Tag: 3BL

The Medtronic Mobile Lab is a classroom on wheels. Primarily used to train healthcare providers in the latest healthcare technology, the Mobile Lab also headed to college for the first time – specifically at Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University, a historically Black college and university (HBCU).

Built to simulate an operating room, each truck is equipped with the latest in surgical equipment and technology and a dedicated staff, which allows for an immersive clinical experience without the need for travel. 

Last year, we doubled our fleet to reach 5,000 clinicians in 38 states with healthcare technology education.

And this time, students and recent alumni from the university were able to walk through the Mobile Lab, learn about the latest Medtronic-developed technology that is used in operating rooms, and consider educational and career pathways in healthcare and other science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields.

“It was very eye-opening, we got to ask a lot of questions,” said Nymeer, a student at Alabama A&M. “The people who work at Medtronic, they’re very friendly. When I left, I felt a little bit more confident, and I’m actually going to look more into medical school.”

The Mobile Lab’s visit is just one more example of how Medtronic is aiming to advance diversity in STEM fields, in which Black and African Americans are significantly underrepresented.

“[This experience] makes sure our students aren’t overlooking avenues within the STEM realm,” said Aaron Thompson, assistant VP for advancement and branding at Alabama A&M University. “One of our mantras here at Alabama A&M is, ‘Start here, go anywhere,’ and this partnership and this experience here today really helps our students be able to do that.”

Learn more about Medtronic’s commitment to ID&E in the annual ID&E report.

In just five months, the United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund SM increased in size to nearly $200 million and welcomes American Express Global Business Travel, Aramco Ventures, Aviation Capital Group, Bank of America, Boston Consulting Group, Groupe ADP, Hawaiian Airlines, and JetBlue Ventures

Fund was launched in February to rally businesses and consumers to support the supply of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) – more than 60,000 customers have contributed

CHICAGO, August 10, 2023 /3BL/ — The United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund – a way for companies and consumers to come together and increase the supply of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) through the support of start-ups – has increased its investment power to nearly $200 millionand added eight new corporate partners, five months after its initial launch.

American Express Global Business Travel, Aramco Ventures, Aviation Capital Group, Bank of America, Boston Consulting Group, Groupe ADP, Hawaiian Airlines and JetBlue Ventures, will join inaugural fund partners Air Canada, Boeing, GE Aerospace, JPMorgan Chase, and Honeywell.

United customers also have the option to contribute to supplement the airline’s investment in the UAV Sustainable Flight FundSM when they book flights. Since the fund launched, more than 60,000 United customers have contributed a total of more than $200,000.

SAF is an alternative to conventional jet fuel that, on a lifecycle basis, reduces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with air travel compared to conventional jet fuel alone. To date, United has invested in the future production of over five billion gallons of SAF – the most of any airline in the world.1

“While United can’t decarbonize the airline industry alone, we can use our leadership and credibility in this space to rally others to join us,” said United Airlines Ventures President Michael Leskinen. “Our new and inaugural participants demonstrate the impressive commitment within aviation and beyond to reduce our carbon footprint and combat the threat of climate change. As companies across the globe are increasingly looking for ways to reduce their environmental impact from flying, the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund presents a unique opportunity – instead of fighting over the current limited supply of SAF, with our partners, we’re working collaboratively to help scale the SAF industry itself, and to get an equity stake in groundbreaking technology while doing it.”

United will continue to recruit corporations across industries to join the fund and will prioritize investment in new technology, advanced fuel sources, and proven producers – all in an effort to help scale the supply of SAF. Partners also have the potential to gain preferential access to environmental attributes associated with United’s future supply of SAF.

SAF, which currently must be blended with conventional jet fuel to meet regulatory requirements for use within the aircraft, is being made from used cooking oil and agricultural waste, and, in the future, could be made from other feedstocks including household trash or forest waste. Through the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund, United intends to invest in a variety of SAF feedstocks and technologies. With the right policy incentives to produce SAF, United’s efforts could help build a future of sustainable flight.

UAV Sustainable Flight Fund

The UAV Sustainable Flight FundSM launched with more than $100 million in investments from United and its inaugural partners Air Canada, Boeing, GE Aerospace, JPMorgan Chase, and Honeywell. Through the fund, these partners and additional corporate participants will invest alongside United in SAF technology and production start-ups identified by United. In the past two years alone, United Airlines Ventures has already made investments in or signed purchase agreements with companies using a variety of ingredients and technologies to produce SAF, including feedstocks like ethanol, animal byproducts, forestry and crop waste, and municipal waste, as well as early-stage, promising technologies like synthetic biology and power to liquids, incorporating renewable power, hydrogen and carbon capture processes. United Airlines Ventures has moved selected existing SAF investments into the UAV Sustainable Flight FundSM to establish the fund’s portfolio.

Consumer Awareness and Call to Action

As part of the fund launch, consumers booking through United for travel within or from the U.S. have an option to contribute to supplement United’s investment in the UAV Sustainable Flight FundSM before check-out. Customers have the choice to contribute $1, $3.50 or $7.00. Since the launch, more than 60,000 United customers have contributed for a total of more than $200,000.

