Month: November 2024

Crown Commercial Service achieves Constructing the Gold Standard

Stuart Mitchell

Crown Commercial Service (CCS) has become the first organisation to be verified under Constructing Excellence‘s ‘Gold Standard Verification Scheme’.  The scheme aims to ensure that Government departments and the wider public sector adopt urgent recommendations for improved value, reduced risks and achievement of net zero on all their construction projects. CCS supports the public sector to achieve maximum commercial value when procuring common goods and services. As an Executive Agency of the Cabinet Office, it offers the largest number of interlocking construction commercial agreements in the UK, providing a wide…

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Divisive Politics Chills the Season of Giving

Stuart Mitchell

In a time of political divisions, economic uncertainty, and social upheaval—a cornerstone of American identity is at risk. The once-unifying desire to help others is unraveling under the weight of compassion fatigue, political polarization, distrust in societal institutions, and a growing belief that the burden of giving should fall solely on the wealthiest. A national survey of over 900 U.S. respondents, commissioned by Give Freely, reveals that generosity is at risk as political polarization increasingly erodes our giving habits. Give Freely, founded by TripAdvisor co-founder Steve Kaufer, is a mission-driven…

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KPMG UK and FareShare launch new three-year charity partnership

Stuart Mitchell

KPMG UK has selected FareShare as its new national charity partner. The three-year charity partnership will see the two organisations working together to make sure good food goes to people, not waste. A firmwide vote took place in April this year, with KPMG’s people choosing to tackle the issues of food waste and hunger. This follows a very successful three-year charity partnership with end-of-life charity, Marie Curie, which concluded on 30 September 2024. KPMG UK’s 18,000 people will provide £2 million worth of support to FareShare through fundraising, volunteering, pro…

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Tesco to provide £4million of fruit and vegetables to 400 schools this year

Stuart Mitchell

Tesco is to invest £4m in a new scheme that will give thousands of young people fruit and vegetables every day at school.   Tesco Fruit & Veg for Schools, which has been developed in partnership with the British Nutrition Foundation, will provide funding for up to 140,000 pupils to receive at least one piece of fruit or veg a day, giving their diets a healthy and nutritious boost.  The funding will support pupils in 400 schools where there is a higher-than-average free school meal ratio, and in total will…

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New Database Provides World’s Most Comprehensive Data on River Barriers and Reservoirs

Stuart Mitchell

There has been a catastrophic 73% decline in the average size of monitored wildlife populations in just 50 years (1970-2020), according to World Wildlife Fund‘s (WWF) Living Planet Report 2024. The report warns that parts of our planet are approaching dangerous tipping points driven by the combination of nature loss and climate change which pose grave threats to humanity. The Living Planet Index, provided by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), tracks almost 35,000 vertebrate populations of 5,495 species from 1970-2020. The steepest decline is in freshwater populations (85%), followed…

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