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100,000+ NONPROFITS COUNT ON US.
GENEROSITY UNLEASHED: $830 MILLION IN DONATIONS
100,000+ NONPROFITS COUNT ON US.
GENEROSITY UNLEASHED: $830 MILLION IN DONATIONS
SOURCE: American Cancer Society
DESCRIPTION:Last month our volunteer president, Vincent T. DeVita, Jr., M.D.began the countdown to the American Cancer Society’s 100thbirthday by emphasizing the incredible progress we’ve made in our ongoing efforts to save as many lives as possible. As we move closer to that milestone birthday I want to highlight another area in which your American Cancer Society is leading the way: improving quality of life for people with cancer and their loved ones.
Thanks in part to our work, 68 percent of people diagnosed with cancer in this country now survive at least five years. Ours is a culture that celebrates cancer survivorship, where the word hope – not fear – is associated with the disease. We’re working to transform cancer from deadly to treatable and from treatable to preventable. With that change has come the need to help people through many phases of life with cancer and after it. The Society provides help understanding the disease, living through the process of treatment and recovery, and emotional support throughout the journey.
We offer many programs and services to meet these needs, from providing the latest cancer information to rides or a place to stay during treatment, to assistance withappearance related side effects of treatment. We also provide emotional support, peer-to-peer mentoring, and a world class Patient Navigator Program®. Many more programs and services to fulfill specific needs are listed on cancer.org. Everything is coordinated at our truly unique National Cancer Information Center, which is the only cancer helpline where live specialists are available 24 hours a day, every single day, at 800-227-2345.
Of course as we focus on improving quality of life, our relentless efforts to prevent and treat cancer are always ongoing. I believe we can finish this fight once and for all. As the Society celebrates its 100th birthday, we’re using this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to rally people everywhere to help us put the American Cancer Society out of business.
With your help, we believe we can create a future in which all people who are diagnosed with cancer survive it. We’ve learned during our 100 years that cancer thrives on silence and complacency. Progress comes when we speak out, make noise and take action.
I sincerely hope I can count on you to join us on the next – and last – leg of this journey. We know that silence won’t finish the fight; only action will. And we believe together, we can make this cancer’s last century.
Tweet me: The @AmericanCancer Society is Taking Action to #FinishtheFight Against Cancer http://bit.ly/15CKXOC
KEYWORDS: Business & Trade, Health and Wellness, People, Social Action & Community Engagement, John Seffrin, American Cancer Society, Finish the Fight, 100th birthday, More Birthdays, Cancer Awareness, Cancer
SOURCE: Southwest Airlines
DESCRIPTION:Medical Transportation Grant Program Uses Airplane Seats for Good
Addison is a fighter. Since she was born, Addison has fought Larsen's Syndrome, a disease that causes many dislocations to her body. The Medical Transportation Grant Program has allowed Addison to travel to Children’s Hospital in Boston to receive care from one of the top hospitals in the nation. Since 2009, Addison has learned how to stand on her own, take her first steps, jump her first jump, walk by herself, and enjoy having fun like the rest of the kids her age.
Addison is one of thousands of patients who have benefitted from Southwest’s Medical Transportation Grant Program over the last six years to get the medical treatment she needs. Through this program, we’re proud to have the opportunity to use our airplane seats for good and turn miles into smiles by providing complimentary, roundtrip airline tickets to nonprofit hospitals and medical organizations that then provide the tickets to patients and their caregivers who must travel for treatment.
For 2013, Southwest will provide more than $2.8 million in free transportation to caregivers and patients seeking medical treatment. Now in its sixth year, Southwest has provided more than $10 million to organizations in 24 states. This year, we’re excited to partner with more than 90 nonprofit organizations and welcome new recipients to the program such as St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, an airport currently served by AirTran that will convert over to Southwest service by the end of 2013. Now, more than a year after celebrating our red bellies touching down in The Peach State, we’re thrilled to have three medical organizations in Atlanta part of the program—Emory University Hospitals, Piedmont Atlanta Hospital, and Shepherd Center. To see a full list of the 2013 recipients, please visit: www.southwest.com/medicalgrant.
After more than four decades of giving from the heart, we are humbled to ease the difficulties these patients and families are facing through the Medical Transportation Grant Program. This infographic highlights the lives we’ve been able to touch through this unique program.
Here are just a few sound bites that we’ve heard along the way from caregivers of patients and hospitals that have benefitted from the grant program.
"The financial burden on our family has been severe. I have many things to be thankful for, but regaining my health has been a long, expensive road. Southwest Airlines has been a true blessing. Thanks to them the burden is lightened." – Medical Transportation Grant Program Recipient
"It is difficult to put into words how grateful me, my wife, and my disabled son are for Southwest Airlines' Medical Transportation Grant Program. It has been a very difficult ordeal to go through these past two years, but without the assistance of Southwest, I would not have the chance to extend my life to this point and beyond, and for that reason we thank you from the bottom of our hearts." –MD Anderson Patient
"The Medical Transportation Grant program has been an incredible help for our family. We never thought that we would have a life-threatening disease that would turn our lives upside down. Thanks to this program, we had one less thing to worry about and were able to focus on our child’s health." –Parent of Medical Transportation Grant Program recipient
To learn about qualifications for travel assistance through the designated organizations, please contact the Social Work, Travel/Concierge Service, or Patient Assistance Department directly at each location, as each have unique guidelines for administration of tickets. Find out more about all the ways Southwest stands for community by visiting www.southwest.com/citizenship.
KEYWORDS: Southwest Airlines, medical transportation grant program, csr, Nuts About Southwest
SOURCE: Cisco Systems Inc.
DESCRIPTION:By Tae Yoo
This blog was originally published on the Huffington Post on March 7, 2013.
Today, I would like to reflect on the progress women are making in the global economy by highlighting the work of one woman who has been a source of inspiration for many: Randa Ayoubi. Randa is a woman entrepreneur from Jordan who had a dream of enhancing the lives of children by raising educational standards through multimedia learning.
Nearly 20 years ago, after her studies in computer science at Texas Tech, Randa returned to Jordan to work at a bank. However, Randa wanted a different path and aspired to be her own boss and contribute to society. She started a software business called Rubicon where she became one of Jordan’s pioneers in multimedia software for education at a time when rural poverty and the lack of teachers in villages was a big issue.
Continue reading about Randa's impact on education, the workforce, and society on Cisco's blog.
KEYWORDS: Cisco, International Women's Day, Education, Jordan, entrepreneurship, Women Entrepreneurs, educational standards
SOURCE: Keep America Beautiful
DESCRIPTION:STAMFORD, Conn., Mar. 8, 2013 /3BL Media/ – Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s leading nonprofit that brings people together to build vibrant communities, today announced its first-ever annual social mission goals. These goals reflect the nonprofit’s actions, which create communities that are socially connected, environmentally healthy and economically sound.
In addition, the national nonprofit launched its new, interactive Social Volunteer Hub that highlights volunteers’ experiences during its flagship program, Great American Cleanup. Keep America Beautiful (KAB), which has been engaging people to take greater responsibility for improving their community’s environment for 60 years, will kick off the Great American Cleanup with its social mission goals and social volunteer hub at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, this weekend.
“Each and every day, we are singularly focused on transforming public spaces into beautiful places in communities across the country,” said Matt McKenna, KAB president and chief executive officer. “Whether the place is a neighborhood park, a river shoreline or a vacant lot, public places provide a neutral space in which people can come together, share ideas and establish meaningful relationships. When provided with the right tools and resources, we’ve found that people tend to take better care of these places, resulting in even greater community benefits.”