The default option for customer contributions is set at $3.50 to illustrate the potential impact of customer action at scale: if the 152 million people who flew on United in 2022 each contributed just $3.50 to the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund, that would be enough to design and build a SAF refinery capable of producing as much as 40 million gallons of alternative fuel annually.2

United’s Commitment to Net Zero Emissions by 2050

United aims to be 100% green by reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 100% by 2050, without relying on traditional carbon offsets. In addition to the UAV Sustainable Flight FundSM, United has launched a SAF purchasing program called the Eco-Skies Alliance and established a venture fund – United Airlines Ventures – to identify and invest in companies and technologies that can decarbonize air travel. These strategic investments include carbon capture, hydrogen-electric engines, electric regional aircraft and air taxis. In May 2023, United received validation of our 2035 near-term emissions reduction target from the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) to reduce our carbon intensity 50% from a 2019 base year. This year, United became the first U.S. airline to show customers an estimate of each flight’s carbon footprint in their search.

About United

At United, Good Leads The Way. With U.S. hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, New York/Newark, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., United operates the most comprehensive global route network among North American carriers and is now the largest airline in the world as measured by available seat miles. For more about how to join the United team, please visit www.united.com/careers and more information about the company is at www.united.com. United Airlines Holdings, Inc., the parent company of United Airlines, Inc., is traded on the Nasdaq under the symbol “UAL”.

United Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 relating to, among other things, plans and projections regarding the company’s environmental, social or governance (ESG) goals, targets, commitments, strategies and initiatives and related business and stakeholder impacts. All statements that are not statements of historical facts are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on historical performance and current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about our future plans, objectives, goals, targets, commitments, strategies and initiatives and involve inherent risks, assumptions and uncertainties, known or unknown, including internal or external factors that could delay, divert or change any of them, that are difficult to predict, may be beyond our control and could cause our future plans, objectives, goals, targets, commitments, strategies and initiatives to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, the statements. These risks, assumptions, uncertainties and other factors include, among others, any failure to meet stated ESG goals, targets, commitments, strategies and initiatives in the time frame expected or at all as a result of many factors, including changing societal, market, competitive, regulatory or stakeholder expectations, and any delay or inability of United Airlines or the United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund (the “SFF”) to realize the expected benefits of the investments, including from a delay or failure of any project to be fully developed or become operational or to produce sustainable aviation fuel or other ESG-related product in the amounts contemplated or at all, or from a delay or failure of any technology to be fully developed or become functional or marketable or to serve the purpose for which it was designed, or a failure of the SFF to achieve any return on an investment by the SFF, or a realization of a partial or total loss of any investment by the SFF. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Forward-looking statements in this press release should be evaluated together with the many risks and uncertainties that affect United’s business and market, particularly those identified in the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Risk Factors” sections in United’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, as updated by our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Risks and uncertainties related to United’s environmental compliance, climate commitments and climate strategy are further described in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors of United’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022—”We are subject to many forms of environmental regulation and liability and risks associated with climate change and may incur substantial costs as a result. In addition, failure to achieve or demonstrate progress towards our climate goals may expose us to liability and reputational harm.”

The statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release and except as otherwise required by applicable law or regulation, United Airlines undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise. In particular, United Airlines reserves the right to change, amend, supplement or abandon some or all of the statements regarding goals, targets, commitments, strategies, initiatives, intentions and other statements from time to time without notice.

In addition, some of our disclosures in this press release are estimates or based on assumptions due to inherent measurement uncertainties. For example, United’s statement that it has already invested in the future production of more than five billion gallons of SAF – the most of any airline in the world is based on publicly announced future purchase agreements for SAF of certain airlines as of the date hereof. The use of words such as “partnered,” “partnering,” “partner” and variations of such words in this press release is not intended to and shall not be construed to imply that a legal partnership relationship exists between United and any other company.

1 Based on publicly announced airline offtake agreements for future purchases of SAF. 
2 United derived these approximated figures based on an illustrative capital expenditure benchmark of $200,000 per barrel per day to build a SAF production facility.

August 10, 2023 /3BL/ – Many food companies have begun looking to their supply chains for help in reaching their own emissions targets, offering incentives to their suppliers and, in particular, the farms with which they do business. A new study by the Markets Institute at World Wildlife Fund provides a landscape analysis of the types of incentive programs implemented by more than 20 companies across the industry. With more than 70% percent of food-related GHG emissions stemming from agricultural practices, companies that have set ambitious climate targets are increasingly proposing programs designed to shift behavior on farms.

“Incentives at the Farm: How Companies Are Moving from Setting Climate Targets to Delivering on Them,” draws from interviews with more than 90 experts from corporations, industry associations, and civil society groups. The report describes the variety of tactics companies are employing to reach farm-relevant sustainability outcomes, including price premiums, financing, knowledge sharing, new products or markets, and contracting. The report does not endorse any specific tactics or companies, but rather provides a state-of-play analysis to guide others in similar efforts.

