Tag: 3BL

For every residential customer that signs up for Duke Energy Florida’s community solar program, the company will plant a tree

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., October 31, 2023 /3BL/ – Thanks to a recent collaboration between Duke Energy Florida and One Tree Planted, customers who subscribe to the company’s community solar program, Clean Energy Connection, will have the opportunity to support clean energy and contribute to restoration efforts at one of Florida’s most-treasured state forests.

Through the program, Duke Energy Florida customers can subscribe to solar power and earn credits toward their electricity bills without the commitment of installing or maintaining rooftop panels. And, for every kilowatt a residential customer subscribes to the program before Nov. 15, the company will work with One Tree Planted to plant a tree in the Lake Wales Ridge State Forest in Polk County.

“At Duke Energy Florida, we are committed to delivering a cleaner, brighter energy future for our customers, communities and the environment,” said Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy Florida state president. “By working with agencies like One Tree Planted, we are able to deliver on that commitment and provide customers with an opportunity to support renewable energy and protect Florida’s environment.”

One Tree Planted will plant longleaf pines and South Florida slash pines on two sites in the state forest. The project is expected to improve the quality of recreational opportunities and improve the soil and water for the plants and animals that live here. Customers who enroll before Nov. 15 will add to the more than 7,000 trees being planted on behalf of the company’s current subscribers.

The Lake Wales Ridge State Forest is home to threatened and endangered plant and animal species including the Florida scrub-jay, gopher tortoise, papery Whitlow-wort, Florida blazing star, and cutthroat grass.

How the community solar program works

Customers subscribe to a portion of solar energy from the company’s Clean Energy Connection solar portfolio. The monthly subscription fee will help pay for the cost of construction and operation of the renewable energy centers and is conveniently added to a customer’s regular electric bill. Customers also receive a corresponding subscription credit that represents their share of the energy produced by the solar centers in a given month, multiplied by the subscription credit rate, which begins to escalate annually after three continuous years of subscription in the program.

Duke Energy Florida customers who are interested in the program can learn more through the Clean Energy Connection website at duke-energy.com/CEC.

Duke Energy Florida

Duke Energy Florida, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, owns 10,500 megawatts of energy capacity, supplying electricity to 1.9 million residential, commercial and industrial customers across a 13,000-square-mile service area in Florida.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America’s largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities serve 8.2 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 50,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 27,600 people.

Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy transition to achieve its goals of net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions from electricity generation by 2050. The company has interim carbon emission targets of at least 50% reduction from electric generation by 2030, 50% for Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 upstream and downstream emissions by 2035, and 80% from electric generation by 2040. In addition, the company is investing in major electric grid enhancements and energy storage, and exploring zero-emission power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear.

Duke Energy was named to Fortune’s 2023 “World’s Most Admired Companies” list and Forbes’ “World’s Best Employers” list. More information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and videos. Duke Energy’s illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

One Tree Planted

One Tree Planted is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit on a mission to make it simple for anyone to help the environment by planting trees. Their projects span the globe and are done in partnership with local communities and knowledgeable experts to create an impact for nature, people, and wildlife. Reforestation helps to rebuild forests after fires and floods, provide jobs for social impact, and restore biodiversity. Many projects have overlapping objectives, creating a combination of benefits that contribute to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at onetreeplanted.org.

Contact: Audrey Stasko 
24-Hour: 800.559.3853 
Twitter: @DE_AudreyS

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SWORDS, Ireland, October 30, 2023 /3BL/ – Trane Technologies (NYSE:TT), a global climate innovator, was recently named to several prestigious rankings including TIME’s World’s Best Companies of 2023 and FORTUNE’s 2023 Best Workplaces for Women. Inclusion on these rankings recognize the company’s ongoing leadership in financial performance, sustainability performance and workplace culture.

“These tremendous honors from TIME and FORTUNE highlight the tangible actions we’re taking to create a more sustainable world,” said Dave Regnery, chair and CEO of Trane Technologies. “We continue to focus on providing opportunity for all and building a talented team that mirrors our communities. This enables us to innovate for our customers, create positive change for the planet, and deliver differentiated results for our shareholders.”

