Tag: 3BL

A new initiative launched by Attune is designed to address a growing challenge across the United States: aging school facilities that lack visibility into critical building performance metrics.

The Future-Ready Facilities Grant will select 25 school districts to implement indoor air quality (IAQ), energy, and water monitoring technologies and reporting practices that help districts measure building performance, prioritize maintenance and capital planning, and transparently communicate progress.
The program provides $500,000 total in support across the cohort. The program prioritizes impact and need, and encourages applications from Title I and underserved districts, tribal schools, and districts facing infrastructure or budget constraints. Applications are open now and close May 15, 2026.

The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) is proud to be one of several partners to support evaluations, alongside the Center for Green Schools, Green Schools National Network, and the 21st Century School Fund. These partners bring expertise in healthy buildings, equity, and long-term infrastructure planning.

The grant is launched at a time when the nation’s school facilities funding deficit is not only steep but continues to surge. The latest State of Our Schools report, released last year by the 21st Century School Fund, the National Council on School Facilities (NCSF) and IWBI, shows that the U.S. now faces a $90 billion shortfall in school facility funding every single year, despite significant progress local school districts have made to ramp up their investments. The gap has continued to widen as school construction costs climb, building inventories expand, and aging facilities require more extensive maintenance, modernization, or replacement.

“Schools are being asked to meet higher standards for air quality, energy efficiency, and transparency without the budgets to match. This program helps close that gap by giving districts what they need to get started, prove what’s possible, and create a track record that state and local leaders can point to when it’s time to fund these efforts at scale.”

• Dr. Serene Almomen, CEO of Attune and a member of the Global Commission on Healthy Indoor Air

One of the grant’s main objectives is to support healthy indoor air within schools. A March 2026 congressional briefing on “Indoor Air Quality for a Healthier America” emphasized indoor air quality as a growing public policy priority, noting that despite decades of progress addressing outdoor pollution, indoor air quality remains largely unregulated and underfunded.

Learn more and apply for the Future-Ready Facilities Grant here.

View original content here.

By William Dominici Director, PCSD Strategy Lenovo

Lenovo’s R.E.A.L. framework for sustainability, Responsible Design, Ethical Materials, Accountable Models, and Lifecycle Intelligence, defines a more holistic approach to circularity. As a global technology company, Lenovo applies this framework across products, services, and operations. That commitment extends to something every customer touches, but which is often overlooked: packaging. 

Packaging is a constant across the product experience. By applying R.E.A.L. principles to packaging design, material selection, and logistics, Lenovo has reduced material use, increased renewable and recycled content, and helped support customers’ own sustainability priorities for key product lines while still meeting packaging’s core purpose: protecting products and preserving quality. 

Responsible Design in Action 
Lenovo has made meaningful progress in reducing packaging size, weight, and complexity in its device portfolio. Global packaging specifications establish minimum environmental standards, with compliance required through Lenovo’s Supplier Code of Conduct. These standards have helped reduce excess size and layers, decrease plastic use, expand bulk and reusable packaging solutions, and accelerate the adoption of certified materials. 

Lenovo has shown that even small design changes can deliver measurable results. For example, packaging redesign eliminated 54 tonnes of plastic tape from ThinkPad packaging annually. The company has also pursued product weight and volume reductions wherever possible, demonstrating how incremental improvements can scale into significant impact. In logistics, rack integration solutions for pre-installed servers have reduced cardboard use by 105 pounds per rack. 

Ethical Materials at Scale 
When possible, Lenovo has transitioned away from plastic and styrofoam by adopting bio-based materials such as bamboo and sugarcane, both rapidly renewable resources. Plastic-free packaging has been implemented across all ThinkPad series and select smartphones through bamboo fiber technology, self-locking boxes, and related material innovations. This approach has also expanded to Moto G Plus products. 