“Farmer-focused incentives are a necessary tool for shifting behavior at the source of most food-related greenhouse gas emissions,” said Dr. Emily Moberg, Director of Scope 3 Carbon Measurement and Mitigation, a co-author of the study for the Markets Institute at WWF. “With only seven harvests left in which to reach our 2030 climate goals, companies must deploy effective incentives and retire ineffective ones on a much broader, faster scale.”

The study highlights factors such as shareholder pressure and governments setting climate targets, which have increasingly incentivized companies to engage in climate mitigation tactics. More than 110 national governments have set climate targets, for example, and shareholders have been putting forth proposals for environmental disclosures and progress by publicly traded companies.

“Developing and deploying incentives to address Scope 3 GHG emissions is no small feat, especially for the food sector,” said Katherine Devine, Director of Business Case Development at the Markets Institute and a co-author of the study. “With regional differences, crop and farmer diversity, thousands of products in some supply chains, and other challenges, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. We need to learn faster to address climate change’s existing and growing impacts.”

For companies in the food sector, a substantial amount – often more than 90 percent – of their emissions are Scope 3, originating in their supply chains. For companies with ambitious climate targets, including limiting warming to 1.5 degrees C by 2030, the big question is how those targets will be achieved.

###

Supporting Quotes:

“McCormick & Company has committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050. In the near-term, we have set goals aligned with the Paris Agreement and verified by the Science Based Target initiative which include a 42% reduction in our Scope 3 emissions by 2030. Like many companies with a global supply chain, our greatest opportunity is Scope 3 emissions, which account for over 90% of our carbon footprint. Since these emissions are not under McCormick’s direct control, it is imperative for us, and other companies, to work in partnership with our suppliers to address this challenge. By incentivizing them to participate, we can drive impact at scale in a targeted and efficient manner, benefitting all stakeholders including the planet we all share.”
–Michael Okoroafor, Chief Sustainability Officer, McCormick & Company

“We believe that farmers are the original stewards of the land, and as the stewardship needs of our industry evolve and we begin measuring and influencing Scope 3 emissions, farmers are being called on to do more. Truterra is honored to be involved in programs such as the Land Stewardship Project that recognize the need to provide incentives to farmers to help offset the costs and risks associated with the adoption of conservation practices.”
-Tom Ryan, President, Truterra, LLC

###

Media Contact

Lorin Hancock, Lorin.Hancock@wwfus.org 

Additional resources

Social media toolkitBlog: Reducing GHG Emissions Through Farm Level Incentives

Notes

Inclusion in the paper does not indicate that WWF endorses a particular brand or its approach to communications about a sustainability program, or a recommendation of specific agricultural practices. The study was funded by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.

The Markets Institute at WWF identifies global issues, trends, and tools around some of the most pressing challenges of our time, including the production of food in the 21st Century. Our goal is to increase the speed and scale of solutions to ensure the sustainability of our future food and soft commodities. For more information, go to marketsinstitute.org.

About WWF

WWF is one of the world’s leading conservation organizations, working in nearly 100 countries for over half a century to help people and nature thrive. With the support of more than 5 million members worldwide, WWF is dedicated to delivering science-based solutions to preserve the diversity and abundance of life on Earth, halt the degradation of the environment and combat the climate crisis. Visit http://www.worldwildlife.org to learn more, and keep up with the latest conservation news by following @WWFNews on Twitter and signing up for our newsletter and news alerts here.

DES MOINES, Iowa, August 10, 2023 /3BL/ — Principal® Foundation, a global nonprofit committed to helping people and communities build financially secure futures, is launching Money Chronicles: A Story Initiative that is using the power of storytelling to help destigmatize and encourage conversations about money and personal finances. The initiative is kicking off with a national short story contest that invites people to share imaginative and meaningful short stories that reflect lived experiences with money.

The contest is hosted in collaboration with The Center for Fiction, a national literary nonprofit, and Short Édition, a global publishing house. Stories can be submitted online until August 31, 2023, 11:59 pm PDT at http://principal-foundation.short-edition.com. The initiative will also make the finalist stories accessible to the public by installing Short Story Dispensers™ in libraries, bookstores and cafes in New York, N.Y., Los Angeles, Calif., Seattle, Wash., Charlotte, N.C., and Iowa City, Iowa. Visitors simply press a button on the dispenser to print a short story to enjoy.

“People develop narratives around money and personal finance based on familial experience and those narratives tend to impact their relationship to money and inform their financial decisions throughout their lives,” said Jo Christine Miles, director, Principal Foundation and Community Relations, Principal®. “This contest is a way to inspire people, through the universal, human art of storytelling, to reimagine their narrative, resolve any struggles and, ultimately feel more comfortable having more robust financial conversations that advance their financial goals.”

Conversations about money are typically driven by people’s perceptions of their own personal finances and experiences growing up. A new survey of 3,000 Millennial and Gen Z Americans conducted by YouGov and commissioned by Principal Foundation, reveals that like social media, conversations about money are usually only showing one aspect of personal finance, avoiding more comprehensive and candid conversations.

Millennials and Gen Z are most comfortable sharing information related to salary or income. Less is being shared about topics, such as savings, debt, and investments.