Trane Technologies was one of 750 global companies to be recognized in the inaugural edition of TIME’s “World’s Best Companies.” The list, published in collaboration with market research company Statista, ranks companies according to 3 pillars: sustainability, revenue growth and employee satisfaction.

The company was also named to the 2023 FORTUNE Best Workplaces for Women list. The list highlights companies who offer increased flexibility, equitable pay and career support to women regardless of their job role, race, sexual orientation and work status. Companies were also assessed on the gender balance of their workplace and representation changes as women rise from front-line positions to the board of directors.

Trane Technologies culture and business are focused on challenging what’s possible for a sustainable world, in addition to these rankings, the company was recently included on 3BL’s 100 Best Corporate Citizens list for the fourth consecutive year. The company earned this recognition for outstanding environmental, social and governance (ESG) transparency and performance among the 1,000 largest, publicly traded U.S. companies.

In addition, the company was also recognized by the Global ESG Awards, receiving the Platinum Award in the Supporting Economically Weaker Sections category and a Gold Award in the Sustainability/CSR Professional of the Year category.

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About Trane Technologies 
Trane Technologies is a global climate innovator. Through our strategic brands Trane® and Thermo King®, and our portfolio of environmentally responsible products and services, we bring efficient and sustainable climate solutions to buildings, homes and transportation. For more on Trane Technologies, visit tranetechnologies.com.

The German Agency for International Cooperation, the service provider in the field of international cooperation for sustainable development, recently hosted a webinar to highlight key changes between Higg FEM 3.0 and the forthcoming Higg FEM 4.0. Moderated by Rakesh Vazirani, head of sustainability services for business stream products, the webinar included Angela Ng, director of Higg Facility tools, in conversation with Mohammad Abdul Qaium, sustainability manager at OVS S.p.a., and Arunhariharan B S, sustainability analyst at Eastman Exports Global Clothing. The discussion was designed to educate attendees about what additional data manufacturers should start collecting for Higg FEM 4.0 in order to be better positioned to complete the self-assessment and verification, as well as how to best use the tool to drive impact. “The industry overall has certain goals for sustainability,” Vazirani said. “There are goals with regards to reduction of emissions, there are goals with regards to reduction of freshwater, and there are goals with regards to ensuring that biodiversity is not being negatively impacted. And of course the big picture goal is to have a circular textile value chain.”

Although the subject matter was high-level and technical, Ng noted the deep level of collaboration between SAC members that culminated in the update. “We spent the last two to three years working with over hundreds of members, stakeholders and facility users to collect feedback on the tool framework, scoring methodologies and all the questions’ content,” Ng said. “These insights coming from our key Member Expert Teams and Strategic Councils helped us identify gaps in regulations, industry standards and needs and incorporate these into the new version of the Higg FEM 4.0.”

As Ng detailed, this work fits into the SAC’s broader vision of “Evolution for Impact” to drive scalable solutions for industry-wide decarbonization. As Qaium shared, OVS demonstrated this by introducing a Sustainability Linked Bond in 2021 and setting goals to achieve a 21 percent reduction in carbon emissions and ensure that 100 percent of their suppliers use the Higg FEM and Higg FSLM, with 80 percent of their volume verified by 2024.

Ng also explained framing around key changes to Higg FEM 4.0, including an increase in data points: Over 70 unique data points are part of the Higg FEM 4.0 update, including site permits, energy, water, emissions, waste and chemical management. Although industry progress is gradually improving -– the percentage of users meeting Higg FEM foundational requirements was 19 percent in 2022, versus 15 percent in 2021 -– Ng emphasized that the SAC views Higg FEM 4.0 as a game-changer for industry-wide progress. Through a single shared facility assessment tool, Higg FEM 4.0 is designed to reduce facility third-party assessments, fuel better quality data and align industry benchmarking. As Arunhariharan detailed, once the Higg FEM is adapted to the user’s facility, they will be able to set targets and understand barriers to achieving them.

