Tag: 3BL

Published by Action Against Hunger. 

Spokesperson available. 

Contact media@actionagainsthunger.org for inquiries. 

• The new IPC (Integrated Phase Classification for Food Security) confirms that 375,000 people are in catastrophic conditions (IPC Phase 5), facing extreme hunger and death.
• Eighty percent of health facilities in Sudan are damaged or out of service, exacerbating the nutritional and health crisis.
• Humanitarian access is virtually blocked in the most affected areas, with supply routes cut off and frequent looting.
• Ninety-eight percent of people in emergency or disaster situations are concentrated in Darfur and Kordofan, where conflict and humanitarian blockades are exacerbating the crisis. 

NEW YORK, November 3, 2025 /3BL/ – Action Against Hunger expresses its deep concern at the findings of the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis, which confirms the existence of famine (Phase 5) in the towns of El Fasher and Kadugli, and warns of the imminent risk of famine in 20 additional areas of Sudan. This is the second time in less than a year that the IPC’s Famine Review Committee (FRC) has confirmed famine in parts of Sudan.

According to the report, more than 21 million people face critical levels of food insecurity, and at least 375,000 are in catastrophic conditions, facing extreme hunger, acute malnutrition and death. The situation is particularly dire in the regions of Darfur and Kordofan, where armed conflict, mass displacement and restrictions on humanitarian access have collapsed food and health systems.

Action Against Hunger’s director in Sudan, Samy Guessabi, says: “Sudan is experiencing a silent famine that threatens to become a total catastrophe. El Fasher and Kadugli are under siege, with no access to food, water or medical care. Families are eating boiled leaves, peanut shells and animal feed. This situation is intolerable.”

“The international community cannot look the other way. We need an immediate ceasefire, unrestricted humanitarian access and urgent mobilization of funds to save lives. Every day that passes without action is a death sentence for thousands of people,” adds Guessabi.

Conflict, Displacement and High Food prices as Drivers of the Situation

The conflict in Sudan has forced millions of people to flee their homes, destroyed essential infrastructure — including 80 per cent of health facilities — and severely restricted humanitarian access. Although 2.6 million people have returned to their homes, more than 9.6 million remain displaced. At the same time, the food crisis is exacerbated by sustained price increases, crop losses and economic collapse, leaving many families unable to access basic foodstuffs.

The latest data reveals that more than 60% of the localities assessed have acute global malnutrition rates above 15%, with some areas of Darfur exceeding the 30% threshold, considered an indicator of famine. The lack of data in areas such as Dilling, Al Sunut, and Habila prevents accurate classification, but it is feared that conditions are also critical.

Action Against Hunger urgently calls on donors, international organizations and political actors to prioritize Sudan on the global humanitarian agenda. The organization insists that only a coordinated, sustained response focused on the most affected communities can prevent an even greater tragedy.

Action Against Hunger in Sudan

Action Against Hunger works in Sudan providing humanitarian assistance in contexts of extreme conflict, focusing its efforts on food security, nutrition, health, water and sanitation. The organization responds to famine and acute malnutrition through food distribution programs, livelihood support, cash transfers and the strengthening of local systems such as community kitchens and mutual aid groups. It also promotes protection, humanitarian access and civil rights advocacy.

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Action Against Hunger leads the global movement to end hunger. We innovate solutions, advocate for change, and reach 26.5 million people every year with proven hunger prevention and treatment programs. As a nonprofit that works across over 55 countries, our 8,500+ dedicated staff members partner with communities to address the root causes of hunger, including climate change, conflict, inequity, and emergencies. We strive to create a world free from hunger, for everyone, for good.

This article is authored by Scott Tew, Global Head and VP, Sustainability Strategy, Trane Technologies.

Across Climate Week NYC 2025, leaders from finance, operations, supply chain and technology aligned around a core sustainability playbook: set clear goals, invest in both proven levers and new approaches, measure what matters and share what you learn so others can move faster. When we treat sustainability as a core business strategy, we unlock value and accelerate growth. Below are seven key themes that surfaced during our Climate Week conversations — and how they translate into practical steps organizations can take now to create business value.

1. Sustainability is strategy — and it maximizes ROI

At Climate Week NYC the message was clear — sustainability is not an add-on; it’s an operational strategy that generates strong returns. Participants emphasized ROI proof points like measurable efficiency gains, lower energy spend, risk reduction and resilient operations. As our CEO Dave Regnery says: “Just because it’s sustainable doesn’t mean it costs more.”

Clear business cases that tie decarbonization to cash flow, risk reduction and asset value generate better sustainability outcomes. At Trane Technologies, we see this play out with our own customers: organizations that electrify, optimize with AI-powered digital solutions and eliminate energy waste are seeing lower operating costs, improved asset performance and stronger resilience.

2. Every role is a sustainability role

The CFO has entered the room — alongside operations, legal and supply chain. Successful organizations are treating decarbonization as an enterprise-wide endeavor, not a silo. The Chief Sustainability Officer role has evolved, too: This crucial function encompasses both business leader and strategist, while often orchestrating execution and reporting. And the board plays a critical role in translating oversight into action. Educated and informed directors create an environment of accountability for sustainability goals.

Across our own organization, we see the impact of this cross-functional sustainability focus daily. Decisions get better and outcomes improve when multiple disciplines are at the table. And the flywheel effect builds when teams leverage sustainability wins to generate more momentum.

3. Counting what counts — the new math of sustainability

Traditional ROI models can miss the full value of decarbonization. Climate Week conversations emphasized a broader equation that includes reduced energy waste, resilience, market differentiation, compliance readiness, risk management and reputation.