Creating a Digital Cleanup Community
The Great American Cleanup is the nation’s largest community improvement program that harnesses the power of millions of volunteers to build and sustain vibrant communities. This year, the 27-year-old program will be reignited by the launch of KAB’s new Social Volunteer Hub (kabcleanup.org) at SXSW. This hub brings the Great American Cleanup story to life, allowing volunteers to share their cleanup experiences in real time through the power of social media.
By using the #KeepAmericaBeautiful hashtag, volunteers nationwide connect through the social hub as it aggregates volunteers’ tweets, Instagram photos, Facebook posts and Foursquare check-ins in one centralized location. With the launch of the social volunteer hub at SXSW, Keep America Beautiful will engage volunteers with technology and inspire the next generation of environmental stewards to become more involved in their local community’s volunteer activities.
2013 Vibrant Communities Impact Goals
For the first time ever, KAB announced its 2013 Vibrant Communities Impact Goals that reflect the nonprofit’s actions in more than 20,000 communities across the country. From planting a tree on a vacant lot to increase adjacent property values to building edible community gardens that produce fresh fruits and vegetables for better nutrition, the national nonprofit’s actions result in both social and economic impact.
This year’s goals include:
Keep America Beautiful at SXSW
KAB is leveraging the innovative spirit of SXSW to introduce its annual impact goals and new digital platform to a progressive audience who utilizes social media as a means to connect in social mission.
On Saturday, March 9, the nonprofit will introduce its new brand platform at a luncheon during Tech Cocktail’s SXSW Startup Celebration at the Stage on Sixth. KAB CEO Matt McKenna will be on site to share the nonprofit’s new Vibrant Communities Impact Goals, introduce the social volunteer hub and encourage the festival’s attendees to volunteer to improve their community’s environment.
KAB is also teaming up with The GLAD Products Company to be the waste diversion partner of SouthBites, a gourmet food truck destination at the festival curated by Austin Chef and Top Chef season nine winner, Paul Qui. From March 8 through March 12, SouthBites attendees will learn about waste diversion with teams from KAB and Glad on deck to provide information on recycling and composting. In addition, artist Jason Mecier will be on site creating a mural of America from recycled materials collected at the SouthBites venue.
SXSW attendees and Austin residents have the opportunity to join a volunteer cleanup event driven by local affiliate Keep Austin Beautiful at 9 am, Saturday, March 9. Volunteers will bring KAB’s mission to life by removing litter and debris as well as recycling content from a heavily trafficked area on the main thoroughfare of the festival. The action will all be captured on the new social volunteer hub.
The events at SXSW are just the kickoff of a series of community improvement events across the country that create clean, beautiful places, reduce waste and increase recycling efforts in local communities. Volunteers can view opportunities in their communities by visiting kabcleanup.org. The Great American Cleanup activities spike through May in communities across the country but occur year-round.
The national sponsors of the 2013 Great American Cleanup to date are: The Dow Chemical Company; The Glad Products Company; LG Electronics U.S.A., Inc.; Nestlé® Pure Life® Purified Water; PepsiCo's Pepsi-Cola and Gatorade companies; Solo Cup Company; Troy-Bilt® Lawn and Garden Equipment; Waste Management, WM Recycle Service; and Wrigley.
About Keep America Beautiful
Keep America Beautiful is the nation’s leading nonprofit that brings people together to build and sustain vibrant communities. With a strong national network of 1,200 affiliate and partners including state recycling organizations, the national nonprofit works with millions of volunteers who take action in their communities. Keep America Beautiful offers solutions that create clean, beautiful public places, reduce waste and increase recycling, inspire generations of environmental stewards and generate positive impact on local economies. Through our programs and public-private partnerships, we engage individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community’s environment. For more information, visit kab.org.
About The GLAD Products Company
The GLAD Products Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Clorox Company. The Clorox Company is a leading multinational manufacturer and marketer of consumer and professional products with approximately 8,400 employees and fiscal year 2012 revenues of $5.5 billion. Clorox markets some of the most trusted and recognized brand names, including its namesake bleach and cleaning products, Clorox Healthcare™, HealthLink®, Aplicare® and Dispatch® products, Green Works® naturally derived home care products, Pine-Sol® cleaners, Poett® home care products, Fresh Step® cat litter, Glad® bags, wraps and containers, Kingsford® charcoal, Hidden Valley® and KC Masterpiece® dressings and sauces, Brita® water-filtration products, and Burt's Bees® and gud® natural personal care products. Nearly 90 percent of the company's brands hold the No. 1 or No. 2 market share positions in their categories. Clorox's commitment to corporate responsibility includes making a positive difference in its communities. In fiscal year 2012, The Clorox Company Foundation awarded $3.5 million in cash grants, and Clorox made product donations valued at $15 million. For more information, visit TheCloroxCompany.com.
About South by Southwest
SXSW offers a unique convergence of original music, independent films and emerging technologies. Fostering creative and professional growth alike, SXSW is a launching pad for new creative content. For more information, visit http://www.sxsw.com.
About Tech Cocktail
Tech Cocktail is a media company and events organization for startups, entrepreneurs, and technology enthusiasts. Since 2006, its goal has been to amplify local tech communities and give entrepreneurs a place to get informed, get connected, and get inspired. Tech Cocktail dedicates itself to covering news, how-to’s, up-and-coming startups, and industry trends online, and hosting events in over 20 cities in the US and abroad.
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Tweet me: #KeepAmericaBeautiful unveils bold social mission goals and interactive volunteer social hub (http://www.kabcleanup.org) Contact Info:
Lynn Markley
Keep America Beautiful
+1 (203) 659-3072
lmarkley@kab.org
http://www.facebook.com/KeepAmericaBeautiful
http://www.twitter.com/kabtweet
http://www.kabcleanup.org
Jessica Benjamin
Cone Communications
+1 (508) 245-4566
jbenjamin@conecomm.com
KEYWORDS: Corporate Social Responsibility, Green, Sustainable Living, Education, Conservation, Recycling, Trees, Water, Event, Non-Profit, Philanthropy, Volunteering, Cause Marketing, Green Marketing, Social Media, Sustainable Marketing, Twitter, Community, Engagement, Positive Change, People, Social Change, Social Actions, Teen Action, Volunteerism, Youth Action, Keep America Beautiful, Great American Cleanup, south by southwest, Tech Cocktail, Social Volunteer Hub, Vibrant Communities Impact Goals, The Dow Chemical Company, The Glad Products Company, LG Electronics U.S.A., Nestlé® Pure Life® Purified Water, Pepsico, Pepsi-Cola, Gatorade, Solo Cup Company, Troy-Bilt® Lawn and Garden Equipment, waste management, WM Recycle Service, Wrigley
SOURCE: Cisco Systems Inc.
DESCRIPTION:On 8 March, thousands of International Women’s Day events have been planned throughout the world. The focus of the day generally expresses respect for, and appreciation towards women who have achieved greatness on the public stage. More often than not it is to acknowledge their accomplishments in economics, political and social change.
I’d like to take a moment today to thank several remarkable women colleagues that I work with every day who move the ball forward, inch by inch, to make sure that the impact of our efforts to improve the world do not go unseen.
Check out the list of amazing women who archieve greatness in CSR at Cisco every day.
Tweet me: #InternationalWomansDay http://3bl.me/4q8fxr a celebration for the great women @CiscoCSR
KEYWORDS: connected women, corporate affairs, Corporate Social Responsibility, csr, employee satisfaction, employees, International Women's Day, marketing, women, Women in IT, Women in Technology, Cisco
SOURCE: PCI Media Impact
DESCRIPTION:NEW YORK, NEW YORK, March 8, 2013 /3BL Media/ – PCI-Media Impact received one of five 2nd Avon Communications Awards: Speaking Out About Violence Against Women yesterday for their work on “Strong Women, Strong Voices” Actress and Avon Foundation for Women Ambassador Salma Hayek Pinault presented the awards during an adjunct event to the 57th session of the Commission of the Status of Women at the United Nations.
