Social Impact

Meet Bark Air, an airline that caters exclusively to barkers, AKA dogs. Maybe this inspires a business idea, a way to keep employees content by flying their dogs, or your new career. It is outside the box thinking that we all should consider. @bloombergbusiness

Research from the University of Pittsburgh Katz School of Business published this year states that “Our findings are consistent with employees’ concerns that managers use RTO (return to office mandates) for power grabbing and blaming employees for poor performance. We provide evidence that RTO mandates hurt employee satisfaction but do not improve firm performance.” Karen Mangia, president and chief strategy officer at the Engineered Innovation Group, says she’s found it is that employees want an option of where to be.

@techcrunch

TechCrunch | Working from home isn’t going away, even if some CEOs wish it would

14% of all workers work full-time from home. That is expected to rise to 20% within a year. 58% of all white collar workers want to work from home at minimum a few days a week. @techcrunch

TechCrunch | Working from home isn’t going away, even if some CEOs wish it would

Office policies that are dog friendly boost employee mental wellness. @bloombergbusiness

California is considering language similar to several European countries that punishes employers who contact employees after hours, unless it is for an emergency or scheduling purposes. AB 2751 (2024 | CA), “The Right to Disconnect Act” will permit a fine of $100 per incident. @washingtonpost @entrepreneur

 @bloombergbusiness tells us that globally the hustle culture is dead. So long to always being on and always being in, and say hello to the semblance of a life work balance.

Texas State Senator Brandon Creighton, Chair of the Education Committee, is asking institutions of higher education to answer 5 questions:

• How has your institution ensured that there are no DEI offices or officers on campus, or no individual or organization performing the duties of a DEI office or officer?
• How has your institution worked to ensure that DEI training is not required for staff, students, and faculty?
• How has your institution acted to comply with the provision which prohibits providing preference on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin to an applicant for employment?
• How has your institution worked to ensure diversity statements cannot be considered for hiring or promotion?
• How has your institution been preparing for regular audits to comply with SB 17 that prohibits DEI at institutions of higher education in Texas?

So, you’ve hired new employees. Some of these new employees are being paid more than existing employees. What do high performing employees do when they find out new employees are paid more? they leave and they leave fast. @harvard_business_review

There is. 425% ROI for businesses that provide child care according to a study by @bcg and nonprofit Moms First. @theskimm

Austin’s Icon is printing climate friendly homes that will be the world’s largest 3D-printed neighborhood, a 100-house Austin subdivision, at Wolf Ranch for home giant Lennar. @bloomberggreen

Fast Company has listed the top innovating social impact companies:

• Verizon for bringing service to first responders in even the most extreme circumstances
• United Airlines for investing in the future of fuel
• Gilead Sciences for funding the fight against health disparities
• The Estée Lauder companies for supporting literacy and offering mentorship to at-risk youth in underserved communities
• Stripe for financing cutting-edge climate solutions
• Ikea for creating jobs for refugees and asylum seekers

Fast Company | The most innovative corporate social responsibility companies in 2024

France’s Parliament is moving forward to limit fast fashion by imposing a fee of up to 10 euros, just over SEK 112, per piece of clothing until 2030. @dagens_nyheter

Pay transparency policies have led to employees leaving for higher paid similar positions. “14% of business leaders say employees have left because they saw job postings with higher pay elsewhere, and 11% have seen a job posting within the organization and realized they were being paid less for a similar job.” Humm… so underpaying employees leads to those employees leaving to be paid fairly. shocking. @cnbc

Walmart is training its managers to be more compassionate. “Walmart’s success is possible only if the store managers take care of their workers and the customers and community where they operate.”

New York Times | Walmart Wants to Teach Store Managers Compassion

“Americas Trade and Investment Act, a bipartisan bill aimed at revitalizing America’s textile industry with over $14 billion in incentives to promote circular practices in apparel, footwear, accessories, and home textiles. The bill seeks to reshape US manufacturing by encouraging domestic circular businesses and reshoring manufacturing from China” @thesustainablefashionforum

The Economist is sharing data on how motherhood harms women’s careers. In the United States there is a sharp decline in women’s careers when the first child is born, and their careers do not recover over a 10 year span. @theeconomist

The California Legislature has created a committee to find solutions to make Californians happier. Some of their solutions are big ideas like universal health care and some are small steps like more parks. Why a happiness committee? Because of the ripple effects of happiness which include better mental health and less crime. It seems to me businesses could also use the ripple effect of happier employees. Add a Happiness Committee to your CSR toolkit.

