Amazon CSR and Sustainability

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Amazon is a leading e-commerce brand and a leading player in the cloud industry. It is a customer-centric brand and a socially responsible company.  The company invests a large sum in research and innovation each year to improve its e-commerce and cloud businesses. However, while it is a highly profitable company, on the other hand, it also a socially responsible brand focused on CSR and sustainability. Nowadays, being environmentally responsible is important for any large business. Being environmentally responsible can help you create a strong image and manage your costs and resources. On the other hand, being socially responsible or giving back to society can help a brand strengthen its brand equity. Amazon, like most of its competitors, is focused on CSR and sustainability. Take a look at the key investments it has made in the area of CSR and the steps it has taken towards being more sustainable.

CSR:

Amazon is doing a lot in the area of CSR. To address poverty, homelessness and several more social and economic problems, it is helping with cash and resources to build a stronger community and address some of the most pressing issues. Apart from investing in other charitable organizations that are working to eradicate these problems, the company is also working to spread computer education and help more and more people find the resources that will make their lives better.

Education:

Amazon is investing a lot of money and resources to help underprivileged communities with education. Thousands of students will benefit from Amazon’s ‘Future Engineer’ education program. The company has partnered with FIRST to provide robotics grants to hundred schools across 21 states in the USA that serve underrepresented students. As the number of computer science jobs continues to grow, Amazon will help thousands of underprivileged children build a better future and career.

The company recently made a $3 million gift to the new Center for Science and Innovation of Seattle University. This funding will help the school achieve its objective to increase access to computer science and STEM education, particularly for women and underrepresented minorities. Amazon has also launched several more programs aimed at helping students find a career and future in the world of computer sciences.

Poverty, Hunger, and homelessness:

Amazon is also partnering with several groups that are working to eradicate poverty, homelessness, and hunger from society. It is devoting both cash and resources to these causes. Particularly, children in most communities are affected by hunger. The ratio is high and therefore Amazon is partnering with non-profits working to solve the problem of hunger. No Kid Hungry, is a national campaign run by Share Our Strength, a nonprofit working to solve problems of hunger and poverty. Amazon has partnered with it to offer kids a healthy breakfast at school. Its investment in this area means thousands of kids in 100 schools in the US will be served a healthy breakfast in the morning.

To fight homelessness, Amazon has decided to build homes for the poor and the homeless. As an initial step in this direction, the company is providing around 47,000 sq. feet space at its Seattle office as a permanent location for a Mary’s Place Family Shelter. The company had started providing space since 2016 only. In April 2016, it offered Mary’s Place temporary use of a vacant building on its urban campus – a former Travelodge hotel. Amazon upgraded the building and included utilities for more than 200 family members to live while the construction of a new building was going on.

Sustainability:

Amazon has taken several significant steps in the direction of making its business more and more sustainable. Apart from that, it is also offering other organizations resources that will help them achieve their sustainability targets. Using technology and innovation, it is using agencies and people working towards making the planet a safer place to live.

Sustainability Data Initiative:-

The sustainability data initiative provides researchers and innovators access to large datasets in the cloud. It helps them address a wide range of sustainability challenges. The Amazon Sustainability Data Initiative significantly reduces the cost, time, and technical barriers that otherwise can make the analysis of large datasets to generate sustainability insights a time consuming and costly process. Regardless of an organization’s size or computing power, it helps them overcome their sustainability challenges and achieve sustainability targets in a cost-effective manner.

Depending on renewable energy:

Amazon is constantly progressing towards its target of using cent percent renewable energy in its offices and work processes globally. To achieve this target, it is investing in wind and solar farms.  In April 2018, it announced its plan to open three new wind farms in Ireland, Sweden, and the United States. These wind farms will produce a total of over 229 megawatts (MW) of power, with an expected generation of over 670,000-megawatt hours (MWh) of renewable energy annually. AWS used more than 50% of renewable energy in 2018. Amazon’s largest wind farm is in Texas which has 110 wind turbines. The company has set the goal to install solar systems on 50 fulfillment facility rooftops worldwide by 2020. The company is also using innovative packaging to reduce its environmental impact. Recycling and reuse are also an important part of its environmental agenda which is going to help it further minimize its environmental impact.