PCI-Media Impact, in partnership with Swedish NGO Diakonia, created and implemented the “Strong Women, Strong Voices” radio program. Radio is a favored medium in rural communities in Latin America and the program skillfully weaves together stories using language accessible to both Spanish-speaking and indigenous women. Broadcast in Peru, Colombia and Bolivia, the drama tells the stories of women overcoming prejudice, abuse and sexual violence. Radio and storytelling is very adaptable, and its impact can be enhanced through partnerships that provide strong infrastructure and a proven theory of change.
“Strong Women, Strong Voices” received the Global Award for Excellence in Communication and was recognized alongside four other outstanding communications campaigns that are helping change communities, policies, institutions, and behaviors to end violence against women. The winning organizations will each receive an Avon Foundation grant to fund the continuation of their work.
“People are willing to speak out, but they don’t always know how to recognize the signs of abuse or how best to intervene,” said Avon Products, Inc. CEO Sheri McCoy. “Avon believes communications and education will help bystanders become interveners and help break the cycle of violence, which is why the Avon Speak Out Against Domestic Violence program is honoring these Communications Awards winners today.”
An international panel of judges selected PCI-Media Impact from more than 425 submissions to the Communications X-Change by 119 organizations in 46 countries, ranging from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. The Communications X-Change is a digital global communications library that enables organizations and advocates throughout the world to find, share, and learn from the best communications material focused on ending violence against women and children. The Communications X-Change was developed and is managed by Futures Without Violence and funded by Avon Foundation.
“We congratulate the award winners for their strategic and innovative communications efforts,” said Futures Without Violence Founder and President Esta Soler. “Communications provide powerful tools for changing attitudes and behaviors—raising awareness, sounding the alarm, and spreading news about what to do and where to go for help in abusive situations.”
The awards coincide with International Women’s Day, and the Commission of the Status of Women, which this year focuses on the elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls. The Commission of the Status of Women drew nearly 6,000 representatives from UN Member States, UN entities and NGOs from around the world for a two-week session.
To view the award-winning campaigns in each of the five categories, as well as the 19 finalists’ campaigns, please visit: http://www.avonfoundation.org/globalspeakout/avon-communications-awards.html. These materials and many others are available on the Communications X-Change, which is open to new submissions.
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About Avon’s Speak Out Against Domestic Violence Program
Avon and the Avon Foundation for Women launched Speak Out Against Domestic Violence in 2004 to support domestic violence awareness, education and prevention programs aimed at reducing domestic and gender violence, as well as direct services for victims and their families. Through the end of 2012, Avon global philanthropy has donated almost $50 million to support violence against women programs, services and education. Globally, Avon supports efforts to end violence against women in nearly 50 countries by raising funds through special product sales, and raising awareness through events and with educational information disseminated by more than 6 million global Avon Representatives.
PCI-Media Impact empowers communities worldwide to inspire enduring change through creative storytelling. Media Impact is an international leader in supporting social change through multifaceted communications programs. During 27 years of work with local partners in communities around the world, Media Impact has leveraged the power of media and the inspiration of storytelling to produce more than 5,000 episodes of 100 programs. Together with our partners, we have reached more than 1 billion people in over 45 countries.
Diakonia is a Swedish organization whose aim is for all people to live free of poverty, under dignified circumstances, in a just and sustainable world. Diakonia's efforts are aimed at people who live in poverty, oppression and violence and work with churches and ecumenical organizations to ease the burdens of these people. The 5 main themes Diakonia bases their policy off of are democratization, human rights, social and economic justice, gender equality and peace and reconciliation.
KEYWORDS: Avon, Avon Communications Awards, Speak Out, Speak Out Against Domestic Violence, violence against women, Communcations for change, Salma Hayek, PCI-Media Impact, Peru, Strong Women Strong Voices, entertainment-education, Radio, International Women's Day, UN CSW
SOURCE: Eli Lilly and Company
DESCRIPTION:Lilly Collaborates to Fight NCDs in South Africa
by Karen Van der Westhuizen, Communication Manager of Lilly’s Global Health Programs.
The Lilly NCD Partnership is one of Lilly’s flagship corporate responsibility initiatives. Launched in late 2011, the partnership works in four countries (Brazil, India, Mexico and South Africa) to research innovative ways to tackle non-communicable diseases (NCDs),specifically diabetes.
In South Africa, we partner with the Donald Woods Foundation. The foundation works in South Africa’s most impoverished region, where good roads are rare, most homes do not have basic sanitation and running water, and medical facilities are not easily reached. This 1-minute video captures the invaluable work conducted by the Donald Woods Foundation in collaboration with The Lilly NCD Partnership.
KEYWORDS: Health and Wellness, diabetes, non-communicable diseases, NCDs, Lilly NCD Partnership, Donald Woods Foundation, South Africa, Lilly, Eli Lilly and Company
SOURCE: Novo Nordisk
DESCRIPTION:Bagsværd, Denmark, March 8, 2013 /3BL Media/ - On 1 March, Novo Nordisk celebrated International Women’s Day early with the launch of a new career network – WINN2. The new network stems from the original WINN network (Women in Novo Nordisk) which aims to advance and develop women in management positions to drive business performance. But unlike the original network, WINN2 was created for women at earlier stages of their careers.
“Women represent half of the world population and half of the employee population of our company,” says Annelise Goldstein, vice president, Diversity and Inclusion, Novo Nordisk. “If we do not have women represented at all levels of the organisation then we are missing out on a huge talent capacity.”
The WINN2 network is just one of Novo Nordisk’s initiatives supporting progress on the company’s Diversity Aspiration made in 2009. The aspiration calls for all senior management teams be diverse in both gender and nationality by 2014. With less than one year remaining, the company reported that 66% of senior management teams have met the diversity target in 2012.
Since making the aspiration in 2009, the percentage of women enrolled in Novo Nordisk’s two corporate talent programmes – the Greenhouse programme for managers with further potential and the Lighthouse programme for exceptional vice presidents with potential for more senior positions – has increased from 21% to 29% and 30% to 46% respectively.
“I think we have made great progress. Our underlying numbers are getting better and better, and I believe that we will come very close to reaching our aspiration,” says Annelise Goldstein. “But at the same time it’s important to make sure that we always hire the best candidate for a given job.”
Novo Nordisk uses the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a guide in framing its diversity and inclusion strategy and works to ensure equal opportunities with regard to recruitment, conditions at work, remuneration, training and promotion, and termination of employment.
Watch Novo Nordisk’s Diversity video
About Novo Nordisk
Headquartered in Denmark, Novo Nordisk is a global healthcare company with 90 years of innovation and leadership in diabetes care. The company also has leading positions within haemophilia care, growth hormone therapy and hormone replacement therapy. For more information, visit novonordisk.com.
Novo Nordisk strives to conduct its activities in a financially, environmentally and socially responsible way. The strategic commitment to corporate sustainability has brought the company onto centre stage as a leading player in today’s business environment, recognised for its integrated reporting, stakeholder engagement and consistently high sustainability performance. In 2013, Novo Nordisk received the Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology industry group top ranking on Corporate Knight’s list of Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations. For more information, visit novonordisk.com/sustainability.
