Sustainability

New York -- It’s official: California Governor Jerry Brown on Tuesday signed legislation for the nation's first statewide ban on single-use plastic bags at supermarkets, drug stores and select other retail outlets.

"This bill is a step in the right direction — it reduces the torrent of plastic polluting our beaches, parks and even the vast ocean itself," Brown said in a signing statement. "We're the first to ban these bags, and we won't be the last."

The H&M Conscious Foundation, an independent nonprofit global foundation initiated by H&M to drive long-lasting positive change for people and communities, has partnered with WaterAid to bring safe water and toilets to a quarter million students in some of the world's poorest countries by 2017.

Fashion model and H&M Conscious Foundation ambassador Alek Wek was joined on stage at the Global Citizen Festival by H&M Conscious Foundation global manager Helena Thybell to present the foundation's flagship program with WaterAid.

Strategist, adviser, communicator, futurist: Retail chief financial officers have seen their role broaden so much in recent years that, in some cases, they have become virtual partners with the CEO. Once responsible primarily for financial stewardship, the CFO is embracing a growing number of additional roles encompassing strategic planning, technology and perhaps even a bit of crystal ball gazing.

Ace Hardware has saved an average of 81% on lighting-related energy use in its 1 million-sq.-ft. retail support center in Rocklin, California, since implementing a LED upgrade.

The upgrade, completed in October 2013, involved replacing 1,551 T5 fluorescent and 102 metal halide lamps with an intelligent LED system from Digital Lumens.

Dallas – The Container Store has hired Pete Lodwick as VP and general counsel. Lodwick will lead both internal and external teams responsible for legal strategy, regulatory affairs, and corporate compliance.

Prior to joining The Container Store, Lodwick practiced for 34 years at the Dallas-based law firm Thompson & Knight in the corporate and securities department.

On July 1, 2014, recent updates to the 2013 California Building Energy Efficiency Standards — Title 24 — went into effect.

The new, tougher standards are estimated to increase energy efficiency by 30% in non-residential buildings compared with the 2008 version.

Coach has announced that executive chairman Lew Frankfort plans to retire upon his term’s expiration. He will not stand for re-election to the board at the company’s annual meeting of stockholders in November.

The company intends to bestow upon him the honorary title of chairman emeritus at that time.

Defining the scope of a CFO’s oversight is challenging because it’s still evolving. Besides the overarching responsibility of overseeing and reporting finances, the role now often includes strategic planning, technology and investor relations.

New areas of reporting, including corporate social responsibility and environmental performance, are also being added.