The takeaway for leaders is to expand the valuation lens. The new sustainability equation integrates resilience, operational confidence and reputational benefits into the sustainability calculus. Add the financial impact of customer preference and talent attraction for companies that can show verified progress, and sustainability investments move from “nice to have” to “must do.”

4. Sustainability is a team sport — share to scale

A powerful theme was collaboration over competition around sustainability challenges. Early movers are sharing technologies and approaches so others can follow more quickly. That waterfall effect is how markets transform.

What does that look like in practice? Publishing playbooks and performance data. Structuring pilots so that outcomes are transparent. Partnering with others to align incentive structures. The impact is powerful — when one organization de-risks a climate solution, others can quickly follow, accelerating market transformation and driving growth.

5. The power of procurement: catalyze a low-carbon value chain

Climate Week participants highlighted that procurement is one of the fastest ways to drive outcomes. Setting clear specifications for alternative materials, energy performance, embodied carbon and circularity outcomes can shift entire value chains. That change rewrites decarbonization incentives, helping scale lower-carbon materials and manufacturing practices.

Within our own business, we are seeing customers incorporate decarbonization targets into their buying decisions — not just purchase price. And through our own purchasing, we’re designing for circularity practices that integrate low carbon materials at the design stage, transforming purchasing power into a lever for innovation and decarbonization.

6. New business models that create value at every stage

Conversations also highlighted how sustainability can inspire new business models that impact every part of the value chain. From circularity practices that unlock value, to AI and advanced controls that optimize when and how equipment runs, the results generate better business and climate outcomes.

AI-enabled controls are a prime example. When systems know when and how best to run, they can automatically shift loads, increase efficiency and improve reliability while lowering emissions. Circularity practices — like designing for longer life and refurbishment — keep materials in use and reduce environmental impact. These are pragmatic, proven approaches that compound value over time. And they’re just the beginning, as the sustainability conversation shifts from reducing emissions, to redesigning business models to decarbonize and deliver growth.

7. Climate tech is advancing the AI economy — and making energy smarter 

As AI development accelerates, data centers are becoming both essential infrastructure and significant sources of wasted energy in the form of heat. The right technology can capture and repurpose that heat for communities, providing energy for nearby facilities like schools and homes, while strengthening grid resilience. At the same time, AI-enabled controls are optimizing the very resource AI depends on — energy — by improving how heating and cooling systems run, and equipping teams with intelligent tools to reduce energy waste.

The big picture: the quickest wins in autonomous decarbonization in the high-tech sector will come from eliminating energy waste through efficient thermal management, and then meeting the need that remains with cleaner, intelligent systems.

From New York to next steps

The prevailing tone throughout Climate Week NYC was pragmatic optimism — progress over perfection. The true value of the week was not the number of panels or the breadth of the guest list. It was the collective momentum to act with practical solutions that deliver results and drive growth. Climate Week reminds us that sustainability leadership is built through repetition. Plan, pilot, prove, scale. That is how we turn sustainability strategy into outcomes that drive growth.

At Trane Technologies, we will keep advancing efficient, electrified and digital solutions that help customers reduce their carbon impacts and strengthen their operations. The stakes are high, and the opportunity is real. As we return to our daily routines after the energy and vibrant conversations of Climate Week, let’s keep the momentum moving. Join us as we continue delivering both decarbonization and business value, one step at a time.

Hear from our CFO on unlocking the ROI of sustainability on our Healthy Spaces podcast.

Explore careers that unlock the ROI of sustainability at Trane Technologies.

LINCOLN, Neb., November 3, 2025 /3BL/ – Graphic Packaging International, a global leader in sustainable consumer packaging, is partnering with the Arbor Day Foundation to help conserve the environment and protect forest resources.

Graphic Packaging will support strategic, large-scale reforestation and urban forestry initiatives with the Arbor Day Foundation. These efforts will help to expand green spaces in the communities where the company operates and support restoration projects in areas identified as high priority through science-based assessments. Through the partnership, Graphic Packaging employees worldwide will lead and participate in tree planting events, distribute seedlings and trees in their communities, and support global reforestation projects.

“Graphic Packaging’s commitment to environmental stewardship and its global network of engaged communities helps us to meaningfully carry out our mission of inspiring people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees around the world,” said Dan Lambe, chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “This partnership will help restore vital forest ecosystems and bolster resilience in the places that need it most.”

Forests provide clean air and water for more than half of the world’s population, and urban trees can lower neighborhood temperatures by up to 10°F. The Arbor Day Foundation’s Forest Priority Index (FPI) and Nature Priority Index (NPI) tools will help guide Graphic Packaging’s project selections. The FPI identifies forest regions where reforestation will have the highest impact on climate, biodiversity and community resilience. The NPI—created by NatureQuant, one of the Foundation’s technology partners—helps to highlight census tracts in urban areas where trees can most improve human health and tree access.

The Arbor Day Foundation collaboration marks a flagship initiative under RENEW, Graphic Packaging’s social impact program. RENEW is designed to drive meaningful change in and around communities where Graphic Packaging operates across key areas, including renewing the environment.

“Enhancing the communities where we live and work is a key part of Vision 2030, and protecting the environment is essential to strong, healthy communities,” said Graphic Packaging President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Doss. “Graphic Packaging employees have distributed 130,000 trees since 2010, and we’re proud to partner with the Arbor Day Foundation to build on our history of giving back to communities and the planet.”