KEYWORDS: Business & Trade, Human Resources, People, Social Action & Community Engagement, diversity, sustainability, Novo Nordisk, Health, Triple Bottom Line
SOURCE: 3BL Media, LLC
DESCRIPTION:The CSR Event Series at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada's annual convention will bring together experts in mining and sustainable development to learn about and discuss CSR issues. Sessions will cover a range of issues related to sustainable development in the mineral exploration and mining industries. Attendees will hear from the Responsible Jewellery Council, Solidaridad, the International Financial Corporation, the Government of Canada, Resource Initiatives, Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, and the International Council on Mining and Metals, among others. The event is open to convention delegates and the public, and is free to attend. The PDAC takes place March 3rd through the 6th at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
Green Mountain Coffee has joined with four other coffee industry leaders to form the Coffeelands Food Security Coalition. Along with Starbucks, Counter Culture Coffee, Farmer Brothers, and Sustainable Harvest Coffee Importers, Green Mountain will help coffee farmers in Nicaragua fight seasonal hunger during the rainy season that leaves families without income for five to seven months. The three-year Empowering Food Secure Communities program will work with 150 women and their families to improve their farming and business skills, and to develop additional sources of income.
For more information on these and other stories, go to 3blmedia.com
KEYWORDS: CSR Event Series, Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, Responsible Jewellery Council, Solidaridad, the International Financial Corporation, the Government of Canada, Resource Initiatives, Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, Toronto, Green Mountain Coffee, Coffeelands Food Security Coalition, Starbucks, 3bl Media, csr, CSR Minute
SOURCE: Capital One
DESCRIPTION:MCLEAN, Va., March 7, 2013 /3BL Media/ – At its quarterly Board of Directors meeting held this week, Junior Achievement USA® (JA) presented Capital One with a 2011-2012 Gold U.S. President's Volunteer Service Award for providing the organization with more than 15,000 volunteer hours during the 2011-2012 school year.
President George W. Bush established the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation (the Council) in 2003 to recognize the valuable contributions volunteers make in communities and encourage more people to serve. The Council created the President's Volunteer Service Award program as a way to thank and honor Americans who, by their demonstrated commitment and example, inspire others to engage in volunteer service. In 2006, Junior Achievement became an official certifying organization for this award, which also recognizes corporations with a U.S. presence that provide volunteers to teach JA programs anywhere in the world.
“At Capital One, community engagement and investment have always been about much more than simply writing a check -- they are an integral part of our corporate culture and identity,” said Carolyn Berkowitz, President, Capital One Foundation and Managing Vice President, Community Affairs, Capital One Financial Corporation. “This award is a reflection of the dedication and commitment of our associates to partner with local nonprofits like Junior Achievement to help individuals and communities thrive.”
Capital One is one of only 33 JA corporate partners to be honored with a President’s Volunteer Service Award this year. The entire list of recipients is located here.
“Junior Achievement volunteers play a key role in bringing Junior Achievement to life. By sharing their personal and professional experiences and skills with students in their communities, volunteers help young people to make a connection between what they are learning in school and what they will need to succeed in work and life. In so doing, they support students, their local communities and America's economic competitiveness," said Jack E. Kosakowski, president and CEO of Junior Achievement USA. "The U.S. President's Volunteer Service Award is an outstanding way to acknowledge Capital One and its employee-volunteers, who demonstrate a commitment to their communities and encourage others to make volunteering a priority.”
Larry A. Leva, global vice chairman of Quality and Risk Management for KPMG International and chairman of Junior Achievement USA, added, "By recognizing and honoring volunteers, we shine a spotlight on everyday heroes who are working to address pressing social challenges. We are also setting a standard for service and fostering civic participation."
The Capital One and Junior Achievement partnership is of long-standing. Since 2003, Capital One and Junior Achievement have worked together to ensure that students have the opportunity, tools and resources they need to grow up to become self-reliant adults. Thousands of students from across the country benefit from innovative Junior Achievement programs in partnership with Capital One, including activities like Capital One/Junior Achievement Finance Park, JA Finance Park, JA Finance Park Virtual, JA in A Day and Bowl-a-Thons. Seventeen associates serve on Junior Achievement Boards at the national and local levels, lending their professional talents to help the organization continue to achieve its mission.
About Junior Achievement USA® (JA)
Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. JA programs are delivered by corporate and community volunteers, and provide relevant, hands-on experiences that give students from kindergarten through high school knowledge and skills in financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship. Today, JA reaches 4.2 million students per year in more than 120 markets across the United States, with an additional 5.8 million students served by operations in 120 other countries worldwide. Visit www.ja.org for more information.
About Capital One
Capital One Financial Corporation, headquartered in McLean, Virginia, is a Fortune 500 company with more than 900 branch locations primarily in New York, New Jersey, Texas, Louisiana, Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Its subsidiaries, Capital One, N.A. and Capital One Bank (USA), N. A. offer a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients. We apply the same principles of innovation, collaboration and empowerment in our commitment to our communities across the country that we do in our business. We recognize that helping to build strong and healthy communities - good places to work, good places to do business and good places to raise families - benefits us all and we are proud to support this and other community initiatives.
Contact: Stephanie Bell
(719) 540-6171
sbell@ja.org
Contact: Shelley Solheim
(917)-589-6203
Shelley.Solheim@capitalone.com
KEYWORDS: capital one, volunteer service award, u.s. president's volunteer service award, junior achievement, Volunteering, civic participation
SOURCE: Home Depot Foundation
DESCRIPTION:Just last week, The New York Times featured an article on the growing challenges for female veterans as they transition back into civilian life. It was a good reminder of the oftentimes forgotten mental and physical effects of war that remain with female military members long after their service is over.
According to the article, “returning servicewomen are facing a battlefield of a different kind: they are now the fastest growing segment of the homeless population, an often-invisible group bouncing between sofa and air mattress, overnighting in public storage lockers, living in cars and learning to park inconspicuously on the outskirts of shopping centers to avoid the violence of the streets.”
What makes all of this worse: one-third of homeless female veterans live with their minor children, making it difficult to find transitional housing. That’s why we have taken a special interest in this issue.
We are partnering with organizations such as U.S.VETS and Volunteers of America and activating Team Depot, our associate volunteer corps, to provide safe and comfortable homes for these veterans who have sacrificed so much to serve our country.
One project we are particularly excited about is in partnership with U.S.VETS in Long Beach, California. Together we will help renoate a former naval housing site into transitional housing and supportive services for female veterans and their families.
Also, just a couple months ago, Team Depot transformed the home of Tonja Millberry, a veteran, mother of two and cancer survivor. The renovation of her living area, bathroom and flooring not only removed a long-term financial burden, but also increased the family’s overall morale.
As we move forward in our efforts, we know that we all must continue to work together and leverage our resources to improve housing conditions for female veterans and their families. It’s the right thing to do and a challenge we gladly accept.
For more information on The Home Depot Foundation, please visit our website.
Tweet me: Challenge Accepted: @HomeDepotFdn effort to help female #veterans overcome the #housing challenges they face. http://bit.ly/14uhzYu Contact Info:
Catherine Woodling
The Home Depot Foundation
+1 (770) 384-2304
catherine_woodling@homedepot.com
KEYWORDS: Volunteering, The Home Depot Foundation, The Home Depot, corporate philanthropy, csr, Veterans, volunteerism
SOURCE: Ball Corporation
DESCRIPTION:BROOMFIELD, Colo., March 7, 2013 /3BL Media/ PRNewswire/ -- The Ball Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL) headquartered in Broomfield, Colo., has committed $100,000 to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief fund in 2013. The Foundation's grant will help to ensure the Red Cross is prepared to respond before disaster strikes and assist people in need.
"The Red Cross provides extraordinary assistance to those in need, and Ball has proudly supported its disaster response efforts for many years," said Jennifer Hoover, executive director, The Ball Foundation. "Disaster relief is an important part of the Ball Foundation's focus on advancing sustainable livelihoods for people in our communities by improving self-sufficiency in times of need. Our commitment will help ensure the Red Cross is ready to respond immediately when disaster strikes, and help our communities to prepare for disaster response, recovery and readiness."