Recycled and recovered materials are also playing a growing role. Lenovo launched the industry’s first packaging cushion containing ocean-bound plastic (OBP), made with 30% OBP and 70% other recycled plastics, in ThinkPad L14 packaging. That innovation has since expanded. In FY 2023/24, OBP was scaled into thermoformed cushions and system bags for select desktop, AIO, consumer notebook, and server products, with an estimated 165 metric tons of OBP used annually. 

Across the portfolio, Lenovo reached 90% recycled content by weight in PC product plastic packaging, excluding tablets, accessories, and monitors. Smartphone packaging now uses 60% recycled materials, 50% less single-use plastic, and has received a 10% reduction in size and volume. 

Accountable Models and Lifecycle Intelligence 
Lenovo’s bulk packaging services improve pallet utilization, reduce waste, and lower transit-related impacts, while dedicated shipping solutions help reduce the carbon footprint of IT deployments. These efforts complement Lenovo’s material innovations by addressing sustainability across the broader packaging lifecycle. 

As part of its most recent generation of sustainability goals, Lenovo also eliminated 100,000 kilometers of single-use plastic packaging tape, expanded cushions containing 30% OBP into 1U servers, and identified five additional products now using 100% renewable bio-based packaging. 

By making sustainability REAL in packaging, Lenovo demonstrates that circular design, ethical materials, and accountable execution can scale in practical ways, delivering progress customers can see before they even power on their device. 

Learn more about Lenovo’s product sustainability goals and achievements in the latest ESG Report.  

By William Dominici Director, PCSD Strategy Lenovo

Lenovo’s R.E.A.L. framework for sustainability, Responsible Design, Ethical Materials, Accountable Models, and Lifecycle Intelligence, defines a more holistic approach to circularity. As a global technology company, Lenovo applies this framework across products, services, and operations. That commitment extends to something every customer touches, but which is often overlooked: packaging. 

Packaging is a constant across the product experience. By applying R.E.A.L. principles to packaging design, material selection, and logistics, Lenovo has reduced material use, increased renewable and recycled content, and helped support customers’ own sustainability priorities for key product lines while still meeting packaging’s core purpose: protecting products and preserving quality. 

Responsible Design in Action 
Lenovo has made meaningful progress in reducing packaging size, weight, and complexity in its device portfolio. Global packaging specifications establish minimum environmental standards, with compliance required through Lenovo’s Supplier Code of Conduct. These standards have helped reduce excess size and layers, decrease plastic use, expand bulk and reusable packaging solutions, and accelerate the adoption of certified materials. 

Lenovo has shown that even small design changes can deliver measurable results. For example, packaging redesign eliminated 54 tonnes of plastic tape from ThinkPad packaging annually. The company has also pursued product weight and volume reductions wherever possible, demonstrating how incremental improvements can scale into significant impact. In logistics, rack integration solutions for pre-installed servers have reduced cardboard use by 105 pounds per rack. 

Ethical Materials at Scale 
When possible, Lenovo has transitioned away from plastic and styrofoam by adopting bio-based materials such as bamboo and sugarcane, both rapidly renewable resources. Plastic-free packaging has been implemented across all ThinkPad series and select smartphones through bamboo fiber technology, self-locking boxes, and related material innovations. This approach has also expanded to Moto G Plus products. 

Recycled and recovered materials are also playing a growing role. Lenovo launched the industry’s first packaging cushion containing ocean-bound plastic (OBP), made with 30% OBP and 70% other recycled plastics, in ThinkPad L14 packaging. That innovation has since expanded. In FY 2023/24, OBP was scaled into thermoformed cushions and system bags for select desktop, AIO, consumer notebook, and server products, with an estimated 165 metric tons of OBP used annually. 

Across the portfolio, Lenovo reached 90% recycled content by weight in PC product plastic packaging, excluding tablets, accessories, and monitors. Smartphone packaging now uses 60% recycled materials, 50% less single-use plastic, and has received a 10% reduction in size and volume. 

Accountable Models and Lifecycle Intelligence 
Lenovo’s bulk packaging services improve pallet utilization, reduce waste, and lower transit-related impacts, while dedicated shipping solutions help reduce the carbon footprint of IT deployments. These efforts complement Lenovo’s material innovations by addressing sustainability across the broader packaging lifecycle. 

