One would be hard pressed to find a B Corporation that is not focused on their company’s impact on the environment. Being earth-conscious is a part of being good for the world, and B Corporations, no matter what their primary focus, will be focused on ‘green’ practices.
When AMS began doing business in 2002 it engaged in the ‘green’ practices of the time, such as recycling and thoughtful purchasing. Through the years the company reduced waste, purchased recycled packaging and kept the company’s impact on the environment as small as possible.
In 2017 a group of employees under the guidance of President (now CEO) Jay Catlin decided to organize a Green Team. The Green Team would monitor AMS business practices within each of the operating warehouses and recommend additional ways to reduce the ecological footprint.
The Green Team looked at some additional ways to face the environmental challenges of a fulfillment company: waterless urinals; non-toxic cleaning products; reducing copy paper waste and going electronic; separating comingled trash, paper and food in order to properly recycle and so on.
Since that time the Green Team has been hard at work. Today the team is under the guidance of AMS CFO, Anthony (Tony) Shepherd who has assumed the role of Green Team Executive Administrator. In a future blog we will focus exclusively on the Green Team and take a look at the changes that they have accomplished and the information they’ve gathered on ways for AMS to be Good for the World.
This week’s featured ‘B The Change’ article about the United Nations Climate Change Conference and the way that B Corporations are responding to the climate crisis. We hope you enjoy the article.
Earth Rising: The Global B Corp Community Responds to the Climate Emergency
Optimism and Radical Collaboration on the Road to a Zero-Carbon Future
On December 11, 2019, on the floor of the United Nations Climate Change Conference known as COP25 in Madrid, Spain, Commander Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency connected by video from the International Space Station (ISS) and spoke directly to the thousands of delegates assembled. As he floated above Earth, with the blue-green hues swirling across the marble-like surface of our planet below, Commander Parmitano made an emotional appeal for world leaders to step up their pace on climate action. “Our planet is incredibly beautiful. We also see its incredible fragility. … I have seen with my own eyes the terrible effects of climate change.” The ISS itself, the largest manned object ever put into space, was built through a historic triumph of international cooperation and knowledge sharing by 16 nations and five space agencies.
That same day, on the same stage at COP25, 533 Certified B Corporations from 33 countries committed to Net Zero by 2030. It was the largest and most aggressive climate commitment to date by a group of businesses — and 20 years ahead of the Paris Agreement 2050 targets.
Both of these are shining examples of what humans can achieve when they are united in purpose and hope.
There are now nearly 800 B Corps committed to Net Zero by 2030.
