At the Heart of Health
As a health and well-being enterprise, our purpose is to inspire more joyful lives through better health through our contributions to healthy communities, a healthy planet, a sustainable marketplace and an inclusive workplace.
We are deeply committed to maximizing our positive impact and our influence for good. Below, learn more about how we partner with community organizations to improve societal health and well-being, work to protect the planet, do business fairly and with integrity, and foster a safe and inclusive workplace.
We engage with local communities to improve societal health and well-being through:
- Programs and campaigns to improve access to affordable, quality healthcare and awareness about critical health issues
- Efforts to help combat opioid abuse and prevent overdose-related deaths
- Partnerships, particularly aiming to help support people living with cancer at every moment of their journey, and to enable young people across the world to achieve their potential
We are determined to protect the planet through programs in our operations and by engaging suppliers on environmental issues. We are committed to:
- Reducing energy consumption and emissions
- Reducing waste, increasing re-use and recycling, and collaborating to help create an increasingly circular economy
We aim to do business fairly and with integrity and are taking actions to:
- Provide a platform of transparency into our owned brand products, including ingredient and material level information, and ensuring product safety
- Continue to improve traceability of ingredients and materials of our owned brand products to reduce their environmental impact, protect healthy ecosystems and reduce climate change impact
- Continue to drive responsible sourcing practices throughout our supply chain, protecting human rights and engaging with suppliers around ethical and environmental issues
- Reduce the negative impacts of plastics in our owned brand products
We strive to treat our people with dignity and respect by:
- Proactively supporting the personal health and well-being of our employees
- Delivering on our commitment to offer equal opportunities and foster a diverse, equitable and inclusive culture for all through strong employment, pay and recruitment practices, policies and procedures
- Continuing to improve our robust approach to health, safety and data privacy, actively caring for our employees and customers
We are committed to having a positive and sustainable impact through our ties with local communities, workplace initiatives and the suppliers we work and partner with.
WBA touches millions of lives around the world every day, through the medicines we dispense, our retail stores in convenient locations, stocking essential items, and our health, wellness and beauty products.
We deliver healthcare and support diverse communities through both our day-to-day operations and our business values. These essential roles continue to shape our approach to sustainability, which is central to fulfilling our purpose of creating more joyful lives through better health.
WBA is a participant of the United Nations Global Compact and adheres to its principles-based approach to responsible business. WBA is an index component of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI), in the North America index, a recognition of the company’s outstanding performance in corporate sustainability. In addition, the company was named to the 100 Best Corporate Citizens 2021 list, which ranks environmental, social and governance transparency and performance among the 1,000 largest publicly listed companies in the U.S.
Boots UK sent less than 1% of operational waste to landfill for a 2nd year running*
WBA employees reported more than 118,000 volunteer hours*
Walgreens scored 100 for 4th year running on Disability Equality Index
For the 2nd year running, Boots UK – Macmillan Cancer Support partnership was voted Most Admired Corporate-NGO partnership in the C&E Barometer
Walgreens joined groundbreaking Beyond the Bag consortium to help find a game-changing solution to single-use plastic retail bags
Boots UK launched BBC Earth sustainable gift line in stores
Walgreens has safely disposed of more than 1,400 tons (1,270 metric tonnes) of unwanted prescriptions**
Boots UK removed 270+ metric tonnes of plastic from 2019 holiday gift product lines
WBA aims to help provide a total of 100M immunizations for children in developing countries by fiscal 2024. 60M immunizations have been provided through Get a Shot. Give a Shot. and the United Nations Foundation**
Cruelty Free International Leaping Bunny certification was obtained for Botanics skincare brand
Walgreens reduced energy intensity by 20% across 100M square feet of retail space by the end of fiscal 2020, compared with a fiscal 2011 baseline
WBA aims to help 400M women and children by providing vitamins and minerals by fiscal 2023. 250M+ women and children have been helped through our collaboration with Vitamin Angels**
* During fiscal 2020.
** Accumulated total over life of program, as of Aug. 31, 2020.