About the Arbor Day Foundation 

The Arbor Day Foundation is a global nonprofit inspiring people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees. They foster a growing community of more than 1 million leaders, innovators, planters, and supporters united by their bold belief that a more hopeful future can be shaped through the power of trees. For more than 50 years, they’ve answered critical need with action, planting more than half a billion trees alongside their partners.

And this is only the beginning.

The Arbor Day Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit pursuing a future where all life flourishes through the power of trees. Learn more at arborday.org.

About Graphic Packaging International

Graphic Packaging designs and produces consumer packaging made primarily from renewable or recycled materials. An industry leader in innovation, the Company is committed to reducing the environmental footprint of consumer packaging. Graphic Packaging operates a global network of design and manufacturing facilities serving the world’s most widely recognized brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. Learn more at www.graphicpkg.com.

David Stalls thought the dangerous heart rhythm problem that plagued his health was a curse—until he turned treating it into a new career.

“It’s gotten me to where I am today so I’m actually thankful,” he laughed.

An emergency room nurse in Tennessee, Stalls lived with the chaotic, fluttering heart rhythms of atrial fibrillation (Afib) for years. He knew Afib increased his risk of stroke and heart failure.

“I was in and out of Afib. Mostly out. So I just tried to forget about it. But after a while I couldn’t sleep and I didn’t have enough energy to even play with our kids in the yard,” he said.

The Afib episodes became longer and more severe. Doctors twice shocked his heart back to normal rhythm but the irregular heartbeats soon returned. In the spring of 2016, doctors at the Memphis hospital where he worked performed an ablation using Medtronic cryoablation technology.

Life changing moment 

The ablation changed Stalls’ life in more ways than one.

“I hadn’t fully realized just how much Afib had affected me until I started feeling better,” he said. “I could run and play soccer with the kids. I felt great and I still do.”

Doctors told him afterward that the first step in the procedure was to make a digital map of his heart’s electrical activity. They invited him to step out of the ER some time and watch a case. “I floated over to the lab one afternoon and watched from the control room,” he said. “I had no idea what the mappers were doing but it was cool. I remember thinking ‘I can do that.’”

So he did—turning the treatment for his heart problem into his life’s work.

Passionate about helping others

Stalls leveraged his nursing background and a recommendation from a doctor he knew at his hospital and got hired by a Medtronic competitor to become a cardiac mapper. The training took a year.

“It was intense. The hardest training I’ve ever taken,” he said.

Stalls spent the first five years of his mapping career at a Medtronic competitor. He mapped thousands of hearts and worked with dozens of electrophysiologists—including Dr. David Lan, the same EP who performed his ablation in 2016.

”David has mapped at least 100 procedures with me,” said Dr. Lan. “He’s an excellent mapper. He’s passionate about helping people. He’s a very hard worker and he’s always available. I’m very proud of him.”

Technology Leap

In 2024, Stalls began hearing from mapping colleagues about the Medtronic Affera™ Mapping and Ablation System and accompanying Sphere-9™ Catheter. He said word in the industry was the system would “be a game changer,” and the more he heard the more interested he became. He left the competitor, signed on with Medtronic and now maps with the Affera system.

“It’s really amazing. The system is intuitive, smart and simple,” he said. “The physician can insert one catheter (Sphere 9) just one time. It can map, ablate with either radio frequency (RF) or pulsed field ablation (PFA), and verify that we either got it right or have to ablate further. Other systems have to remove the catheter and put in another one for each of those steps. The Affera system is an incredible step forward.”

What do mappers do? 

Today, his days start around 7:00 A.M. at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. Staff prepares the electrophysiology lab while Stalls sets up his mapping equipment. The first patient is typically in the room by 7:30 A.M.

“Sometimes they ask questions and I can say ‘I’ve been in your shoes,’ and I can share with patients how ablation helped me,” Stalls said. “It’s a nice feeling to be able to help them that way.”

The procedure begins. The electrophysiologist (EP) inserts a catheter into the patient’s groin, navigates it into the heart and they begin “mapping.” Electrodes on the catheter measure the voltage and the electrical activation time on all the tissue they touch, creating a 3D image of the heart’s electrical activity in a rainbow of bright colors. “Each color tells us something. Purple means healthy tissue. Red means not so healthy. And a lot of things in between,” Stalls said.

The EP and mapper work together during the case while the EP identifies spots that require ablation. The procedure can take 45 to 60 minutes, with constant communication back and forth between the EP, the mapper and other members of the team. It’s a relationship built on experience and trust.

“Mappers usually work with a lot of different physicians,” said Dr. Lan. “So they see different techniques and bring that experience to provide the technical knowledge, supporting every physician to treat our patients. There’s a lot of teamwork.”

“The mapper needs to know electrophysiology and the mapping technology inside and out,” Stalls added. “Our job is to advise and consult and focus exclusively on the mapping and ablating technology. Sometimes I’ll see things the EPs don’t because they have to pay attention to several other things during the procedure.”

Hospitals are moving so quickly to the Affera system that some have the technology in place but not enough mappers to operate them. So experienced mappers sometimes travel to fill the void until hundreds of new, permanent mappers come online. Stalls mapped at hospitals in New York, Chicago, Cleveland, Austin, TX and Milwaukee in the last few months. No matter where he goes, he still keeps images from the mapping of his own heart on his phone—a regular reminder of where he’s been, and what’s ahead.

“I’m just really grateful,” he said. “I felt cursed by Afib but it’s turned out to be a blessing. When a patient comes in with Afib and leaves in normal rhythm, it’s just incredibly rewarding to be a part of something like that.”