According to the Red Cross, for every $1 spent in preparation, $4 to $10 is saved in recovery. Each year, the organization immediately responds to about 70,000 disasters in the U.S., ranging from fires to hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, tornadoes, hazardous materials spills, transportation accidents and explosions.
"Many generous donors recognize the need to give once a community has been devastated by disaster–but this donation by The Ball Foundation recognizes the importance of supporting the Red Cross in all that it must do before disaster strikes, so we can be fully ready to respond at a moment's notice when we are needed most," said Gino Greco, CEO of the American Red Cross Mile High Region. "This sort of proactive support enables us to meet disaster-affected communities' needs more quickly, more efficiently and at a lower cost."
About the American Red Cross
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.
About The Ball Foundation
The Ball Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, private foundation. Founded in December 2010, The Ball Foundation's mission is to provide financial support to nonprofit organizations that sustain the communities in which we live and operate by improving and promoting education, recycling and community engagement. For more information about the Ball Foundation, please visit www.ball.com/ball-foundation.
About Ball Corporation
Ball Corporation is a supplier of high quality packaging for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ approximately 15,000 people worldwide and reported 2012 sales of more than $8.7 billion. For the latest Ball Corporation news and for other company information, please visit www.ball.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains "forward-looking" statements concerning future events and financial performance. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Key risks and uncertainties are summarized in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Exhibit 99.2 in our Form 10-K, which are available on our website and at www.sec.gov. Factors that might affect our packaging segments include fluctuation in product demand and preferences; availability and cost of raw materials; competitive packaging availability, pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; crop yields; competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated productivity improvements or production cost reductions; mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or supplier; political instability and sanctions; and changes in foreign exchange rates or tax rates. Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding, authorization, availability and returns of government and commercial contracts; and delays, extensions and technical uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: accounting changes; changes in senior management; the recent global recession and its effects on liquidity, credit risk, asset values and the economy; successful or unsuccessful acquisitions; regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental, health and workplace safety, including U.S. FDA and other actions affecting products filled in our containers, or chemicals or substances used in raw materials or in the manufacturing process; governmental investigations; technological developments and innovations; goodwill impairment; antitrust, patent and other litigation; strikes; labor cost changes; rates of return projected and earned on assets of the company's defined benefit retirement plans; pension changes; uncertainties surrounding the U.S. government budget and debt limit; reduced cash flow; interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results due to statutory audits or other effects.
Copyright 2012 PR Newswire. All Rights Reserved
Tweet me: Ball Foundation Commits $100,000 to the American Red Cross http://3bl.me/2cc3my #CSR
KEYWORDS: Ball Corporation, American Red Cross, csr, Donations, American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, sustainability, beverage and food industry
SOURCE: Southwest Airlines
DESCRIPTION:Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) announced today that more than 90 nonprofit hospitals and medical organizations from across the nation were selected for Southwest’s 2013 Medical Transportation Grant Program. By connecting the airline’s service with the hospital’s care, this program alleviates the financial burden of air travel for families who are facing serious illness by providing complimentary, roundtrip airline tickets to nonprofit hospitals and medical organizations. The nonprofit hospitals and medical organizations have the freedom to provide the tickets to patients who must travel to receive needed medical care. For 2013, Southwest will provide more than $2.8 million in free transportation to caregivers and patients seeking medical treatment. Now in its sixth year, Southwest’s Medical Transportation Grant Program has provided more than $10 million to organizations in 24 states. To see a full list of the 2013 recipients, please visit: www.southwest.com/medicalgrant.
“We are proud to partner with world-renowned hospitals across the nation such as The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and new recipient, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and give the gift of flight for patients to get the best medical care available,” said Linda Rutherford, Southwest Airlines Vice President of Communication and Strategic Outreach. “After more than four decades of giving from the heart, our commitment to community is stronger than ever, and we are humbled to help ease the difficulties these patients and families are facing through this unique program.”
In addition to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, new 2013 recipients in the Medical Transportation Grant Program include three medical organizations in Atlanta—Emory University Hospitals, Piedmont Atlanta Hospital, and Shepherd Center. To learn more about the Medical Transportation Grant Program, visit www.swamedia.com to see an infographic illustrating how the program works.
The impact of the Medical Transportation Grant Program has touched the lives of more than 26,000 patients since the program’s inception. Visit the NUTS About Southwest blog to read stories from some of the patients and families who have benefitted from the program.
To learn about qualifications for travel assistance through the designated organizations, please contact the Social Work, Travel/Concierge Service, or Patient Assistance Department directly at each location, as each have unique guidelines for administration of tickets.
ABOUT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.
In its 42nd year of service, Dallas-based Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) continues to differentiate itself from other carriers with exemplary Customer Service delivered by nearly 46,000 Employees to more than 100 million Customers annually. Southwest is the nation’s largest carrier in terms of originating passengers boarded, and including wholly-owned subsidiary, AirTran Airways, operates the largest fleet of Boeing aircraft in the world to serve 97 destinations in 41 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and six near-international countries. Southwest is one of the most honored airlines in the world, known for its triple bottom line thinking that takes into account the carrier’s performance and productivity, the importance of the People who work there and the communities it serves, and its commitment to efficiency and the Planet. The 2011 Southwest Airlines One Report™ can be found at southwest.com/citizenship.
Southwest Airlines
From its first flights on June 18, 1971, Southwest Airlines launched an era of unprecedented affordability in air travel quantified by the U.S. Department of Transportation as “The Southwest Effect,” a lowering of fares and increase in passenger traffic wherever the carrier serves. On every flight, Southwest offers Customers the first two pieces of checked luggage (weight and size limitations apply) and all ticket changes without additional fees. Southwest’s all Boeing fleet consistently offers leather seating and the comfort of full-size cabins, many of which are equipped with satellite-based WiFi connectivity and a new, sustainable cabin interior. With 40 consecutive years of profitability, the People of Southwest operate more than 3,200 flights a day and serve communities around 78 airports in Southwest’s network of domestic destinations. Southwest Airlines’ frequent flights and low fares are available only at southwest.com.
KEYWORDS: Southwest Airlines, medical transportation grant program, nonprofit hospitals, medical organizations, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
SOURCE: PwC LLP
DESCRIPTION:March 7, 2013 /3BL Media/ - As part of PwC's Earn Your Future, The PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc. today announced the winner of PwC's High School Business Challenge while PwC US announced the winner of its Financial Literacy Award and its continued support of the MIND Research Institute. Through these programs and others, the US firm and the PwC Foundation are working to help strengthen financial literacy among young people and financial training opportunities for teachers.
The winner of the High School Business Challenge, Riverview High School in Riverview, FL, received $40,000 from The PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc. to enhance financial education within its curricula and programs. The Riverview team developed a comprehensive business plan for a fictitious music label, Cut Above, which was designed by the winning team to improve the world one fan at a time by focusing on promoting upcoming artists who are driven by an agenda of social consciousness and environmental awareness. School of Biotechnology, Health and Public Administration at Olympic Community of Schools in Charlotte, NC, was recognized by the PwC Charitable Foundation as the runner-up for a business plan the school's team developed to promote Korean pop artists in the American music industry.
The winner of PwC’s Financial Literacy Award, Kathy Focht of Wilson High School in West Lawn, PA, received $5,000 for her school as a result of her video submission which showed highlights from a curricula that taught students about home mortgages, interest rates and how to save money on mortgage payments. Honorable-mention recipients Maggie Wohltmann of Teaneck High School in Teaneck, NJ, and Kim Zocco of Archbishop Edward A. McCarthy High School in Southwest Ranches, FL, each received $2,500 from PwC for their schools for their submissions that focused on teaching students how to analyze a budget and save money, respectively.