Cal Matters | Lawmakers want to help California be happy

Some states like Nevada have had a couple legislative cycles of women majority Legislatures. Overall, Rutgers’ Center for American Women in Politics says that 10 state legislatures have fewer than 25% women. The fewest women elected officials is throughout the South, e.g. Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Louisiana. Jennifer Lawless, chair of the politics department at the University of Virginia, says voters will elect women but women aren’t running for office.

AP via VOA news | Few Female Lawmakers in US Statehouses

Hiring GenZ employees? Consider meeting them where they are–on social platforms. GenZ workers prioritize like-minded employers. Consider that nearly half of all GenZ workers have refused work for political or ideological reasons. Consider that GenZ requires flexibility. It’s not 1985 anymore. Consider keeping your company’s tech up to date, outmoded tech is a turnoff.

Route Fifty | Catching Zs: 4 ways to tap the incoming wave of young workplace talent

The politicization of the phrase ESG has changed the way we communicate. A list of tips and guidance move communication to terms like sustainable investments, sustainable business, community and leaving the phrase ESG to reporting.

The “Glass Cliff” is a phenomenon when women are hired or promoted to clean up a mess and then get blamed for the mess, especially unfixable messes made by those who preceded her. @ellevest

“Inclusive Local thriving” is a phrase to describe the “positive and equitable outcomes generated when businesses invest locally in diverse workforces, economic prosperity, and community well being.” MIT Sloan School lecturer Kate Isaacs explains how this phrase supports the “… ongoing global geopolitical conflicts spur American businesses to bring work and manufacturing back to U.S. soil.” @MITSloan

Nebraska wants to fund the revitalization of rural grocers. LB1116 (2024 | NE) creates the Grocer Reinvestment Option Act that would set aside $4 million over two fiscal years for rural grocers. Similar legislation has been introduced in Illinois, Minnesota, North Dakota and Oklahoma.

Governing | States Invest to Save Rural Grocery Stores

The Charlotte Tilbury company is the first female founded firm to fund F1. “With this partnership, we will use our global platform to elevate this new generation of fearless young female drivers, and open up the traditionally male-dominated world of motorsport to even more talented young women,” said Tilbury. @charlottetilbury

New word of the day: de-paving. Cities are getting rid of pavement to make room for more wildflower and grass meadows. Not only does green space create cooler air, clean the air, and reduce flooding; green space has also been shown to reduce violence and improve mental health. @goodgoodgoodco

The National Governors Association, has a new initiative called “Disagree Better.” Sounds suspicious? maybe a tad spurious? The current NGA Chair is the Governor of Utah, a Republican, and the Vice-Chair is the Governor of Colorado, a Democrat.  They say 30% of Americans have ended a familial relationship because of polarization of politics. They also say that the elected officials of each party aren’t as far apart as they’re portrayed in the media.

Route Fifty | In an era of divisiness, some politicians are trying to change the tone

Looking for grants to support businesses owned by Black women? Look no further than the 38 programs compiled by Nerdwallet including: HerRise Micro-Grant program, Wish Local Empowerment Program, Innovate Together program, Corporate Counsel Women of Color, and Amber Grant Foundation which is open to all women business owners. @entreprenuer

 Techies are talking about partnerships with state and local governments and higher education. The partnerships help all partners make the most of data to address societal issues, innovate, bettering communities, and restoring trust in government.

Governing | What Could Entrepreneurs and Government Do Together?

A 6 month trial of the 4 day work week in the UK found that 82% of employers saw improved staff morale. @financialtimes

A new book discusses strategies to strengthen the effectiveness of DEI. Culture concepts to consider include: (1) not viewing DEI as charity but rather as a smart business choice; (2) get the buy-in of your middle management – you know the folks who are responsible for converting corporate practices into practicable effect; and (3) stop equating high performance with good management. @MITSloan

A study published in PLOS concludes that “there is merit in journalists shining a light on others’ kindness if people’s affective well-being and belief in the goodness of humanity is to remain intact.” It should also give one pause to the concept of delivering negative business news between positive news, AKA “the shit sandwich,” as in business there is also merit in being kinder.