72% will talk about salary/income.60% will talk about savings or debt.54% will talk about mortgage or rent.49% will talk about investments.

Millennials and Gen Z have underlying fears of being judged about their money habits.

More than 40% fear being judged for their habits or earning level.Nearly one-third do not want it to create social tension with friends or family.30% do not want to seem materialistic or like they are bragging.

Financial habits witnessed growing up can lead to anxiety and control issues around money later in life.

More than half of Millennials and Gen Z continue with the same financial habits they witnessed growing up.40% agree that the financial situation they grew up in has led to issues controlling their spending.52% agree the financial situation they grew up in led to worries about having enough money even when they are financially stable.

Millennials and Gen Z underutilize financial products such as retirement accounts, investment accounts, and protection products due to disinterest or reasons other than lack of funds.

Only 33% report having retirement savings or life insurance.38% report not having retirement savings due to disinterest or reasons other than lack of funds.50% report not having investment accounts due to disinterest or reasons other than lack of funds.

Women are more likely to share financial information with their partners than men.

73% of women will share information about salary or income compared to 65% of men.60% of women will share information about debt compared to 54% of men.57% of women will share information about mortgage or rent compared to 47% of men.

By reading stories presenting diverse financial situations, views and approaches to personal finance, this story initiative is designed to encourage people to reconsider their own situations and habits, engage in more candid conversations with those they trust, and develop more robust plans to attain the financial security they seek.

Entering the contest is free, and 30 finalists will be selected by an esteemed panel of literary authors and experts including Mahogany L. Browne, Ava Chin, Novella Ford, Sidik Fofana, Xochitl Gonzalez, Alvin Hall, Erika L. Sánchez, Ashley Woodfolk, and Judy Zuckerman.

Finalists will receive $250 and have their stories distributed through Principal Foundation’s network of story dispensers, which can be found at New York Public Library in New York, N.Y.; Sip & Sonder in Los Angeles, Calif.; Charlotte Mecklenburg Library in Charlotte, N.C.; and renowned independent bookstores in Seattle and Iowa City, the only UNESCO Cities of Literature in the United States, Elliott Bay Book Company in Seattle, Wash. and Prairie Lights in Iowa City, Iowa.

Stories from the finalists will also be considered for publication in Short Edition’s global network of more than 300 story dispensers located in airports, public transportation hubs, retail centers, and other locations around the world.

Terms and conditions apply. Adults ages 18 and older are encouraged to submit original fiction or creative nonfiction stories through the contest website now through August 31, 2023, 11:59 pm PDT. Finalists will be announced in October. For more information about Money Chronicles: A Story Initiative Supported by Principal Foundation and details on how to enter, please visit http://principal-foundation.short-edition.com.

About Principal® Foundation 
Principal Financial Group Foundation, Inc. (“Principal Foundation”) is a duly recognized 501(c)(3) entity focused on providing philanthropic support to programs that build financial security in the communities where Principal Financial Group, Inc. (“Principal”) operates. While Principal Foundation receives funding from Principal, Principal Foundation is a distinct, independent, charitable entity. Principal Foundation does not practice any form of investment advisory services and is not authorized to do so. Established in 1987, Principal Foundation works with organizations that are helping to shape and support the journey to financial security by ensuring access to essential needs, fostering social and cultural connections, and promoting financial inclusion. Principal Foundation funds a growing network of more than 140 charitable organizations in 25 countries and territories. 3044907-082023

About Short Édition 
Short Édition is an international publishing house specializing in short fiction and creative non-fiction. With a vision to make literature accessible to all, Short Édition places a wide range of short stories – spanning fiction, poetry, comic strips, and children’s stories – directly into the hands of readers worldwide. The company is renowned for creating the innovative Short Story Dispenser™, a simple yet impactful way to connect with readers, delivering printed stories at the touch of a button. Having proudly dispensed over 7 million short stories across five continents, authored by more than 10,000 independent writers, Short Édition continues to redefine the reading experience. To learn more, visit https://short-edition.com.

About The Center for Fiction

The Center for Fiction is a literary nonprofit that brings diverse communities together to develop and share a passion for fiction. Founded in 1821 as the Mercantile Library of New York in Manhattan, the organization is now based in the heart of the Brooklyn cultural district, with a 18,000-square-foot facility that offers New Yorkers an immersive cultural experience centered on reading and writing. Throughout the year, The Center for Fiction provides a vast array of public programming, reading groups, and writing workshops. The First Novel Prize and Emerging Writer Fellowships help build literary careers, and KidsRead/KidsWrite programs inspire an early love of reading and writing in public school students with author-led events. In recent years, the organization’s programming has expanded to include storytelling in all its forms, integrating music, theater, dance, film, television, and the visual arts into its exploration of the best of fiction throughout history and today.

