The government sources from India and Morocco said the project is an initiative backed by World Bank in an effort to establish social equality and boost an all-round growth model in the society. The overall implementation is in the best interest of margainalised communities to improve their living conditions.

“I view the new initiative to set up a ‘consolidated social register’ as a promising start for the gradual improvement of social welfare programs over the short and medium terms.

This is a national registration system to identify families that truly deserve to benefit from social assistance programs,” King Mohammed VI of Morocco said. The King added that the new technology would be implemented to cater to the needs of the underprivileged in the Moroccon society.

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Tom Bené, Sysco’s president and chief executive officer, said: “As the global leader in foodservice distribution, it is our responsibility to operate in a manner that meets the needs of our customers today, while producing positive, lasting change.”

“Our 2025 goals are a solid foundation that further demonstrate our global sustainability commitment. We are leading our industry with our CSR initiatives and by including specific long-term goals that align with our strategic business priorities, we are living our vision of becoming our customers’ most valued and trusted business partner.” He added.

Themed Delivering A Better Tomorrow , Sysco’s 2025 Responsibility Goals are aligned to focus on three key areas: People, Products and Planet.

In the People area, Sysco will take initiative to giving back, doing good and change lives in the communities. The goals include: Donating a total of 200 mn meals and contributing a total of $50 mn to local communities. Increasing ethnic and gender diversity to 62% and spend to 25% with women and minority owned suppliers. Expanded products will also include health and well being products and programs.

In the Products area, Sysco will supply products responsibly by improving animal welfare in the foodservice industry– and minimizing negative environmental, social or ethical impacts when sourcing products. The goals the company has set include: Publishing Sysco’s Animal Welfare Policy and ensuring compliance by all Sysco Brand Suppliers. Identifying and developing responsible sourcing commitments for five key commodities. Ensuring all high-risk suppliers abide by Sysco’s Global Supplier Code of Conduct.

For the Planets area, Sysco will initiate measure to protect the planet by advancing sustainable agriculture practices, reducing the company’s carbon footprint and diverting waste from landfills, in order to protect and preserve the environment for future generations. The company has set the following goals: Doubling the availability of Sysco Brand organic produce. Extending our Sustainable Agriculture program into five fresh crops. Reducing the carbon footprint of our fleet and operations by sourcing 20 % of electricity from renewable sources and powering 20 percent of fleet vehicles with alternative fuels. Diverting 90 % of operations and food waste from landfills.

Sysco is the global leader in selling, marketing and distributing food products to restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities, lodging establishments etc. It has more than 67,000 associates, and operates approximately 330 distribution facilities worldwide, serving more than 600,000 customer locations. For fiscal 2018 that ended on June 30 2018, the company generated sales of more than $58 bn.

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So, how do companies in Houston prepare for the inevitable?  Many fortune 500 companies, like those trained in sustainability by the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence (CSE), are based in Houston.  Dominated by the energy industry, retail, clothing, communications, finance, transportation, and software sectors are also represented.

More and more frequently, these major companies are hiring sustainability professionals: employees, managers, directors, and VPs to oversee Sustainability Strategy to deal with challenges locally and internationally.  Houston itself has a hard-working Office of Sustainability, a Sustainability Indicators Project and a city Sustainability Action Plan which includes emissions reduction, clean water, efficient infrastructure, and resiliency.

As the need in Houston expands, whether due to population growth or weather concerns, those trained in a focused sustainability methodology will be leading the way.  During its most recent Houston training, CSE partnered with NASA sustainability practitioners to present NASA’s commitment to and sustainability evolution at the Johnson Space Center.

Regardless of where you work, expertise or sector, being prepared to embed social responsibility within an organisation opens a wide range of job opportunities.

As companies are forced to rebuild from disaster, mitigate for the inevitable and design strategies to take Houston into the 2020s, training becomes key.  Module 1 of CSE’s Certified Sustainability (CSR) Practitioner Program addresses the crucial business case for sustainability.  Modules 2 and 3 look at local and international legislation and standards.  By the time attendees reach Module 8, they are ready to apply important skills to the future trends identified by CSE’s field experts and ongoing research.

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This is the first time Nissan has announced a comprehensive sustainability plan, which pulls together all aspects of its environmental, social and governance initiatives into a unified approach.

The plan is anchored by the company’s ongoing Nissan Green Program, which was launched in FY2001 with a long-term vision toward 2050. Nissan Sustainability 2022 will ensure the company is on track to deliver on these goals as it approaches the halfway point, while also expanding the company’s sustainability mindset to include diversity and inclusion, as well as stronger governance.