As part of its most recent generation of sustainability goals, Lenovo also eliminated 100,000 kilometers of single-use plastic packaging tape, expanded cushions containing 30% OBP into 1U servers, and identified five additional products now using 100% renewable bio-based packaging. 

By making sustainability REAL in packaging, Lenovo demonstrates that circular design, ethical materials, and accountable execution can scale in practical ways, delivering progress customers can see before they even power on their device. 

Learn more about Lenovo’s product sustainability goals and achievements in the latest ESG Report.  

The electric grid powers nearly every part of daily life—from homes and hospitals to transportation and national security systems. Today, the grid is under increasing strain from unprecedented power load growth.

Large-scale data centers, electrification infrastructure, and advanced manufacturing are driving sustained demand for reliable power. At the same time, utilities must manage increasing complexity across grid operations, energy distribution, and long-term infrastructure planning while also making capital investment decisions in a highly regulated environment.

In this first episode of Outcomes Unlocked, Leidos dives into how it is using artificial intelligence to help utilities respond—improving operations, informing investment decisions, and enabling the grid to expand at the pace demand requires. 

Drawing on more than a decade of applied AI in mission-critical environments, Leidos is helping utilities move beyond pilot programs and into real-world, scalable solutions. 

A grid built for a different model

Much of today’s grid was designed for a centralized, predictable system. Power flowed in one direction, and demand followed consistent patterns.

That model has changed.

Energy is now generated from more sources, in more places, and with greater variability. This shift is accelerating the need for grid modernization that is flexible, visible, and reliable.

For utilities, this is not just a technical challenge, but a planning and investment challenge–requiring faster, more informed decisions about where and how to expand infrastructure.

Managing growing complexity 

Utilities are managing more assets, more variability, and more interconnected systems than ever before—while continuing to maintain reliability and service expectations.

Leidos applies AI in operational environments where speed, accuracy, and reliability are critical. These systems process large volumes of data, identify patterns, and surface insights that support faster, more informed decisions across grid operations.

“The amount of data is growing faster than engineers can keep up with.” 
— Bryce King, Energy Infrastructure AI Lead

This level of visibility is essential–but on its own, it is not enough. Utilities must also act on information quickly and at scale.

Accelerating grid expansion 

Meeting rising demand requires building and upgrading infrastructure faster than traditional approaches allow.

“We have to build the grid faster than we ever have before.” 
— Josh Wepman, VP, Energy Infrastructure CTO

Leidos is delivering AI-enabled capabilities that support both grid expansion and operations. Solutions like SkyWire™ can rapidly analyze distribution infrastructure and plan out new transmission lines helping utilities assess system conditions and prioritize investments at scale.

This allows utility operators to make faster, more cost-effective decisions and more optimally deploy capital—supporting grid expansion while meeting regulatory expectations. By accelerating the transition from planning to execution, SkyWire™ helps utilities move at the speed required to keep pace with demand.

This is not simply about efficiency. It is about enabling a level of speed and precision in infrastructure planning and execution that is difficult to achieve with traditional, manual approaches alone.

Supporting the people behind the grid 

AI works best when it supports the people operating and building the grid.

For engineers and utility operators that means better tools to interpret data, prioritize actions, and respond to changing conditions. AI helps reduce the burden of analysis so utilities can focus on decisions that impact reliability, safety, and performance.  

At the same time, demand for electricity is expected to grow significantly in the coming decades. According to the Department of Energy, the grid may need to double—or even triple—by 2050 to meet future demand. Meeting that need will place additional pressure on a workforce that is not scaling at the same pace.

AI can help bridge that gap—enabling teams to do more with the expertise they have, manage larger and more complex systems, and support faster, more cost-effective grid expansion.

Looking ahead

The demands on the electric grid and the need to expand it will continue to grow.

Meeting those demands will require new approaches to how infrastructure is planned, built, and operated. Outcomes Unlocked: AI and the Grid highlights how Leidos is applying AI to help utilities move faster, make better investment decisions, and scale operations to support the future of energy. 