PLOS | Buffering the effects of bad news: Exposure to others’ kindness alleviates the aversive effects of viewing others’ acts of immorality

Restaurant owners in Austin, Texas are advocating for childcare options for restaurant workers, who typically work nights and weekends. Their goals are to obtain  “another round of nontraditional hour childcare pilots and spearhead state funding.”

@Austin_monthly

Texas Comptroller Press Release discusses J.P. Morgan Asset Management and State Street Global Advisors withdrawal from Climate Action 100+. It also points to BlackRock transferring its signatory to an international arm of the firm. The press release is a good reminder to keep reading until the end… “we heard firms telling Texas one thing but then providing very different and often contradictory information to states like New York or California.” Summary: the eyes continue to watch.

Let’s look at a quick run down of what’s happening with how people are impacting the environment. NYC is considering banning laundry pods and sheets that contain polyvinyl alcohol, also known as PVA or PVOH. @bloombergbusiness New Zealand is set to be one of the few countries to have banned PFAs in cosmetics. @worldeconomicforum

Hellman’s is tackling food waste from the Super Bowl. More than 140,000 pounds of extra food are estimated to be left after official events and stadium snacking. Hellman’s campaign to tackle food waste is in its 4th year at the Super Bowl. The Super Bowl Ad. @goodgoodgoodco

MIT Sloan School created the 3 Ls for building an empathic work culture: Love, Learn, & Listen. Loving informed action + Listen to the experiences of your diverse workforce + Learn about institutionalized and systemic bias and work to correct it. @MITSLOAN

We’ve seen countries in Europe create economic sanctions when employers contact employees during non business hours for non-emergency issues. Add to this, Australia which is passing legislation to allow employees to ignore work calls outside of the workday. @nytimes

Looking for ways to create a sustainable retail supply chain? A new report from Interline surveyed global brands and retailers with revenue under $100 million to over $1 billion. Recommendations include evaluating supply chain through a lens of efficiency, profitability, and then innovation to support long term success. @interline

2023 was the conservative pushback against DEI. 2024 is shaping up as the conservative push for “Women’s Bill of Rights” In West Virginia it looks like HB 5243 (2024 | WV) the bills define women. Opponents say the bill’s are an attack on the trans community. The bills also define “equal” as “not the same” and “not identical” for equality purposes. The bills are making their way through Southern state legislatures.

Alabama Policy Institute

AP | A West Virginia ‘Women’s Bill of Rights’ is an effort to suppress transgender people, critics say

Remember the headlines when twitter came under the ownership of the Big E? Turns out his “hardline “extremely hardcore” employment practices were not well received. Employees left in mass, productivity fell. Happy employees, happy profits.

Fortune | Elon Musk reportedly quizzed Tesla managers on which staff could be fired—the last time he did that it didn’t end well for Twitter employees

Do employee wellness programs work? A new report in the Industrial Relations Journal and a research fellow at the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford says no. It is estimated that the employee wellness market will reach $120B globally by 2032. Some wellness programs have proven effective, like mental health employee wellness programs.

CBC | Do office wellness programs work? A new study suggests they’re not helping staff

33.5% of board seats in S&P 500 companies were held by women at the end of 2023. 29 companies have a 50:50 board ration for women : men. Intercontinental Exchange Inc., owner of the New York Stock Exchange, Hasbro Inc., Paramount Global, American Water Works Co. and Omnicom Group Inc.  have 60% women on their boards. It is estimated that board parity may occur in 2032. Financial Post  Financial Post | Women making boardroom gains, but they’re still a decade away from parity

2024 is being forecasted as a year when new ESG metrics will come into play as more countries (the UK, Canada, Japan, and more) have indicated that they will adopt the International Sustainability Standards Board’s 2023 inaugural voluntary global sustainability disclosure standards. In addition, 2024 will see companies use more discretion in ESG. Remember how we’ve talked about the changing words around ESG?

