Social Impact

The 2023 KPMG Winter Consumer Pulse Survey asked consumers about sustainability. Here’s what they found about consumers when making a purchase: 37% consider environmental sustainability, 33% consider social responsibility. The younger the consumer, the more serious they are about environmental sustainability.

Business of retail | Do consumers care about sustainability and responsibility?

4 social impact trends to watch in 2023: (1) companies tackling social issues will become commonplace (2) social impact structure is necessary and can be effectuated with social impact teams to drive employee engagement (3) gender diversity will rise (4) maintain your social impact data

Forbes | 4 Critical DEI Trends To Watch In 2023

Ever wonder what diversity, equality and inclusion metrics your company needs? Look to Intrepid Travel, an Australian based travel tour company. It is established 5 commitments and 23 measurable like 50% of its content partners will be BIPOC, 10% plus size, 10% LGBTQ, and 10% indigenous. What matters to your company?

Fast Company | The 10 most innovative corporate social responsibility initiatives of 2023

Ally Financial is committed to investing its ad dollars equally in men’s and women’s sports. Gone are the days of only sponsoring a baseball team. It’s said Ally’s support moved the women’s professional soccer league finals to primetime instead of noon.

Fast Company | The 10 most innovative corporate social responsibility initiatives of 2023

Meet Yelp! We all know Yelp. Did you know that Yelp vocally announced support for its employees that need to secure reproductive healthcare services? And that Yelp actively removes disinformation that could send a person to a crisis pregnancy center rather than an abortion clinic? Yelp adds disclaimers for entities that do not provide abortion services or abortion referrals. Yelps handling of reproduction access has been an example for other corporations.

Fast Company | The 10 most innovative corporate social responsibility initiatives of 2023

Some resists DEI because it is a “Status Threat” These people are in the majority and see DEI as a threat to their majority status. They think in zero sum terms. Any gains by minorities equal losses by the majority.

Merit Threat resistors see DEI explains away their own success. Here we see people who are “strongly committed to value systems that prize hard work and individual merit.”

Moral Threat resistors see acknowledging privilege means you are tarnishing your own moral image.

Recommendations to counter these threats include (1) reduce status threats before offering evidence of inequity; (2) focus on “win-win” aspects of DEI; (3) self-affirmation to foster positive self esteem to accept what otherwise might seem threatening.

Harvard Business Review | To Overcome Resistance to DEI, Understand What’s Driving It

42% of millennials would change financial institutions for one that is more engaged with charitable giving. A new study is a roadmap for financial institutions and the next generations.

Credit Union Times | “The Credit Card Pull: How to Attract the Next Generation of Members”

A business’ social impact is thought of either as a tenant of the company or as interwoven into the company’s identity/purpose/brand. Some say the Business Roundtable 2019 Statement of Purpose that calls for companies “to lead their companies for the benefit of all stakeholders—customers, employees, suppliers, communities, and shareholders” requires social impact to be in modern business’ brand.

CSR Wire | 7 Best Practices for Creating an Impactful CSR Strategy

In December 2020, Utah adopted a Compact on racial equity, inclusion and diversity for the purpose of “hope was that the compact would serve as a model nationwide and be applied at the federal level to guide reform around systemic racism. The first of five anti-racist principles was acknowledging that racism exists.” Signatories included business leaders, non-profit leadership, and state officials including Utah’s Governor.

Home Depot announced that it will spend $1 Billion to raise its wages to a minimum of $15 an hour. “The most important investment we can make is in our people,” CEO Ted Decker said.

NPR | The Home Depot says it is spending $1 billion to raise its starting wage to $15

Most clicks: Amazon had 1.3 billion impressions. The takeaway: lovable dogs generate clicks. Most mentions: Disney+ with 1,900 mentions across social media. Engagement winner: Doritos with its nearly 2 million engagements for the brand.

TEV.REV | Super Bowl Spotlight: These Brands Had the Biggest Social Impact 

Subway is partnering with  GenZ EV Solutions to offer customers the ability to charge their EVs while they eat.

Subway has a corporate history of embracing environmental policies. In 2011 they ” opened new “eco-restaurants” designed to reduce energy and water consumption while limiting waste.” Then in 2012, they “offered “Live Green” salad bowls in 2012 made from 95% recycled materials.”

Electrek | Subway builds an ‘EV charging oasis’ so you can recharge while you eat fresh

Utah has passed a ban on LGBTQ conversion therapy. “This is politics at its very best when stakeholders from all sides can come together, listen to each other, learn from each other and then discover common ground. “

WRAL News | Legislature bans LGBTQ conversion therapy

The NBA All-Star game purpose is to show the NBA’s commitment to unifying communities through service, philanthropy and the game of basketball. Their impact is targeting youth, education, food insecurity, economic inclusion, and  Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Total NBA tied donations to the All Star host community will be over $3million.

NBA | NBA All-Star connects entertainment with a commitment to social impact

The future is coming and it is bringing sustainable champagne. Labeling on Champagne (the bubbles from France) help guide the way.  AB on a label tells you that the vintner is following organic farming practices. “Terra Vitis” on a a label is a French agricultural certification for sustainable viticulture. More French standards for sustainability are “Viticulture Durable en Champagne“(VDC) and the Haute Valeur Environnementale (HVE). 

