At LS&Co., we believe in bringing awareness to and educating consumers about the important issues of our time. Water is a critical resource – not only to our business, but to the planet and people around the globe. As a company, we are committed to reducing our water impact and pushing the rest of the industry to do the same. But we know from our Lifecycle Assessment that consumers also have a huge role to play around reducing water impact.
That’s why in 2015, we initiated a partnership with the Project WET Foundation (Water Education for Teachers) to equip our employees with the knowledge and resources to teach youth in our global communities about the importance of water conservation and WASH (Water, Access, Sanitation and Hygiene).
Founded in 1984 by Dennis Nelson, the Montana-based foundation is a global leader in developing and delivering water education resources, organizing events and managing a network of local partners to advocate for a solution to the world’s critical water issues.
Through our partnership, we developed an engaging curriculum that aims to educate employees and youth about the impact their clothing has on the planet and how to change daily behavior in an effort to properly save water. When we first decided to team up with the organization, we knew it would inspire our employees and communities, but we didn’t know just how impactful it would be.
Emily Mulle, who works in our Global Merchandising Men’s Bottoms department, tells us, “Teaching the LS&Co. Project WET curriculum to the classrooms was one of the most rewarding and fun experiences I’ve had at LS&Co.” She adds, “To be able to educate students about a cause that’s important to our business, our planet, and people across the globe in an interactive, engaging way was very cool. The kids were curious, enthusiastic, creative and so much fun!”
Over the course of a year, we trained over 300 dedicated employees in San Francisco, Singapore, Shanghai, and Bangalore to become “LS&Co. Water Ambassadors.” Those ambassadors went out into the communities where they live and work to teach over 1,000 students about water conservation during Community Day and other volunteer efforts throughout the year. We also trained our Service Corps participants in Sri Lanka last month, engaging employees from five different countries in the curriculum.
And while we believe reaching 1,000 students around the world is a step in the right direction, we know it’s not enough. Water is a critical resource and is becoming increasingly scarce. In 2016 we will continue to educate our employees and communities about how precious water is, and teach them the importance of conserving it in things they do every day – from brushing their teeth to washing their jeans.
Project WET’s mission to help people understand and value water and ensure a sustainable future is something that we proudly support, and is reflective of LS&Co.’s dedication to improving the communities where we do business.
Below, take a look at some highlights from our 2015 teachings.
San Francisco
Our LS&Co. Water Ambassadors helped third, fourth and fifth graders army a SFUSD elementary school identify the percentage of earth’s mass that’s made up of water.
Bangalore
When it came to water literacy, our 38 team members in India were in a class all their own. These Water Ambassadors taught the curriculum to a local school that employees regularly volunteer with.
Sri Lanka
Our Service Corps participants were eager to teach students the fundamentals of water conservation in a fun, relatable way.