"Through programs like these, PwC is making a tangible impact in our nation's classrooms,” said Shannon Schuyler, PwC’s US Corporate Responsibility Leader and Officer on the Board of the PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc. “By leveraging the skills of our people, PwC’s Earn Your Future has reached more than 5,800 educators and 393,000 students to date. I'm inspired by the individual stories of learning among teachers and students and honored to recognize those who are making a difference."
About PwC's High School Business Challenge and PwC's Financial Literacy Award
During PwC's High School Business Challenge, PwC mentors worked directly with teachers and students to bring core business concepts to life in the classroom. Student teams used skills introduced in the lesson plans by teachers and mentors—including budgeting, financial planning and market research—to create business plans. More than 71 student teams across 14 high schools participated in the challenge. All participating schools across PwC markets received grants from the PwC Charitable Foundation to grow or enhance their business programs.
PwC’s Financial Literacy Award, formally launched at the inaugural PwC and KWHS Seminar for High School Educators on Business and Financial Responsibility, recognizes the achievements that educators make in preparing students to make responsible financial decisions and contribute to a healthier economy. Teachers were asked to create a video showcasing how they are teaching financial literacy and how their students are using it in the real world. The winning videos can be viewed online.
PwC Announces Continued Support of the MIND Research Institute
PwC US will also expand its work with the MIND Research Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to improving math education and closing the math achievement gap. Schools using MIND’s research-based ST Math visual learning program have, on average, doubled their growth in math proficiency, according to MIND. PwC is continuing its support with a new $300,000 grant, which will fund professional development for more than 950 teachers at 161 elementary schools and support MIND’s innovative, visual math-education programs to six new markets: Baltimore, Minneapolis, New York City, Philadelphia, Seattle and Washington, DC. In those areas, the grant will also help provide an additional 73,000 students access to the program during the 2012-2013 school year. PwC partners and staff will continue to volunteer in MIND’s schools as part of the firm’s ongoing support.
“This grant gives thousands of disadvantaged students in low-performing urban schools across the country access to a truly 21st century learning environment,” said Andrew R. Coulson, President of MIND Research Institute’s Education Division. “What students gain in math skills and financial literacy is just the beginning. Their lives can literally change through experiencing academic success, gaining confidence in their abilities, and being prepared to excel in high-demand hi-tech careers.”
Announced in June 2012, PwC's Earn Your Future is a youth education commitment focused on financial literacy comprising $60 million in cash donations and one million service hours that aims to impact more than 2.5 million students and educators over the next five years.
For more information on PwC’s Earn Your Future and the firm’s corporate responsibility commitment, click here, or follow us on Twitter at @Shannon_Sustain.
About PwC US
PwC US helps organizations and individuals create the value they're looking for. We're a member of the PwC network of firms in 158 countries with more than 180,000 people. We're committed to delivering quality in assurance, tax and advisory services. Tell us what matters to you and find out more by visiting us at www.pwc.com/US.
Learn more about PwC by following us online: @PwC_LLP, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook and Google +.
© 2013 PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership. All rights reserved. PwC refers to the US member firm, and may sometimes refer to the PwC network. Each member firm is a separate legal entity. Please see www.pwc.com/structure for further details.
About The PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc.
The PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc., a section 501(c)(3) organization, makes contributions to the people of PwC in times of financial hardship, and to nonprofit organizations that support and promote education and humanitarianism.
KEYWORDS: PwC, financial literacy, financial education, personal finance, awards, Earn Your Future, Teachers, high school, students
SOURCE: 3BL Media, LLC
DESCRIPTION:By: Jeff Raderstrong
As a teenager, I was obsessed with the 60s. It started with the music—first classic rock like the Beatles and Rolling Stones, but I quickly moved on to the protest songs of the day—Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Crosby Still Nash and Young, Pete Seeger. From there, it was only a small jump to focus my attention to people like Martin Luther King jr. and groups like the Students for a Democratic Society and the Black Panthers.
I think I was so focused on these people because they were a part of something bigger than themselves. They were a part of a movement that would be remembered forever, and I wanted to be a part of something that would be written about in the history books so I could say: “I was there. I remember that.”
But I didn’t see those same things happening among my generation—no Marches on Washington, no sit ins. I was a very liberal teenager, and as this was the early Bush years, I thought there was a lot to protest about. But it just wasn’t happening*.
But then I went to college and studied the work of Muhammad Yunus of the Grameen Bank, read the writings of development economists Jeff Sachs and Bill Easterly, and became involved in various campus groups—from divestment campaigns to environmental justice organizations to a local soup kitchen. I learned that change didn’t have to happen in the form of a big movement. It could be small in scale and small in impact. I then graduated and began work in the nonprofit sector, where I realized there were so many different approaches, programs and even products to help make the world a better place.
I had been thinking about all this stuff in the wrong way. By focusing on comparing my generation to that of the 60s, I missed out on all the different components of change happening around me, around the country, around the world, each day. Because there still is a movement going on.
Our movement doesn’t look like the March on Washington. Our movement is expressed in growing volunteer rates, consumers wanting businesses to give back to society, and a young generation more committed to social impact through their professional careers. No matter the sector, no matter the organization, there is a movement of people working to make a difference. Just because our movement isn’t expressed through picket signs and marches (although those still happen), that doesn’t make our work any less valid.
However, there is still a problem. All these people working on social change don’t talk to each other. Their worked isn’t coordinated or aligned. We have, instead of a mass movement, a fragmented “social change ecosystem,” with duplicated efforts and repeated failures. While there is good work being done, arguably on the same scale of the civil rights movement, our organizations do not share goals and best practices. By working in silos, we sacrifice the potential for great change on a grander scale.
We have discussed the reasons people don’t collaborate here on UnSectored—ego, constrained resources, stereotypes, shortsighted goals—and these barriers need to be overcome. Not only does our generation have its own social change movement, this new movement has the potential to surpass in impact that of those movements of the 60s I revered as a teenager. If we all recognize our work for what it truly is—individual components of a broader ecosystem—we can start to look around for ways to improve what we are doing.
Please join us as we break down those barriers. Add your thoughts on this post, or join us at our next event.
*Actually, it was. It just wasn’t happening on a scale I wanted, and there wasn’t a culture of protest at the same level of the 1960s.
Click here to read more from this author
This post originally appeared on UnSectored. Posted with permission of the author.
KEYWORDS: society, Unsectored, generations, Social Impact, professional careers, Social Engagement, today's social movement, csr, sustainability
SOURCE: GlaxoSmithKline
DESCRIPTION:By Anna Vallye, Philadelphia Museum of Art
GSK recently donated an illustration by N.C. Wyeth to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The picture--one of a series that was long thought lost by the art world--hung in our former Philadelphia offices, barely a mile from the venerable institution that now proudly displays it.
The first painting by N.C. Wyeth to enter the Philadelphia Museum of Art Collection, The Trial of the Bow comes to the Museum accompanied by a delightful story of loss and rediscovery.
A renowned American illustrator, Newell Convers Wyeth thrilled generations of readers in the early twentieth century with his bold visualizations of beloved tales of fantasy and adventure. Wyeth was born on a farm in Needham, Massachusetts and spent most of his life on a sprawling homestead in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, 10 miles north of Wilmington, DE along the Brandywine Creek. Here he raised five children, most notably his son Andrew Wyeth, who would become a great painter of American life. The N.C. Wyeth house and studio is now a part of the Brandywine River Museum, which houses the largest collection of N.C. Wyeth's work in the world.