Media Contact: Taylor Madigan, taylor.madigan@ruderfinn.com

SOURCE Principal Foundation 
 

At Covia, we are proud to partner with the Arbor Day Foundation, the largest member nonprofit organization dedicated to planting trees. In 2022, to recognize the Arbor Day Foundation’s 50th anniversary, we offered every U.S. Team Member a tree to plant at their home or to donate as a living tribute. Hundreds of Covia Team Members took advantage of this special opportunity. As part of this initiative, our Team Members were encouraged to visit the Arbor Day Foundation’s online tool, i-Tree, to calculate where to specifically and strategically plant trees for the greatest energy- and money-saving benefits. Not only did it provide a great educational resource for our Team Members, but it also gave them an opportunity to learn more about tangible benefits for their entire community such as improved air quality, carbon sequestration, and reduced stormwater runoff.

More recently, Covia supported the planting of 12,285 native longleaf trees in the Chowan Swamp in North Carolina to help return this land to its native state. The trees will support the wide array of local wildlife, serving as an important link in the regional conservation of waterfowl, black bears, and the endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers. These new trees will establish a resilient and biodiverse ecosystem and provide natural beauty for residents of the area to enjoy. 

This fall, Covia will once again collaborate with the Arbor Day Foundation, along with local planting partners, in Oregon, Illinois. This planting project will help restore the city’s tree canopy, which has been severely damaged by the nationwide Emerald Ash Borer infestation. Covia is looking forward to sharing more information about this community-based project in the coming weeks. 

“We’re proud to work with the Arbor Day Foundation as we strive to restore and protect a diverse range of ecosystems and habitats,” said Natalie Eglinton, Covia’s Director of ESG. “Our partnership with them helps us get our Team Members involved in efforts to improve the natural environment in the communities we live and work in.”

Originally published on HARMAN Newsroom

At HARMAN, we have always said that our people are our greatest asset and the drivers of unparalleled innovation. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) are also built into our core values at HARMAN, and we recognize how diverse perspectives, ideas, and values make us stronger as an organization and help to maintain our position as a global technology leader. This is why we are committed to providing career development and learning opportunities for the next generation of diverse leaders through our summer internship program. This year for National Intern Day, HARMAN wanted to shed a spotlight on our internship program, and thank our interns for their dedication and the meaningful contributions they made throughout their assignments.

HARMAN offers summer internship programs in many countries around the world, designed to give students valuable career development opportunities while getting a true hands-on experience. Comprised of some of the brightest young and creative minds with a passion for delivering unparalleled experiences, our interns make valuable contributions while gaining experience that they can apply throughout their careers. This year, we had 61 interns join our organization. From design to engineering, and legal to data analytics, HARMAN interns were working across a variety of business functions and supporting our teams around the world.

This year, to capture our HARMAN interns’ perspectives, we asked them to share their favorite thing about HARMAN and collected this feedback in the form of video testimonials. What’s more? Some of these perspectives were featured on HARMAN’s TikTok channel! Some of the feedback we received from our interns about HARMAN is below:

“The incredible people.”“Getting to work with audio and sound all day long.”“How friendly everyone is.”“How welcoming and supportive the environment is.”“That you are always around music, and music is also my favorite thing to do.”

We at HARMAN hope to equip our interns with experience and leadership skills to become the next generation of technology innovators. To all of our HARMAN summer 2023 interns, we hope your internship has been a valuable learning experience, and that you will consider HARMAN again in the future!

As a global technology leader committed to making life more connected and delivering superior experiences, HARMAN welcomes talented, ambitious and committed people looking for a company that takes pride in its people and offers them great learning, development and growth opportunities. For more info: https://www.harman.com/career

Previously published by loop

As part of its 50th-anniversary celebrations in Trinidad and Tobago, KFC has donated $250,000 towards 50 tertiary-level bursaries for deserving students.

In a release, the company said the bursary is aptly named the KFC Bucket Bursary, as a symbol of the brand’s values of togetherness, caring, and helping.

Continue reading here.

As published in Qualcomm’s 2022 Corporate Responsibility Report

The wireless communications industry is characterized by rapid technological change, evolving industry standards, frequent new product introductions and, with the use of 5G, the expansion into new industries or applications, such as automotive and IoT. Staying at the forefront of so much change requires a continuous effort to enhance existing products and technologies and to develop new products and technologies.

To enable this continuous evolution, we have made significant and long-term investment in R&D — with more than 20 percent of revenues invested in R&D since 2006. Our investment already exceeds more than $70B — more than 140,000 patents and patent applications, and more than 35 years of innovation in chipsets, software, services and integrated platform solutions. We have research and development centers in various locations throughout the world, but primarily in Europe, China, India and the United States.

Just as we make long strides in our R&D efforts to drive leading contributions to technologies powering the connected intelligent edge, we make long-term investments to drive growth in countries and markets by investing in STEM talent, universities, startups and operators and by collaborating on government initiatives and with our licensees. From being a trusted knowledge advisor in spectrum selection and 5G development, deployment and commercialization, to supporting startups around the world at multiple stages of their lifecycles, to developing research collaborations designed to cultivate critical new technologies, to offering tens of thousands of hours of technical and intellectual property (IP) rights training programs, we help broader technology ecosystems flourish.