Interested in becoming a Medtronic mapper? Check out our careers page.

See how this new technology innovation is fueling a hiring boom at Medtronic.

Important Safety Information

Risks may include serious complications and injuries to cardiac and other body structures. The Sphere-9™ catheter and Affera™ mapping and ablation system, PulseSelect™ pulsed field ablation system, and Arctic Front Advance™ over-the-wire balloon catheter should only be used under the supervision of a physician that performs cardiac ablation procedures.

MANILA, Philippines, November 3, 2025 /3BL/ – Federal Express Corporation, one of the world’s largest express transportation companies, has been recognized as one of the awardees of the HR Asia Best Companies to Work for in Asia 2025. Organized by HR Asia, a leading publication for HR professionals across the region, the awards program is judged using HR Asia’s proprietary Total Engagement Assessment Model (TEAM), which measures employee engagement, workplace culture, and HR practices. In addition, FedEx also received the Sustainable Workplace Award and the Tech Empowerment Award, reinforcing its achievements in sustainability, innovation, and employee well-being.

The HR Asia Best Companies to Work for in Asia Awards is one of the region’s most prestigious employer recognition programs. It honors organizations with outstanding HR practices, high levels of employee engagement, and strong workplace cultures. The program attracts participation from Fortune 500 companies, multinational corporations, and top employers across Asia, making the triple win of FedEx a significant achievement in the competitive landscape of corporate excellence.

The Sustainable Workplace Award recognizes organizations that champion long-term employee well-being, promote environmental responsibility, and implement sustainable business practices within their workplace culture. The Tech Empowerment Award celebrates companies that leverage technology to enhance the employee experience, drive innovation, and enable a more connected and agile workforce.

“This triple win is a powerful testament to the dedication of our people and the strength of the FedEx People-Service-Profit philosophy,” said Maribeth Espinosa, managing director of FedEx Philippines. “Our Purple Promise is to deliver an outstanding FedEx experience at every touchpoint, starting with how we support and care for our team members. These prestigious recognitions inspire us to foster an inclusive workplace culture, accelerate the adoption of cutting-edge digital technologies that empower our people, and drive sustainable practices that benefit our communities and the environment.”

More than a recognition of workplace excellence, the awards reflect the commitment of FedEx to driving progress for communities and the environment. Its people-first agenda was further recognized at the HR Excellence Awards 2025 Philippines, where FedEx secured Gold in Excellence in Cross-Generational Workforce Management and Leadership Development and Silver in Excellence in Best HR Team (Multinational Company). These distinctions demonstrate the breadth and depth of FedEx’s leadership in human capital development.

To learn more about FedEx solutions, visit the FedEx Philippines website.

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

Members of a Georgia-focused funding collaborative recently visited Athens Land Trust (ALT) during a month-long tour of Drawdown Georgia Climate Solutions & Equity Grants awarded throughout the state. ALT received a two-year, $200,000 grant in 2023-24 to conduct energy efficiency improvements and workforce development programs in previously disinvested neighborhoods in Athens-Clarke County, Georgia.

The Athens Energy Opportunity project expands on two existing initiatives launched by ALT in the Historic West Broad community; the West Broad Neighborhood Sustainability Project and the Young Urban Builders (YUB) workforce development program. 

The West Broad Neighborhood Sustainability Project addresses barriers to low-income and historically disadvantaged communities in accessing energy efficiency, weatherization, and renewable energy benefits. By pursuing this effort in conjunction with capacity building, impacted communities are now poised to take ownership and assume leadership in the direction of current and future opportunities to implement energy efficiency, weatherization, renewable energy, and other services in their neighborhoods. Working with YUB, the implementation of these community improvements have opened pathways to careers for impacted youth in the field of sustainable building, energy efficiency, and solar energy.

The West Broad Sustainability Project was expanded into North Athens and East Athens in 2024 with help from the Drawdown Georgia grant.

YUB is a paid job skills training program for Athens youth between the ages of 16 and 25. The program was started in 2018 as a way to address youth unemployment and perform owner-occupied rehabilitation for community homes. YUB is designed to provide job training and experience while working on community projects and aiding in neighborhood revitalization. 

ALT provides land protected in perpetuity, and affordable housing to allow first time homeowners from previously disinvested communities access to their goals for homeownership. In doing so, they are also investing in keeping communities in West Broad, North Athens and East Athens together, and defying patterns of gentrification.

New home clients are not only provided with affordable housing opportunities, they are encouraged and empowered to take action and help other neighbors navigate similar experiences through leadership, education, advocacy and collective action. The new Earthcraft homes that ALT offers in legacy communities are unique and attractive in design, varied in size and top of the line for energy efficiency. Most of all, with the help of federal, state and local grants and rebates that ALT carefully manages, the homes are comfortable and affordable, allowing first time homebuyers to purchase new homes for a fraction of the real cost.

ALT also offers energy efficiency upgrades for existing homes in the same neighborhoods. They help legacy residents protect their land and their homes, and they help retrofit and weatherize existing homes in the same communities where they oversee new builds; however, as they’ve prepared to weatherize older housing stock to help reduce energy burdens, they’ve identified many of the target homes that need significant and costly repairs, outside the scope of ALT’s weatherization grants and budget. 

The Drawdown Georgia Climate Solutions & Equity Grant helped fill this void. Grant dollars were bundled, allowing ALT and its contractors to make repairs for health and safety prior to weatherization. In many cases, this extra boost has made the difference between losing a home and keeping one for legacy residents. Common repairs include flooding, holes in roofs and floors, moldy interiors, rotten support beams, asbestos remediation and more. ALT also helps elderly residents with mobility friendly access features like ramps, and they often add central air and heat systems, where none previously existed.