Vogue | Champagne Problems: Can Bubbly Ever Be Sustainable?

NielsenIQ reports that 78% of US consumers say “a sustainable lifestyle is important to them.”

In 2020, a McKinsey US consumer sentiment survey showed that 60% of respondents said they would pay more for a product with sustainable packaging.

“McKinsey released a new study on Feb. 6, titled “Consumers care about sustainability—and back it up with their wallets.” This study concluded that ESG-related products achieved disproportionate growth than non-ESG-related products. Furthermore, the study revealed that consumers of ESG-related products are more loyal to ESG brands than non-ESG brands.”

Tallahassee Democrat | ESG is not “woke” capitalism; it is just capitalism | Mark McNees

Interested in history of value driven businesses? Well, lucky you Harvard Magazine has the information for you. Professor Geoffrey Jones has a book for you: , Deeply Responsible Business: A Global History of Values-Driven Leadership . The calls we’re seeing now for corporations to participate in saving society also occurred in the 1920s. Yes, the Roaring 20s roared to support corporate responsibility.

Harvard Magazine | A Higher Degree of Responsibility

Harvard Business Review is telling us that empirical data shows that pay transparency requirements can lead to overall lowered pay, lower productivity, and limit the ability to attract & retain high achievers. They say how the transparency requirements are structured matters.

@harvard_business_review

Ever wonder how these 2 terms fit together? sure there is sustainability in ESG, but sustainability is bigger, bolder, broader.

Let’s consider this view of sustainability brought to us from MIT’s Sloan School Management Review: “Sustainability is a much broader idea, focusing on a company’s role in society, how it creates value by managing its environmental and social impacts (both positive and negative), and how its actions affect a wide range of stakeholders.”

MIT Sloan School | ESG Is Going to Have a Rocky 2023. Sustainability Will Be Just Fine.

88% of employees want to work for a purpose driven company. 69% say they wouldn’t work for a company that didn’t have a social purpose driven. When you think about those stats, Top Down isn’t the right approach, but rather start your corporate social responsibility with your employees and work your way up.

Fast Company | How to reimagine corporate social responsibility from the bottom up

Colorado is a considering H23-1020 (2023 |CO) that would improve social equity among cannabis businesses by providing funding and assistance with permitting.

Some scientists are saying that sheep that can graze among solar panels will have respite from heat, more rest, and high nutrition grass growing in the shade under the panels. Agrivoltaic farms, partnerships that think outside the box.

New Scientist | Putting solar panels in grazing fields is good for sheep

@good

Colorado Governor awards a Corporate Citizen Medal to corporations that step up for their communities. A recent example is the 143 year old company, Ball Corp. The name might sound familiar as Ball Corp. has its name on the stadiums for the Avalanche and the Nuggets, stepped up with volunteers and relief when its community experienced a devastating fire.

Denver Gazette | Governor’s Corporate Citizenship Medal: Ball Corp. steps up for Marshall fire victims

Who should pay for the cost of recycling packaging? In Washington State HB 1131(2023| WA) shifts the cost of recycling packaging materials on the entity that packaged the good. Like chip bags or water bottles. This idea of responsible packaging decision legislation isn’t that off the wall. Maine, Colorado, Oregon, and California have enacted legislation. Tennessee is poised to also consider legislation.

Key messaging: producer responsibility.

Route Fifty | A New Bill in Washington State Seeks to Reduce Unneeded Packaging

Harvard Business Review poses this question- How good is offering meditation time for stressed managers when their teams are chronically understaffed and/or underpaid and/or undervalued? Micro solutions like meditation are important. Equally important is solving for organizational deficiencies.

Blackrock, Bank of America, and State Street CEOs talked about the vilification of ESG at Davos. Let’s look at some industry quotes from the events:

“Let politicians punch it out between themselves; we’re focused on finance,” said Elysabeth Alsano, CEO of VegTech Invest

official global standards on sustainability and climate were needed to “align capitalism with what society wants from it,” – Bank of America CEO

“The attacks are now personal. They are trying to demonize issues.”  – Blackrock CEO

ETF Stream | BlackRock, State Street CEOs highlight ESG backlash at Davos

Atlanta created 22 miles of park land and trails along a defunct rail loop around the city. Sounds great- more parkland and then you realize that it drives up property values and forces low-income households to move to the suburbs. A lesson in thinking both short term and long term.

Route Fifty | Atlanta’s BeltLine Shows How Parks Can Drive ‘Green Gentrification’

Toyota announced that it will retrofit its older models to be either electric vehicles or to run on hydrogen.

@Good

Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee has issued an executive order to ban state agencies from using the term “Latinx” in favor of “Hispanic,” “Hispanics,” “Latino,” “Latinos,” “Latina” or “Latinas,”

NPR | Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders is banning ‘Latinx’ from state documents

What is happening? 13 states still tax groceries. 5 have reduced or limited this regressive tax that impacts low income families the most. Norbert Wilson, a professor of food, economics and community at the Duke Divinity School and director of Duke University’s World Food Policy Center found a correlation between grocery taxes and increased food insecurity.

Route Fifty | States Put Grocery Taxes on Ice

What is happening? Claiming a limited impact, Amazon is ending its Amazon Smile, which began operations in 2013. “AmazonSmile directed donations equaling a half-percent from each purchase to a charity of the customer’s choice.”

