Walking the Talk
These companies have moved beyond pledges and are making good on their commitments to pursuing a purpose beyond profit.
Why Take a Duck to CES? How Tech Is Helping Aflac Put Purpose Into Practice
Nested between smart mirrors, driverless cars, and paper-thin TVs, a little duck fluffed its feathers, awaiting its big debut. Unlike most of the 3,900+ products at the crowded cultural phenomenon that is the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the duck was not for sale. No matter: the response from attendees was remarkable.
How a ‘People Dam’ Helped Save a Regional Community in Japan
Naruto City, on the northeast tip of Tokushima Prefecture — Shikoku, Japan. The Naruto Strait’s whirling tides are popular with tourists, but in recent years the region, like many others, has struggled to cope with the exodus of people and industry to urban areas.
Walking the Talk
Hundreds of companies around the world have taken it upon themselves to set often-ambitious goals for themselves, in order to monitor and hold themselves accountable for their impacts on the planet and society. Here, we highlight those that have moved beyond pledges, and are demonstrating that progress by walking their sustainability talk and making good on their commitments to purpose beyond profit.
Turn Any Venture Into a Brand — by Caring Deeply About a Mutual Cause
This is an excerpt from Fabian Geyrhalter’s upcoming book, Bigger Than This: How to Turn Any Venture Into an Admired Brand. One of eight traits discussed in Bigger Than This is ‘cause,’ which we dive into here …
Tech, Oil, Auto Industries Top 2018 Global 100 Index of Sustainable Corporations
Corporate Knights has released its 14th annual Global 100 list of the most sustainable corporations in the world. Global 100 companies were selected from a pool of 5,994 publicly listed companies representing 22 countries and encompassing all sectors of the economy. Each was evaluated on a set of up to 17 environmental, social and governance indicators relative to their industry peers using publicly available information.
Trending: New Apparel Industry Commitments Push New Textiles Economy Forward
Fashion and textile industry heavy-hitters are heeding the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s recent call for a New Textiles Economy with the rollout of new agreements and action plans that consider the full life cycle of garments.
MLK’s Triple Bottom Line: The Length, Breadth and Height of a Complete Life and Business
Sixty-four years ago, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his first sermon at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. We named our son Dexter with this in mind.
Newsweek Names L’Oréal, Unilever, CVS 2017's Top Corporate Sustainability Performers
Newsweek has released the results of its 2017 Global 500 Green Rankings, an annual assessment of the sustainability performance of the largest publicly-traded companies in the US and the world by revenue. This year, beauty giant L’Oréal came out on top, ranking as the top-performing global company and best performing personal products company.
PyeongChang 2018 Olympics Committee Launches Sustainability Report, Carbon Credit Campaign
With only a few short weeks left to go before the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, the PyeongChang Organizing Committee has unveiled details of the measures being taken to ensure the sustainability of this year’s event.
US Corporate Voices Critical to Saving the Clean Power Plan
Despite the withdrawal of the US government from the Paris Agreement, many US businesses remain unwavering in their commitment to act on climate change. 2017 was a solid year for corporate climate leadership: 1,700 businesses signed the We Are Still In declaration and nearly half of Fortune 500 companies now have climate and clean energy goals.
Finding Local Solutions to Local Challenges: Contributing to Communities the Otsuka Group Way
Pinpoint specific local issues. Promote sustainable local development. Pave the way for caring and productive corporate growth. That’s how Japan’s Otsuka group of companies seeks to shape its role as an essential company for society.
2 Ways to Tie Your Sustainability Path to a Broader Movement
Sustainability matters, but why does it matter to your business? The vinyl industry began our sustainability journey with the recognition that meeting the needs of a fast-growing population will demand much more of the earth’s natural resources, and we wanted to be prepared to address this challenge. As a result, doing more with less is essential to the way we manufacture and market our products.
Tech Giants Dominate 2017 JUST 100 List of Top Corporate Citizens
JUST Capital, a nonprofit research organization, and Forbes have released the 2017 edition of the JUST 100 List, which ranks publicly traded companies in the US on their performance to act on the priorities of the public.
Patagonia Blacks Out Homepage, Calls on Consumers to Protect Public Lands
Outdoor retailer Patagonia is no stranger to throwing its weight behind worthy causes, particularly those aligned with its mission to “use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.” In the past, this has included shuttering its doors on Election Day to highlight pressing environmental issues, donating 100 percent of its Black Friday sales to environmental organizations, calling for a boycott of the Outdoor Retailer
Third Year of REI's #OptOutside Movement Gives the Power to the People
With the launch of its #OptOutside campaign in 2015, REI set a new precedent in retail, shuttering its stores on Thanksgiving and Black Friday, giving its employees a paid day off and – on a day that has come to represent consumerism at its most extreme – encouraging staff and consumers alike to forgo the shopping frenzy in favor of the great outdoors. The move epitomized the company’s ethos and kickstarted a movement to drive positive behavior change and impacts.
UPS Ramps Up Use of Renewable Natural Gas to Deliver on 2025 Sustainability Goals
UPS is ramping up its use of renewable natural gas (RNG), signing a new agreement with Big Ox Energy, a subsidiary of Environmental Energy Capital (LLC), to purchase 10 million gallon equivalents of RNG per year until 2024 — the largest investment in RNG to date for the company. Compared to convention diesel, RNG yields up to a 90 percent reduction in lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions.
'Mizu to Ikiru': Suntory’s Commitment to Society
This post has been translated from Japanese — read the original interview here.
Microsoft Commits to Cutting Operational Carbon Emissions by 75% by 2030
Taking the next step in its carbon neutral journey, Microsoft has pledged to reduce its operational carbon emissions by 75 percent by 2030 against a 2013 baseline. In a blog a post written by Microsoft President and Chief Legal Officer, Brad Smith, the move will translate to savings of 10 million metric tons of carbon over the next decade. The commitment puts Microsoft on a path to meet the below 2 degrees Celsius goal set in the Paris Agreement.
Report Reveals Tech Industry Giants Failing to Keep Child Labor Out of Cobalt Supply Chains
Cobalt is back in the news, as a new report from Amnesty International reveals that tech industry giants such as Microsoft, Lenovo, Renault and Vodafone aren’t doing enough to keep child labor out of cobalt battery supply chains in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and China.
P&G: Aiming for the ‘Sweet Spot’ Between Sustainability and Strategy
News Deeply, in partnership with Sustainable Brands, has produced a series of profiles looking at how brands are tackling some of the world’s biggest challenges. The goal is to examine trends and gather insights from a new wave of corporate citizenship — in an era when the private sector is increasingly expected to play a positive role in improving our lives and societies. This is the 14th article in the series.