Community Farming in the Heart of Athens

In addition to housing projects, ALT runs a community agriculture program, right in the heart of the city. Through a conservation easement, they were able to help the Williams family protect their farm into perpetuity, ensuring that it would never be developed. Once the family members were no longer farming the land, they arranged for ALT to run a community farm. Williams Farm is managed by ALT employees, but relies mainly on its Young Urban Farmers (YUF) program and community volunteer groups to complete the day to day tasks. In 2024, Williams Farm produced more than 9,000 lbs of produce that was provided to more than 40 high poverty-risk families identified through the Athens-Clarke County elementary schools.

Challenges for the Future

The pressure for big development continues to surround and slowly encroach on legacy communities in Athens, so the importance of educating citizens on their rights and their collective impact is crucial. With federal funding expected to continue to contract in the near future, ALT is poised to expand their reach for additional funding from foundations, corporate giving and individual giving. With the increased occurrence of extreme weather events, and the number of aging legacy homes in the communities they serve, ALT will need to retrofit many more homes with new electrical upgrades and HVAC systems to combat the effects of extreme heat. They will also need to be prepared to address more water and wind intrusion issues due to inland impacts from tropical storms and hurricanes.

The grant ALT received from Drawdown Georgia was supported by a funding cohort that included The Kendeda Fund, The R. Howard Dobbs, Jr. Foundation and its Dobbs Fund, The Ray C. Anderson Foundation, The Sapelo Foundation and The Wilbur & Hilda Glenn Family Foundation.

Click here to read a story about Former U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm from the Biden Administration, visiting homes in 2023 in the West Broad community. The resident that she interviewed was Bennie Tillman, one of ALT’s Community Advisory Board members, a legacy resident, and a recipient of repairs and upgrades through the West Broad Sustainability Project, enhanced by the Drawdown Georgia grant.

Watch a video featuring Secretary Granholm and Bennie Tillman here.

About Athens Land Trust

The mission of Athens Land Trust is to improve quality of life for all by preserving, protecting, and strengthening the fabric of the community through education and the stewardship of land for purposes of affordable housing, conservation, agriculture, and economic development. They respond to community-identified needs and build individual and collective power among historically marginalized people. 

Originally published in Principal Financial Group 2024 Sustainability Report

Leadership and development

We encourage employees to expand their knowledge, build new skills, and continuously develop by providing a variety of opportunities that best suit their needs. This includes formal development opportunities, experiential and on-the-go education, and professional relationship building.

Our approach

We offer employees a wide array of development opportunities including new hire onboarding and ongoing role-specific training that includes asynchronous and synchronous learning opportunities, simulation and role-play, videos, and e-learning courses.

New leaders in the U.S. experience 20 hours of onboarding related to being an effective and inclusive leader, and we offer numerous ways for leaders to continue to refine their leadership skills over the course of their career.

Employees can engage in learning within a broad range of topics, such as growing technical skills, enabling high-performing teams, and building inclusion and career development capabilities. Employees have access to sessions focused on life skills through our EAP provider.

Short-term growth assignments are also available to learn and apply skills outside their formal role. Additional opportunities exist for role rotations, job shadowing, mentoring, and pursuing further education or skills training.

We also offer a collegiate internship program and a variety of rotational programs for recent graduates.

Leaders provide feedback to employees and engage them in reflection and development planning annually. We promote a culture that encourages employees to reflect on their performance, provide feedback to their peers, and share development recommendations to their managers.

Learn more on our careers site

Our actions and performance in 2024

Progress on our goals

We continue to find ways to expand access to and engagement in the core development programs we offer.

By the end of 2025, we aim to:

• Increase overall employee participation in core enterprise learning and development programs by 15%.
• Capture and centrally manage engagement data for 100% of our core enterprise learning and development programs in a common location, positioning us to better analyze key business outcomes based on our findings.
• Make 50% of core enterprise learning and development programming available in Spanish.
• Cross-train facilitators on 50% of core enterprise learning and development programming.

In 2024, we made significant progress toward these goals.

• 75% of core programming is available in Spanish (exceeding our goal of 50%).
• We attained our goal of cross-training facilitators on 50% of our core programming.
• We’ve made progress on our goal surrounding learning data. One hundred percent of our core program engagement data is captured, and we’re on track to have the data centrally managed by the end of 2025.
• We’re below target for our participation goal in core programming. Participation across all programs decreased an average of 23% in 2024.

We are continuing to market our programs and align them with business and employee priorities to help increase participation in these programs. Additionally, as we enhance our engagement tracking capabilities, we will also refine our targets to ensure they are aligned with the realities of our business and employee needs.

Learning and growth opportunities

In 2024, our employees participated in 92,924 hours of voluntary learning and development, which is equal to about 4.7 hours per employee. Leaders specifically engaged in 13,382 hours of voluntary learning and development in 2024.

In 2024, approximately 162 employees participated in our educational assistance program that offers employees financial assistance with their job-related educational pursuits. In 2024, this totaled over $993,799 in investment by the organization.

We hired 219 interns in 2024 and continued our focus on early and mid-level career opportunities. Our conversion rate for interns to full-time roles was 69%.¹

• 13,382: hours leaders spent in voluntary learning and development in 2024

We have partnerships with a wide range of organizations, including Jobs for America’s Graduates (iJAG), Girls Who Invest, Sponsors for Educational Opportunity, the Organization of Latino Actuaries (OLA), the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA), and the International Association of Black Actuaries. These partnerships help us build relationships and educate potential job candidates on the career opportunities available at Principal®.