@WashingtonPost

What is happening? ESG advertisements. An ad by the country of Qatar caught my attention with the message: Why Qatar Is Your Next Destination for ESG Investment. It highlights that 15% growth of sustainable investment in the last 2 years with a global market sector value of $35.3 trillion. Qatar stresses its commitment to global partnerships and will make $75 billion for sustainable investments by 2030.

Why Qatar says this is important: In March 2022, Qatar’s Finance Minister committed to green finance and partnerships with global banks. According to Invest Qatar’s latest ESG report, at least $75 billion will be made available by 2030 for sustainable investments. Economic developments include the Qatar Stock Exchange joining the UN’s Sustainable Stock Exchange Initiative (SSEI) in 2016; Qatar National Bank $600 million+ issuance of green bonds (2020) and launching the first Qatari ESG tradable index with MSCI (2021). The finance sector also works with investors to produce guidance on ESG reporting as new sectors open.

WSJ Partnership Eye on Qatar | Why Qatar Is Your Next Destination for ESG Investment

What is happening? A gaming company, Dream 11, will begin fining employees $1200 if they bother other employees during off times (vacation or before or after hours). Cream 11 says it wants to promote healthy work life balance. Before we dismiss this as some small firm, it has an $8 Billion valuation, so there’s that.

Why is this important? Spain has passed laws about this. This is on its way to be the new normal.

CNN Business | This company will make employees pay a hefty fine if they bother colleagues on vacation

What is happening? Compared to 40 years ago, the U.S. workforce has more people of color and more people over 55 years of age. The nonwhite workforce has doubled to 40% in this time. Today 1 in 4 workers is over 55, and 40 years ago it was 1 in 7. In the last 10 years the number of workers over 75 has doubled. Diversity managers have become common place, hiring strategies include historically Black universities and Hispanic students, retaining employees through mentorship programs, work life balance, and preventing the bullying of older workers.

Why is this important? Some say the only option for employers to retain diverse workforce is to promote and embrace flexibility.

Route Fifty | Diversity of US Workplaces Is Growing in Terms of Race, Ethnicity and Age – Forcing More Employers to Be Flexible

What is happening? The German transportation group, Deutsche Bahn, will stop wasting valuable resources by ceasing to use single use cups, flatware, plates and containers. Why? The company says these single use items waste water and wood and contribute to road and water pollution. “We offer our customers a sustainable eating experience just like at home.”

Why is this important? Not only is the company walking the walk, but it is also talking the talk and applying the same sustainability rules to itself.

Goodnet! | These Train Passengers Will Eat Out in Style in 2023!

The E.U. “reached an agreement to impose a tax on imports based on the greenhouse gases emitted to make them.” The is the first time that global trade meets climate regulation.

WSJ | Europe Strikes Deal to Tax Imports Based on Greenhouse-Gas Emissions

Grocery stores in the Netherlands are offering some checkout lines that offer conversation “chat checkouts” to help improve community mental health. Here we have Trader Joes that hires the best conversationalists, but conversations in checkout lines in Europe are not as common as they are at your local Trader Joes.

@Good

Spain became the first country to pass a menstrual leave law.

@good

What is happening? Swiss scientists have designed windows that generate solar power using photosensitized dye. The cells can be applied over regular windows and could up the aesthetics of solar.

@globalpositivenews

What is happening? New York became the 6th state to allow for green burials, human composting, returning bodies to the earth. States that permit green burials are NY, WA, CA, CO, OR, and VT.

Why is this important? Let’s look to an opposition statement: “The New York State Catholic Conference, a group that represents bishops in the state, has long opposed the bill, calling the burial method “inappropriate.”

ABC News | New York OKs human composting law; 6th state in US to do so

What is happening? France has banned all single use plastic tableware, including at fast food establishments. The change is expected to cut 100,000 tonnes of trash per day. What can U.S. business take from this? Want to address sustainability issues from your employees? lower waste and eliminate plastic tableware.

@Good

What is happening? The Founder of AirBnB has a new venture, Samara that wants to add small homes to people’s backyards. It will sell factory-produced studio and one-bedroom units to homeowners to address housing affordability, high rents, need for home offices, the need to house college age relatives, parents, aunts, uncles, etc… Multigenerational housing is on the rise in the U.S.

Why is this important? In a COVID world, people have changed their relationships with their homes.

WallStreet Journal | Airbnb Co-Founder’s New Business Is Building Small Homes in Backyards

What is happening? We’ve talked about the women majority Legislatures in Nevada and Colorado. Plus Arizona that’s at 47.3% women. A lot of us are in Texas, where he Dallas Morning News describes the 2023 Texas Legislature as ” much older and more male-dominated than the state’s population overall.” The 2023 average age of a Texas legislator: 57 years. The average age in 2021: 54 years. The average age of a Texas Senator: 60 years. There remains twice as many men than women in the Texas Legislature.

Governing | Texas’ 2023 Legislature Will Be Disproportionately Old and Male

What is happening? Did you know that Newsweek produced a list of America’s most responsible corporations? I didn’t. Or, if I did, I didn’t remember. This week the 2023 list was announced. Top of the pack were businesses in materials and chemicals business and the bottom was hospitality. The List.

