Did you know that businesses can help to make your community stronger? B Corps are businesses that give back to their communities. They may provide their employees with paid time-off to volunteer, give a share of their profits to support local causes, provide job opportunities, or give back to people in need. “Doing well by doing good” - B Corps help make their communities stronger and, in return, make their business stronger!
B Corp Movement
Leaders build communities, not just profits
Certified B Corporations are leaders in the global movement for an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy. Unlike other certifications for businesses, B Lab is unique in our ability to measure a company’s entire social and environmental impact.
B Corp Certification is a designation that a business is meeting high standards of verified performance, accountability, and transparency on factors from employee benefits and charitable giving to supply chain practices and input materials. In order to achieve certification, a company must:
Demonstrate high social and environmental performance by achieving a B Impact Assessment score of 80 or above and passing our risk review. Multinational corporations must also meet baseline requirement standards.
Make a legal commitment by changing their corporate governance structure to be accountable to all stakeholders, not just shareholders, and achieve benefit corporation status if available in their jurisdiction.
Exhibit transparency by allowing information about their performance measured against B Lab’s standards to be publicly available on their B Corp profile on B Lab’s website.
As leaders in the movement for economic systems change, B Corps reap remarkable benefits. They build trust with consumers, communities, and suppliers; attract and retain employees; and draw mission-aligned investors. As they are required to undergo the verification process every three years in order to recertify, B Corps are by definition also focused on continuous improvement, leading to their long-term resiliency.
B Corp Certification is holistic, not exclusively focused on a single social or environmental issue. And the process to achieve and maintain certification is rigorous and requires engaging teams and departments across your company. Taking company size and profile into account, verification involves documentation of your company’s business model and information about your operations, structure, and various work processes, as well as review of potential public complaints and possible site visits. Recertification confirms these standards continue to be met on an ongoing basis.
Did you know that each year, B Lab releases Best for the World lists of the top-performing Certified B Corps from around the globe?
B Corp Best for the World 2021
Every year, B Lab recognizes the top-performing B Corps creating the greatest impact through their businesses. These B Corps are named Best for the World™ as their verified scores in the five impact areas evaluated on the B Impact Assessment community, customers, environment, governance, and workers-are amongst the global top 5% in their corresponding size group. These businesses are proving that competing not only to be the best in the world, but the best for the world, is a winning strategy, and they can lead the way as more businesses continue to join the movement that is transforming the global economy to benefit all people, communities, and the planet.
These companies are top performers in contributing to the economic and social well-being of the communities in which they operate. Through their exemplary practices and policies directed at community impact, they're building a shared and sustainable prosperity for all. Their mission-driven cultures embrace supplier relations, social engagement, charitable giving, and strong, diverse communities.
These B Corps are setting the standard for serving their customers, offering products or services that support the greater good, often focusing on underserved populations. They add value to customers' lives by providing critical services like education, healthcare, and finance management, and engaging in ethical marketing, data privacy and security, and feedback channels.
Best For The World: Environment
These companies are leading the way towards a more sustainable and regenerative planet by putting their impact on the air, climate, water, land, and biodiversity first in their business practices. These B Corps excel in environmental performance by offering products or services designed to solve an environmental issue or through their facilities, materials, emissions, and resource and energy use, as well as transportation/distribution channels and the environmental impact of their supply chain. Their focus on the planet as a vital stakeholder hasn't gone unnoticed.
Best For The World: Governance
These B Corps have achieved a top score in overall mission, ethics, accountability and transparency. Their best practices are focused on how they engage employees, board members, and the community to achieve their mission, as well as employee access to financial information, customers' opportunities to provide feedback, and the diversity of their governing bodies. By building their vision and values into their company bylaws, these B Corps embody what it means to use business as a force for good.
These businesses' efforts to create positive impacts for their workforce are remarkable. Their best practices in work environment aspects like compensation, benefits, training and ownership opportunities, as well as assessing working communication, job flexibility and worker health and safety practices, not only contribute to better conditions for their employees, but also mark the pace and set an example to follow.
What is B Corp Certification?
If you would like to learn more about B Corp Certification, Cabot has a 35-minute webinar with B Lab they recorded and have shared on their website.
Cabot’s team of professionals shares what B Corp Certification means. Watch our webinar now!
https://links.imagerelay.com/cdn/34/ql/978dc2be9318469b97b645c3853965bf/B-Corp-Webinar-External.mp4
Step 3 Activities
As part of the B the Change Patch Step 3,
please complete one of the two Activities below.
Have fun.
Activity 5 - Find Out How!
Find a local business that helps to make your community stronger. Whether it is a grocery store that gives back to a local food bank, a hospital that takes care of people without health insurance, or your parents’ employer that gives time off for volunteering. If you are unable to find a local business, use the internet to research what some companies are doing to make their communities stronger, employees happier, and the earth healthier. Answer the following questions as a group about the business you choose:
• Name 2 ways in which the business cares for its employees?
• Name 2 ways in which the business helps its community(ies)?
• Name 2 ways in which the business respects the environment?
• Name 3 reasons why you think the company is an especially great place to work?
Activity 6 - Learn about B Corps
Whether it is providing eyeglasses for kids who can’t afford them, or helping feed communities throughout the country, B corps are all making a difference. Use the B Corp website to research how different B Corps solve social and environmental problems through their businesses. Once you have learned about B Corps, put your knowledge to the test and complete the B Corp Matching Game.
• What types of companies are B Corps?
• What products do they make or services do they provide?
• Select three B Corps and describe ways in which they are making the world better.
• Is there a B Corp that is trying to solve the local program that your group decided to focus on? If so, what is their solution?
Minnesota B Local
Minnesota B Local is a community of volunteer social impact leaders working in, with and alongside Certified B Corporations in Minnesota who believe in business as a force for good.
B Corp Matching Game
Connect the company logo with the way they are making a difference in their community
Activity 6 Applied to Unite for Earth Day 2022 -
Learn about B Corp and other businesses Supporting our Event this Year
This year we have multiple B Corp and other businesses that are giving back and supporting our event. Find out more about them.
- Cabot Creamery
- All Seasons Wild Bird Store
- Seven Sundays
- Rainbow Trees