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Boy, do they know how to get excited about innovation in Barcelona.Many of our corporate members, international partners, and sustainability thought leaders are still recovering from what was an amazing Sustainable Brands global conference launch last week in Spain.In partnership with Quiero Salvar El Mundo Haciendo Marketing, Sustainable Brands ’15 Barcelona — now our third European conference — launched with over 300 attendees and an overwhelming energy, enthusiasm and effort.
STAKEHOLDER TRENDS AND INSIGHTS -
Four years after the launch of its Sustainable Living Plan, Unilever is reporting today that the plan is making an increasingly positive impact on its business in terms of growth, cost efficiency and resilience for the future.
PRESS RELEASE -
Survey uncovers bathroom recycling gap in the United States: the majority of Americans know what items belong in the bin, yet less than half are always dropping them in PR Newswire – ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, NJ (April 30, 2015) – With Earth Day celebrations behind us, Unilever is launching a new program, “Rinse. Recycle. Reimagine.” to remind Americans that when it comes to recycling in the bathroom, it should be Earth Day, every day. In a survey announced today, the new Unilever Bathroom Recycling Index found that while a majority of Americans are aware that empty bath and beauty bottles are recyclable, less than half (34%) report always bringing these items to the bin.
PRESS RELEASE -
A sustainable world is one in which communities, businesses and economies thrive and people live better, fuller lives.AT&T plays a pivotal role by delivering fast, secure and mobile connectivity to everything on the Internet – everywhere, at every moment and on every device.We're working to build smarter energy systems and to help cities and utility companies leverage the Internet of Things to better manage their infrastructures. And we're working with auto manufactures to make driving a vehicle safer and more efficient. All these collaborations use the power of connectivity to better manage resources such as energy, water and fuel and, in the process, help make people's lives better.
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The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) has issued its latest Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report, highlighting advances made during the past year against wide-ranging CSR goals. In particular, Hershey made continued progress through initiatives and programs supporting the company’s work in responsible sourcing, environmental sustainability, ingredient transparency and simple ingredients.
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Atlanta, April 29, 2015Company Working with Partner Organizations to Provide Critical Relief Supplies, Assess Ongoing Recovery Needs The UPS Foundation, the philanthropic arm of UPS (NYSE: UPS), today announced an initial commitment of $500,000 (US) to aid in response and recovery efforts following the devastating earthquake on April 25 in Nepal. The UPS Foundation will contribute a combination of cash and in-kind support to enable the provision of urgent relief supplies as well as potential on-the-ground logistics support for long-term recovery needs.
MARKETING AND COMMS -
Heineken has teamed up with Blippar — the augmented reality smartphone app — to launch a new digital campaign that taps into increasing consumer interest into sustainability and a desire to understand more about the ingredients of beer.To highlight the beer giant’s commitment to buying 50 percent of its main raw materials from sustainable sources by 2020, the “Legendary 7” campaign tells the story of seven farmers from France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands and the UK who produce the sustainable barley and hops used to brew Heineken beer.
NEW METRICS -
Meaningful Brands® – Havas Media Group’s metric of brand strength – is the first global study to show how our quality of life and wellbeing connects with brands at both a human and business level. The study includes 1,000 brands, 300,000 people, 12 industries and 34 countries; and covers the role brands play in our communities and our personal wellbeing, as well as marketplace factors that relate to product performance such as quality and price.
BEHAVIOR CHANGE -
Chipotle has become the first major restaurant chain to announce it will begin serving only food that is free of genetically engineered ingredients, The New York Times reports.Steve Ells, founder and co-chief executive of Chipotle, said this is another step toward the company’s vision of changing the way people think about and eat fast food.“Just because food is served fast doesn’t mean it has to be made with cheap raw ingredients, highly processed with preservatives and fillers and stabilizers and artificial colors and flavors,” he said.
