Tag: 3BL

Originally published on LinkedIn

By David Kenny, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Nielsen

I was in elementary school in 1970 when the very first Earth Day was organized in the U.S. An astonishing 20 million people came out that day to rally around protecting the environment.

That was the birth of the modern environmental movement and it led to the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act and so much more in just the U.S. Over the decades, this movement has gone global, lifting environmental issues and climate justice onto the world stage.

Fast forward 53 years. Earth Day – which has been celebrated around the world since 1990 – has never been more important as life on our planet faces critical challenges such as climate change, water and waste pollution, biodiversity loss from deforestation and increased inequities across marginalized communities from these issues.

At Nielsen, we are marking Earth Day 2023 as we always do. Our employees will fan out across dozens of countries and volunteer for hundreds of hours at multiple events. They’ll do activities like plant garden beds at a home for people with disabilities in Germany, pick up trash at parks in Myanmar and Switzerland and participate in a virtual seminar to learn about the environmental impact of waste on chronically marginalized communities everywhere.

Beyond Earth Day

Our commitment to the planet extends beyond one day, of course. Year round, Nielsen’s Data for Good program shares, pro bono, Nielsen ratings and consumer insights data, solutions and talent with nonprofit organizations that are working to influence public attitudes and behavior for positive social outcomes, such as increased representation and inclusion.

One of our Data for Good collaborators, Potential Energy Coalition, is using our audience insights data to help identify people who might be receptive to new messaging around climate change. Please check out this short video clip where Nielsen’s Chief Diversity Officer Sandra Sims-Williams interviews Potential Energy’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John Marshall (and another Nielsen collaborator Girl Rising’s Future Rising Fellow Tia Kennedy) about the role the media industry can play in driving awareness about climate change.

Nielsen’s sustainability

We know sustainability efforts should start at home. That’s why we established three 2024 environmental goals as part of our 2022 ESG report:

Reduce our on-premises application server footprint to 10%.Reduce our business travel spend by 25% from our 2019 pre-COVID baseline, and implement a travel policy that will maintain the reduced travel emissions.Ensure that all of our e-waste managed through our field operations team is diverted from landfills and is recycled, refurbished or reused.

In addition, we maintain a fleet of about 1,700 cars, primarily in the U.S. and Europe, for our field representatives to interact with our TV panelists. We are working to bring in more electric and hybrid vehicles so our portfolio will consist of mostly lower-emission vehicles.

Every action on our part has an impact on Earth and our environment. What will your environmental impact be? If you’re doing something innovative, I’d love to hear about it.

Originally Published by Food Dive

In late 2021, Tim McCoy learned that more than 1 million servings of a nutritional product for children was sitting, abandoned, in a warehouse in western Africa, because of disruptions caused by Covid-19.

McCoy, who is director of cocoa partnerships for The Hershey Company, was visiting Africa because Hershey sources much of its cocoa from farms based in Ghana and neighboring Côte d’Ivoire, which together produce nearly 70 percent of the world’s cocoa. Although he was new to his job, McCoy was well aware of the company’s commitment to helping children and supporting cocoa farmers and their families. “A lot of good, nutritional food that could benefit children was just sitting there,” he says, recalling how the surplus made him want to find a solution. “I thought there might be an opportunity to step up and make a difference.”

With the help of on-the-ground-partners, McCoy devised a plan to purchase and transport 1.1 million servings of this therapeutic food to children through Côte d’Ivoire-based non-governmental organization, The Children of Africa Foundation.

A partnership around peanut butter

Supporting children and youth has long been one of Hershey’s key priorities. Since 2015, the company has partnered with Project Peanut Butter to create ViVi, a peanut-butter-based nutritional supplement. Today, ViVi is distributed by schools in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire to nearly 50,000 children a day, helping to enhance nutrition as well as improve school enrollment and attendance.

In fact, it was during a tour of the Project Peanut Butter factory in Kumasi, Ghana, that McCoy learned of the abandoned product called Grow Nut – a ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) designed to treat acute malnutrition in young children. A global hunger organization had initially ordered the 1.1 million units from Project Peanut Butter but was ultimately unable to fund the program due to complications during the pandemic. As a result, the RUTF was left without an end destination.

McCoy called Leigh Horner, Hershey’s chief sustainability officer, to find a solution. “It was a no-brainer,” Horner recalls. “It involved two of our top priorities: making a positive impact in cocoa farming regions and helping children. How can we make this work?”

The team used Hershey philanthropic funds to purchase the product. Then, McCoy reached out to his contacts at The Children of Africa Foundation, which was founded by Côte d’Ivoire First Lady Dominique Ouattara and focuses on issues related to the health, education and empowerment of children in Côte d’Ivoire, as well as in other countries in Africa.

