Community Engagement Framework
The vision guiding our global community engagement activities is to bring color and brightness to communities around the world.
At PPG, the vision guiding our global community engagement activities is to bring color and brightness to communities around the world where we have a presence.
To advance that vision, the PPG Community Engagement Framework sets the priority actions for community engagement that our facilities and sites are expected to implement. These actions are designed to develop and maintain relationships with key community constituents, governmental agencies and charitable organizations, as well as encourage employee involvement in our host communities.
The framework serves as both a policy document and practical resource for site leaders. Sites are assigned one of four program levels based on their size, type of operations and potential impacts on their host communities.
Each site is asked to fulfill certain community engagement actions during the calendar year that align with its corresponding level. For each expectation, the framework provides suggested implementation actions and resources available to assist with the execution.
Our goal is to have 100% of PPG facilities meet the framework requirements by 2025.
Each year, we survey our sites to measure the degree to which they implemented the items associated with their program level. In 2019, 65% of our facilities met the requirements of the framework, which was down from 70% in 2018. We will use the results of the survey to reemphasize community engagement at our locations in 2020.
2019 Framework Expectations |
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In 2019, we adjusted the framework to elevate the community engagement expectations for each program level and to provide increased implementation support details that align with the current community engagement strategy and programs. Our sites will begin using the updated framework in 2020 to guide their site activities.
A hopeful place to call home
Each year in Tianjin, China, PPG employees join together to make an impact on their neighbors in need. In 2019, around 150 employee volunteers hosted a COLORFUL COMMUNITIES® project at the Shepherd’s Field Children’s Village to revitalize and beautify dormitories for more than 100 abandoned children with special needs.
Contributing 450 volunteer hours, the employees applied fresh paint in more than 30 colors and five patterns – sun, birds, flowers, grass and houses – to turn the facility into a lively, colorful and hopeful place. A picture of a loving family that was drawn by the children to represent what they most desired was the inspiration for the painting theme of love and family. The revitalized dormitories have enabled the organization to open its doors to an additional 50 children in need.
PPG donated more than $87,000 (592,000 yuan) of products and services to assist with the project, including 750 gallons (2,839 liters) of interior paint products.
For their extraordinary efforts to create a welcoming home for the children, our employees in Tianjin received a 2019 PPG Community Engagement Award in the Colorful Communities projects category.
Fostering a culture of community giving
At local schools, non-profits, government organizations and more, employees at our Aerospace transparencies plant in Huntsville, Alabama, are often found initiating science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) events, linking students to future career paths, or using paint and color to revitalize local landmarks. For this work, the site received a 2019 PPG Community Engagement Award.
Community commitment in the Huntsville plant starts with the leadership team. The leaders regularly seek out and build relationships with community groups and serve on local non-profit boards. They also encourage all employees to make a difference.
The local PPG Young Professionals Organization, for example, actively participated in the 2019 Tech Trek Industry Expo to help more than 70 students network, learn about the science of sports and robotics programing, and more. The PPG Huntsville Women’s Leadership Council also encourages STEM career opportunities with local students, including hosting more than 70 girls onsite in 2019 to showcase STEM career opportunities.
As part of a 2019 Colorful Communities project, approximately 150 Huntsville manufacturing and store employee volunteers commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing by restoring the local Saturn V replica rocket to its full glory with a fresh coat of paint.
In addition to active volunteerism by more than 400 PPG volunteers in 2019, PPG, the PPG Foundation and our Huntsville site granted $263,000 to STEM-related organizations to support educational and aviation programs and STEM literacy in the Huntsville area.