Harvard School of Law Forum on Corporate Governance | ESG Insights: 10 Things That Should Be Top of Mind in 2024

A new report, The Language of Sustainability, from the UK says consumers don’t understand what businesses mean when talking about their sustainability initiatives. Terms that more than 50% of consumers understand are: net zero, recycling. With 4% of consumers understanding “circular economy” there’s opportunity for improved communication.

Sustainable Brands | Report Highlights Sustainability Language Barrier Between Business, Consumers

Pandora, the world’s largest jeweler, has switched to using only recycled metals in its products. The company says the change will cut 58,000 tons of CO2 annually. That’s equal to roughly 6000 cars driving around the globe. “We are in the industry of selling beautiful things. That is not going to change,” said Lacik.

WSJ’s | Pandora Shifts to Recycled Gold, Silver as It Makes Jewelry More Sustainable

NYTimes | The World’s Biggest Jeweler Now Only Sources Recycled Metals

Meet Banofi Leather, an India based start up, that has developed a means to create “leather” from banana leaves. The leather is sustainable and has a significantly lower environmental impact than animal leather or plastic leather. @aradhana.chatterjee

The United Nations has created a 5 step test for whether information should be shared. (1) Who made the information? (posted, wrote, etc…) (2) What is the information source? (3) Where did the information come from? (4) Why are you sharing this? (5) When was the information published? Who? What? Where? Why? When? @unitednations

 Houston’s oldest no kill shelter has partnered with a youth music non-profit,Wild Tunes. Wild Tunes was created by 10-year-old Yuvannh Agarwal so that young musicians can comfort animals with music. 

Houston Chronicle | Special Pals, Houston’s oldest no-kill shelter, partners with student musicians to comfort animals

A study by the University of Pittsburgh’s Katz Graduate School of Business indicates that return to the office policies do not improve profits and will make workers less satisfied with their employers. @washingtonpost @AdamMGrant

Have a policy that you’re interested in but there’s politically motivated push back? Connecting policy makers with scientists has been shown to improve the effectiveness of policies. So, go out there and make friends with scientists. 

Route Fifty | Connecting researchers and legislators can lead to policies that reflect scientific evidence

Why is corporate responsibility important in today’s economy? Because consumer boycotts have an impact think about Budweiser and its controversial ad campaign or Hulu refusing to air democratic political ads dealing with controversial topics like gun control and abortion. Corporate responsibility begets consumer buy-in.

Forbes | Why Corporate Social Responsibility Should Drive Your Organization

A developer in Sweden is building the largest wood city, Stockholm Wood City. It will be a sustainable urban development covering 250,000 sqm* and creating circular material flows while combatting CO2 emission. @businessbulls.in.   *sqm= square meters, that unit of measurement that the rest of the world uses and that makes logical sense. 

At Davos, IKEA’s Jesper Brodin, CEO of Ingka Group, which owns most IKEA stores worldwide, said “”This is not a year for us to optimise profits. This is a year to try to navigate on a thinner profit, but to make sure that we support people.”

Reuters | Davos 2024: IKEA prices to fall despite Red Sea disruptions, CEO says 

Chicago is toying with city owned grocery stores to address food insecurity. “All Chicagoans deserve to live near convenient, affordable, healthy grocery options,” Mayor Johnson declared earlier this year. He said he wanted to envision “what a municipally owned grocery store in Chicago could look like.”

Governing | Is There a Place for Supermarket Socialism?

Oklahoma’s Governor issued an Executive Order to eliminate Diversity, Equality and Inclusion policies at Oklahoma’s institutions of higher education.

There’s also a public kerfuffle over DEI policies between Elon Muck (opposed) and Mark Cuban (supportive). One yelled “Racist!” The other yelled “liar!” Musk suggested they resolve their difference with a cage fight. WHAT. IS.HAPPENING?!

PBS | Oklahoma is the latest state to target DEI programs. What’s next?