Since our founding, we have prioritized supporting innovative academic research with a range of university programs helping the academic community to develop new ideas and solutions in a broad range of technological research areas at leading universities around the world. Annually, we engage with more than 100 research faculty, award more than 50 student research fellowships and sponsor more than 70 academic conferences and academia initiatives. In our engagements with academia, we share our expertise and tools across a range of technologies to facilitate research and encourage talent development.

We also support regional innovation through incubation and mentorship programs that cultivate promising startups in vital technology areas. We offer engineering guidance, business coaching and IP programs and trainings to help startups grow and prosper into successful technology businesses. Our programs — which take zero equity in the incubated startups — have a proven record of helping startups receive venture funding, file patent applications and expand their business beyond their home countries. Our incubation challenges are complemented by other Company programs that support startups at different levels of their lifecycles — including latestage venture capital investment.

These Company-supported programs have incubated or mentored more than 162 startups since 2016 in emerging markets, particularly those with an intensifying design talent pool and growing supply chain and local manufacturing expertise, such as India, Taiwan and Vietnam. The startup incubation programs in these countries were launched in 2016, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

In many markets, we have a special emphasis on helping startups founded or led by women entrepreneurs. For instance, the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 Qualcomm Women Entrepreneurs India Network (QWEIN) programs mentored 14 and 11 early-stage women-led startups, respectively — representing diverse sectors, including healthcare, IoT, robotics, clean technology, agricultural technology, extended reality (XR) and logistics. The 2022-2023 program will mentor an additional 11 women-led startups.

Harnessing advanced cellular communication (4G and 5G) and advanced computing technologies (including AI at the network edge), these startups have developed end-to-end IoT applications for regionally relevant products and services in the areas of healthcare, smart cities, agricultural technology, smart homes, automotive, advanced computing, semiconductor design, XR, wearables, semiconductor design, robotics and drones. In many countries, we run the annual startup incubation programs in a competition style format, during which a set of top startups are initially identified through a rigorous selection process, subsequently incubated through a period of several months and finally invited to compete in a pitch and demo stage in front of a jury comprising of industry and government members, where three winners are selected. For example:

In the 2021 India startup cohort, the top winners announced in March 2022 were Dhruva Space Pvt. Ltd. (a space-tech startup with its low Earth orbit satellite to enable 5G Radio Access Network), Ossus Biorenewables Pvt. Ltd. (with their innovative smart autonomous bioreactor generating green hydrogen from industrial effluents) and Nimble Vision Pvt. Ltd. (with their Ni-Smart manhole product to monitor sewage flow). Twelve additional startups are being incubated in the 2022 India program and are expected to participate in the final stage in March 2023. Separately, responding to the country’s renewed focus on semiconductors, a new program for semiconductor design startups is expected to mentor up to 10 startups in 2022-2023.In the 2022 Taiwan startup cohort, the top winners announced in November 2022 were APrevent (specializing in the development of edge AI-based solutions for accurately recognizing the speech utterances of those afflicted by speech disorders such as dysarthria), Vossic (with edge AI-based fish-gender recognition technology that can be used for sustainable tilapia farming) and Moldintel (with a focus on advanced manufacturing technologies for injection molding, using edge-AI technology to help factories improve yield). Ten additional startups are being incubated in the 2023 Taiwan program, commencing in calendar Q1 2023, and are expected to participate in the final stage in Q4 2023.In the 2022 Vietnam startup cohort, the top winners announced in September 2022 were MiSmart (agriculture drone solutions), VPTech (high-end “Make in Vietnam” portable DAC/AMPLIFIER) and GraphnicsMiner (cardboard legged robot toy kits accompanied with an AR platform). Ten additional startups are being incubated in the 2023 Vietnam program and are expected to participate in the final stage in September 2023.

In addition to providing the startups with mentorship in advanced technology through state-of-the-art laboratories with expertise and equipment for 4G/5G, robotics and AI/machine learning, Qualcomm provides them mentorship in business areas and training on the importance of securing IP rights. These startups have cumulatively filed more than 300 patent applications in regional and international patent offices to protect their own inventions.

Qualcomm is an expert in training partners across the ecosystem on different aspects of mobile technology — from teaching world-leading handset original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) core concepts that underpin 5G, to explaining the technical benefits of millimeter wave technology to multinational carriers, to training startups on IP protection and filing patent applications. Qualcomm Wireless Academy, supported in part by QTL, is an industry-leading virtual education platform that shares the world-class knowledge and expertise of Qualcomm Technologies’ engineers with the greater mobile ecosystem.

As a champion of IP protection and holder of a worldclass patent portfolio, QTL also supports IP Rights (IPR) training programs in multiple countries.

In Europe and India, Qualcomm has collaborated with regional governments and other entities to offer IP programs called “Learn to Protect” (L2Pro). These programs have helped more than 5,000 professionals understand the importance of IPR types such as patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets.In the U.S., Qualcomm and the Invent Together alliance collaborated on the creation of an online learning platform called The Inventor’s Patent Academy (TIPA), which is aimed at guiding American inventors from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds through the benefits of the patent system and the process of turning their breakthroughs into patented inventions. TIPA is part of a broader effort to foster a more inclusive patenting environment. Since its launch in July 2022, this platform has registered more than 500 U.S.-based students.