Newsweek | America’s Most Responsible Companies 2023

General Mills Named No. 2 on Newsweek’s America’s Most Responsible Companies 2023 List

Gen Recognized as One of America’s Most Responsible Companies by Newsweek

What is happening? Salesforce is expanding its Net Zero, sustainability cloud computing to track customer Net Zero goals. This sustainability tool will expand to conclude the S & G of ESG. The company says customers want it and ESG reporting needs it.

Why is this important? In country reporting requirements are coming. Tracking sustainability and emissions data, diversity, equity and inclusion data, data on suppliers and whether there are any kind of human rights flags – it’s a lot of data. Tools help.

TechCrunch | Salesforce to expand Sustainability Cloud into full ESG reporting tool

What is happening? Congress has passed legislation to protect gay marriage and interracial marriage and it came about because of a bipartisan effort. Let’s learn. 12 Republicans joined Democrats in the U.S. Senate. They worked quietly. They worked behind the scenes. Senator Collins is quoted as saying ““What I heard from at least one of my Republican colleagues was that he had lost significant support among big donors in his state.”  Because of his votes that are anti-LGBTQIA+.

Why is this important? In September the Wall Street Journal published an open letter signed by 450 prominent Republicans supporting the right to love who you want. It’s a roadmap to future issues.

NY Times | Prominent Gay Republicans Helped Smooth the Way for Marriage Bill

What is happening? California state agencies are starting a dialog with indigenous tribes on environmental issues. The parameters of this dialog are being called “authentic consultation.” Let’s learn. The White House released guidance on incorporating indigenous knowledge in decision making by federal agencies. California stopped verifying Indigenous knowledge with Western Science and began listening to indigenous knowledge of the lands.

Why is this important? How to balance stewardship of nature with growth. It’s a learning process.

Governing | California Seeks Native American Help After Years of Environmental Abuse

White House Releases First-of-a-Kind Indigenous Knowledge Guidance for Federal Agencies

What is happening? Meet  Testbeds, a pilot program between a Columbia architectural academic and an architectural firm to move construction waste to build community gardens. An EPA study from 2018 found  600 million tons of waste is generated in the construction and demolition of buildings and infrastructure.

Why is this important? Testbeds works with the city’s  Department of Parks and Recreation’s GreenThumb program that oversees more than 500 community gardens.

New York Times | Destined for the Dump, Construction Waste Gets New Life in the Garden

What is happening? Straws, bottles and packaging made from captured greenhouse gases are reaching commercial scale. Big companies like Target, Ford, Disney, Hyatt Hotels, Ikea, Dell and Shake Shack have shown interest in the products. Production is moving to include utilizing captured emissions to manufacture materials used to make clothes, tires and plastic bottles. Meet Newlight, the company that opened its first commercial-scale factory in Huntington Beach, CA in 2020.

Why is this important? Newlight’s next factory is slated to come online in 2025 in Ohio, which will tap methane from a coal mine.

WSJ | Products Made With Captured Greenhouse Gas Are Reaching Commercial Scale

What is happening? Results from a 6 month pilot program of a 4 day work week in North America and Ireland revealed that 63% of businesses found it easier to attract & retain talent; 78% of employees reported greater satisfaction with fewer sick days; and revenues rose 8.14%, weighted by company size. “When compared to the same six-month period in 2021 to the trial period in 2022, the increase was much larger at 37.55%” For those paying attention, employees are paid based on a 5 day work week and work a 4 day work week.

Why is this important? I can’t believe I need to explain that this isn’t about paying employees less, but here we are.

@AdamMGrant

4DayWeek | After a six month trial, the results are now available from our first pilot program in North America and Ireland

What is happening? Consumers, Employees, Investors and the global market. Purpose driven consumers are now the largest share of the market at 44%. Market competition is favoring purposeful players.

Why is this important? ESG investments in Europe have grown 10 times and will outnumber conventional funding by 2025.

Forbes | The End Of CSR (As We Know It) And The Rise Of Businesses With A Conscience

What is happening?  Chicago has a $46 million initiative, Our Roots Chicago, to plant 75,000 trees in five years with a focus on underserved & historically marginalized communities.This year’s goal is to plant 15,000 trees. The contractor must have an arborist on staff and is required to maintain (water) the trees for 3 years.

Why is this important? Chicago’s overall canopy coverage is not as strong as other cities.

Governing | Chicago on Track to Plant 15,000 Trees by Year’s End

What is happening? Colorado joins Nevada as the two states that have women majorities. 51 of Colorado’s 100 seat Legislature will be held by women. Nevada Legislature currently is 58.7% women.

Why is this important? Colorado was the 1st state to have women elected to its Legislature in 1894, when three women were elected to the Colorado House of Representatives.

Colorado News Live | Colorado Legislature poised to be second in country with women in majority

What is happening? ESG investing traces back to Quakers and the Methodist Church in the 1700s. The Quakers and Methodist Churches asked their members to not invest in business that relied on slave labor. Same for the 1960s when institutional investors avoided investments that supported the Vietnam War or civil rights. Same for the 1980s when investors divested from Apartheid supporting investments.

Why is this important? By definition “woke” means  “aware of and actively attentive to important societal facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice)” according to Merriam Webster and according tot he Cambridge dictionary as “aware, especially of social problems such as racism and inequality” Woke is the verbiage of choice as attacking ESG by conservative American politicians.