CLEANTECH -
You’re a Chief Executive. Why care about environmental impacts and employee wellbeing if the bottom line is improving? The business logic behind CSR contends that negligence of these issues increases reputational risks. Just as a positive image can endear a brand to consumers, a toxic spill or news of poor labor conditions may threaten its ‘social license to operate’ and worry investors about disruptions to business. History shows reputational damage can quickly translate into financial losses (case in point: the Deepwater Horizon spill.)
PRESS RELEASE -
STRATHAM, N.H.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Timberland, a global leader in the design, engineering and marketing of premium-quality footwear, apparel and accessories, today released its 2014 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) performance data. The report aptly comes out on Earth Day, and shares the brand’s continued commitment to sustainability against four key pillars: service, product, factories and climate.“Timberland has a longstanding commitment to sustainability, which goes well beyond environmental stewardship”
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UPS Relief Link Aid Distribution Video Wins Film Festival AwardAtlanta, April 20, 2015 -- A mini-documentary highlighting how its Relief Link program has fostered more efficient aid distribution at two African refugee camps earned The UPS Foundation, the philanthropic arm of UPS (NYSE: UPS), a win in the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship's (BCCCC) "Corporate Citizenship Film Festival." The annual festival, held as part of the International Corporate Citizenship Conference April 19-21 in Austin, Texas, showcases the good works of companies in areas such as healthcare access, volun
PRESS RELEASE -
Pawtucket, R.I., April 20, 2015 -- Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAS) announced today that it has been named as the second most transparent and responsible company in the U.S., according to the 100 Best Corporate Citizens List for 2015.This is the second time that Hasbro has ranked in the Top 10 and the fourth consecutive year that the Company has ranked in the Top 25.The Company ranked #2 this year, rising 20 spots, in recognition of its stellar performance in seven key areas: environment, climate change, employee relations, human rights, governance, finance, and philanthropy.
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By: Christopher Hall, AVP- Product Marketing, AT&T Mobility
STAKEHOLDER TRENDS AND INSIGHTS -
It’s tough being one of the largest consumer-facing companies as the troika of transparency, sustainability and ethical behavior increasingly challenges a brand’s reputation and social media assures there is no place to hide.
MARKETING AND COMMS -
From economists to politicians, from consumers to scientists, plenty of people agree that the current approach of many businesses is not sustainable.We’ve talked about the sheer obviousness of this point, as have many other thinkers and doers working on this challenge. But when it comes to discussing this with people responsible for key decisions within these companies, it is frankly a bit awkward. Even for consultants like us who are engaged specifically to talk about this stuff, it doesn’t always feel okay to come right out and say it.
NEW METRICS -
General Mills made “significant progress” in 2014 toward its commitment to sustainably source 100 percent of its 10 priority ingredients by 2020, according to the company’s annual Global Responsibility Report.It is furthest along towards the goal of sustainably sourcing 100 percent of two raw materials: palm oil (83 percent) and fiber packaging (99 percent).The 10 ingredients represent more than 50 percent of the company’s annual raw material purchases and cover a broad range of raw materials including oats, wheat, corn, dairy, fiber packaging, cocoa, vanilla, palm oil, sugar cane and sugar beets.
STAKEHOLDER TRENDS AND INSIGHTS -
Almost every company I have known to start down a formal path of sustainable business strategy has had the benefit of a passionate advocate for change.
PRESS RELEASE -
$2.2 billion in sales; $168 million for members; $8 million for outdoor accessToday, leading outdoor retailer REI announced that it is sharing more than ever with the outdoor community through its annual dividend, returning $168 million to its members1. In 2014, 945,000 new members joined the co-op, taking active membership to a high of 5.5 million. The co-op reported record annual revenues of $2.2 billion, a 9.9 percent increase from 2013.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
International fashion brand EILEEN FISHER has announced its new Vision2020 campaign, detailing the strides it plans to take in the next five years to attain 100 percent sustainability in its practices.