Forbes | Elon Musk Calls Mark Cuban ‘Racist’ Over DEI Support As Feud Continues

There is pending litigation about the use of  ? as a secret indication of a stock “going to the moon.” Sound wacky? Yep. Is it being litigated? Yep, embodies have come up in the drama around dramas over Sam Bankman-Fried, Sam Altman, and more. @theatlantic

Bonjour. “Hugo Boss is backing a new 100 million-euro venture capital fund with Zurich-based Collateral Good to invest in start-ups and technology targeted toward accelerating sustainability in the fashion industry” @WWD

Move over mushrooms and cacti, meet a vegan form of leather made from tea. Turkey is the 5th largest consumer of tea, leaving the country with lots of tea waste for vegan leather making. @was_tea

Gallup’s 2023 Workplace Report indicates that employee satisfaction is falling, a 10% decline this year alone. Just look around this InfoHive, women lawyers are very dissatisfied. Workers in the report cited their reasons for dissatisfaction, including inflation erasing pay gains, the unsettled nature of the workday, and micromanaging employers. Overall employee satisfaction is below 37%. @WSJ

16 of the 20 largest school districts in the US are offering therapy via Telehealth to students. These programs total $70 million in provider contracts. 

AP | Lacking counselors, US schools turn to the booming business of online therapy

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation awarded grant funding to indigenous tribes through its 2023 Culture of Health awards. The grant recipient tribes focused on  agricultural heritage and growing crops tied to the tribes cultural heritage.

Governing | Native American Communities Improve Health by Restoring Their Cultures

The nature of lawyers is that they are overworking, overachievers. According to a Bloomberg Law survey, women and Black, Asian, and Hispanic attorneys will leave their firms in 2024 with forced return to work policies. Why? Because they often work on teams where people don’t look like them and interactions with the team members can cause more harm than good. 92% of women surveyed prefer remote or hybrid work schedule. @bloomberglaw

In 2000, women comprised 10% of corporate boards. In 2023, that number is 30%.

Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance | When Bill Rolls Off: Continuity and Change on Corporate Boards

We’ve talked a lot about sustainable fashion whether through economic policies to promote longevity of clothing, sustainable alternatives to leather, supply chains, but we haven’t talked about innovation and the potential for digital manufacturing that eliminates waste. Let’s add this to our sustainability toolkit. @variant3d

The Interline | Digital Transformation – The Solution To Sustainable Fashion

A Japanese company awarded its nonsmoking employees 6 extra vacation days to compensate for the smoke breaks of smoking employees. New York Times

Ferrari CEO says the company is committed to being carbon neutral by 2030. The CEO is a man of science, a physicist. Makes me wonder how many CEOs have science backgrounds? Does that change corporate policies? @bloombergbusiness

Looking for a toolkit to tie a company’s  positive impact on society and the planet beyond profit? Well, look no further than these 15 maxims that include reward behavior that supports the company’s key virtues and build a foundation on values and authenticity.

Forbes | 15 Coaches On How To Tie ‘Impact Beyond Profit’ Into A Business Model

A new study from BlackRock shows that a greater gender balance leads to above average profitability. In lay person speak- more gender parity, more profit. @worldeconomicforum

Bye Bye self check outs. We’ve talked about Nordic retailers who have installed check out lines that allow for long conversations so as to help people who crave conversation. Now we have UK retailer Booths and US retailers Walmart, Costco, Wegmans, and others revamping self checkout strategies. Self check outs aren’t hits with customers either as they tend to be slower and unreliable. @NYTimes

“A new report released Tuesday by Scoop, a hybrid work management startup that also compiles the data set Flex Index, includes an analysis of remote work policies and revenue growth at 554 public companies done in partnership with the Boston Consulting Group.” These public companies revenue growth outperformed over the last 3 years by 16%, compared to companies with restrictive remote work policies. @forbes

How many Americans support political violence heading into the 2024 presidential election? 23%      In 2021, support for political violence was 15% according to the Public Religion Research Institute@npr

NPR | 23% of Americans support political violence ahead of the 2024 election, survey shows

A new study by USC’s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found that Hispanic/Latino representation in front of the camera & behind has not improved in 16 years. The study covered more than 62,000 speaking characters in film. @deadline

What happens when companies start getting real and adopt a 4 day work week? Employees are happier, more productive, less anxiety, less burnout, less absenteeism, and more revenue for the company.