“Deeply involved in humanitarian work for two decades, Côte d’Ivoire First Lady Dominique Ouattara supports the well-being of the most vulnerable children in 11 African countries through her Children of Africa Foundation,” explained representatives of The Children of Africa Foundation. “She helps children in the areas of health, education, and especially their schooling. The Foundation was very pleased to receive from Hershey this donation to benefit thousands of children, not only to improve their nutrition but also to encourage their attendance at school. We’re excited to develop this partnership with Hershey, which we hope to strengthen in the future for the benefit of children in rural areas.”

With instrumental support from the Project Peanut Butter team, McCoy coordinated the logistics required to transport the shipment to Côte d’Ivoire, which included loading 3,000 boxes into two tractor trailers, learning about customs requirements and navigating border crossings. “It wasn’t without complication,” says McCoy. “In the end, however, there was a lot of satisfaction in seeing it come together and knowing that the product will be nourishing children.”

Serving a greater purpose

Following the ceremonial handoff to The Children of Africa Foundation team, McCoy had a chance to reflect more on the donation, and what it meant to him and Hershey. “It felt as though this was one way to take forward Milton Hershey’s legacy of helping kids,” he says. In 1909, Milton founded Milton Hershey School to create a home and school for orphaned boys. Today, that school lives on serving lower-income students, and is a direct beneficiary of Hershey’s success.

The recent donation also corresponds with the goals of Hershey’s Cocoa For Good strategy, designed to address systemic social and environmental challenges in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. “We have an obligation to address these issues,” says McCoy. “And it makes good business sense that we have sustainably sourced cocoa that goes into our products.”

Horner says the Grow Nut donation ladders up to the company’s purpose to be a part of what she calls “more moments of goodness” in people’s lives; a phrase frequently used around the halls of Hershey to describe the feeling someone gets when they experience a Hershey product. Horner says the phrase also reflects Hershey’s ethical decisions in all business dealings. “I always tell people that when you eat a Hershey product, you should have that moment of goodness in the experience,” she says. “But you should also feel good about that moment and be confident in the care and attention we put into making the product,” she says.

For Horner, McCoy and the rest of the Hershey team, the recent philanthropic work in Africa is in support of that purpose—and it’s something to feel good about.

Each year on April 22, the world celebrates Earth Day and the birth of the modern environmental movement, reminding us of the crucial role we play in protecting and preserving our planet. For some, that means volunteering to plant trees or gardens in their community. For others, it means pledging to recycle more or consume less. For Bread Financial, it’s an opportunity to reinforce and highlight our responsible business practices, aimed at mitigating the impacts of climate change, driving energy efficiency and conserving resources.

At Bread Financial, we’re focused on integrating environmental criteria into all aspects of our business operations – dedicating time and resources to advance sustainability initiatives as part of our climate action roadmap. This principled approach helped earn us a place on Newsweek’s list of America’s Most Responsible Companies for 2023. As we look to the future and continue to work diligently to be responsible environmental stewards, we’re well positioned to meet our goals and continue our efforts to safeguard the planet.

Creating a more sustainable workspace

We’re committed to improving energy and resource conservation while reducing our environmental footprint through facility improvements and investments in renewable energy sources. Last year, we completed a comprehensive energy audit across our facilities and set a goal to purchase 100% renewable energy at all our sites, where available, by the end of 2023. Currently, our facilities in Draper, Utah, and our headquarters in Columbus, Ohio, use 100% renewable energy. One of our Columbus buildings achieved ENERGY STAR certification, meaning it’s more energy efficient than 83% of similar buildings nationwide and generates about 35% fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Moving forward, we’ll continue to pursue ENERGY STAR certification at our other facilities, beautify the outdoor spaces surrounding our buildings and install more motion-based office lighting to conserve energy.

Introducing carbon neutral cards

We’re also committed to reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and overall carbon footprint. In addition to our ongoing paperless campaign, we’ve launched carbon neutral credit cards. Since August 2022, 100% of Bread Cashback™ American Express® Cards have been carbon neutral — meaning they were produced with net zero carbon emissions — and made from renewable organic sources, such as corn starch or sugar cane. Leaning on the card’s success, we plan to introduce carbon neutral cards to more customers throughout our portfolio.

Going paperless 

While we’ve always encouraged our customers to adopt paperless billing, this month we’re upping our game. For each cardholder who opts into paperless communications by April 30, Bread Financial is donating $2 to The Nature Conservancy’s Plant a Billion Trees campaign. This initiative is an extension of our continued efforts to educate customers on the environmental benefits of reducing paper usage and waste.