Forbes | How To Become The ESG Company You Want To Be

What is happening?

Why is this important? ESG funds rose 42% from $12 trillion in 2018 to $17.1 trillion in 2020 according to data from the  US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment. 10% of world’s funds are ESG according to Reuters. More than 50% of  754 sustainable funds examined by Morningstar outperformed non-ESG investments.

Why is this important? An ongoing attack on ESG business principles by a wing of the Republican Party.

Forbes | How To Become The ESG Company You Want To Be

What is happening? Let’s dispel the myth- remote work is not going away. Living in the past isn’t winning. Here’s the job posting numbers behind this- The number of job postings with salaries above $100,000 that include remote working is up to 36%, doubling the end of 2021 which had 18% of jobs offering remote work.

Why is this important? Worker mental wellness and remote work are connected. Workers increasingly indicate that they want a purpose with their employer and want to know that their employer understands them. Offering working flexibility is a viable solution when most workers say they will quit if there is no access to remote work.

Austin Business Journal | AustinInno | What return to the office? High-paying remote jobs continue to soar

This year 3614 women ran for state legislative offices. A record number of women ran for Governor or their state legislatures this year.

In Texas, the number of women in the State Senate is on track to increase to 8 of the 31 members and in the Texas House it is looking like 47 (ish) women of the 150 members.

Governing | 3614

What is happening? 86% of millennials want their retirement investments to reflect their personal values. 66% would invest more in their workplace retirement accounts if they knew those funds were making a social impact that aligned with their values.

Why is this important? 16% of DC plans surveyed offer an ESG investment option

Investment News | Strong millennial demand pushing for increased ESG options in 401(k)s

What is happening? ESG is more than environmental sustainability it also includes: applications, data center, cloud and infrastructure, governance, ESG data management, communications, resource management, and supply chain. It’s about being purpose driven, supporting employees, the types of vendors in their supply chain, benefits, work life balance.

Why is this important? The economy since COVID hit, and arguably before, is shifting back to the days of a stakeholder economy. You know, when it was not ok to have child labor in the supply chain.

Forbes | CIOs Meeting ESG Commitments Must Go Beyond Reducing Carbon Footprint

Way back when Facebook began as a college only media, MIT Sloan School of Management researchers found that Facebook led to a 7% increase in severe depression and 20% increase in anxiety. A friendly reminder that mental health should be part of fostering employee wellness.

@MITSloanSchool of Management

What is happening? Pew Research has a historical look at generational voting.  51% of Millennials say they are Democrats and 35% Republican, leaving 14% in other categories. Their research discusses the partisan divide within generations too.

Why is this important? Its said that nationally the election results are attributable to voting rates of Gen Z.

Pew Research Center | A Different Look at Generations and Partisanship

What is happening? Many cities have programs that encourage and support planting trees. Good for cleaning the air. Philadelphia thought- why not make it an accessible food source too- free fruit. Hence, planting fruit trees. Meet nonprofit Philadelphia Orchard Project.

Why is this important? Hello other cities that want to solve food desert issues.

GoodGoodGoodCo | Cities Are Planting Trees. Why Not Make Them Fruit Trees?

What is happening? Corporate leadership is falling back on old habits that don’t fit in a Post-COVID world. In simple terms, leaders are out of step with employees. It’s like parents telling their kids they walked to school uphill, both ways, in 8 feet of snow in their day and so should the kids. The Future Forum says the old ways are out of step.

Why is this important? Disconnect with the tippy top. In a recent study, 90% of the HR leaders say they need to build trust at their companies, & 30% of executives see an ROI in building a healthy, resilient and equitable future of work.

HR Dive | Leaders, strained by changing norms, keep falling back on outdated habits

What is happening? Adidas and Kanye West parting ways is a lesson in legal counsel ensuring companies have taken time to define their stances on important social issues. Social issues/core values. Tomato/toh-mah-to.

Why is this important? A list of factors to consider:

• where the company is located
• where employees reside
• where they conduct business
• how positions align with their past actions

Legal Dive | Adidas’ handling of Kanye West controversy highlights need for companies to define core values

What is happening? 1 in 5 financial leaders do not consider ESG when making decisions.

Why is this important? 4 of 5 financial leaders DO consider ESG when making decisions. There’s more:

• 93% of financial leaders say it is important to transform their financial decisions in a way that addresses ESG issues
• 87% say ESG information is important for their decision-making
• 68% of financial leaders “also pointed to the failure to adapt quickly to customer, employee, investor or regulatory demands for sustainability as the biggest ESG-related risk facing their firms”

CFO Dive | ESG goals versus action gap emerges: survey

What is happening? Twitter’s change of hands to Elon Musk has advertisers pausing over concerns that Twitter’s objectionable content will increase. Advertisers concerned over objectionable content range from General Mills, Oreos, Volkswagen, Audi, Pfizer, GM and more.

Why is this important? Corporations want to ensure distance between themselves and objectionable content.

Wall Street Journal | General Mills, Audi and Pfizer Join Growing List of Companies Pausing Twitter Ads

What is happening? A new report says that employees are 2x more likely to say employers genuinely care about employees if the organization responded to Roe v. Wade’s overturning. 55% of employees want more clarity on their organizations abortion care policies. ResumeBuilder data shows that abortion access is increasingly part of job searches.