@voxdotcom

14 state Supreme Courts have majority women justices. 19th

US Supreme Court Justice Alito said that Dobbs overturning Roe left the issue to voters. Abortion rights supporters have an unbroken streak of 7 statewide initiatives that have passed since Dobbs. On November 7th, voters are said to have voted to support a woman’s right to choose by (1) supporting Ohio’s constitutional amendment supporting a woman’s right to choose (2) re-electing Democrats to the Virginia Senate preventing an abortion ban (3) re-electing Kentucky’s Democratic Governor (4) Pennsylvania voters maintaining a state Supreme Court led by a majority of Democrats. Isaac Newton and physics predicted this- every action has an equal and opposite reaction.

Governing | Abortion Rights Ratified by Tuesday’s Election Results

Governing | Voters Reject Taxes, Embrace Ranked-Choice Voting Through Ballot Measures

Mike Carter spent 12 years in prison. He is now the top pizzaiolo | executive chef at Down North Pizza in Philadelphia. “Down North Pizza, which also offers housing above the restaurant to employees, as well as pro bono legal services. “We focus on humanizing individuals, and allowing people to see that they should not be defined by a mistake they made.”’ @washingtonpost

Gucci unveiled its first plant based bag with Billie Eilish, a supporter of animal rights and environmental issues. Gucci previously released a plant based sneaker. Consistency in messaging for a win. @diet_prada

  MIT Sloan school proposes looking beyond traditional metrics to increase diversity. If you keep it in a old school spreadsheet, it is likely both a buzz killer and a way to exhaust your eyesight. Instead look to intentionally welcome diverse workers, integrate them fully into the organization, and adopt ongoing methods to sustain them.

“They must be purposely supplied with the same or equalizing information, connections, skills, projects, and support that are provided to others within the organization. Inequalities must be recognized, and intervening actions must be devised to nudge these conditions in a manner that creates equality and inclusivity. Companies that win at diversity design processes that are advantageous and level the playing field for everyone.”

MIT Sloan School | To increase workforce diversity, focus on these 10 opportunities

How do you recruit and retain Gen Z workers? You change how you talk about your company and job positions. Focus on purpose and missions. Change how you market open positions by forgoing traditional recruitment practices. Use social media. Develop partnerships with universities and non profits. Hear their ideas. See them as people. Adopt collaborative practices.  (you should probably doing this for all your staff) 

Governing | How Local Government Can Recruit and Retain the Gen Z Workforce

“With more than 50% of GDP moderately or highly dependent on nature and its services, its profile at Climate Week was an opportunity to recalibrate the focus on mitigation alone and included the launch of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) framework.” – Amy Brachio, Global Vice Chair, Sustainability at EY

General Mills and Walmart announced a partnership this week to improve regenerative agriculture. The goal is to advance regenerative agriculture across 600,000 acres of US soil by 2030. Walmart says sustainability is at the core of their future projects & has adopted net zero by 2040.

Sustainability | Walmart and General Mills build a sustainable food supply

Philadelphia’s mayor signed an Executive Order 6-23 to commit the City to annual racial equity action planning, budgeting for racial equity, and public reporting. The 4 step plan is transferrable to companies. It calls for adding a Racial Equity Manager  in each department, department & overall racial equity performance measures, establishing a Racial Equity Community of Practice, and annual racial equity action planning and budgeting for racial equity .

 North Carolina’s Governor created its Environmental Justice and Equity Advisory Board by Executive Order. But who is to say that an Environmental Justice and Equity Advisory Board isn’t also a good tool for the business world? Businesses need to show cumulative impact across operations to supply chain to to Human Resources.

Governing | Gov. Cooper Wants Environmental Board for ‘Whole Government’

Need data to support that inclusion improves your bottom line? Here’s 10 sources. ” “Inclusion ends up boosting both your top line and bottom line.”Harvard Business Review.

Think about pollinators. Does your client have outdoor access that can include native plants?By enhancing biodiversity through native plants and pollinator conservation, you can offer your community a range of economic and environmental benefits. Or, support your city’s participation in Bee City USA program. So many options out there. Be creative. 

Route Fifty |  Communities boost climate resilience by protecting pollinators

Marin County, California has reconfigured its tax revenue to create a social impact grant program. The Food, Agriculture and Resilient Ecosystems program is open to projects that serve specific metrics related to objectives on farming, the climate and natural resources. The overarching goal is prioritize community.