Recycling for the greater good

Our Environmental Subcommittee of the Sustainability & Community Engagement Committee hosted Bread Financial’s first Electronic Recycling Week for associates last year at all U.S. offices. Associates dropped off their used electronics at designated locations, diverting 578 pounds of e-waste from landfills. Our company has a whole is also committed to electronic recycling. Last year, we recycled more than 43,000 pounds of e-waste overall. To help reduce the millions of tons of trash sent to landfills every year, our Bread Financial sites in the U.S. continue to partner with Waste Management to promote responsible waste disposal and recycling programs. Throughout or facilities, associates are encouraged to sort their waste through easy-to-follow instructions at user-friendly recycling stations.

Investing in conservation 

Bread Financial’s ongoing work with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) promotes a greener, cleaner planet. We’ve committed more than $800,000 since 2021 to support TNC’s efforts to sustainably manage, restore and protect our forests. As part of a broader partnership with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Bread Financial recently planted nearly 60,000 trees on behalf of every fan who attended one of three “City Edition” game nights during the regular 2022-23 basketball season. Our partnership has also provided nature-friendly economic development opportunities in low- and moderate-income communities in the Appalachian Region and supported TNC India’s efforts to provide access to clean energy through wind and solar projects.

Getting associates involved 

Whether you’re working at home or in a Bread Financial office, you’re encouraged to adopt environmentally friendly behaviors to help protect and preserve our planet. Here are just a few examples to consider:

If you live in the U.S., calculate your personal carbon footprint and learn how you can reduce it on TNC’s website.Use a programmable thermostat to save on energy costs at home. Your electricity provider may even offer discounts for using such a thermostat.Switch off the lights whenever you leave a room and turn off your computer when you’re not using it to reduce energy consumption.Go paperless and reduce the amount of waste you’re contributing to landfills.Reuse before you recycle whenever possible.Avoid bagging your recyclables to ensure they aren’t accidentally diverted to landfills.Volunteer for an Earth Day event in your community.

And don’t forget to join Bread Financial’s Protecting Our Planet channel on Teams for sustainability updates, tips and ideas on how to make every day Earth Day.

PHILADELPHIA, April 21, 2023 /3BL Media/ – Comcast has announced that it is expanding its partnership with The Arc of the United States to foster digital and advocacy skills in people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families.

The expansion comes in the form of Comcast providing two new grants to The Arc totaling $710,000. The funding will allow The Arc to establish more Tech Coaching Centers at chapters across the country and offer The Arc@School special education advocacy curriculum to Spanish-speaking families. These programs have already helped over 3,500 people with IDD develop more independence, equity, and opportunities for their future.

$710K In new grants to The Arc to expand Tech Coaching Centers

“Far too many people with IDD are left behind in our society,” said Ruben Rodriguez, COO and Acting CEO of The Arc of the United States. “A quality educational experience and understanding of technology is fundamental in creating equal opportunities of all kinds. These systems continue to deepen extraordinary disparities among people with IDD, especially underrepresented communities and low-income families. Our continued partnership with Comcast is making opportunity a reality for all people with IDD. It’s chiseling away at our society’s rampant inequities and helping everyone – no matter your disability – build bright futures.”

A first grant of $560,000, will support The Arc’s Tech Coaching Centers at 10 locations across the country. It will also expand the training model to include caregivers and family members of people with IDD to ensure they can support in the implementation of technology across all environments, including assistive technology.

With technology being an increasingly vital part of navigating and participating in today’s plugged-in world, including transportation, employment, recreation and social interaction, people with IDD face unique barriers to understanding and adopting digital tools, which are exacerbated by a higher rate of poverty and lower overall income. Since 2014, Comcast has supported The Arc’s Tech Coaching Center, reaching nearly 2,500 people with IDD through 19 chapters and giving them access to devices, services, and training that advance measured outcomes in employment, health, independent living, education, and interpersonal connections.

“We know that digital skills training can open new doors to opportunity and help people living with disabilities gain independence,” said Dalila Wilson-Scott, EVP and Chief Diversity Officer of Comcast Corporation.

We are proud to continue our long-standing partnership with The Arc to reach even more people with IDD – including their caregivers and families — and to create pathways that can help enrich their lives.

DALILA WILSON-SCOTT

EVP and Chief Diversity Officer of Comcast Corporation

A second grant of $150,000 will go towards advancing efforts to help marginalized communities better advocate for their education. This investment will allow The Arc to fully translate the curriculum into Spanish to better meet this population’s needs and increase access to the content.

Academic achievement and graduation rates for students with disabilities lag far behind their peers, trends marked by inordinate discrimination, suspensions, and isolation within school settings across the country. In 2016, The Arc created The Arc@School, an evidence-based, self-paced online training program designed to help families, educators, and advocates navigate the special education system. Since 2021, Comcast has partnered with The Arc to connect underserved communities to these educational advocacy resources. To date, more than 500 families of color and low-income households have been given free access to The Arc@School, in addition to a facilitation guide, Spanish language overview of the special education process, and cultural competency resources and sections.