Ng also touched on how the Higg FEM 4.0 aligns with key industry standards -– including the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol, Science-Based Targets initiative, and Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals Roadmap to Zero -– as well as how the updated tool zeroes in on the most critical environmental impacts like groundwater contamination to ensure that it reflects the key impact areas where businesses need to evaluate and address current challenges.

Additionally, she talked about the improved assessment relevance. Through improved applicability criteria, users will now only see questions relevant to their specific operations, so they can spend less time on assessment questions that are irrelevant to them.

Finally, she discussed how the findings from Higg FEM 4.0 can be applied at scale. Once facility impacts are known, volume can be allocated to low-carbon suppliers -– a tactic that is already being seen among industry players. For example, Ng shared a recent analysis of Higg FEM data by carbon management company Reset Carbon which found the top 1,500 facilities contribute to around 79 percent of total emissions or some 82.8 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents. In the best case scenario, the industry can see an estimated 10 to 25 percent carbon reduction by shifting sourcing. By tapping insights from Higg FEM 4.0, devoting jobs to the most sustainable suppliers, the hope is that industry players see drastic improvement.

The SAC has scheduled a series of events that focus on the Higg FEM 4.0 update, including a webinar on November 7th: https://worldly-io.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_tiW-kRGFTHqIP1fZukumgg#/registration and an APAC session on November 8th: https://worldly-io.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Iq2UydEmQQKXuRU5EQomTA#/registration.

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) and members of Aramark’s employee resource group (ERG) Thrive went above and beyond to advance the acceptance, equity, allyship, and inclusion of people with disabilities while providing important employment and career opportunities.

People with disabilities remain one of the most unemployed and underemployed groups in the United States.

“I’m so proud of the great things Thrive continues to do,” said Marc Bruno, Chief Operating Officer, Aramark U.S. Food and Facilities and Executive Sponsor of Thrive. “In the past year, we increased membership in our ERG by 18 percent, opened our first international Hub in Chile, and, for the seventh consecutive year, Aramark earned a score of 100 on the Disability Equality Index.”

In addition to the other awards and NDEAM events below, Aramark employees participated again this year in the Eagles Autism Challenge, as well as the Polar Pop/Polar Plunge challenge to raise awareness and funds to benefit the Special Olympics.

Outside the U.S., Aramark Chile partnered with Incluyeme and the Inter-American Development Bank’s BID Lab to introduce the Aramark Labor Inclusion Lab, a trailblazing initiative working to boost employment opportunities and inclusion for those with disabilities.

Event Highlights

Best Practices Training

Members of Thrive organized a training presentation with help from the Job Accommodation Network to learn technical assistance on how to increase comfort, confidence, and competence through disability awareness.

Topics included effective communications best practices for managing people with different abilities.

A.J. Drexel Autism Institute Student Mentorship

For the second year, about 50 students from Transition Pathways at the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute visited Aramark’s Philadelphia headquarters October 17th to learn more about the company’s career path opportunities and get to know Aramark leaders and lines of business. (Photos at top and right).

This continuing relationship with the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute, and with Community Integrated Services, has helped Aramark better reach and engage with Philadelphia’s neurodiverse community.

In two hiring events the Philadelphia region this year, 300 candidates from these outreach programs interviewed for jobs at Aramark-managed client locations in the area.

So far, more than 90 candidates have been hired and more are in the process of being hired throughout the Philadelphia region. Watch a Transition Pathways video from an Aramark hiring event in June 2023.

Culinary Training Session in Maine

Victor Hartley, Aramark Food Service Director at Northern Maine Community College (NMCC), hosted an immersive culinary experience for participants of the Central Aroostook Association (CAA), which serves people with varying developmental disabilities.

Participants learned basic techniques for independent cooking, including the importance of food safety and sanitation, how to set up and clean a cooking prep station, and how to shop for seasonal food items.

