CSR News

Wyndham Worldwide (NYSE: WYN), one of the world's largest hospitality providers and an industry leader in sustainable practices, is participating in the Earth Hour global initiative by turning their lights down and encouraging energy conservation.

Organized by the World Wildlife Fund, Earth Hour 2013 will take place Saturday, March 23, from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. local time. During the hour, individuals, businesses, and governments around the world turn out their lights to demonstrate their commitment to environmentally sustainable action. Since its start in 2007, the annual event has grown into the single largest mass participation event in the world with more than 5 million supporters in over 150 countries.

"We believe the hospitality industry can and should be a leader in reducing our impact on the environment, and we are committed to finding new ways to reduce energy consumption and successfully implement energy efficient strategies across our global operations," said Faith Taylor, senior vice president of sustainability for Wyndham Worldwide. "This is the fourth year that Wyndham Worldwide will join Earth Hour across our more than 100,000 locations in nearly 100 countries, to raise awareness of global energy efforts."

Wyndham Worldwide sustainable practices are created and driven by the Company's Wyndham Green program, which in its seventh year, remains one of the...

Dow Water & Process Solutions (DW&PS), a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE:DOW), has entered into a collaboration agreement with Ahlstrom, a global high-performance fiber-based materials company, to use Ahlstrom Disruptor® technology for drinking water applications. The agreement combines DW&PS industry-leading market, R&D, and manufacturing expertise with Ahlstrom’s innovative nonwoven fiber technology to address an unmet need in drinking water applications.

According to the United Nations, nearly one billion of the Earth’s seven billion-plus people do not have access to clean water and our world’s population is expected to grow by another 3 billion people within the next 40 years. In order to keep up with rising populations, affluence and demand, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) estimates that our world will need 30 percent more water, 40 percent more energy and 50 percent more food by 2030.

For these reasons, and more, the United Nations has designated 2013 as the International Year of Water Cooperation, and has embarked on a campaign to encourage and nurture water cooperation.

“Global trends such as population growth and urbanization put pressure on already strained water sources,” said Snehal Desai, global business director for DW&PS. “We see a real need for new innovations to expand access to clean safe drinking water in an easy, effective and sustainable way.”

“One of the...

Using recovered fiber in place of virgin fiber for magazine paper has a benefit in 14 of 14 environmental impact categories studied, according to a life-cycle assessment (LCA) issued today by ENVIRON International Corporation (www.greenamerica.org/pdf/NatGeo-LCA-Report-2013.pdf). The study debunks any myths promoted by magazine and paper industries that question the environmental benefits of using recycled fiber in publication-grade paper. The production of magazine paper in the U.S. emits the equivalent of over 7.2 million metric tons of CO2 each year, or approximately the annual greenhouse gas emissions of over 1.5 million cars.

The National Geographic Society and a number of NGO stakeholders including Green America, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), and World Resources Institute (WRI), collaborated on this multi-year study. The results can be found at: www.greenamerica.org/better-paper-project/.

As a result of the study, National Geographic is now exploring recycled paper options for their publications. If National Geographic does begin using recycled paper in their magazines, they will join a growing list that includes large and small publications such as Fast Company, Audubon, YES!, and Ranger Rick – all of which have been using recycled paper...

The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU), a leader in global payment services, today announced plans to help facilitate the “last mile” and bridge the gap between government payments that need to be disbursed and the people who receive them.

Initially, the Western Union service will enable parents with school-age children, university students and senior citizens to access government and emergency payments at more than 600 Western Union Agent locations across Haiti. Future plans may include offering a wider array of pay-out options including: bank accounts, mobile phones or prepaid cards.

The government of Haiti has developed a wide array of conditional cash transfer programs under the Ede Pep (Help People) umbrella that have successfully addressed the needs of school children, university students, the handicapped and approximately 200,000 women, children and men across Haitian society.

“Western Union is one of only a handful of global brands with an unparalleled consumer reach, the ability to connect remote communities to the global economy, and the solutions to propel financial inclusion and help communities and businesses move forward,” said Hikmet Ersek, President and Chief Executive Officer, Western Union.

“The introduction of our service in Haiti will help facilitate government payments supporting social programs across the country, and is part of our business strategy to harness the power of our global money transfer platform. Our multi-...