These grants were distributed through Project UP, Comcast’s $1 billion commitment to reach tens of millions of people in order to advance digital equity and help create a future of unlimited possibilities.

International Olympic Committee news

This year’s Earth Day theme – Invest in our Planet – highlights the importance of investing time and resources in solving climate change and other environmental challenges. The Olympic Movement is playing its part, reducing the footprint of the Olympic Games, using the power of sport to promote innovative solutions, and coming together to make sport more sustainable.

Here are five examples of how the Olympic Movement is investing in our planet:

1 – Sustainable food – Paris 2024 puts it on the menu

The world’s food systems are under enormous pressure, linked to climate change, unsustainable agricultural practices, accelerating biodiversity loss, and soil degradation.

Changing dietary patterns is a large part of the solution.

Paris 2024 will use its platform to demonstrate how a more balanced and environmentally conscious diet can be taken to scale.

Next year’s Olympic Games makes six menu commitments for everyone attending – spectators, athletes, staff, volunteers, the media and the Olympic and Paralympic family – and at all venues. The organisers have committed to:

Cutting by 50 per cent the carbon footprint of each meal, compared to an average French meal, thanks to measures such as doubling the amount of plant-based foods;Halving the use of single-use plastic compared to similar events and previous Olympic Games editions, for example, by installing fountains and using returnable glass bottles;Sourcing more locally: 80 per cent of ingredients will be sourced in France, of which a quarter will come from less than 250km away;Fighting food waste with careful portion and quantity control, promoting “zero waste” recipes and and behaviour;Securing the reuse of all catering equipment for future events;Reserving 15 per cent of jobs for people with a disability or disadvantaged people.

The Games are set to serve up some 13 million sustainable meals!

2 – Clean hydrogen – The Games shine a light

As climate change increasingly threatens our future, recent Olympic Games have used hydrogen to demonstrate its potential. Hydrogen causes no emissions when produced with renewable energy. It could play a vital role in the transition to carbon-free societies. It currently offers some of the best potential to eliminate emissions from airlines, shipping and industry.

The Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 gave hydrogen a starring role. The Olympic Village used hydrogen for power and heating. Worldwide Olympic Partner Toyota supplied approximately 500 Mirai hydrogen-powered vehicles to transport staff and officials. And for the first time in the history of the Games, hydrogen fuelled both the Olympic and Paralympic cauldrons in Tokyo.

More recently, during the Olympic Games Beijing 2022, hydrogen-powered vehicles were used at one of the Games’ competition zones, Zhangjiakou, as a demonstration of hydrogen’s potential.

Meanwhile, at the International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s headquarters in Lausanne, hydrogen-powered cars, provided by Worldwide Olympic Partner Toyota, are used to transport guests and officials. The IOC’s hydrogen fleet also serves as a vital demonstration project, inspiring green momentum in the region.

3 – Paris 2024 Aquatics Centre – Serving people while respecting the planet

To reduce the cost and carbon footprint of the Games, Olympic Agenda 2020 requires Games organisers to minimise construction and build new venues only when there is a long-term local need for them. Paris 2024 organisers will use existing or temporary infrastructure for 95 per cent of their venues. The only new competition venue built for the Games, the Olympic Aquatics Centre, shows how a venue can serve local communities – while respecting the planet.

The Aquatics Centre building materials are in large part bio-sourced, with the timber structure and roof frame blending seamlessly into the surrounding.

Meanwhile, its 5,000m2 roof will be covered with an innovative photovoltaic panel structure. It will be one of France’s largest urban solar farms.

Its innovative design was conceived to increase energy efficiency over the lifetime of the building. Its interior will be fitted with recycled materials, all made in France to showcase the country’s environmental expertise. The seats will be made entirely from local plastic waste by a local provider.

After the Games, the Aquatics Centre will be transformed into a multi-use sporting facility. It will be able to switch from a 5,000-seat venue to a 2,500-seat facility, addressing the needs of local communities of Seine-Saint-Denis – an area which currently lacks swimming facilities.

4 – The Sport for Nature Framework – protecting the planet through sport

Addressing the loss of nature is key to protecting the health of the planet and to responding to climate change. According to the World Economic Forum, biodiversity loss represents the fourth greatest risk to the global economy. Failure to respond to climate change and biodiversity loss are among the top five most severe risks facing the world in the long term.

In December 2022, the IOC – in partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) – launched the first-ever Sports for Nature Framework. Its aim is to transform the relationship between sport and nature, making sure sport minimises its impact and uses its influence to help restore and protect nature.