In 2024, we also piloted a 12-month immersive apprentice program for early career roles, broadening our talent investment among individuals without four-year degrees or experience in financial services. We’re excited by the first few months of the program and look forward to sharing the outcomes after the first cohort completes the program.

In 2024, 96.1% of global employees received a rating as part of an annual performance review process which allows employees and their leaders to reflect on the prior year’s performance, and setting goals for the year ahead.

What’s next

In 2025, our plans include:

• Investing in strategic upskilling of employees in the areas of data and AI literacy
• Implementing new programming to support talent readiness and succession planning health
• Evolving our learning technology and data platforms to improve employee experience and drive better insights into measuring the impact of learning on business results
• Increasing the visibility, accessibility, and global reach of learning programming

To learn more, read the Principal Financial Group 2024 Sustainability Report.

Insurance products issued by Principal National Life Insurance Co (except in NY) and Principal Life Insurance Company®. Plan administrative services offered by Principal Life. Principal Funds, Inc. is distributed by Principal Funds Distributor, Inc. Securities offered through Principal Securities, Inc., member SIPC and/or independent broker/dealers. Referenced companies are members of the Principal Financial Group®, Des Moines, IA 50392.

¹Based on full-time eligibility and offers extended and accepted

Three Points to Remember 

1. Disaster response presents high-stakes, manually intensive and mentally demanding scenarios for responders and management teams.
    
2. C2AI enhances situational awareness, automates processes toward faster decision-making, and optimizes response plans and courses of action.
    
3. Leidos and NVIDIA continue to speed C2AI’s development toward operational fielding as a cutting-edge tool for life-saving capabilities in disaster management.

A loud explosion suddenly sends a routine day into chaos. Within seconds, 911 calls flood in and first responders jump into action. Amid the scramble, a team of AI agents bands together to rapidly pinpoint where an underground gas pipeline has blown, assist in taking assessments of injuries, and create courses of action for human approval to send to police, fire and EMS dispatchers.

This could resemble disaster response in the near future, with command-and-control AI, or C2AI. Serving as nimble eyes and ears for responders and emergency management leaders when stress levels are high and mental and physical capabilities are taxed, C2AI will also help automate flows of crucial information while crunching multiple streams of incoming data to provide situational insights that can lead to more effective decisions.

Leidos and NVIDIA are developing C2AI in a partnership. Through a network of task-specific autonomous agents, C2AI is designed to turn emergency response from a process requiring intense thinking and coordination into a more efficient and automated one rooted in collaboration between humans and AI. Personnel can affirm or tailor the artificial intelligence’s recommended courses of action that are based on “doctrinally sound” FEMA or agency-specific principles, procedures and practices.

“Command and control in disaster management can take time when seconds matter, getting information from 911 operators to the incident commander and determining an action plan,” says Corey Hendricks, VP and chief engineer of Leidos’ Commercial and International Sector. “We’ve created an agentic workflow and removed a lot of the friction points in 911 and emergency management systems.”

AI agents take the cognitive load off emergency response personnel

After the gas explosion, operators at 911 answering points quickly become inundated by distress calls. They tend to panicked callers and juggle monitors and radios, but instead of compiling and relaying information by hand to get aid dispatched, an AI agent helps transcribe the calls to ease their multitasking burden.

When even a split-second loss of attention could put people in harm’s way, the operators stay focused on callers. An AI orchestration agent routes the transcripts to a third agent that parses them to create incident reports. The agent displays the reports back to the operators through chat, with incident locations, injury numbers and their severity.

While this is happening, the AI agent that transcribes incoming calls also listens to first-responder and EMS radios and transmits more crucial details for the orchestration agent, which is coordinating with yet other agents that are flagging and tagging events off municipal video camera feeds. As a building partially collapses in the wake of the blast, these visual alerts agents inform the operators through chat, as well.

“There are cameras located all across most cities, so imagine if you have AI agents monitoring all those camera feeds 24/7,” Hendricks says. “And instead of static image classification, they can do event detection.”

With C2AI stepping in, machine vision can detect what humans might not. And the artificial intelligence can build out the situational awareness picture by correlating what the visual alerts agents pick up on various camera feeds, helping keep track of rapidly changing conditions.

Working C2AI seamlessly into disaster response and action planning

Like a virtual, supplementary workforce, the C2AI agents work synchronously by themselves but always under the supervision of humans. Leidos built the agents using NVIDIA’s foundational speech AI, LLMs and vision-language models to enable natural back-and-forth communication with both each other and humans.

“The intent is to augment operators and for the AI to start building the course of action,” Hendricks says. “We want to help operations center personnel, as well. They are looking at seven or eight screens simultaneously, so making those screens turn red, orange or yellow is a straightforward way to get their attention.”

At the emergency operations center, where the incident commander needs to size up the crisis situation quickly, the visual alerts agents directly patch in what they detect on cameras and color-code the events based on severity. Trained to pick up cues like smoke, structural damage and vehicle crashes, one of the agents displays on-screen: “A building collapse is happening, with debris scattered around. The building has a large hole in its side, but there are no visible signs of fire or individuals exhibiting signs of distress.”

But within seconds, embers appear and the C2AI’s EMS planning agent adjusts the recommended response plan to dispatch a fire truck and requests, “Affirm plan or provide input for revision.” The experienced incident commander, anticipating that a fire will grow, orders an additional fire engine and a ladder truck. Moments later, a new log from the alerts agent comes in, describing the scene: “A fire is spreading rapidly with intense heat and smoke visible through five floors of the building.”