The interactive session, held at the NMCC test kitchen on campus in August, caught the attention of a local TV news crew. Watch the coverage on YouTube.

Popcorn for the People Sampling

Thrive partnered again this year with Popcorn for the People, an Aramark supplier that works to create career opportunities for the disabled community—one delicious kernel at a time.

Thrive staffed a table at the Aramark headquarters October 24th so employees and guests could learn more about Popcorn for the People and sample and purchase their products.

Notable Awards and Recognition

In February, Aramark was named a Top 50 Employer for People with Disabilities by CAREERS & the disABLED Magazine.Aramark was recognized as one of five businesses in the Chicago metropolitan area that goes above and beyond for clients of Parents Alliance Employment Project (PAEP), an employment agency that assists individuals with disabilities to help obtain and retain competitive employment in the community. PAEP presented the award at the October 18th Be Inspired to Hire event in Oakbrook, Illinois.In the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) area, Aramark received a 2023 HireAbility award from Workforce Solutions Greater Dallas based on the company’s longtime partnership with Bridges DFW. Aramark was also the recipient of the Bridges DFW Employer of the Year award in 2018.The Aramark Collegiate Hospitality team at St. Thomas Aquinas College in New York received an award for contributions in furthering employment opportunities for people with disabilities, thanks to its partnership with the Rockland Employment Network, a program of the Workforce Development Board of Rockland County. An employee who went through the program nominated Aramark for the award, which was presented October 20th at the annual Rockland County National Disability Employment Awareness Month celebration.For actively partnering with North Carolina organizations to bring employment opportunities to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), Carolina Dining Services at UNC-Chapel Hill (Aramark Collegiate Hospitality) was certified as a gold level IDD Inclusive Employer by Work Together NC. Recently, the Carolina Dining Services team held cooking classes and served residents and staff of Peacehaven Community Farm, which connects people with IDD to the larger community through shared living and sustainable farming. Aramark Chef Alex Reames created a menu that included produce grown directly on the farm, including okra, collard greens, and Swiss chard.Jennifer Scott, Aramark Human Resources Director, was recognized with an Appreciation Award from Transition Pathways/Project Search for building connections to transition young people with disabilities to employment. Scott was part of a panel session at the 2023 National Community Schools Conference.

October 30, 2023 /3BL/ – Gaza is dying of thirst. 2.3 million people living in the Gaza Strip urgently need clean water. According to estimates, the population has seen its average daily water consumption reduced to three liters, which includes hygiene and cooking needs. Action Against Hunger staff report that they only have one liter of water a day for the next few days.

Action Against Hunger warns that the amount of water that has entered Gaza on aid trucks, and the absence of fuel for critical water infrastructure, remains insufficient to meet the water and sanitation needs of displaced people and the communities that host them. In addition, more than half of the water supply infrastructure is currently damaged and in need of repair.

This crisis puts the population in an even more difficult situation, with many resorting to consuming saline groundwater, increasing the risk of contracting diseases such as cholera and diarrhea, a leading cause of child mortality worldwide. Cases of chicken pox and scabies have also been detected, which can be attributed to poor sanitation and consumption of water from unsafe sources.

“People are rationing water and drinking only one liter a day. Water tankers have no fuel. Desalination plants don’t work. You can’t access groundwater without fuel to pump it into the water network,” said Chiara Saccardi, Action Against Hunger’s Middle East Regional Director.

“Dehydration, extreme fatigue, along with thirst and dehydration or concentrated urine, which could mean that many people are suffering from kidney failure, are some of the symptoms we are starting to see. The sanitation crisis means we are on the brink of major disease outbreaks. We have reports of rats and cockroaches in displacement centers, piles up of solid waste and wastewater. We are doing what we can on the ground, but we face immense challenges.”

Action Against Hunger has already distributed thousands of bottles of water, hundreds of mattresses, and hygiene products on a small scale inside the Gaza Strip, in coordination with local and international actors. We are also providing a cleaning service in one of the most crowded displacement shelters and cash assistance to families in need.

