The South Carolina Department of Commerce and Sustain SC were honored to attend COP26, the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference, in Glasgow to listen, learn and be part of the global conversation about how sustainability is driving economic development. With thanks to Sustain SC founding member Google, Vanessa Goeschl, managing director, Europe Office of the South Carolina Department of Commerce, and Ethel Bunch, president and CEO of Sustain SC, were able to be in the middle of the action.

Sonoco, a Sustain SC partner, is a global supplier of innovative packaging and recycling services. Sonoco began in 1899 in Hartsville, S.C. with a team of 12. More than 100 years later, Sonoco has 19,000 employees in more than 300 operations across 34 countries.

SustainSC today honored three South Carolina organizations with the inaugural Excellence in Mitigation award, recognizing their efforts to bring economic development to our state while maintaining a positive conservation impact.

The three honorees are Boeing, the S.C. Ports Authority and Volvo Cars, each of which developed innovative projects with successful mitigation components.

Sustain SC and the Furman University Shi Institute for Sustainable Communities has selected a group of professionals across various sectors to join the inaugural class of the Sustainability Leadership Initiative (SLI).

The exclusive Sustainability Leadership Initiative program represents a robust cross-boundary stakeholder network of South Carolina leaders with the knowledge, skills, and desire to collaborate and support each other in identifying pathways and executing solutions for a sustainable future.

In the spring of 2021, Coke Consolidated collaborated with The Heritage Classic Foundation during the 2021 RBC Heritage to enhance the PGA TOUR golf tournament’s can and bottle recycling program. More than 45 yards of aluminum and polyethylene terephthalate plastic (PET) were collected during the tournament. Through a partnership with Clemson University, these bottles and cans will be processed into new bottles and cans.

Sustain SC joined South Carolina Department of Agriculture Commissioner Hugh Weathers to talk about the important role that agribusiness has in South Carolina.

Sustain SC partnered with the SC Department of Agriculture to host the first Regional Roundtable sustainability discussion.

As part of the construction of the container terminal, SC Ports has undertaken one of the largest environmental and community mitigation packages in South Carolina. SC Ports recognizes the importance of maintaining and improving air quality in surrounding communities, as well as minimizing emissions from port operations.

Sustain SC visited Norfolk Southern’s Brosnan Forest to learn more about the mission behind protecting the 14,400-acre preserve. The property is home to endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers and long leaf pines. Norfolk Southern granted 12,488 aacres of the Forest to the Lowcountry Open Land Trust to ensure the land would be protected from development.

The Board of Directors of Sustain SC announced the launch today of the organization with a mission to connect the sustainability goals of business in South Carolina with local natural resource solutions for the benefit of our economy, environment, and people. Leadership of Sustain SC includes Ethel Bunch of Columbia and a ten member board of directors as well as five ex-officio members.