fostering a culture of shared responsibility, continuous improvement and collaboration. Employees are encouraged to reflect on how their personal values align with Epson’s corporate purpose and environmental commitments, helping create a stronger sense of ownership and accountability. Sustainability is not viewed as a separate initiative but rather as an integral part of decision-making, operational practices, innovation and workplace culture across the organization. What is one sustainability practice that had an unexpected impact on morale, operations or company culture? Carly Colgan: A sustainability challenge that we ran across the organization had an unexpectedly strong impact on morale and culture. Each department was tasked with creating a new policy or practice that would contribute to sustainability within their area of work. Rather than simply submitting ideas, teams presented their concepts through skits during an all-staff meeting. What started as a sustainability initiative quickly became a culture-building experience. The activity was educational, creative and genuinely fun. It gave employees an opportunity to think differently about sustainability and connect it directly to their daily work. It also highlighted the wide variety of ways sustainability can show up across departments, from operations and construction to administration and retail. The challenge increased engagement because staff felt ownership over the ideas instead of sustainability being something directed from leadership. It sparked cross-team conversations, generated practical improvements, and reinforced that sustainability is part of our organizational identity and culture, not just our construction practices. Michael Jones: One practice that had a surprisingly powerful impact was creating more opportunities for employees to participate directly in environmental initiatives outside the workplace. Activities like tree planting, recycling drives, Solve Clean-ups and community partnerships strengthened connections between teams in a very organic way. What began as sustainability efforts evolved into culture-building experiences. Employees felt proud to work for a company whose values aligned with their own, and it reinforced the idea that environmental commitments are not just messaging. They are lived experiences that bring people together. Sarah Vinicor Mason: We’ve always focused on sourcing materials domestically rather than overseas to decrease our environmental impact and ensure we have high-quality materials. During COVID we experienced far fewer supply-chain issues compared to the many companies that depended on international sourcing. Lynn White: One sustainability practice that had an unexpected impact on company culture was the level of employee engagement and shared purpose that developed through our waste-reduction and community-recycling initiatives. What began as operational sustainability efforts evolved into opportunities for employees across the organization to actively contribute ideas, participate in programs and take ownership of environmental improvements. Employees became highly engaged in identifying new recycling opportunities, reducing waste streams, and participating in collection drives throughout the year. Two notable initiatives — including partnering to repurpose plastics into NexTrex® products and hosting Metro Hazardous Household Waste Collection SARAH VINICOR MASON Chief People Officer | Softstar Shoes LYNN WHITE HR Manager | Epson Portland “Ownership comes from transparency and purpose. When people understand why sustainability matters — not only for the environment but for the health of our homes, communities and future generations — they naturally become invested in helping move the mission forward.” MICHAEL JONES CEO/FOUNDER, HARTMANN&FORBES 19
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