The IOC and Paris 2024 are among the first signatories of the framework, which brings together sports federations, leagues, clubs and event organisers. They commit to protecting and avoiding causing damage to important species and habitats; restoring key ecosystems; creating sustainable supply chains; and educating and inspiring the wider sporting community.

5 – The Olympic Forest – growing trees in Africa’s drylands

Climate change is devastating the African drylands, since rising temperatures and changing weather patterns make survival harder for local communities. Overuse of land, including through forest clearing and overgrazing, means that the soils are losing fertility and are often no longer productive. Many people struggle to produce enough food. Poverty and migration are increasing.

In 2021, the IOC started an initiative to grow 590,000 native trees across 90 villages in Mali and Senegal, host of the Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026.

These trees offer vital solutions. They absorb carbon dioxide, a leading cause of climate change, and they also improve soil fertility, prevent erosion, and provide shade. When drought causes crops to fail, many trees are able to survive, producing fruit, nuts and seeds for sale or consumption. This way, they can help local communities adapt to climate change and increase their food and economic security.

The IOC and its implementing partner TreeAid work closely with local communities, making sure they are willing to be part of the project and involving them in the species selection process, and equipping them with knowledge to ensure they can maintain the trees in the future.

This Earth Day, M·A·C Cosmetics is proud to announce a $100,000 donation to Plastics for Change, a trusted source of fair trade-verified recycled plastic. This collaboration with Plastics for Change supports the longstanding M·A·C mission of its Back-To-M·A·C takeback program, which aims to reduce plastic waste from our planet.

As part of its Back-To-M·A·C efforts, this donation from M·A·C will enable the collection of over 550,000 pounds of plastic (equivalent to 12,500,000 plastic bottles) from the coast of India while supporting approximately 200 plastic collectors and their communities with a host of social services for one year.

Plastics for Change Co-Founder and Chief Impact Officer Shifrah Jacobs shares, “We’re so pleased that M·A·C Cosmetics, an influencer in the beauty industry, GETS IT! Plastic recycling is not just investment in innovative technology, but also investing in inclusive development of the people behind the plastic-picking who are a critical part of the ecosystem. We’re thrilled about what this partnership can accomplish toward empowering grass-root communities.”

M·A·C Chief Marketing Officer Aïda Moudachirou-Rébois echoes this sentiment: “M·A·C has always believed in and fostered the power of community to transform society and bring about meaningful change. Working with Plastics for Change gives us the opportunity to do so in many ways – from collecting plastic to supporting collectors and their communities along the coast of India – with the ultimate mission to better people’s lives. And this is truly exciting.”

This partnership with Plastics for Change also mirrors M·A·C VIVA GLAM’s time-honoured mission of empowering individuals to transform society. Plastics for Change makes a social impact through recycling at the local level while helping to transition industries to a circular economy. Social services that Plastics for Change provide the plastic collectors include education, healthcare, nutrition to families, entrepreneurship, and empowerment of young women and girls.

Back-To-M·A·C was created over 30 years ago to reduce the environmental impact of its packaging by recycling or recovering as much of the brand’s iconic packaging as possible, and M·A·C continues to evolve and improve the program today.

Once consumers are finished with their M·A·C products, they can drop off clean, empty containers in designated green Back-To-M·A·C collection boxes located in participating M·A·C stores and at retail counters all year around. Most M·A·C primary packaging, such as eye shadow pots and lipstick cases, can be returned as part of the Back-To-M·A·C program. (Some exclusions apply.) Visit www.maccosmetics.com/back-to-mac to learn more about Back-To-M·A·C and find a participating location near you.

In countries where M·A·C operates the Back-To-M·A·C takeback program, it partners with leading suppliers to recycle recovered packaging, which goes into the production of new materials such as coffee machines, roadways and even new M·A·C compacts, depending on the location. What cannot be recycled is converted to energy.

The Back-To-M·A·C takeback program and strategic global partnerships that support the environment at the community level help M·A·C minimize excess waste while being part of the solution for a more beautiful tomorrow – today.

About M·A·C Cosmetics

M·A·C (Make-Up Art Cosmetics) is a leading brand of professional cosmetics and part of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. Since its creation in Toronto, Canada over 30 years ago, the brand’s popularity has grown through a tradition of word-of-mouth endorsement from Makeup Artists, models, photographers and journalists around the world. M·A·C is now sold in over 130 countries/territories worldwide. Follow M·A·C on Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok and Pinterest @MACcosmetics; become a M·A·C fan on Facebook (facebook.com/maccosmetics); follow M·A·C on Instagram (instagram.com/maccosmetics) and watch M·A·C videos on YouTube (youtube.com/maccosmetics). For a M·A·C location near you, visit maccosmetics.com

FOLLOW US @MACcosmetics

About Plastics for Change

Plastics For Change helps industry partners to transition toward a circular economy while measuring progress towards the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Its ethical sourcing platform connects informal waste collectors from coastal communities in India to global markets, ensuring its brand partners a consistent supply of high-quality recycled plastic through its responsible and transparent supply chains. Simultaneously, it partners with global brands and manufacturers to catalyze positive change in communities that need it the most through its responsible supply chains. The company’s mission is to use plastic waste as a resource to create better livelihoods and a cleaner planet.