Our emergency team is assessing immediate needs and coordinating with international and local partners to distribute lifesaving supplies from Egypt. We continue to work with suppliers who have stocks inside Gaza to distribute basic supplies such as water, food, hygiene products, diapers, blankets, and mattresses as efficiently and quickly as possible at short notice.

Our work is becoming increasingly challenging as local stocks are running out, inflation is rampant, fuel is almost completely depleted, which limits transportation, and the security situation remains insecure.

Action Against Hunger calls for the immediate entry of fuel to restart the pumping of water from groundwater sources, to restart of desalination plants for drinking water, and to power trucks to deliver water to displaced people.

About Action Against Hunger

Action Against Hunger leads the global movement to end hunger. We innovate solutions, advocate for change, and reach 28 million people every year with proven hunger prevention and treatment programs. As a nonprofit that works across 55 countries, our 8,900 dedicated staff members partner with communities to address the root causes of hunger, including climate change, conflict, inequity, and emergencies. We strive to create a world free from hunger, for everyone, for good.

“I believe in the importance of diversity and inclusion within the workplace. Women have historically been underrepresented in supply chain roles, and I am committed to helping address this imbalance and promoting gender equality.”

Nico Tahon, Materials Planning Lead

You have been with Mondelez for over 15 years now. Can you share your career journey with Mondelez so far?

I started in Supply Chain in France right after college 15 years ago. After this initial role, I worked on the integration of LU with Kraft and SAP/APO implementation which taught me a lot about merging different businesses and understanding processes and ways of working.

Then I moved to project management for the coffee category in France and eventually for the European region with projects such as launching our very own Nespresso compatible capsule line of product from scratch. Next, I embarked on a more international journey with a leadership program that led me to relocate to Barcelona Spain where I was doing production planning for the Meals category.

After this assignment, I moved to the US for more project management on the iconic brand Ritz and Handisnacks. Then, I expanded my skillset by joining the procurement team to be sourcing manager for external manufacturing on the confectionary category.

Thereafter, I pursued my journey on learning more of the strategic portion of supply chain with Business Development for the Savory team, identifying ways to maximize business opportunities based on current manufacturing capacity / capabilities or working to expand those to meet new product development requirement.

This led me to my current role of materials planning lead for the US in which I ensure we have all raw and pack for production while minimizing waste risks.

You have made several transitions in your career, including moving from Europe to the US. What motivated you to relocate and what advice would give others who are considering the same type of change?

I always wanted to work in an international environment, driven by a combination of professional growth opportunities and the desire to embrace new challenges, and I’ve been lucky enough to be part of a company that offers it. The prospect of immersing myself in a fresh cultural setting and experiencing a different lifestyle was enticing. However, relocating is not always easy.

On the professional side, I realized the importance of my established network. Joining a new region after 7 years in the same location means you need to rebuild the bonds with cross functional teams that are so critical to your development and optimal performance to your job.

On the personal side, you must ensure you are ready to be far from friends and family with sometimes a significant time difference. Relocating is a fantastic opportunity, but it requires some careful assessment of your own needs, priorities and circumstances before making the decision. Embrace the idea of change and be willing to adapt to a new environment and culture.

Despite all that, I would do it again in a heartbeat as it gives so many opportunities for personal growth, meeting diverse team and learning another point of view at work and in my personal life.

You have a successful career, and you are a husband & father. How do you balance your work and personal life?

With two young children and a two-career household, it’s true that sometimes it feels like a juggling exercise. I think society puts a lot of pressure on us to be the best at everything and sometimes creates unrealistic standards. To me, what is important is being present and setting boundaries.

When I’m preparing my kids for school or when I do the bedtime routine, I’m 100% there and engaged, not checking my emails, or trying to multitask. I intentionally do not activate notifications on my phone or the temptation is big to “check one last email”. I prefer going back to finish some work tasks after the kids are in bed so that allows me to have diner as a family and share about our days.

I’m also lucky that I have a great team that can solve problems by themselves which gives me the opportunity to focus on matters that really require my attention. However, I make sure I maximize my workday so I can be there for them when they need me.