In 2022, we launched the Snapdragon Metaverse Fund to invest up to $100 million in innovative developers and companies building immersive experiences with AR, mixed reality and VR. It is anticipated that the fund will deploy capital through a combination of venture investments in leading XR companies by Qualcomm Ventures and a grant program by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. for developer ecosystem funding in XR experiences, such as gaming, health and wellness, media, entertainment, education and enterprise.

Learn more in Qualcomm’s 2022 Corporate Responsibility Report

Little could anyone predict that an idea scribbled on a napkin would develop into a global Franklin Templeton program, helping to develop young talent in the investment industry for 40 years and running.

“Congratulations to all involved on this milestone—the Futures Program has stood the test of time,” said Charlie Johnson, former Chairman and CEO of Franklin Templeton, who had the original idea for the program while on a flight. “I’ve enjoyed watching it expand and adapt over the years, always with the goal of finding strong new talent to inspire innovation across the company and giving people the opportunity to learn from the ground up.”

The Management Training Program, as it was first called, launched in San Mateo, CA in 1983 as a leadership development program and pipeline of talent into a wide variety of departments. Over the past four decades, the program has evolved to meet the changing needs of the business. Now called the Futures Program, it continues to match diverse and highly skilled early-career talent with high-growth areas of the company.

“As a people business, we consider attracting and retaining the most talented colleagues in the world the key to our success,” said Jenny Johnson, President and CEO. “The Futures Program helps us identify strong new employees, most right out of college, provide exposure to different areas of our company and find the right job that fits Futures Associates’ skills and career aspirations.”

Over the course of two years, Futures Associates (FAs) complete six four-month rotations in different areas of the business. The first year builds the foundation for FAs, learning about Franklin Templeton’s business, culture and values while being exposed to product and client-focused areas of the business. The second year prepares FAs for placement, building stronger relationships and shaping their learning path to align with career goals.

Fifteen FAs joined the firm this year, bringing a variety of experiences, background and perspectives. The 2023 incoming US class attended a special 40th anniversary celebration in San Mateo as part of their orientation. This year also marked the return of the program to the UK for the first time since 2008.

Participants from Inaugural 1983 Class Share Their Memories

The Management Training Program class of 1983 had about a dozen Management Trainees (MTs), half hired from within the firm and half from outside. Two members of this first class are still with Franklin Templeton: Penny Alexander, Chief Human Resources Officer, and Tom Runkel, VP, Portfolio Strategies, Multi-Sector Separately Managed Accounts. Here, they share their experiences.

What do you remember from your first day in the program?

Penny: I started at Franklin in November 1982 in shareholder services. I was thrilled to join the Management Training Program because it marked a new chapter for my career. The first day we all met in a conference room. It was extremely exciting, and a little angst filled, too, because this was Charlie Johnson’s brainchild. My first rotation was in sales and marketing, which was a big “wow” moment for me.

Tom: I was one of several recent college grads who were internal hires into the Management Training Program. I was working in the order room processing fund transactions from the wire houses. The order room essentially became my first rotation. I was excited to be accepted into the program, and I was looking forward to my journey as an MT at Franklin Templeton.

What lessons from the Management Training Program do you still use today?

Penny: Those were formative years. What has gone with me throughout my career is the openness to learn and taking advantage of the new opportunities presented to you. You meet people in all your rotations, and you get to build your network and your brand across the organization. That helped me build my career.

Tom: If I narrowed it to the most important, I would say teamwork and building relationships across the company. We all came from different backgrounds and interests in my MT class, but we formed a bond as a team even though we worked in different departments during our rotations. That bond helped our growth as we all forged our own paths at Franklin Templeton.

What advice would you give to a current FA?

Penny: Take full advantage of the opportunities you have. Learn about the functions you’re in and observe the leadership and your colleagues. Be open. You may come into the program with an idea of what you want to do, but you may get exposure to a different department that sparks a new interest. Recognize that you have a chance to build your brand as you rotate and to decide what your story will be. In doing so, you can also build your career.

Tom: Don’t be too focused on where you want to end up. Instead, enjoy the experience as you rotate through the departments. Along the way, you’ll learn how the groups within Franklin Templeton interact and how they all play an important role in delivering positive experiences and outcomes to our clients. More importantly, the relationships and friendships you build as an FA will make your experience even more enjoyable.

Current and Former FAs Share Benefits of the Program

Brock Wilkins, Futures Associate, Mutual Series Research, New York

Class of 2022

The main benefit of the Futures Program is exploration. Having the opportunity to have marketable work experience within a large variety of sectors in finance is extremely valuable. A side benefit is meeting and working with so many great people in the industry. Everyone is willing to guide, help and push you further in your career, which is much appreciated in this fast-paced, highly intensive industry.

Mike Reed, VP, Digital Assets Strategic Partnerships, Chicago

Class of 2000

Easily the best thing about being part of the program was that it afforded me the chance to try a bunch of career paths while working at the same firm. Instead of spending years getting hired for jobs and finding out they weren’t for me, I rotated through four groups before finding my passion and landing in a role that really played to my strengths and interests.