“Nissan Sustainability 2022 is fully aligned with our midterm objectives of delivering steady growth and leading the automotive industry’s technology evolution,” said Hitoshi Kawaguchi, Nissan senior vice president and chief sustainability officer. “We believe sustainable mobility will help achieve a world with zero emissions and zero fatalities. Our plan, further enhanced by our efforts to be a truly diverse and inclusive company, will make an important contribution to that effort.”

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According to The Gulf Today, Sheikh Mohammed initiated the launch of the Abu Dhabi Social Support Programme designed to improve the living standards of the UAE citizens. Meanwhile, the Executive Committee of the Executive Council will focus on a detailed programme offering financial aid to families by end of this year.

Sheikh Mohammed launched “Together” Authority, which will actively engage in building the social system in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi across societal segments including the UAE citizens, expat residents and institutions.

Sheikh Mohammed even highlighted the approach established by the Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan. “We are still deeply committed to that approach in light of the giving process led by President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and we are working towards achieving a sustainable strategy whose aim is to ensuring that the people of the UAE enjoy a dignified life in a community where values of cohesion, tolerance, coexistence, harmony and synergy prevail among its happy members,” he added.

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The 2018 ADB Sustainability Report, which was released yesterday to mark World Environment Day, documents ADB’s work to promote economic, social and environmental sustainability in its operations as well as its corporate activities and facilities in 2016 and 2017.

“The Sustainability Report demonstrates how ADB’s operations, human resources, and facilities management are aligned with and contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals,” said ADB Vice-President for Knowledge Management and Sustainable Development Mr Bambang Susantono. “Looking ahead, we must renew and ramp up our commitment to making ADB and its operations more sustainable. We must also continue to modernize our corporate facilities and promote diversity in our staff.”

“To show ADB’s commitment to lower its carbon footprint at its Manila headquarters and minimize its effect on the environment and the community, we are sourcing energy from solar and geothermal plants, reusing rainwater for irrigation and other purposes, operating a waste segregation area, and using a sewage treatment facility to treat wastewater,” said ADB Vice-President for Administration and Corporate Management, Ms Deborah Stokes. “Aside from these, we also continue to achieve and maintain international certifications to ensure our goal toward sustainability lasts into the future.”

In 2015 to 2017, the 3-year average for the number of ADB projects supporting environmental sustainability reached 58% of ADB’s project portfolio, exceeding its target of 55% by 2020. This amounts to over US$28bn, or 57% of ADB’s total commitments of close to $50bn in the same period. Furthermore, in 2016-2017, US$2.8bn worth of green bonds were issued to channel investor funds into low-carbon, climate-resilient development.

Climate finance from ADB’s own resources reached US$4.5bn in 2017, a 64% increase from 2015, putting the bank on track to meeting its US$6bn annual target by 2020. In addition, the High-Level Technology Fund was launched in April 2017 to promote advanced technologies and innovative solutions in project design and implementation.

At the same time, ADB has also demonstrated its commitment to environmental sustainability by improving its corporate footprint. Starting in 2016, carbon credits have been purchased to fully offset ADB headquarters’ green gas emissions, making it carbon neutral for the first time. Installation of low-flow and low-flush water fixtures at ADB headquarters also decreased potable water consumption by about nine percent. ADB received ISO 20121 certification for the sustainability and carbon neutrality of its 49th and 50th Annual Meetings.

Moreover, in 2016-2017, ADB exceeded its target in delivering intended gender equality results in its operations, continued to embed social and environmental safeguards in all of its projects, and continued to share relevant knowledge and innovative approaches to promoting sustainable development in the Asia and Pacific region.

ADB celebrated World Environment Day by highlighting the plastic pollution crisis in the region, in line with this year’s theme chosen by the United Nations Environment Programme, “Beat Plastic Pollution.” About 50% of all plastic used in the region is considered single use, and nearly a third of plastic packaging escapes waste collection systems, polluting the environment and entering the world’s oceans.

ADB invests in projects that directly and indirectly address waste management issues, including marine pollution and plastic waste. Investments include waste water treatment, watershed management, wetland rehabilitation, and coastal and marine resources management. At its headquarters, ADB’s food service providers stopped selling bottled water in 2013 and is encouraging staff to stop using plastic straws.

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Previously, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a radio programme announced India being named the official host of the World Environment Day—a defining moment for the country and its leadership efforts in climate change. He also encouraged citizens to discard any form of plastic usage in future.