Why is this important? A former general counsel at the EEOC is reportedly sending letters ” to multiple employers encouraging them not to adopt travel benefits for employees seeking an abortion and cautioning them that doing so violates federal anti-discrimination laws.” The EEOC says “She lacks the authority to speak on behalf of the EEOC.”

Littler: Former EEOC general counsel ‘intimidating’ employers over abortion travel benefits | HR Dive

Employees say they need clarity around abortion access benefits | HR Dive

What is happening? GM’s Sustainability Chief says it matters how EVs are made. It matters what the supply chain looks like, where manufacturing is located, moving it to the U.S., responsible water and energy use, and active investing in charging infrastructure.

Why is this important? GM is taking it further by establishing a “Supplier ESG pledge,” including supplier goals in carbon emissions, human rights and ethics. More than 65% of GM’s suppliers have committed to it.

Forbes Women | How EVs Are Made Matters, General Motors Sustainability Chief Says

What is happening? NASA has a new 60 page DEI plan. Need a roadmap? Here’s the link. NASA’s leader is putting DEI on equal footing with astronaut safety. READ: DEI is very important too.

Why is this important? Diane Carrion, a tech-industry HR veteran, says “. “I have not seen a published roadmap within our government or private sector that is as well thought out as the NASA 2022 plan.”

Inc. | Inside NASA’s Ambitious, 60-Page DEI Plan

What is happening? Let’s think about the various ways and standards that exist to measure the social impact, the S in ESG. There is the UN’s Corporate Human Rights Benchmark;  California’s Transparency in Supply Chain Act; auditing your supply chain; accountability in your  grievance mechanisms; and tracking how  your company improves social mobility and progress for employees. Let’s not forget the ROI- Stanford’s Social Innovation Review found a “positive correlations between good environmental and social performance and overall financial returns within its equity portfolio for private and public companies.”

Why is this important? The S doesn’t garner all the excitement the E and the G do.

Reuters | How companies are measuring the impact of their “social” issues

What is happening? ICA, a Swedish grocery store chain, is selling food that is good, but soon to near its use by dates, for 70% off. Customers can reserve their bag of groceries.

Why is this important? ICA has a goal to eliminate food waste and make good food accessible to all.

@ICASupermarketkupolen

What is happening? Previous wisdom was that workers wanted the best pay. Turns out predictability and the opportunity to grow are equally as important.

Why is this important? Social scientists will tell us that predictability means happier, healthier employees. By way of example, researchers point to a food manufacturer that often hired workers that did not speak English. The company then  partnered with an adult education organization providing classes, including courses in English, financial literacy and U.S. citizenship. Employee retention improved & company saw a 123% return on investment

Route Fifty | What Workers Want From Their Jobs Other Than Good Pay

What is happening? Reuters has released a 18 page report on the SEC and ESG. including guidance on ESG storytelling.

Why is this important? We’ve entered a world where ESG is political fodder. Arm oneself with information.

ESG: The SEC Point of View | Reuters

What is happening? The bees have arrived at BCBS headquarters in Richardson, Texas. Meet “Alveole, a company that helps businesses, schools and other organizations bring bees to their buildings, will maintain the hives and educate BCBSTX employees about the bees’ role in environmental sustainability.”

Why is this important? The bees are a Segway to talk about environmental concerns, impact of pesticides, climate change, the medicinal properties of bees, the nutritional value that bees add in pollination and via honey.

Bees Have Arrived at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas

What is happening? Metrolink, a Southern California commuter rail service, is dumping diesel for sustainable, renewable fuel sources like plant based power.

Why is this important? Metro link is the 1st commuter rail int he U.S. to switch from petroleum based fuel sources. Metrolink’s governing body, Southern California Association of Governments, is asking about equity and sustainability in all its actions.

Government Technology | Metrolink Dumps Diesel in Move to Cleaner, Sustainable Fuel

What is happening? 74% of women on maternity leave drain their savings within 8 weeks. Bad for equality. Bad for the economy.

Why is this important? Paid family leave is the norm in Industrialized nations, except the U.S. and a tiny handful of others.

@theSkimm

What is happening? Corporate giving increased 24% between 2020 and 2021. Corporate giving isn’t the same as it was 10 years ago.

Why is this important? Too keep track of corporate giving data meet the new Accelerist platform that “empowers both companies and nonprofits to quickly identify partners with aligned social good objectives, raise more from consumers and workforces, better disburse and collect corporate donations, and pairs sophisticated data with proprietary valuation methods for in-depth reporting on the impact a company’s social investments have on community, constituents, and bottom line.”

It is About Time for One Corporate Giving Platform – Accelerist

What is happening? The 1st ever Social Impact Competition from Alabama Launchpad, a program of the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama. The program is supported by  Alabama Power Foundation helps entrepreneurs intent on making a positive impact in the community.

Why does this matter?  The program is building awareness and interest among Alabama businesses about combining a company’s profit-making motive with a mission to benefit society. 

Alabama News Center | Alabama Power Foundation, Economic Development Partnership of Alabama unveil finalists for Social Impact Competition

What is happening? Glassdoor is allowing job seekers to filter employer ratings on diversity and equity and location to get a better picture of employer cultures.