Marcus Wong, Futures Associate, Australia Fixed Income, Hong Kong

Class of 2022

The main benefits of the Futures Program are the opportunities to explore our passions, areas of interest and build new relationships. FAs can enhance their perspectives and acquire a variety of experiences from different departments to build their knowledge within the investment management industry before placing with a team that interests them.

Lexi Perry, Portfolio Associate, Data Science and Digital Lending Strategies, San Mateo

Class of 2021

The Futures Program allowed me to gain an in-depth understanding of our differentiated product suite at Franklin Templeton, all while obtaining the exposure of working in diverse business functions across the organization and acquiring the transferrable skills that result from these experiences.

Thanks to the outstanding mentorship I was given during my time in the program, I was able to network across the organization to spearhead my own understanding of Franklin Templeton and the opportunities that lie ahead for my own career, all while creating lasting connections that still benefit me in my current role.

Futures Program Fun Facts

175+ program alumni still work at Franklin Templeton.11 current and 15 incoming FAs in 2023.121 associates in 1998, the largest class.

About Franklin Templeton 
Franklin Resources, Inc. [NYSE:BEN] is a global investment management organization with subsidiaries operating as Franklin Templeton and serving clients in over 150 countries. Franklin Templeton’s mission is to help clients achieve better outcomes through investment management expertise, wealth management and technology solutions. Through its specialist investment managers, the company offers specialization on a global scale, bringing extensive capabilities in fixed income, equity, alternatives and multi-asset solutions. With more than 1,300 investment professionals, and offices in major financial markets around the world, the California-based company has over 75 years of investment experience and over $1.4 trillion in assets under management as of June 30, 2023. For more information, please visit franklintempleton.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan., August 10, 2023 /3BL/ — Global critical human infrastructure company Black & Veatch has released its 2023 Sustainability Report to update industry stakeholders on the progress it has made, along with its employee-owners and clients, on environmental, social and governance priorities. The report outlines steps the engineering, procurement, consulting and construction leader is taking to address carbon emissions and improve workplace safety, diversity and inclusion, ethics and compliance and more.

The report also details how the company continues to advance sustainability practices at its world headquarters and with its clients’ assets, including the use of renewable energy, water reuse and other decarbonization efforts. In addition, internal administrative initiatives such as hybrid work schedules help reduce carbon emissions and enable more inclusive working environments. Black & Veatch’s third Sustainability Report highlights the company’s alignment to the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact, the CEO Water Mandate and the Caring for Climate pledges. 2022 sustainability progress included the following:

Exceeding the company’s 2023 overall emissions reduction goal and achieving, by more than half, its 2023 Scope 1 and 2 emissions reduction goal.Maintaining Black & Veatch’s strong safety culture when, for the first time in its 108-year history, the company recorded more construction hours than office hours and still reached its safety goals.Increasing new graduate year-over-year hiring rates for females by 13% and minorities by 80%.Earning a perfect score in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2022 Corporate Equality Index, achieving a spot among “Best Places to Work for LGBTQ+ Equality 2022” for the fourth consecutive year.Making a commitment to reduce inequality by supporting organizations that seek to end human trafficking. Black & Veatch supported Kansas City, Kansas-based Veronica’s Voice with remodeling and renovation needs at its facilities.Executing a Sustainable by Design pilot program to develop recommendations for the most impactful engineering design and supply chain practices for ensuring sustainability of Black & Veatch projects.Leading the third iteration of the IgniteX Climate Tech Accelerator, working with eight startups to help develop and scale new climate technology.

Black & Veatch is helping its clients advance many clean energy technologies such as solar, wind and hydrogen to help the world address climate challenges. In addition, the company has several capabilities to address PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination, including PFAS technology identification, analysis, cost/performance testing and regulatory compliance. This expertise puts Black & Veatch at the forefront in the research, advancement and application of innovative technologies for the removal of these “forever chemicals” from our water.

“By embracing sustainability investments with a broader and balanced perspective, businesses not only align themselves with global goals for a better future but also ensure long-term success, resilience and relevance in an increasingly competitive marketplace,” Deepa Poduval, Black & Veatch’s Global Sustainability Leader, wrote in the report. “Black & Veatch leverages our expertise to create practical pathways for the success of our clients’ investments, from strategy to execution.”

Find more information on Black & Veatch’s Corporate Sustainability Program at www.bv.com.

About Black & Veatch 
Black & Veatch is a 100-percent employee-owned global engineering, procurement, consulting and construction company with a more than 100-year track record of innovation in sustainable infrastructure. Since 1915, we have helped our clients improve the lives of people around the world by addressing the resilience and reliability of our most important infrastructure assets. Our revenues in 2022 were US$4.3 billion. Follow us on www.bv.com and on social media.

Media Contact Information:

BRYAN SCRIBNER | +1 913-458-4093 | scribnerbj@bv.com 
24-HOUR MEDIA CONTACT | Media@bv.com