You have been involved in the Mondelez Supply Chain Women’s Employee Resource Group for over 3 years. What inspires you to continue to volunteer and what would you say to encourage others to be part of SCW?

I joined the employee resource group focused on women in supply chain for several compelling reasons. First and foremost, I believe in the importance of diversity and inclusion within the workplace. Women have historically been underrepresented in supply chain roles, and I am committed to helping address this imbalance and promoting gender equality.

As part of the Supply Chain Women’s Employee Resource Group, I’m leading the Speaker Series pillar in which we hold a conversation with inspirational colleagues around a new topic each month. As such, I witness firsthand the immense value that diverse perspectives bring to problem-solving and innovation. During those discussions with like-minded individuals who are passionate about driving positive change, we can share insights, experiences, and strategies to overcome challenges that women might face in the supply chain field, ultimately contributing to a more inclusive and supportive work environment.

Additionally, I see the resource group as an opportunity for personal and professional growth. Engaging in meaningful discussions, being mentor and mentee, and networking with accomplished women in supply chain can provide me with valuable knowledge, skills, and connections that can further enhance my career trajectory.

At Albertsons Companies, we strive to build belonging and celebrate all associates. As we come to the end of #DisAbilityEmploymentAwarenessMonth, we’re pleased to recognize our incredible team members with diverse abilities and the amazing work they’re doing in our stores each day.

Garrett Rheberg exemplifies what it means to be customer-driven and create experiences that earn Customers for Life. We are fortunate to have Garrett share his “BLT” approach to ensuring every customer feels like family.

View the full video here.

See original post on LinkedIn and read more about Albertsons Companies and our Recipe for Change on our website.

Highlights:

Disability Mentoring Day (DMD) is aimed at giving students insight into all the possibilities available in a corporate career.Interactive sessions to demonstrate how to be career ready.The chance to hear directly from mentors at PNC who have a disability themselves.

‘I would have thought about banking as a career sooner.’

That’s the first thing Rock Magleby-Lambert, a senior manager in the Model Risk Management Group and one of the mentors for DMD, said when asked how he would have benefited from this kind of experience in high school. “For these students to walk away saying, ‘I can do this. I want to’.”

And that’s exactly the goal of the day: eight PNC employees served as mentors for the half-day event held at The Tower at PNC Plaza in downtown Pittsburgh, P.A. on October 18, 2023. The event exposed the Pittsburgh-area high schoolers to several sessions including three Career Exploration stations, how to give a good interview and how to advocate for yourself at work.

Physically disabled since birth, Rock says a pivotal conversation with his father as a teen served as a guidepost for his future. “He point-blank said, ‘you’re going to need good health insurance for the rest of your life’,’’ he recalled. You’re going to need employers that provide that. That has been a strong influence in my life. Something I will be sharing with these students.”

But more than that, he recognizes how impactful a program like this would have been for his self-confidence back then. “I would have had a sense of self-esteem that is sometimes lacking in the disability community, said Rock. “I appreciate the opportunity to help members of the young disabled community to overcome that. I had people when I was young say, ‘there’s things you can’t do but there’s a lot of things you CAN do’. It’s important to figure out those things and do them well.”

That’s another reason DMD gives these high school juniors and seniors an inside look at all the possibilities when it comes to a corporate career path.

“I was good at math, turns out,” Rock revealed. “I was able to convert that into a job. My disability, while always present and with me, is not something I have to worry about from a career perspective.”

‘The power of community.’

One other crucial decision led him to become a mentor for DMD: joining ENABLE, the Employee Business Resource Group (EBRG). The group focuses on fostering an environment of understanding on behalf of those impacted by some form of disability – whether visible or invisible.

Rock is very candid about his initial hesitation to join the group. “Despite recognizing that I’m disabled, and it could benefit me, it contributed to how I view my disability,” he admitted. “I don’t want to feel pity – self-pity or otherwise.”