Explore how Leidos is powering reliable and resilient energy at leidos.com/markets/energy, or to learn more about our AI capabilities visit leidos.com/ai. 

The electric grid powers nearly every part of daily life—from homes and hospitals to transportation and national security systems. Today, the grid is under increasing strain from unprecedented power load growth.

Large-scale data centers, electrification infrastructure, and advanced manufacturing are driving sustained demand for reliable power. At the same time, utilities must manage increasing complexity across grid operations, energy distribution, and long-term infrastructure planning while also making capital investment decisions in a highly regulated environment.

In this first episode of Outcomes Unlocked, Leidos dives into how it is using artificial intelligence to help utilities respond—improving operations, informing investment decisions, and enabling the grid to expand at the pace demand requires. 

Drawing on more than a decade of applied AI in mission-critical environments, Leidos is helping utilities move beyond pilot programs and into real-world, scalable solutions. 

A grid built for a different model

Much of today’s grid was designed for a centralized, predictable system. Power flowed in one direction, and demand followed consistent patterns.

That model has changed.

Energy is now generated from more sources, in more places, and with greater variability. This shift is accelerating the need for grid modernization that is flexible, visible, and reliable.

For utilities, this is not just a technical challenge, but a planning and investment challenge–requiring faster, more informed decisions about where and how to expand infrastructure.

Managing growing complexity 

Utilities are managing more assets, more variability, and more interconnected systems than ever before—while continuing to maintain reliability and service expectations.

Leidos applies AI in operational environments where speed, accuracy, and reliability are critical. These systems process large volumes of data, identify patterns, and surface insights that support faster, more informed decisions across grid operations.

“The amount of data is growing faster than engineers can keep up with.” 
— Bryce King, Energy Infrastructure AI Lead

This level of visibility is essential–but on its own, it is not enough. Utilities must also act on information quickly and at scale.

Accelerating grid expansion 

Meeting rising demand requires building and upgrading infrastructure faster than traditional approaches allow.

“We have to build the grid faster than we ever have before.” 
— Josh Wepman, VP, Energy Infrastructure CTO

Leidos is delivering AI-enabled capabilities that support both grid expansion and operations. Solutions like SkyWire™ can rapidly analyze distribution infrastructure and plan out new transmission lines helping utilities assess system conditions and prioritize investments at scale.

This allows utility operators to make faster, more cost-effective decisions and more optimally deploy capital—supporting grid expansion while meeting regulatory expectations. By accelerating the transition from planning to execution, SkyWire™ helps utilities move at the speed required to keep pace with demand.

This is not simply about efficiency. It is about enabling a level of speed and precision in infrastructure planning and execution that is difficult to achieve with traditional, manual approaches alone.

Supporting the people behind the grid 

AI works best when it supports the people operating and building the grid.

For engineers and utility operators that means better tools to interpret data, prioritize actions, and respond to changing conditions. AI helps reduce the burden of analysis so utilities can focus on decisions that impact reliability, safety, and performance.  

At the same time, demand for electricity is expected to grow significantly in the coming decades. According to the Department of Energy, the grid may need to double—or even triple—by 2050 to meet future demand. Meeting that need will place additional pressure on a workforce that is not scaling at the same pace.

AI can help bridge that gap—enabling teams to do more with the expertise they have, manage larger and more complex systems, and support faster, more cost-effective grid expansion.

Looking ahead

The demands on the electric grid and the need to expand it will continue to grow.

Meeting those demands will require new approaches to how infrastructure is planned, built, and operated. Outcomes Unlocked: AI and the Grid highlights how Leidos is applying AI to help utilities move faster, make better investment decisions, and scale operations to support the future of energy. 

Explore how Leidos is powering reliable and resilient energy at leidos.com/markets/energy, or to learn more about our AI capabilities visit leidos.com/ai. 