Firefighters en route see the update on their Team Awareness Kit, or TAK, a communications and collaboration application that the Air Force Research Laboratory and Leidos co-developed and is currently fielded to 70,000 DOD, DHS, state and local users. The information helps all emergency vehicle units to be better prepared when they arrive on the scene.

Designing C2AI to run at the tactical edge 

“TAK jumped out at us when we thought about how to integrate C2AI naturally into emergency management workflows because that’s where first responders and personnel are already operating,” Hendricks says.

TAK features location tracking, live video feeds, incident maps and chat functions. With C2AI, descriptive and visual map updates, 911 transcripts and action approvals from commanders will be designed to flow into TAK seamlessly and be seen by all first responders, adding robustness to the common operating picture.

Meanwhile, the EMS planning agent continuously receives updates streaming in about available vehicle units and the conditions of the injured. The agent looks up established doctrine and keeps recommendations optimized and going up the chain to the incident commander, who returns confirmations or further instructions on what to dispatch to ground zero. This results in an efficient loop of command and control that helps save countless lives.

As the emergency management scenario depicts, C2AI stands on a framework of modular and scalable agent building blocks. The agents don’t require knowledge training or retraining since they rely on real-time retrieval of specified documentation when making their decisions, and this allows them to adapt quickly to changes in principles, procedures and practices.

Leidos and NVIDIA are developing C2AI as lightweight microservices that don’t require large computing infrastructures to operate. That means C2AI will be designed to run on servers at the tactical edge for tasks that rely on data processing with almost no delay time. The approach uses NVIDIA’s established AI models that are packaged in containers with the necessary computing resources for streamlined deployment. With the microservices architecture, agencies would be able to add C2AI in pieces and at a pace that fits their operational needs.

Leveraging NVIDIA’s AI hardware, software and Metropolis smart-cities platform has expedited C2AI’s development so far, Hendricks says, and will continue to accelerate it towards fielding and operational use.

C2AI spawned out of a partnership the two companies established earlier this year to operationalize artificial intelligence capabilities faster for government agencies, combining Leidos’ mission expertise and integration experience with NVIDIA’s AI technologies.

“With C2AI, we are focused on applying agentic AI to solve complex problems and augment decision-making in high-consequence situations,” Hendricks says. “In disaster scenarios, let’s reduce the time to critical care.”

More on Leidos AI Capabilities

CHARLOTTE, N.C., November 3, 2025 /3BL/ – California’s San Bernardino City Unified School District (SBCUSD) today announced it has broadened its collaboration with Discovery Education to advance STEAM education across the district. Through this expanded partnership the district has doubled the number of schools using a suite of innovative digital tools that engage students and drive academic achievement. Discovery Education is the maker of essential PreK-12 learning solutions used in classrooms around the world.

Located in the heart of San Bernardino, California, SBCUSD provides a comprehensive education through a diverse array of academic programs and innovative learning pathways serving nearly 50,000 students. Guided by a commitment to equity, safety, and collaboration, SBCUSD’s dedicated educators foster an inclusive environment where every student is encouraged to discover their unique strengths and pursue excellence. The district’s family-centered approach and strong community partnerships empower students to thrive academically and socially, nurturing responsible citizenship and lifelong learning. Through its Vision 2030 initiative, SBCUSD celebrates cultural diversity and invests in creative, resilient teaching practices that prepare students to succeed in school, career, and life.

To support the principles of the Vision 2030 initiative and prepare district students for success beyond graduation, SBCUSD has created a Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) program. SBCUSD’s STEAM program fosters problem solving, inquiry, creativity, and innovation in order to prepare students for both college and career.

To support SBCUSD’s STEAM program, district leaders sought additional digital resources that would engage students in interdisciplinary STEAM learning in new and innovative ways. Following a review of potential solutions, the district moved to integrate Discovery Education Experience into 11 additional schools, bringing the total number of schools in the district using this resource to 21.

The essential companion for engaged classrooms, Discovery Education Experience is a supplemental cross-curricular digital resource that inspires teachers, motivates students, and supports instruction in all academic disciplines. Designed expressly for K-12 schools, Experience delivers all-in-one, ready-to-teach lessons and strategies, exciting career exploration resources, standards-aligned content, and flexible tools for differentiation and assessment. Earlier this year, Discovery Education announced a host of new enhancements to Discovery Education Experience that includes new tools and resources, AI technology, additional career explorations, and more.

Discovery Education Experience will be used alongside two other Discovery Education solutions already used in classrooms across the district: Discovery Education Science Techbook and Mystery Science.

“It’s critical for us to offer students engaging STEAM lessons that connect classroom instruction to the real world and that build the critical skills needed for future success” said Caitlin Arakawa, STEAM Program Specialist at SBCUSD. “We are excited to deepen our partnership with Discovery Education and bring these powerful tools to more classrooms across the district.”

SBCUSD educators using the new solutions from Discovery Education will receive dedicated professional development from the company’s team of professional learning experts. These learning opportunities for teachers help schools recognize the full return on their edtech investment. Through Discovery Education’s interactive professional development sessions, participants will learn best practices for integrating their new digital resources into instruction. Effective professional learning increases student engagement and supports the continued academic development of all students.