Governing | Marin County Opens Social Equity Program Applications

 I always think of fair trade products as products from countries outside the USA. A pleasant surprise that we have a Fair Trade USA. It focuses on labor wellness and sustainability, as well as product sustainability and resiliency, that supports global supply chain sustainability and resilience. Fair Trade USA talks about its partnerships with Whole Foods and Costco and others here: 

The Packer | ‘Ethically sourced produce is having its moment,’ says Fair Trade USA’s Paul Rice

According to @ellevest for every $1 invested in women founded companies, that $1 generates 78 cents. For companies found by men it is 31 cents.

Bonjour, Link Health. Link Health is partnering with Houston, Texas area health systems to bring connectivity to the health sector with home based broadband access. Funding was made available through the The Affordable Connectivity Program that helps households afford the broadband they need for work, school, and health care.

Community Impact | Nonprofit to provide free, reduced-price internet in Montgomery County

26 new chemicals found in everyday beauty products will be banned in California effective 2027  thanks to Assembly Bill 496 . This ban will most likely remove the chemicals from products sold throughout the U.S. In 2020 California became the 1st state in the nation to ban 20 chemicals in personal care products effective January 1, 2025.

CalMAtters | California bans cosmetics chemicals, following EU (again)

This October BlackRock rolled out a Climate Transition-Oriented Private Debt Fund for investing in the transition to net-zero emissions. The intent is to focus on a broad portfolio of companies while staying in compliance with the Securities and Exchange Commission’s updated “Names Rule.”

Utility Dive | New BlackRock fund targets companies transitioning to net zero emissions

What does “sustainable consumption and production mean?” “responsible use of goods and services, emphasizing minimizing natural resources, toxic materials, and waste emissions throughout their life cycles. By adhering to SCP principles, societies can thrive without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their needs.” The Impact Investor

Meet the software that combines artificial intelligence with impact reporting and storytelling: Impact Edge™ by Blackbaud.

Wondering how your business can support non-profits? (1) fundraise for a non-profit’s event (like a walk or a run or bakeathon) (2) become a sponsor of the non-profit (3) direct donations from the business and/or a payroll giving program.

Business Leader | CSR: The role of businesses in the wider community

Is corporate social responsibility a new thing? Ummm. Nope. American economist Howard Bowen coined the term in the 1950s. Allow me to introduce you to Howard Bowen’s 1953 book Social Responsibilities of the Businessman.

Business Leader | CSR: The role of businesses in the wider community

22% of shoppers care where their products come from & 17% want to know brand sustainability initiatives. 45% of consumers are willing to pay a premium. What does this mean? The socially conscious consumer isn’t going anywhere & price isn’t the sole reason for purchases.

Entrepreneur | How to Market to the Increasingly Socially Conscious Customer

 September means that it is time for New York Fashion Week, then London, Milan and Paris. I’m sure there are more fashion weeks, but those fill up September. At Milan Fashion week, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation Award for Circular Economy at the CNMI Sustainable Fashion Awards saw Gucci take the top award. Gucci had/has a denim campaign featuring regeneratively grown cotton with post-consumer recycled fibre. Some say fashion isn’t circular yet with sustainable production, repair, and care. I say we’re getting there and that should be celebrated.  Recognize the journey.

Vogue Business | The problem with fashion’s sustainability awards

The EU is introducing us to CSRD, Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive. We’re essentially talking about sunshine and transparency. So, those in the U.S. should take note that we will  see  this trend too. Spy east is CSRD? It involves set criteria and metrics and 3rd party verification (auditing) to “reduce economic systemic risks, increase capital flow to socially and environmentally responsible companies, and empower civil society and trade unions in holding companies accountable for their societal and environmental impact.”

FinTech Global | Assurance and CSRD: The roadmap to transparent sustainability reporting

 Need a guide to talking about your company’s (or non-profits) impact?  Look no further than Stanford Social Innovation Review’s How to Tell Real Stories About Impact . Here’s a hint from them: talk about “a problem to be solved, action rising to a climax as characters navigate obstacles and opportunities, and, finally, a resolution and a moral.”

52% of employees who left their job say that their managers could have done something to retain them. Great managers retain employees. The takeaway? Ensure managers are trained to be great. @gallup