When young entrepreneurs have the right support at the right time, ideas turn into businesses. That belief underpins the collaboration between FedEx and Futurpreneur, which extends beyond sponsorship to combine expertise, promotion, and real world business insight to help more entrepreneurs start stronger and scale sustainably. Together, they power Expert Exchange, a free, national webinar series delivered by Futurpreneur and sponsored by FedEx.

Launched in March 2025, Expert Exchange meets early stage founders where they are, providing practical, expert led guidance they can apply immediately. By removing cost and access barriers, the program helps young entrepreneurs build skills, confidence, and momentum during the most critical stages of their journey.

Practical learning with real world impact

Expert Exchange focuses on action over theory, addressing the challenges founders face every day—from sales and marketing to hiring, technology, and procurement. Interactive workshops led by industry experts cover topics including AI, digital marketing, sales strategy, HR, and government contracting. Sessions are offered free of charge in both English and French, ensuring broad, inclusive access to high quality business education.

Strong participation, measurable results

Between March and December 2025, Expert Exchange delivered 32 sessions, reaching 1,461 attendees across all 13 provinces and territories, including more than 1,100 unique founders.

Advancing inclusion across Canada

Expert Exchange is designed to support entrepreneurs from equity deserving communities. Nearly half of participants self-identified as women or non-binary, 38% as Black, and 4% as Indigenous. The program also connects founders to Futurpreneur’s broader ecosystem of mentorship, financing, and long term support.

Looking ahead

Building on a successful first year, Expert Exchange will continue in 2026 with more expert workshops and deeper use of real world case studies, driving lasting impact for Canada’s next generation of entrepreneurs. Want to learn more, click here.

Click here to learn about FedEx Cares, our global community engagement program.

When young entrepreneurs have the right support at the right time, ideas turn into businesses. That belief underpins the collaboration between FedEx and Futurpreneur, which extends beyond sponsorship to combine expertise, promotion, and real world business insight to help more entrepreneurs start stronger and scale sustainably. Together, they power Expert Exchange, a free, national webinar series delivered by Futurpreneur and sponsored by FedEx.

Launched in March 2025, Expert Exchange meets early stage founders where they are, providing practical, expert led guidance they can apply immediately. By removing cost and access barriers, the program helps young entrepreneurs build skills, confidence, and momentum during the most critical stages of their journey.

Practical learning with real world impact

Expert Exchange focuses on action over theory, addressing the challenges founders face every day—from sales and marketing to hiring, technology, and procurement. Interactive workshops led by industry experts cover topics including AI, digital marketing, sales strategy, HR, and government contracting. Sessions are offered free of charge in both English and French, ensuring broad, inclusive access to high quality business education.

Strong participation, measurable results

Between March and December 2025, Expert Exchange delivered 32 sessions, reaching 1,461 attendees across all 13 provinces and territories, including more than 1,100 unique founders.

Advancing inclusion across Canada

Expert Exchange is designed to support entrepreneurs from equity deserving communities. Nearly half of participants self-identified as women or non-binary, 38% as Black, and 4% as Indigenous. The program also connects founders to Futurpreneur’s broader ecosystem of mentorship, financing, and long term support.

Looking ahead

Building on a successful first year, Expert Exchange will continue in 2026 with more expert workshops and deeper use of real world case studies, driving lasting impact for Canada’s next generation of entrepreneurs. Want to learn more, click here.

Click here to learn about FedEx Cares, our global community engagement program.

Welcome to Advancing with Purpose, a new AMD video series featuring the people behind our corporate responsibility efforts.

In this first video, Srilatha (Bobbie) Manne, Senior Fellow, Software Development Engineer at AMD, talks about designing for product energy efficiency and the role it plays in advancing more sustainable computing. She shares how thoughtful design choices can contribute to real-world impact and why building technology with purpose matters.

Through personal stories like Bobbie’s, this series highlights how AMD employees are helping bring corporate responsibility to life across the company.

Learn more about AMD corporate responsibility: https://www.amd.com/en/corporate/corporate-responsibility.html

Welcome to Advancing with Purpose, a new AMD video series featuring the people behind our corporate responsibility efforts.