As a star student in the Wilmington school of renowned illustrator Howard Pyle, Wyeth absorbed Pyle's creed that dictated historical accuracy spiced with maximum dramatic effect, and applied it in his own highly successful illustrations for many popular magazines of the period, such as Harper's Monthly or Ladies' Home Journal, as well as his illustrated editions of literary classics such as Treasure Island (1911), The Last of the Mohicans (1919), Robinson Crusoe (1920), and many others. As was standard practice for that era's illustrators, Wyeth would frequently paint the images intended for reproduction in the books. This was also the case with The Trial of the Bow (1929), reproduced as an illustration in George Herbert Palmer's translation of The Odyssey of Homer (1929). This painting captures the critical moment when Ulysses, hiding in disguise among Penelope's suitors, finally reveals himself by shooting an arrow from his own rigid bow, which had failed to yield to anyone else: "Then Ulysses took the bow in his hand, and ...then he bent it, and strung it, and he twanged the string, and the tone of it was shrill and sweet as the cry of a swallow. After this he took an arrow from the quiver, and laid the notch upon the string, and drew the bow to the full, still sitting in his place. And the arrow went straight to the mark."
The Trial of the Bow is one of sixteen compositions made by Wyeth for the The Odyssey. The entire series was sold by the artist to a private collector in Katonah, NY in 1930, and later scattered. Most of the paintings from the series are considered to be missing today, and just five had known locations--until now.
Recently assessing its art collection as it prepared to move to new quarters, GSK made a surprising discovery: a painting that had been on display at the company's Philadelphia office since the 1980s was in fact one of their most valuable artworks. It was The Trial of the Bow. Having examined the picture, PMA curator Kathleen Foster determined that it was one of the lost Odyssey series canvases. Inscriptions left by various owners on the back of the work reveal further intriguing details. It appears that the painting did not stay in Katonah for long. By 1948, it had already exchanged hands at least twice, and was at one point even sold at a garage sale for just $35!
Rediscovered after more than eighty years missing, the painting has now joined the collection of the PMA through the generosity of GSK. The company is a steadfast corporate supporter of the Museum, providing multi-faceted support for our programs and operations for over thirty years. Some of the well-received special exhibitions supported by GSK in the recent past are Van Gogh Up Close (2011), Picasso and the Avant-Garde (2010), The Art of Nandalal Bose (2008); Renoir Landscapes (2007); and Andrew Wyeth: Memory and Magic (2004). The Museum relies on the support of corporate leaders like GSK to help sustain its operations, collection, and exhibitions program, which does so much to enrich the life of our community time and time again.
Anna Vallye is the Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellow at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
KEYWORDS: People, Social Action & Community Engagement, NC Wyeth, PMA, the philadelphia museum of art, GSK, Donation, GlaxoSmithKline, Navy Yard, Ulysses, Homer, The Trial of the Bow
SOURCE: Enbridge, Inc.
DESCRIPTION:For the 10th consecutive year, Enbridge is proud to sponsor Alberta Theatre Projects playRites Festival of New Canadian Plays. The Festival, now in its 27th season has been centre stage for Canada’s emerging and most celebrated playwrights to unveil their newest plays.
Opening night of last year's Enbridge playRites Festival shone the spotlight on internationally celebrated playwright Carole Fréchette’s original play, Thinking of Yu (translated by John Murrell) — its English-language world premiere. The powerful play revolves around the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. The story weaves the distant scene of oppressive politics with the personal lives of its three main characters. The French-language production premiered in Paris just days before its Calgary debut and is headed towards international critical acclaim. Calgarian audiences were fortunate to be the first in the world to see it in English.
A brief history of the Enbridge playRites Festival
Appreciative audiences throng to The Enbridge playRites Festival to be entertained, provoked and inspired. And around the country, producers, theatre artists and theatregoers follow the unfolding occasion. The plays often take on a life of their own — as with Thinking of Yu — going on to national and international productions, often in multiple language translations.
Throughout the years, with more than 100 new plays produced, the Enbridge playRites Festival has entered into the lexicon of events that shape our national arts and culture environment.
“The Enbridge playRites Festival has made a space for itself,” says Vanessa Porteous, Artistic Director of Alberta Theatre Projects. “It began as an effort to correct what was happening on Canadian stages, which was that mostly already-established playwrights were being produced. Then-artistic director, Michael Dobbin wanted to launch new plays. To this day we remain the only festival in Canada that premiers four new plays at once. The festival is unique and has transformed the dramaturgical landscape in Canada.”
Festival helps develop audiences for plays
Michael (Mikey) Northey and his colleagues at Green Thumb Theatre have experienced first hand the benefits of the Enbridge playRites Festival, in terms of the development of their plays, and with the daunting job of exposure, too.
The Vancouver company is at the Enbridge playRites Festival for the second time. The first play Green Thumb Theatre developed with the festival premiered in 2001. The Shape of a Girl, written by Joan McLeod, has since been translated into at least eight languages, has received significant accolades, and has been produced around the world.
“We’re hoping for that with this one,” Mikey says of Ash Rizin, a hip-hop musical about a graffiti artist. Like The Shape of a Girl, the play appeals to younger audiences, not always the most lucrative market, making it more difficult to get produced.
“The Enbridge playRites Festival is helping to develop new audiences for theatre,” Mikey says. “We really appreciate them coming on board for this show. They’ve gone out on a limb to produce it and that’s what we need.”
Continue reading about Enbridge's investment in theater arts in Canada.
KEYWORDS: People, Social Action & Community Engagement, Community Investment, emerging artists, Community Engagement, festival
SOURCE: PCI Media Impact
DESCRIPTION:NEW YORK, March 6, 2013 /3BL Media/ – PCI-Media Impact premiered a hip co music video, “Song for Hawa,” to help prevent violence against women and girls. The video featuring Takun J, recently awarded Best Hip Co Artist of the Year by the Liberian Entertainment Awards, was shown to over 700 change-makers at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women kickoff event on Sunday.
PCI-Media Impact has partnered with Liberia’s number one hip co star to produce two songs that address and try to reduce the high rates of sexual violence in the country. Takun J is a local icon who communicates directly and powerfully to his fellow Liberians through his music. Hip co, a popular music genre in the country, includes lyrics that are rapped or sung in colloquial English and explicitly address urgent political and social issues.
This project is part of PCI-Media Impact’s Mobilize4Africa media initiative to help prevent violence and abuse towards women in Liberia by amplifying their stories so they are heard on national and international levels.
Takun J’s inspirations for “Song for Hawa” were conversations he had with girls who are survivors of gender-based violence. These girls live at a rehabilitation home run by THINK (Touching Humanity in Need of Kindness).
Takun J is wholly dedicated to bringing an end to the culture of violence in Liberia, “I have to do this because I know it is necessary to do it. I am speaking on the ills, trying to talk positive on things and trying to change our society. These girls could be my sisters. I have to reach out there for them through my music and through my actions.”
In addition to the video and songs, PCI-Media Impact is empowering these girls to use photography to tell their own stories; the result is an eye-opening look at what it means to be a female in this war-ravaged country.
Ranging from ages 13 to 24, half of them already mothers and most below a fourth grade reading level, these girls have heart-wrenching stories to tell. None have ever used a camera before and most have never had a photo taken of themselves. Equipped with cameras and knowledge about how to use them, each becomes a powerful agent of change. As one girls explained, “If other girls are going to change and have different experiences in life, then they will have to learn from our example.”
If you want to become part of this story, please watch the video at PCI-Media Impact, see the girls’ stories on backspaces or support this project with a donation.