Learn more: www.plasticsforchange.org

Originally published on Built From Scratch

This Earth Day is a perfect time to get involved in clean energy transformation. Clean energy is generated from renewable sources without producing any pollution. This helps improve the health of the environment and reduce exposure to harmful emissions.

People across the nation are using renewable energy sources to power appliances and make their home more comfortable while also saving on energy bills. This year, The Home Depot joined the Green Power Partnership to help encourage the use of renewable electricity sources.

Here are some ways to reduce your carbon footprint and be a part of the clean energy future.

Explore your options and take advantage of opportunities in your community to choose green power as the energy source for your home. Many localities offer green power to residential customers, charged to their monthly electric bills.

On average, U.S. households are expected to save about $500 a year on energy bills with an ENERGY STAR Home Upgrade.

In fiscal 2021, The Home Depot offered more than 22,000 energy-saving products in stores and online, including more than 15,000 ENERGY STAR products. Join us in celebrating the transition toward a clean energy future today – and every day – at energystar.gov/EarthDay.

To learn more about The Home Depot’s commitment to sustainability, check out the 2022 ESG Report.

Keep up with all the latest Home Depot news! Subscribe to our bi-weekly news update and get the top Built from Scratch stories delivered straight to your inbox.

For more than half a century, Earth Day has been a moment for us to stop and consider the path we’re on as a society and the impact that path has on our planet. This history of Earth Day has been underscored by the environmental movement from the beginning, but with the growing recognition that climate change is directly impacted by human behavior, Earth Day’s urgency grows.

As society accepts that curbing climate change and protecting environmental health will require a top-to-bottom restructuring of nearly all our societal operating structures — from the way we grow food to the way we get around — Earth Day has become a moment to consider bold innovation. A moment to reprioritize the ways we invest in our planet.

In the U.S., we’re seeing this commitment across the board from the landmark clean energy funding in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act and President Biden’s efforts to speed the transition to electric vehicles, to the growth in ESG investing (Nasdaq reports that investments in ESG strategies grew 42% from 2018 to 2020) and consumer-driven shift toward cleaner, greener products.

At Booster, this movement means just as much to us. Not only does a large portion of our mission center on bringing sustainable solutions to the transportation industry (currently the highest polluting industry in the U.S., according to EPA), but our own business practices are also built with sustainability first.

Our Sustainable Business Practices

When building environmental stewardship initiatives into our sustainable business practices, we align our efforts with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) — a collection of 17 global goals designed to provide a “shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.”

Our sustainable business practices span all three pillars of ESG, and are guided by specific SDGs to ensure we remain at the forefront of sustainability’s evolving definitions. But because so much of our core business offering centers on sustainable, decarbonized energy solutions, environmental stewardship naturally is at the heart of our day-to-day and remains one of our largest drivers. We take calculated action to minimize our own energy, water, waste, and environmental impacts, both in our daily operations and throughout our value chain.

Our environmental policies begin first and foremost with safety, both for the environment and our communities. Because fuels can be harmful to the environment when mishandled, all our Service Professionals follow strict protocols to minimize risk of spillage and hazardous accidents. This includes the requirement of a CDL Class C permit with hazmat and tanker endorsements; adherence to the highest safety requirements set by the International Fire Code, the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency, and more; and a three-stage Perfect Boost spill prevention protocol with a zero-drip policy. These safety requirements ensure we comply with air quality standards and protect the environments in which we fuel.

Our other sustainable business practices include participation in the California Clean Air Day Pledge, our transition of nearly all diesel-fueled California-based fleets to renewable diesel (which offers up to 85% fewer lifecycle emissions than its petroleum counterpart), and the use of renewable diesel for our own fleet of Smart Tankers in all locations where it is available. We have also developed proprietary route planning software for our fleet, which ensures we get the most productivity out of every fuel gallon burned.

Our Commitment to Sustainable Transportation

Historically, technological limitations have constrained conventional energy delivery providers to few products and offered limited energy management insights. Identifying the need for solutions to service the growing range of vehicle types among fleets, Booster has invested over $100m to develop the technology necessary for efficient delivery of mixed energy sources such as gasoline, diesel, H2, renewables, EV.