Why does this matter? Lots of stories from employees that say if I knew then what I know now about the employer’s sexism, racism, homophobia etc… These ratings from women, people of Color, disabled, queer employees will help with diversity and inclusion transparency.

Forbes | New Glassdoor Features Give Diverse Jobseekers More Insights Into Workplace Climate

What is happening? Harvard Business Review looked at a law firm that was trying to achieve better Diversity Inclusion and Equality. In law firms partners generally hand out work to associates and others. There was no data on how assignments were handed out & once data was collected it showed 81-88% white men thought it was all fair and everyone else was at about 50%.

Why does this matter? The law firm created a centralized system to distribute work load and created an incentive for law firm partners, allowing them to write off work through the centralized system.

Harvard Business Review | To Build a DEI Program That Works, You Need Metrics

What is happening? Quiet Quitting and the Great Resignation have in common that employees are dissatisfied with employers- unethical behavior, toxic management, toxic leadership. In short culture at employers isn’t great for employees.

Why does this matter? Remedies exist to change employer cultures like encourage and rewarding employees to speak up, valuing employees. Valued, safe employees are more productive.

Route Fifty | Quiet Quitting and the Great Resignation Have a Common Cause

What is happening? States are being challenged on their period taxes- a tax on menstrual products that unfairly hits one segment of the population. To counter this, CVS has announced it will cut the cost of CVS menstruation products by 25%.

Why does this matter? CVS wants to create a better future by eliminating the period tax nationwide.

@CVSpharmacy

What is happening? Illinois welcomed its first Black Cannabis business and grower, who says it took persistence and partnering with an out of state cannabis business.

Why does this matter? States that have legalized cannabis all have stories abut the high licensing fees serving as a barrier to entry for women and BIPOC businesses.

Chicago Tribune | Illinois’ 1st predominantly Black-owned licensed pot business and craft grower opens in Rockford; hundreds more licensees still trying to get started

What is happening? The Ellevest Financial Wellness Survey showed that if corporations remained silent, even when their policies cover costs of out of state care for abortion services, the corporations risk losing women employees.44% of women will leave an employers whose reproductive rights views do not align with theirs. 56% of Millenial women, 53% of Latinas, and 45% of Black women.

Why does this matter? Other data shows that the more women & diversity in leadership, the more profit.

@SallieKrawcheck

What is happening? PostcardMania in Clearwater Florida minimized Hurricane Ian and encouraged employees to bring their kids and pets to work. twitter and employees were not pleased. The CEO apologized to employees who ” “felt that it came across as insensitive,”” which doesn’t actually qualify as an apology.

Why does this matter? I’m going to leave it with this “As part of the L. Ron Hubbard management system, PostcardMania employees are required to report statistics related to their productivity each week. A similar system is used by Scientology’s full-time workforce, the Sea Org.”

Route Fifty | Company Apologizes for Asking Staff to Work Through Hurricane

What is happening? A new report from Economic Innovation Group that in 42 regions across the U.S. more than 20% of the work force works remotely. In 2021, remote work jumped to 179% fall US workers, up from 5.6% in 2019. Topping the list is D.C. at 34% of workers are remote, San Francisco 33% of workers, and Austin 32% Remote work also increased in areas like Provo, UT and Santa Fe, NM.

Why does this matter? Trend lines show it isn’t changing, it will increase. For every 1 person who moved to a more affordable location for remote work, there are 4 other workers who plan to relocate. Quality of life focus is winning over traditional economic issues.

Route Fifty | The Places Where Remote Work Became Most Common

What is happening? Austin emergency services has released an app, What3words, to help emergency responders reach people in need of assistance.

Why does this matter? What 3 words have divided the world into 3 meter squares and assigned unique 3 words to that space. This allows emergency providers to get to people in crowded festivals more easily than when someone says I’m near a stage and speakers.

@ATCEMS

What is happening? Tokyo Metropolitan Government will require all new homes beginning in 2025 to have solar power.

Why is this important? The new rule will apply to 50 home builders that operate in Tokyo.

How will this be important? There’s built in flexibility including that “Companies will not have to install solar panels on all buildings they build but be asked to meet a certain target in terms of the share of their buildings with solar panels. “

Japan Times | Tokyo plans to require that new homes have solar panels from 2025

What is happening? We can’t not talk about Patagonia. Its founder, Yvon Chouinard announced that he will donate the entire company, worth about $3 billion, to a trust and a nonprofit organization fighting climate change. Plus, any annual profits that are not reinvested in the company will go to fight climate change.

Why is this important? Chouinard wants to spur a new form of Capitalism that isn’t just a few exceptionally wealthy people.

How will this be important? It is the culture dude, he likes to turn norms on their heads and has been a lifelong supporter of the environment.

NY Times | Billionaire No More: Patagonia Founder Gives Away the Company

What is happening? Limiting PFAs has found its way into 203 bills proposed in 31 states.

Why is this important? Environmental groups say clean water and soil shouldn’t require that you live in certain zip codes. American Chemistry Council says that not all PFAS are the same, and that they should not be regulated the same way.

