plant will provide development for team members to allow them the opportunity to continue growing in their careers.

“Companies choose to invest in Tennessee because of our skilled workforce and unmatched business climate,” said Tennessee Governor Bill Lee. “I commend Georgia-Pacific’s commitment to creating more than 200 jobs in Jackson so that Tennesseans across the region can thrive.”

Currently, Georgia-Pacific’s economic impact contributes to 1,430 additional indirect jobs and $100 million in labor income, and the capital investment in the state has totaled more than $250 million since 2011. GP’s capital investments grow and improve our businesses which have a multiplier effect on people and the communities where we operate.

View original content here.