In addition, all educators using Discovery Education’s digital resources have access to the Discovery Educator Network or DEN. A global community of education professionals, the DEN connects members across school systems and around the world through social media, virtual conferences, and in-person events, fostering valuable idea sharing and inspiration. Recently, the DEN celebrated 20 years of connecting educators to their most valuable resource: each other. Educators interested in learning more about this powerful professional learning community and joining the DEN can learn more here.

“Discovery Education is proud to support San Bernardino City Unified School District’s work to create a world-class STEAM program,” said Rachel Merten, Discovery Education Account Executive. “The expansion of this long-term partnership will help scale the tremendous work already underway.”

For more information about Discovery Education’s award-winning digital resources and professional learning solutions, visit www.discoveryeducation.com, and stay connected with Discovery Education on social media through LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

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About Discovery Education
Discovery Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art, PreK-12, digital solutions help educators engage all students and support higher academic achievement. Through award-winning multimedia content, instructional supports, and innovative classroom tools that are effective, engaging, and easy to use, Discovery Education helps educators deliver powerful learning experiences. Discovery Education serves approximately 4.5 million educators and 45 million students worldwide, and its resources are accessed in over 100 countries and territories. Through partnerships with districts, states, and trusted organizations, Discovery Education empowers teachers with essential edtech solutions that inspire curiosity, build confidence, and accelerate learning. Learn more at www.discoveryeducation.com.

Contact 
Stephen Wakefield 
Discovery Education 
Phone: 202-316-6615 
Email: swakefield@discoveryed.com

by Liz Peters

In the recent IWBI webcast, From Classrooms to Communities: The Future of Healthy Indoor Air Policy and Advocacy, experts and innovators came together to explore how indoor air quality policy, technology and advocacy are reshaping the built environment, with a focus on the schools, a priority sector for driving action.

“What started as a weekend project spun completely out of control. Eleven years later, here we are.” – Liam Bates, CEO, Co-Founder, Kaiterra, explaining how and why he founded his company, Kaiterra, as a passion project focused on helping people breathe healthier indoor air.

“COVID forced people to understand that the places where we live, work, learn and play isn’t just a tagline–it’s vital for survival and human health.” – Jennifer Berthelot-Jelovic, Client Development Director, BranchPattern, underscoring a paradigm shift in how we think about health and well-being inside our buildings, where research shows people spend 90% of their lives.

“We can get a little more shoulder behind [modernizing our schools] and make sure we don’t miss a generation.” – Mary Filardo, Executive Director, 21st Century School Fund, emphasizing the urgency to make progress across our nation’s school facilities.

“The kids should be more important than screwing your outdoor air shut. We’ve got to figure out how to do better.” – Glenn Wilson, Applied Air Business Development Manager, Daikin Applied, illustrating that some school facilities are not optimizing for health when they should be.

Moderated by Jason Hartke, IWBI’s EVP of External Affairs and Global Advocacy, the session explored how advocacy, policy and technology are converging to make healthy air a reality–from schools to workplaces to community spaces. From cutting-edge IAQ data tools to policies driving investment in healthier learning environments, the discussion highlighted how schools can lead the way–and how public-private collaboration is spreading those benefits into workplaces and communities everywhere.

From personal passion to public impact
For Jennifer Berthelot-Jelovic of BranchPattern, the conversation starts at home. As a mother and longtime sustainability consultant, she’s seen firsthand how awareness can spark action. “When my teenage son turned on the exhaust fan above our gas stove after attending the WELL Healthy Homes Summit,” she shared, “I realized education is everything. We need to bring that same awareness into our schools.”

Standing shoulder to shoulder for schools
Mary Filardo, who founded the 21st Century School Fund more than 30 years ago, reminded everyone that America’s schools are massive and underfunded–and that our policy at all levels of government must match that reality. “Every community makes decisions about the conditions in their schools,” she said. “With the civic, education and industry sectors working together, we can get a little more shoulder behind this and make sure we don’t miss a generation.”

Filardo, the lead author of the next State of Our Schools report, which will be released later this year, shared that the annual gap in school infrastructure investment continues to grow at an alarming rate. She emphasized that while the challenge is seeming more insurmountable, there are significant opportunities to drive proven solutions, saying, “If we were doing [facility spending] smarter, holistically, the gap wouldn’t be so big.”

Innovation with heart
For Liam Bates of Kaiterra, the path to advocacy began with a personal story. When his now-wife’s asthma flared in a polluted city, he wanted to know what was in the air, but he couldn’t find any affordable or accessible ways to measure it. “I took on a small weekend project that spun completely out of control,” he laughed. “Eleven years later, we’re helping people make the invisible visible.”

As a call to action he urged stakeholders to do something, even if they can’t do everything, a great start being measuring. “Imagine if every school in the country had just one [indoor] air quality data point,” he said. “You’d immediately see which buildings are in crisis and which fixes cost nothing at all.”

Doing better by design
Glenn Wilson from Daikin Applied brought a technician’s perspective—and a dose of urgency. “I can’t count how many times I’ve been on a school roof and seen the fresh air dampers screwed shut,” he said, a cost-saving action that compromises proper ventilation by reducing the amount of outdoor air into the building. “Kids should be more important than saving a few dollars. We’ve got to figure out how to do better.”

The path ahead
The conversation returned time and time to the theme that our school facilities, and more importantly, the children, teachers and administrators inside them, are too important to continue to underfund our school infrastructure. To move forward and spark action, the panel called for smarter policy, more creative and scalable funding and cross-sector collaboration.

As Hartke summarized, “We’ve spent decades investing [billions] in energy efficiency. It’s time we invest in health with the same intensity.”

Watch the full webcast.

View original content here.