Tweet me: Check out this video! Using music to #endVAW! #CSW57 @PCIMediaImpact @TakunJ http://3bl.me/sn8p2x Contact Info:
Abby Wood
PCI-Media Impact
+1 (212) 687-3046
abbywood@mediaimpact.org
@PCIMediaImpact
https://www.facebook.com/PCIMediaImpact
KEYWORDS: violence against women, Liberia, Takun J, Hip Co, PCI-Media Impact, Photovoice, united nations, UN CSW, UN Commission on the Status of Women, anti-rape, gender-based sexual violence
SOURCE: Chrysler Group LLC
DESCRIPTION:AUBURN HILLS, Mich., March 6, 2013 /3BL Media /PRNewswire/ -- Chrysler Group LLC announced today that it has begun the delivery of 242 new 2013 Ram 2500 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) pickup trucks to the state of Oklahoma, the Company's largest customer order since production of the unique trucks began in October.
Peter Grady, Vice President of Network Development and Fleet – Chrysler Group LLC, presented the keys to one of the Ram 2500 CNG pickups to Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin today at the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) in Oklahoma City.
The Ram 2500 CNG is the only OEM-built compressed natural gas-powered pickup truck in North America. ODOT will use the Ram CNG pickups primarily as service trucks on the state's roads and highways.
Gov. Fallin is leading a bipartisan coalition of 22 states seeking to use more CNG vehicles in their state fleets. CNG-powered trucks offer cost and emissions benefits, using an abundant, domestically-sourced fuel, which reduces America's dependence on foreign oil. CNG lessens the environmental impact of greenhouse gas and reduces smog-producing pollutants up to 90 percent.
The governor announced the CNG project at the inaugural Governor's Energy Conference in 2011. Since then, Gov. Fallin has worked with other state officials and governors, met with automobile manufacturers, including Chrysler Group, and issued and received bids for more affordable CNG vehicles for use in state fleets.
"Chrysler Group is delighted that we can deliver these unique Ram pickup trucks today to Gov. Fallin, a steadfast champion in the use of compressed natural gas vehicles in state fleets," Grady said. "Through the governor's tireless efforts to form a coalition of states, 13 Ram Truck dealers have landed contracts with 19 states to supply their fleets with the new Ram 2500 CNG pickup trucks."
The Ram CNG pickups delivered today were purchased by the state of Oklahoma through John Vance Motors, a Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Truck dealership in Guthrie, Okla., north of Oklahoma City.
"Converting the state's fleet to CNG will save taxpayers millions of dollars in fuel costs," Gov. Fallin said. "The use of cleaner-burning CNG fuel is good for the environment and promotes Oklahoma-made natural gas which in turn supports the creation of more Oklahoma jobs. Our multi-state bidding process was aimed at encouraging automakers to provide states with more affordable and more functional CNG vehicles. We are very thankful for the team at Chrysler for their help and leadership throughout that process. The state of Oklahoma is excited to add quality CNG trucks to our state fleets from manufacturers like Chrysler."
The Ram 2500 CNG is actually a bi-fuel vehicle that uses compressed natural gas as its primary fuel source, but automatically switches to gasoline when the CNG tanks are emptied. In use, the Ram CNG transitions from one fuel to the other with little discernible difference in operation or capability.
"These are heavy-duty trucks and we have highway crews in every county in the state who will put them to work immediately," said Oklahoma Secretary of Transportation Gary Ridley. "I'm grateful that ODOT has the opportunity to work with Governor Fallin and the auto industry to cut costs and improve our operations."
In vehicles, CNG achieves nearly identical mileage figures as unleaded regular gasoline – with a retail cost more than 50 percent lower than the average price of a gallon of gasoline. The Ram 2500 CNG system was fully engineered and tested by Chrysler Group and assembled at the company's Heavy Duty truck plant in Saltillo, Mexico. Production of the Ram 2500 CNG began in late October in the Saltillo plant.
For more information, please visit the Chrysler media site at http://www.media.chrysler.com.
Copyright 2012 PR Newswire. All Rights Reserved
Tweet me: #Chrysler begins delivery of 242 new 2013 Ram 2500 CNG trucks http://3bl.me/nwbxkf to Oklahoma
KEYWORDS: Chrysler, 2013 ram 2500 cng trucks, Oklahoma, csr, sustainability, Compressed Natural Gas, environment, Emissions
SOURCE: ING U.S.
DESCRIPTION:New York , March 6, 2013 /3BL Media/– At its quarterly Board of Directors meeting held earlier today, Junior Achievement USA® (JA) presented ING U.S. with a 2011-2012 Bronze U.S. President's Volunteer Service Award for providing the organization with significant volunteer resources during the year. ING U.S. provided Junior Achievement with more than 5,000 volunteer hours.
President George W. Bush established the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation (the Council) in 2003 to recognize the valuable contributions volunteers make in communities and encourage more people to serve. The Council created the President's Volunteer Service Award program as a way to thank and honor Americans who, by their demonstrated commitment and example, inspire others to engage in volunteer service. In 2006, Junior Achievement became an official certifying organization for this award, which also recognizes corporations with a U.S. presence that provide volunteers to teach JA programs anywhere in the world.
“ING U.S. is pleased to receive this recognition from Junior Achievement USA. It is a tribute to the hard work of dozens of our employees throughout the U.S.” said Rhonda Mims, president of the ING Foundation and senior vice president of the Office of Corporate Responsibility at ING U.S. “ING and Junior Achievement have a common interest in teaching financial skills to young people. Working with Junior Achievement, our employees share their knowledge and real-world experience of the financial world with local youth.”
ING U.S. is one of only 33 JA corporate partners to be honored with a President’s Volunteer Service Award this year. View the entire list of recipients (PDF).
“Junior Achievement volunteers play a key role in bringing Junior Achievement to life. By sharing their personal and professional experiences and skills with students in their communities, volunteers help young people to make a connection between what they are learning in school and what they will need to succeed in work and life. In so doing, they support students, their local communities and America's economic competitiveness,” said Jack E. Kosakowski, president and CEO of Junior Achievement USA. “The U.S. President's Volunteer Service Award is an outstanding way to acknowledge ING U.S. and its employee-volunteers, who demonstrate a commitment to their communities and encourage others to make volunteering a priority.”
Larry A. Leva, global vice chairman of Quality and Risk Management for KPMG International and chairman of Junior Achievement USA, added, “By recognizing and honoring volunteers, we shine a spotlight on everyday heroes who are working to address pressing social challenges. We are also setting a standard for service and fostering civic participation.”
About Junior Achievement USA® (JA)
Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. JA programs are delivered by corporate and community volunteers, and provide relevant, hands-on experiences that give students from kindergarten through high school knowledge and skills in financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship. Today, JA reaches 4.2 million students per year in more than 120 markets across the United States, with an additional 5.8 million students served by operations in 120 other countries worldwide. Visit www.ja.org for more information.
About ING U.S.
ING U.S. constitutes the U.S.-based retirement, investment and insurance businesses of Netherlands-based ING Groep N.V. (NYSE: ING). Through the ING U.S. family of companies, we serve the financial needs of approximately 13 million individual and institutional customers with a comprehensive array of products and services, including retirement plans, IRA rollovers and transfers, stable value, institutional investment management, mutual funds, alternative investments, life insurance, employee benefits, fixed and indexed annuities and financial planning. Our dedicated workforce of more than 7,000 employees is focused on ING U.S.’s mission to make a secure financial future possible — one person, one family and one institution at a time. For more information, visit http://ing.us.
Tweet me: Junior Achievement USA presents ING U.S. Bronze U.S. President's #Volunteer Service Award. http://3bl.me/bqcvpw @ING_US_PR @JA_USA Contact Info:
Stephanie Bell
Junior Achievement USA®
+1 (719) 540-6171
sbell@ja.org
@JA_USA
Phil Margolis
ING U.S.
+1 (860) 580-2676
phil.margolis@us.ing.com
@ING_US_PR
KEYWORDS: ING, junior achievement, volunteer, community service
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