With its unique service, Booster helps fleet customers meet their sustainability and ESG-related goals by saving time, miles, money, and emissions with fuel delivery. It is reinventing the supply chain by eliminating risks, streamlining operations, and decreasing harmful emissions in the transportation and delivery industries.

Mobile fuel delivery reduces emissions in two ways: 1) by reducing overall miles driven (and thus emissions generated), and 2) through reductions realized by the adoption of sustainable alternative fuels. Booster service reduces 587 lbs of carbon emissions per diesel vehicle annually on average.

Booster’s commitment to expanding access to sustainable alternative fuels is another way we support sustainable transportation. Created from renewable feedstocks like biomass, municipal waste, industrial scrap and more, sustainable alternative fuels can serve as direct replacements for conventional fuels with no equipment upgrades or replacements. They offer lower carbon emissions, better performance, and are many times comparable in cost to their conventional counterparts.

Though sustainable fuels are gaining traction as a decarbonization solution, they are rarely available at gas stations. Mobile fueling makes a range of sustainable fuels readily available without the need for the development of fixed infrastructure to support them.

Investing in Our Planet for More than Just Earth Day

In the modern landscape, where decisions both large and small, in business and in the home, are being significantly guided by environmental considerations, Earth Day now stands for much more than the fight for environmental stewardship. At Booster, we recognize this and take concrete steps to invest in our planet through both our internal practices and our service offerings.

“Here at Booster, our greatest opportunity to build a more sustainable world is through the tech-driven mobile energy services we provide our customers — our contribution to that diverse lineup of energy solutions,” writes Booster CEO and co-founder Frank MyCroft in Booster’s 2022 ESG commitment. “But it’s not enough to only look externally; we must also examine our own business practices and operations to ensure we are making the strongest sustainability commitments to the environment, our people, and the governance of our company.”

We are constantly evaluating and upgrading our sustainable business practices and our commitments to furthering sustainable transportation. This Earth Day, we celebrate the call to Invest in Our Planet. Let’s honor Earth for all it provides, by giving back and taking charge to create more sustainable societal systems for our planet and our people.

Each year on April 22, Earth Day is celebrated in more than 193 countries to advocate for environmental protection. It may be hard to believe, but the first Earth Day was half a century ago.

During the 1950s and 1960s, industries were emitting vast amounts of pollutants with hardly any consequences from the law, consumers, or the media. People were mostly oblivious to environmental concerns and the threat to human health. This perception changed when a massive oil spill in California inspired an unprecedented movement that united students, politicians, and everyday citizens to demonstrate against the devastating impact of 150 years of industrial development.

The first Earth Day in 1970 signaled the birth of the modern environmental movement.

A Turning Point

As the chief sustainability officer at SAP, I am keenly aware of the fundamental impact business and industry have on society, the economy, and the environment. Despite growing environmental awareness, the Earth has continued to take a massive amount of abuse since the first Earth Day.

The facts are alarming: according to the World Wildlife Organization, wildlife populations have plummeted 69% in 50 years. Human activities have doubled the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, causing climate change that severely impacts weather and natural habitats. Plastic pollution is growing relentlessly, with only nine percent of plastic being recycled. The devastation to life on land and in the oceans is heartbreaking.

But there is good news as well. The modern-day grassroots movement triggered by young people has been highly successful, inspiring older generations with their determination to make the world a better place. At the same time, there has been a strong surge in governmental action and other movements such as the United Nations (UN) Convention on Climate Change and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation for Circular Economy.

Importantly, business can be the game changer as companies realize that environmental preservation and social justice must be a prominent element in their holistic strategy to ensure long-term survival.

Enabling Sustainable Impact

At SAP, we are very aware of the challenges our customers face as they strive to meet their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) commitments. Being able to reliably track and manage their progress is one major challenge. Our products and services aim to address this and help our customers record, report, and act on their ESG ambitions while incorporating sustainability in their business end to end.​​

SAP customers around the world generate 87% of total global commerce, which comes with a social and environmental footprint. We have an opportunity here to influence for the better — and we are taking it, with solutions supporting companies to measure and improve sustainability across entire networks, allowing them to effectively work toward an aspiration of zero emissions, zero waste, and zero inequality.

This journey is impossible without partnerships. SAP is teaming up to drive sustainable change with customers as well as a variety of other stakeholders. For example, we were among the first 50 signatories of the UN Global Compact and we co-founded the Value Balancing Alliance. In collaboration with the WBCSD, we work to enable companies to gain full transparency of their product life cycle and supply chain emissions. And we joined the Ellen MacArthur Foundation network to accelerate the adoption of circular economy practices and processes.