On the eve of World Environment Day, a storytelling session was held intending to reinforce environmental awareness. More than 150 people attended the event including those from the DMRC, NBT, JICA and Kodansha. Dr. Harsh Vardhan encouraged people to actively initiate Green Social Responsibility and take up Green Good Deeds everyday. Additionally, he said there are 700 Green Good Deeds available for people to help conserve the environment.

Dr. Harsh Vardhan said: “India is excited to host the World Environment Day this year on June 5. Indian philosophy and lifestyle has long been rooted in the concept of coexistence with nature. We are committed to making Planet Earth a cleaner and greener place.”

“If each and every one of us does at least one green good deed daily towards our Green Social Responsibility, there will be billions of green good deeds daily on the planet.”

Modi will address the gathering at the event held today. In an effort to display his encouragement towards the initiative, he even posted a video greeting the Twitterati: “Greetings on #WorldEnvironmentDay. Together, let us ensure that our future generations live in a clean and green planet, in harmony with nature.”

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President Ghani was joined by Ashok Bhargava, Director of Energy Division of ADB’s Central and West Asia Department; Samuel Tumiwa, ADB Country Director for Afghanistan; cabinet ministers; and members of parliament at the ceremony. The contracts, totaling US$80mn, are part of an overall US$415mn grant, which includes US$188.23mn from ADB’s Special Funds; US$225.77mn in cofinancing from the Afghanistan Infrastructure Trust Fund (AITF), supported by the Governments of Belgium, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States; and US$1mn from the People’s Republic of China Poverty Reduction and Regional Cooperation Fund.

“Access to efficient and reliable power supply can help Afghanistan attract higher levels of private investments to help boost economic growth and create employment opportunities in the country,” said Mr Tumiwa. “The contracts, which have been signed, reaffirms ADB’s long-standing commitment to support the Government of Afghanistan’s energy development priorities and enhancing regional connectivity.”

Afghanistan highly relies on energy imports from neighboring countries to meet its domestic demand. Despite significant progress since 2002, only about 32% of the population has access to grid-connected electricity, which increases the cost of doing business and is detrimental to the environment.

The contracts include construction of (i) new 220-kilovolt (kV) substation in Bamyan province and expansion of 220/20 kV Doshi substation (ii) 20,000 new household connections in Bamyan (iii) 180-kilometer 220-kV transmission line from Doshi to Bamyan, which will help expand the grid to at least 8 additional provinces.

Further investment under the same project will include the construction of a new 500-megawatt back-to-back converter station at Dashte Alwan in Baghlan to connect a new 500-kV interconnection line with Turkmenistan with another 500-kV line stretching to Kabul. The converter will allow Turkmen power into the Afghan grid under the 10-year power purchase and sales agreement signed in November 2015 between the two countries.

Once completed, nearly 150,000 people will be connected to the grid-connected electricity and, as a result, the economic opportunities and livelihoods of the people of Central Afghanistan will be improved.

ADB is Afghanistan’s largest development partner in the energy sector with cumulative grant assistance of nearly US$2.2bn, all of which is on budget with the government. ADB has helped deliver electricity to more than 5mn people in Afghanistan. Over the coming years, ADB will support the increase in the country’s electrification rate from 30% to 83% and lift the share of domestic generation from 20% to 67% by 2030. ADB will also play a major role in power transmission both regionally and domestically, and promote clean energy including solar power.

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The finalists were announced last month at the Abingdon’s Crown & Thistle after the businesses exhibited outstanding commitment to fulfilling a social mission.

The assessment was based on on various factors including the businesses’ impact on local community, commitment of staff, corporate social responsibility to drive change, reported the Oxfordshire Guardian.

Established in 2005, the recycling firm is formed by a group of workers and volunteers, who are committed to address societal challenges and introduce economically sustainable services.

CEO Richard Snow said: “While we work very hard to run a successful business that employs people, we’re very much working to our social and environmental missions.

“We work in the recycling sector, but we reuse a significant amount of wood each year; this is wood that people have effectively thrown away, but we bring it back onto the market for use for DIY.

“If you put wood in a skip it never gets re-used. It might get recycled but it won’t get re-used.”

Richard emphasised that contending with other organisations for the award would be a proud moment for those who deserve appreciation for the efforts they invest year-on-year. Other organisations include White Horse Leisure and Tennis Centre; food education social enterprise Maymessy CIC; and craft brewery Tap Social.

“It shows that social enterprise is quite strong in the county and district which is nice for us because we’re a proud social enterprise.

“We’ve never been recognised locally for an award, so it would be really good to get it.

“It will hopefully let our friends and customers know that we’re moving in the right direction,” he added.

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