BrownCafe

What’s the story:  A team of volunteers in Brussels led by UPSer Andrea Petersen mobilized quickly to aid a humanitarian crisis. The team is a part of Serve the City, a global movement of volunteers, active in over 50 cities around the world.

When Poland became quickly overwhelmed with refugees, Andrea and the team collected essential items ranging from medicine to blankets. With the help of UPS, they shipped 500 large boxes of essential items to Kraków, Poland to Serve the City volunteers on site.

Refugees arrive in Belgium: The Serve the City Brussels team mobilized a team who provided breakfast for refugees waiting in line throughout the night to register with local authorities. Andrea and some volunteers also joined equipped with lunch and hygiene bags to support those who were still there at lunch time.

What’s new: UPS recently launched a Green Exporters Program (GEP) to train and educate small and medium businesses who want to improve supply chain efficiencies and access new markets for sustainably sourced or produced products.

Introducing sustainable processes into logistics and supply chains is critical to ensure that global trade is part of the climate solution. UPS is helping businesses develop new technologies, practices and packaging techniques to lower emissions throughout the supply chain.

Sustainably-sourced products can include sustainable garments such as fabrics made from ecofriendly resources. Getting these green goods to new markets can be tricky, but UPS is there to help businesses navigate the process to access this $150 billion market.