Leading by Example

At SAP, we do not have a sustainability strategy, we have a business strategy that is sustainable. We believe economic, social, and environmental factors and performance are interrelated and integrate these in the holistic steering of our business. Consequently, SAP executive short-term incentive compensation includes sustainability targets (key performance indicators for sustainability) such as our carbon impact on top of financial targets.

We have set ourselves ambitious environmental targets in our Global Environmental Policy to foster the continuous enhancement of our environmental impact. This includes our science-based target to achieve net zero along our entire value chain in line with a 1.5° c future in 2030 — 20 years earlier than originally planned.

Executing on these targets is a company-wide effort and I am proud of our collaborative achievements. Our data centers and buildings worldwide have been running on 100% renewable energy since 2014. We use internal carbon pricing to offset business-related carbon emissions. We are phasing out single-use plastics. By 2025, one-third of our fleet will be ecofriendly cars, and all cars procured thereafter will be electric. SAP’s environmental management system is implemented in over 50 sites in 29 countries worldwide and is certified by the renowned ISO 14001:2015 standard.

SAP is also one of the most diverse and inclusive software companies in the world, dedicated to building a business without bias. We have built an inclusive workplace, giving people the skills to thrive in a digital world and a culture that supports their health and well-being.

Besides following ethical business practices that respect and promote human rights and secure human rights due diligence as required, for example, in the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act, we are very active when it comes to promoting social and inclusive entrepreneurship, offering programs and partnerships that range from inspiring early-stage innovation to scaling mature social enterprises.

Earth Day 2023 is a day to remember what we can accomplish together and how much more we still need to do. The movement pushed by the first Earth Day in 1970 has become a global force that has changed the way people think and act upon the environment. Regulators, investors, companies, consumers, and everyday citizens increasingly recognize the need to invest in our planet. But time is of the essence: “There is a rapidly closing window of opportunity to secure a livable and sustainable future for all,” the latest IPCC report states.

I feel humbled by the contributions we have achieved as a company. These results were only possible thanks to visionary leaders and SAP’s highly motivated, dedicated employees working in every line of business and every region of the world. As our latest employee engagement surveys showed, 82% of SAP employees actively contribute to the company’s sustainability goals. Many of them are driving specific programs today to inspire even more colleagues to join in.

In celebration of Earth Day 2023, I want to acknowledge our employees’ outstanding efforts, alongside those of like-minded supporters across the globe, and invite all of us to collectively step up in safeguarding our planet.

DUBLIN, April 21, 2023 /3BL Media/ – Alkermes plc (Nasdaq: ALKS) recently announced that the company will accept applications for its Alkermes Inspiration Grants® program beginning on May 1, 2023. Now in its seventh year, this competitive grant program will provide up to a total of $500,000 in grants to assist nonprofit organizations in their work to address the needs of people living with addiction, serious mental illness or cancer.

“We see the gravity of unmet need in our communities to address stigmatized and increasingly complex health challenges — yet we remain hopeful because of the passion, energy and holistic problem-solving put forth by nonprofit organizations working on the front lines,” said Richard Pops, Chief Executive Officer of Alkermes. “Through the Alkermes Inspiration Grants program, we have a unique opportunity to listen to, understand and empower organizations seeking to complement medicine and clinical care, and support populations who have faced longstanding and widespread health disparities.”

This year’s submissions will be evaluated based on the set of criteria outlined in the request for proposals, with a focus on people affected by alcohol dependence, opioid dependence, schizophrenia, bipolar I disorder, melanoma or ovarian cancer. Proposals should include clearly defined needs, objectives, activity format, mode of delivery and intended audience, and be relevant to historically under-resourced or underrepresented populations. Alkermes seeks to support programs that have a broad reach within the U.S. and potential to lead to sustained impact. Grant recipients will be selected by a committee that includes senior leaders from Alkermes and individuals from outside the company chosen to represent the perspectives of people with lived experience, caregivers and patient advocates.

Eligible U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations may submit a grant application between May 1, 2023 and June 1, 2023. For more information on the Alkermes Inspiration Grants program, including submission instructions, additional eligibility guidelines, evaluation criteria and a link to the application portal, please visit https://www.alkermes.com/responsibility/alkermes-inspiration-grants-2023.

About Alkermes plc 
Alkermes plc is a fully-integrated, global biopharmaceutical company developing innovative medicines in the fields of neuroscience and oncology. The company has a portfolio of proprietary commercial products focused on addiction, schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder, and a pipeline of product candidates in development for neurological disorders and cancer. Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, Alkermes plc has a research and development center in Waltham, Massachusetts; a research and manufacturing facility in Athlone, Ireland; and a manufacturing facility in Wilmington, Ohio. For more information, please visit Alkermes’ website at www.alkermes.com.

ALKERMES INSPIRATION GRANTS® is a registered service mark of Alkermes, Inc.