In this first video, Srilatha (Bobbie) Manne, Senior Fellow, Software Development Engineer at AMD, talks about designing for product energy efficiency and the role it plays in advancing more sustainable computing. She shares how thoughtful design choices can contribute to real-world impact and why building technology with purpose matters.

Through personal stories like Bobbie’s, this series highlights how AMD employees are helping bring corporate responsibility to life across the company.

Learn more about AMD corporate responsibility: https://www.amd.com/en/corporate/corporate-responsibility.html

April 23, 2026 /3BL/ – The Beverage Industry Environmental Roundtable (BIER) has released its 2025 Water, Energy, and Emissions Benchmarking Study, providing a comprehensive, comparable analysis of environmental performance across more than 1,600 facilities globally, offering a clear view of industry progress, operational efficiency, and emerging risk areas.

Now in its 20th year, BIER continues to build on a long-standing benchmarking program, using multi-year data to provide a robust perspective on industry performance trends.

Established in 2006, BIER unites globally recognized beverage companies to advance environmental sustainability through collaboration, scientific rigor, and shared expertise. The benchmarking study is a prime example of this approach in action, providing industry-wide data that supports measurable progress in water stewardship, climate, and operational efficiency.

This year’s study includes data from 2020, 2022, and 2024, representing 15 companies and facilities spanning six continents. Results show that while global beverage production increased by 8% over the reporting period, participating companies achieved meaningful efficiency improvements, including:

• 3% reduction in water use ratio
• 4% reduction in energy use ratio
• 11% reduction in emissions ratio

These findings demonstrate continued progress toward decoupling production growth from environmental impact, an important signal for investors, industry stakeholders, and member companies seeking credible, data-backed evidence of sustainability performance and operational improvement.

The study also highlights the growing importance of water risk. More than 60% of facilities currently operate in areas facing at least medium water risk, with over half projected to face medium to extremely high water stress by 2030. This data underscores the increasing importance of proactive water stewardship, informed decision-making, and cross-industry collaboration in managing long-term operational and environmental risks.

BIER’s benchmarking work supports its broader mission to strengthen collective action within the beverage industry. By providing standardized metrics, transparent insights, and a platform for shared learning, BIER enables member companies to assess performance relative to peers, identify opportunities for improvement, and translate data into actionable strategies that drive measurable environmental performance improvements across the sector.

As sustainability expectations continue to evolve, resources like the benchmarking study are increasingly essential in helping companies move from commitment to implementation and in providing external stakeholders with credible, comparable insights into industry-wide progress.

“BIER’s benchmarking study reflects the value of sustained collaboration across the beverage sector. By bringing companies together around consistent, comparable data, we’re able to move beyond insight to action- identifying practical opportunities, prioritizing investments, and tracking the real progress companies are making on shared environmental priorities.” ~ Erica Pann, Executive Director, BIER

The Beverage Industry Water, Energy, and Emissions Benchmarking is available for download at: 2025 Water, Energy, and Emissions Benchmarking Summary – BIER

For more information, please contact: BIER@anteagroup.us

About BIER
BIER is a technical coalition of leading global beverage companies working together to advance environmental sustainability within the beverage sector. Formed in 2006, BIER is a common voice across the beverage sector, speaking to influence global standards on environmental sustainability aspects most relevant to the sector, affect change both up and down the supply chain, and share best practices that raise the bar for environmental performance of the industry. By doing so, BIER is able to monitor data and trends, engage with key stakeholders, develop best practices, and guide a course of action for the future. BIER members include Anheuser-Busch InBev, Asahi Group Holdings, Bacardi, Brown-Forman, Carlsberg Group, The Coca-Cola Company, Constellation Brands, Diageo, Heaven Hill Brands, Heineken, Keurig Dr Pepper, Kirin Holdings Company, Limited, Molson Coors, Monster Energy, Ocean Spray Cranberries, PepsiCo, Pernod Ricard, and Suntory Global Spirits. For more information, visit www.bieroundtable.com.