It was the power of community that won him over. “That’s part of the genius behind EBRGs: there’s real power in that community,” he said. “Not only because of the job, but also shared life experience. I began to realize it’s about embracing who I am. This is not about feeling sorry for myself but empowering people to feel equal.”

A key takeaway he hopes the students left his session knowing. “I’m hoping they get that there’s a place for them in the workforce,” said Rock. “It doesn’t matter their particular disability; they will find a place that values them and will be successful. Not everybody has to be a V-P or face-to-face with customers. [It] gives them hope.”

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month. It celebrates the contributions of America’s workers with disabilities past and present and showcases supportive, inclusive employment policies and practices that benefit employers and employees. This year’s theme, “Advancing Access and Equity” marks the 50th anniversary of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. It was the first federal legislation to prohibit discrimination and address access and equity for people with disabilities.

MIAMI and NEW YORK, October 30, 2023 /3BL/ – The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI), the global authority for driving market transformation through healthy buildings, organizations and communities, and Caplow Manzano announced today that the Miami-based design and development firm became an early adopter of IWBI’s WELL for residential program, which is now open for enrollments. The first standard of its kind, WELL for residential is an evidence-based, third-party verified certification program that will transform the way homes are designed, built and maintained to support human health and well-being. The WELL for residential standard helps inform Caplow Manzano during the design and construction of CM1, an elevated 2400 square feet single family house in the Silver Bluff neighborhood of Miami.

Grounded in the science-backed principles of the WELL Building Standard (WELL) and its 10 WELL concepts, the WELL for residential program consists of more than 100 health strategies that support new and existing residences and are applicable to both single-family homes and multifamily buildings. During the launch phase of the program, IWBI is partnering with leading architects, builders, developers, operators and owners – such as Caplow Manzano – to transform the global residential market to make healthier and more resilient homes more accessible to people.

“The WELL pilot program is a perfect fit for us because we believe that all real estate decisions should revolve around people’s health,” said Dr. Ted Caplow, an environmental engineer and the firm’s co-founder. “Miami is a wet place, so preventing mold and maintaining indoor air quality are critical,” added Nathalie Manzano, Caplow Manzano’s other co-founder. “In the design for CM1, we eliminated drywall in favor of more waterproof materials like exposed concrete, provided removable wall panels to provide access to all the plumbing, and provided natural light, abundant ventilation, and independent thermal control in each room. We appreciate that WELL shares our goal of preventing health problems before they happen,” said Manzano.

“Early adopters of the WELL for residential program are leveraging the many evidence-based health strategies to inform and enhance the design and build-out of their projects,” said Liz Miles, vice president for stakeholder relations at IWBI. “We are excited to see new WELL features incorporated by Caplow Manzano to make its CM1 home in Miami a healthier and more comfortable place to live.”

The development of the WELL for residential program drew upon two years of industry input, market insight and expert recommendations from IWBI’s WELL for residential advisory, a working group of over 100 globally renowned subject matter experts including leading builders and developers, architects and engineers, public health and building scientists, government officials and academics, as well as other real estate professionals. Companies can earn the WELL Residence seal for residences upon completion of third-party review and verification of selected strategies. To be certified as a WELL Residence, a home must achieve at least 40 points. Projects also have an opportunity to earn precertified WELL Residence status for participating units upon preliminary design review, a milestone step forward that allows participants to communicate achievement before construction is completed.

The WELL for residential program recognizes home designs that impact human health and well-being across all 10 WELL concepts. In the case of the CM1 home in Silver Bluff, Caplow Manzano aims to earn points under the WELL for residential standard in multiple areas:

Indoor Air Quality: CM1 features healthy building materials, advanced air filtration, and no AC ductwork, because all of the rooms have individual, cassette-type AC units.Ventilation: CM1 features an energy-recovery ventilator (ERV) that provides pre-conditioned outside air. The home also has an operable window in every room.Daylighting: With soaring ceilings, an elevated floor plate, and large high-performance windows, CM1 is filled with natural light all day long but protected from solar heat gain.Moisture Control: One of Caplow Manzano’s signature features is access to all plumbing inside the home to easily address undetected leaks and moisture problems that can affect indoor air quality. At CM1, all of the plumbing is located inside fully paneled walls.Water resistance: Mold is one of the most harmful indoor air contaminants in humid regions. At CM1, the risk of mold is sharply reduced by replacing conventional drywall entirely with more durable surfaces including concrete and lime plaster, and by eliminating any materials that cannot tolerate moisture in kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanities, and interior doors.Thermal control: By eliminating ductwork and increasing the number of AC units, all of the bedrooms at CM1 have independent thermostats, improving occupant comfort while reducing energy consumption.Carbon reduction: Caplow Manzano has taken a number of steps to optimize energy efficiency at CM1. The building’s shell is designed to minimize heat gain through uninsulated concrete or metal components, called “thermal bridging.”. The home features a large rooftop solar array, a Tesla powerwall battery, and an electric vehicle charger.

Today, in the U.S. alone, the residential sector spans more than 120 million homes totaling roughly 224 billion square feet of real estate. The importance of creating healthier environments in the residential sector has become a top priority among homeowners.

The WELL for residential program adds to the WELL ecosystem and provides a new pathway for creating people-first residences. This program builds upon the work IWBI has already done within the multifamily sector through its WELL Certification and WELL ratings. IWBI applauds the leadership demonstrated by the multifamily residential developers and owners who have pursued WELL Certification. Their experiences have helped inform and inspire the development of the new WELL for residential program.

While numerous studies show healthy homes are increasingly in demand, regulations and standards focused on resident health in homes are largely lacking. The WELL for residential program seeks to provide a solution that helps transform the global residential market and ensure that everyone, no matter their backgrounds, has access to a home that enhances their health and enables them to make healthier decisions.

The WELL ecosystem comprises WELL Certification under the WELL Building Standard, a library of building and organizational strategies focused on health, the WELL Health-Safety Rating, WELL Performance Rating, WELL Equity Rating and certification under the WELL Community Standard. WELL’s holistic, evidence-based approach has provided a roadmap for organizations to promote human and social capital performance and enhance their ESG strategy. As a result, thousands of organizations including nearly 30% of Fortune 500 companies across nearly 130 countries have adopted WELL strategies in more than 40,000 locations totalling almost five billion square feet of space.

About Caplow Manzano
Based in Miami, Caplow Manzano designs a new type of home that is uniquely adapted to the urban tropics. Composed of architects, engineers, and designers who believe that the future of South Florida demands rethinking the way we build, the firm’s philosophy, called “design for life,” refers to homes that support a healthy life, that are eco-friendly, and that last for a very long time. Caplow Manzano’s homes are elevated for the next 100 years of sea level rise and reinvented from the inside out to improve indoor air quality by eliminating hiding places for mold, mildew, pests, and allergens. The firm also emphasizes thermal performance, lifetime carbon impacts, and solar energy, Caplow Manzano’s goal is to create the healthiest homes available, with the resiliency to protect that investment for generations.

About the International WELL Building Institute
The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) is a public benefit corporation and the world’s leading organization focused on deploying people first places to advance a global culture of health. IWBI mobilizes its community through the administration of the WELL Building Standard (WELL) and its WELL ratings, management of the WELL AP credential, the pursuit of applicable research, the development of educational resources, and advocacy for policies that promote health and wellbeing everywhere. More information on WELL can be found here.

International WELL Building Institute, IWBI, the WELL Building Standard, WELL v2, WELL Certified, WELL AP, WELL EP, WELL Score, The WELL Conference, We Are WELL, the WELL Community Standard, WELL Health-Safety Rated, WELL Performance Rated, WELL Equity Rated, WELL Equity, , Works with WELL, WELL and others, and their related logos are trademarks or certification marks of International WELL Building Institute pbc in the United States and other countries.

Media contact:
Caplow Manzano: media@caplowmanzano.com
IWBI: media@wellcertified.com

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