Meet the Sustainability Stars Accelerating Progress Toward P&G's Ambitions

Working to protect the planet is no small feat; it requires creativity, innovation, collaboration and persistence.

At P&G, we believe we have a responsibility to be a force for good in society and the environment, while also being a force for growth in business. That’s why we have put sustainability at the heart of everything we do. We work diligently to ensure that sustainability is built in—not bolted on—to the way we design our products; manage our operations; build our brands; and, ultimately, engage our consumers.

In September, we announced our ambition to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across our supply chain and operations by 2040, from raw material to retailer, as well as our comprehensive plan to get there. Now, we’d like to introduce you to some of the innovators and advocates helping us bring our sustainability ambitions to life.

Celebrating Sustainability Champions

In October, P&G hosted the virtual It’s Our Home Awards, our third-annual global sustainability awards, where we recognized individuals and teams amongst our employees whose leadership and commitment are propelling us towards our Ambition 2030 goals. We received more than three hundred nominations across five categories—three times the amount we received last year—and narrowed it down to 16 recipients.

Let’s meet a few of the winners.

Supply Chain

A key part of our Ambition 2030 strategy is partnering across our supply chain to reduce our footprint. By collaborating to identify new circular solutions within our supply chains, we are continuously improving the efficiency of our operations, exploring applications for reused or repurposed materials and responsibly sourcing raw materials.

To address the challenges of e-commerce packaging waste—such as one-time use of boxes and overpackaging—P&G China launched the Big and Little Green Treasure Boxes. In 2019, P&G introduced the Big Green Treasure Box, a reusable alternative to corrugated shipping boxes. The following year, with the introduction of the Little Green Treasure Box, P&G China led the industry to create SIOC (Ship in Own Container) packaging that protects products while reducing overpackaging.

Global Energy Purchases’ Renewable Electricity Acceleration Project is taking us one step closer to our goal of purchasing 100 percent renewable energy by 2030 with four new, long-term renewable energy projects in North America and Europe. In tandem with the purchase of Renewable Energy Certificates, these projects have helped P&G reach 97 percent renewable electricity coverage globally.

Congratulations to P&G China; Global Energy Purchases; our additional supply chain winners—the Box Elder Water Reduction and Europe Transport Sustainability Roadmap; and all 97 nominees.

Brands

Our brands have a unique opportunity to enable responsible consumption while delivering superior products and packaging sustainably. Through innovation and sustained consumer education, we are reducing our environmental footprint and leveraging our brands’ voices to make sustainability irresistible for all.

Most people want to protect the planet, but they’re not always sure where to start. Nearly 80 percent of consumers said they expect the brands they buy to help them live a more environmentally conscious lifestyle, according to a study we conducted in 2021. That’s why we launched It’s Our Home—a campaign to show how small actions at home can make a big difference for our planet—beginning in January with a pilot in Greece. Greece’s Protect Our Planet, It’s Our Home pilot aimed to motivate responsible consumption at home and increase green spaces in cities via Pocket Parks, small outdoor spaces that aim to reintroduce nature to urban areas.

Did you know that even small dishwasher loads can save water? Busting a popular myth, Cascade’s MythBusters campaign found that a running sink can use up to four gallons of water every two minutes, while an ENERGY STAR® certified dishwasher uses less than four gallons per cycle. Cascade also teamed up with Change the Course on projects in water-stressed regions to restore millions of gallons of water to the people and nature that depend on it.

Gillette embedded sustainability in their 2021 Gillette Refillables razors lineup in Europe, moving to a fully recyclable cardboard razor box made with at least 50 percent of recycled materials and that includes a plastic-free pulp tray made with at least 95 percent recycled materials. The brand’s shift from plastic to a cardboard box is eliminating 300 tons of plastic, the equivalent to more than 30 million plastic bottles.

Employees

Our people catalyze change within P&G and elevate our sustainability efforts as a company. We strive to inspire and enable every P&G employee to prioritize sustainability in their work, daily lives and local communities.

Five winners were named from the 78 nominees of the It’s Our Home Awards employee category. These individuals have advanced sustainability across our business, including accelerating zero waste efforts, championing Responsible Beauty practices, spearheading the 50L Home Coalition, and catalyzing our sustainability partnerships to reduce the use of virgin plastic by 25 percent by 2025.

Society

Helping solve some of the world’s most pressing global challenges such as climate change, water scarcity and waste requires collaboration. As we work toward our Ambition 2030 goals, we are amplifying our impact on society by creating transformative partnerships that enable people, the planet and our business to thrive. We’re partnering with industry, governments, civil society groups and academics to forge new paths and create breakthrough solutions. Here are two of the Sustainability Star winners we’re working with to address these shared challenges head-on.

Tide signed a Space Act Agreement with NASA to help in the development of laundry detergent solutions and technology development in space. Under the agreement, NASA may test and study Tide cleaning solutions in space. The study could have potential on-planet implications like innovative solutions for resource and environmental challenges on Earth. Onboard a 2022 cargo launch to the space station, Mission PGTide teams will test the stability of cleaning ingredients under microgravity conditions and exposure to the radiation levels experienced in space in partnership with the ISS U.S. National Laboratory and SEOPS.

Our collaboration with the Organizing Committee of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games through the “Everyone’s Podium” Project delivered the first-ever medals podiums manufactured from recycled plastics collected from the public and recovered from the ocean.

The John Pepper Excellence and Mastery Sustainability Award

This year, we presented the first-ever John Pepper Excellence and Mastery Sustainability Award. Named after former P&G CEO John Pepper for his legacy of championing sustainable business, this award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated exceptional mastery of sustainability for five or more years. This year’s recipient, Jack Mcaneny, Vice President of Global Sustainability, was recognized for his role in leading our global sustainability efforts and propelling the Company’s progress towards our Ambition 2030 goals.

Accelerating Sustainable Action

When it comes to sustainability, there is no action too small, and no vision too big, as we all work together to preserve our shared home for generations to come.

We congratulate all the nominees and winners of the It’s Our Home Awards for their ingenuity and efforts to accelerate progress towards our ambitions and protect our planet. Click here to learn more about how we’re bringing our sustainability commitments to life.