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Kohler Co. has been presented with a 2018 Mahatma Award for Social Good for its “Innovation for Good” (IfG) efforts. Laura Kohler, Senior Vice President-Human Resources, Stewardship & Sustainability for Kohler Co., accepted the award on behalf of IfG and Kohler Co. in New York City during the recently held UN General Assembly.
The Mahatma Awards for Social Good spotlight changemakers and are awarded annually to individuals or organizations committed to addressing complex social issues like safe water, sanitation, disease, poverty and hunger.
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Throughout October Stanley Black & Decker will host activities that aim to inspire the next-generation of makers and creators
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The past few weeks have seen a flurry of big announcements and commitments regarding increasing sustainability in a variety of areas, including overhauling our broken food system: Two weeks ago, at the Global Climate Action Summit, FoodShot Global launched a new investment platform aimed at accelerating food system transformation through a “Moonshots for Better Food” challenge to startups working to create a healthier, more sustainable and more equitable food system worldwide; while earlier this week at Climate Week NYC,
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This summer, whilst working in Barbados, I got my hands on an old drum set and learnt how to play the classic four-on-the-floor disco beat. It felt great to (just about) crack something so quickly, partly because it makes a nice change from the day job — building ethical brands, which takes a lot longer than a couple of weeks.
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The Indonesian Network of the United Nations Global Compact today announced a partnership between Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) and Martha Tilaar Group (MTG) — a leading Indonesian manufacturer of cosmetics and herbal medicine — to train 1,000 women from forest communities to help preserve herbal plants and become self-sufficient entrepreneurs.
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Note: This article was written by Mona Farah is head of Strategic Initiatives for EMEA, MEE & Greater China at SAP and Jennifer Beason, head of Communications for Corporate Social Responsibility at SAP. It originally appeared on the company's sustainability newsroom.
Social Enterprise Academy provides high-quality and accessible learning and development opportunities to support people and organizations enabling social change in Scotland and across the globe.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
The milkman is making a come back.
In a dozen or so communities around the U.S., dairy trucks sporting happy cows and nostalgic farm scenes are showing up at doorsteps to drop off fresh milk, cream, butter and eggs.
Is that a sustainable strategy? And what does it do to promote sustainability?
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The Smart Cities for All global initiative, a collaboration of G3ict and World Enabled, two nonprofits with a history of leadership in inclusive, accessible design, to launch a new project, Inclusive Innovation for Smarter Cities.
The project is convening leaders from government, industry, and disability organizations to generate new knowledge and tools that define how urban innovation ecosystems, including entrepreneurs, developers, incubators, and accelerators, can create more inclusive apps and technology solutions that impact the lives of all people in cities, including persons with disabilities and older persons.
WALKING THE TALK -
London’s Heathrow International Airport has chosen the winners of its inaugural Centre of Excellence Sustainable Innovation Prize, which were judged as the best solutions to some of the sustainability challenges facing airports and the aviation industry more widely.
Launched in January, the competition challenged entrants to focus on three areas as part of Heathrow’s Centre of Excellence for Sustainability work:
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Sixty percent of small businesses nationwide are planning to grow their businesses over the next five years*. Mastercard and Bank of America want to help them do just that with the launch of the second annual Grow Your Biz Contest, a call to action for small business owners from across the country to pitch their business for the opportunity to win $25k and business consultation with industry experts.**
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VTT — the Technical Research Centre of Finland — is helping to solve the global plastic waste problem with a project called PlastBug, a mobile container unit that removes plastic waste from ocean areas and converts it into material for other uses.
"Our idea is to design a mobile container where microbes degrade plastic waste to valuable products like fuels or chemicals," says Kari Koivuranta, Principal Scientist at VTT.
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Access to safe drinking water and sanitation is everyone’s right. Just like the right to liberty or the right to a fair public hearing. There’s not a drop of difference.
But in the real world, it doesn’t always work that way. This isn’t down to a lack of effort. Every year, billions of dollars are ploughed into projects to improve water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services – many of which are exemplary.
Yet, progress remains stubbornly slow. Clearly, some fresh thinking and new ways of working are needed. But where to look?
Enter the impact entrepreneurs
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Is your grocery store’s meat aisle becoming obsolete? If it’s started carrying Beyond Burgers and sausages, it might be.
That’s not because meat as we know it — the kind made from animals — is disappearing (at least not yet). Rather, the credit (or blame) goes to entrepreneurs such as Beyond Meat’s Ethan Brown, who argues convincingly that “protein aisle” is not only the more accurate way to describe the offerings there, but also the best location for his own Beyond Burger, a “muscle” made from peas that is so succulent and juicy you’d swear it came from a cow.
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The Kubota tractor parked out front is the first tip-off that Michael Crooke is not your typical executive. While other startup founders might sport a Tesla, Crooke’s home office in Ojai is a far cry from Silicon Valley. Step over the welcome mat with the Pearl Izumi mark, look up at the Patagonia surfboard in the rafters, and you realize this little converted garden shed is like a history lesson in Crooke’s path from Navy SEAL to being a leading figure in sustainable business.
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Chipotle Mexican Grill announced this week that the Chipotle Cultivate Foundation will sponsor the first Chipotle Aluminaries Project, a seven-month-long accelerator program designed to help growth-stage ventures with a shared vision to cultivate a better world take their businesses to the next level.
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Earlier this month, adidas by Stella McCartney launched its Fall/Winter 2018 sustainable women’s activewear collection, paying tribute to the power of nature. Designed to equip female athletes whatever the weather, the animal-inspired pieces serve as a reminder that everyone can do their part to protect the world around them. The campaign features supermodel Ming Xi as its new global ambassador who is charged with bringing the brand’s continued mission of LESS IMPACT = MORE POWER to life.
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Serial entrepreneur David Yeung wants billions of consumers to join him on a quest to transform Asian cuisine into a leaner, healthier, more environmentally friendly version. And his latest venture, Omnipork, may just be the product that brings people along on the journey.
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The first #sheinnovates Girls’ Lounge in Africa is opening at the SAP Next-Gen Lab location at the University of Cape Town (UCT) in South Africa.
The launch of #sheinnovates Girls’ Lounge at UCT coincides with the #sheinnovates Festival taking place today at Startupbootcamp AfriTech.
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My first problem with so many people focusing on “thought leadership” is the myriad of people (and organizations) who confer the title on themselves — rather than understanding that, to be a thought leader, one must be considered such by others.
But my bigger problem with the concept is that, in my opinion, it focuses too much on the individual and fails to recognize, appreciate and encourage what I call ‘collaborative co-creation,’ where more than one person comes together to create something greater than they could have alone.
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FoodBytes! — the global pitch competition/networking event by Rabobank, a premier global food and agribusiness bank, has announced the 20 food and ag startups that will get a chance to pitch their ideas at the inaugural FoodBytes! London in September.