How will this be important? here’s the laundry list of laws that have passed:

• Maine’s 2021 law banning PFAS in all new products 
• Colorado passed a law in 2022 covering many products, and ending its use in oil and gas production. This bill was supported by Republicans who want to protect clean water
• Hawaii passed a ban on PFAS in food packaging and firefighting foam in 2022
•  California passed laws this year to ban PFAS in cosmetics and textiles, and requiring companies to report data on other products containing PFAS

Route Fifty | States Take on PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ With Bans, Lawsuits

What is happening? First came Colorado to require salary ranges be posted for job listings. Then came NYC, and now we add California to the ranks of officially requiring salary ranges be listed on job postings.

How is this important? Pay disparity for the same job continues to be a concern for improving diversity, equity and inclusion.

How will this be important? It said that posting salary ranges for open positions helps lessen systemic pay disparities.

@businessweek

What is happening? Samsung has created the “balance mouse” that will run away from the user when the user is overworked.

How is this important? Burnt out is real. We’ve all heard of people leaving their jobs in mass or quiet quitting.

How will this be important? Creating a work life balance is a win for everyone. A win as an employee who enjoys life and a win for employers who like happy, productive employees.

Thred. | The Samsung ‘Balance Mouse’ runs away if you overwork

What is happening? Chevron has donated a 53-acre parcel in northwest Houston to serve as Houston Food Bank’s second warehouse and distribution facility. It came to pass because a Chevron employee serves on the board of the food bank. Get to know the relationships your employees have and what is important to them.

Why is this important? The Houston Food Bank is the largest food bank in the U.S. and coordinates service in the 18 counties in Southeast Texas.

How will this be important? “Through our involvement with the Houston Food Bank, Chevron is aware of the tremendous need for food security in our community,” said Eimear Bonner, president of the Chevron Technical Center and food bank board member, “and this is our way to be a part of the solution.”

Houston Chronicle | Chevron makes major land donation for Houston Food Bank expansion

What is happening? Smirnoff (the vodka) is partnering with the Don’t Trash Glass campaign, Glass Packaging Institute, and GlassKing Recovery & Recycling to increase glass recycling in Chicago.

Why is this important? The partnership is making it more accessible for 300 bars, restaurants and local businesses to recycle glass.

How will this be important? Glass is 100% recyclable. The glass recycling process is “easy.” Yet, the EPA estimates only 40% of glass is recycled.

Environment + Energy Leader | Smirnoff Program Seeks Boost in Glass Recycling

What is happening? U.S. is #41 in global rankings that measure democracy and inequality, moving the U.S. to developing country standards, and placing the U.S. between Cuba and Bulgaria.

Why is this important? The U.S. landed at #41 because of a lack of equity, treatment of the environment, and a “flawed democracy” according to United Nations Office of Sustainable Development and the Economist’s democracy index.

How will this be important? Historians say structural inequalities in the U.S. were first noted in 1899 by Scholar W.E.B. Du Bois, and brought into the political conversation by Martin Luther King Jr.

Route Fifty | US is Becoming a ‘Developing Country’ on Global Rankings that Measure Democracy, Inequality

What is happening? Robert Sarver, owner of Arizona’s NBA and WNBA teams, has put the teams up for sale this week, after league enforcement actions related to racism and misogyny. Racism and misogyny, even if in the past, isn’t going to be swept under the rug anymore.

Why is this important? Sarver blames the current cultural climate that he can’t be redeemed. While NBA players”, LeBron James, Chris Paul and Draymond Green have spoken out and said the NBA’s punishment wasn’t severe enough.”

How will this be important? “NBPA president CJ McCollum: “We thank Mr. Sarver for making a swift decision that was in the best interest of our sports community.””

ESPN | Robert Sarver says he’s starting process to sell NBA’s Phoenix Suns, WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury

What is happening? Globally the number of clean energy employees outnumbers traditional energy employees according to the International Energy Agency.

Why is this important? The IEA’s first-ever World Energy Employment report says the energy labor market is in a period of transition and that clean energy jobs are leading the way. The IEA report stresses that the jobs require people-centered employment policies.

How will this be important? The IEA points to Russia’s invasion of the Ukraine as creating an energy crisis.

Corporate Knights | The majority of energy workers are now employed in clean energy jobs

Why is happening? Smart science types have developed tattoo ink that can monitor certain biomarkers like pH and glucose.

Why is this important? This monitoring tattoo could alleviate daily needle pricks.

How will this be important? A step toward making health care more efficient.

@leaps.org

What is happening? Council of Fashion Designers of America has pledged to achieve a net-zero goal by 2050.

Why is this important? Some fashion law types say that fashion houses banding together to achieve sustainability may run afoul of antitrust regulators. EU regulators did raid fashion houses over antitrust concerns.

How will this be important? “There are emerging tensions between E.S.G. and antitrust,” said William Kovacic, a former Federal Trade Commission chairman, referring to environmental, social and governance goals. “A vocal group of commentators say antitrust enforcement treats cartels very harshly and that unduly inhibits firms from pursuing environmental and social goals.”

NY Times | How ‘sustainable fashion’ could run afoul of antitrust regulators.

What is happening? Companies with strong DEI outperform competitors by 4 times in India.

Why is this important? Get Z is a large in numbers and strong in its values. It’s a driver policies.

How will this be important? IN addition to profitability, employee retention and brand reputation improve with strong DE&I according to this paper.

Free Press Journal | For Gen Z, gender diversity needs the support of equity and inclusion policies