February 13, 2024

Delivering on promises: A glimpse into our FY23 ESG achievements

By World Courier

Sustainability, corporate responsibility, and ethical governance are more than mere buzzwords, they serve as intricate cogs in the machinery of global progress. It is a time when every organization must not only reflect on its economic influence but also measure its footprints in social and environmental sectors. As part of this ongoing journey towards greater corporate consciousness, we at World Courier, alongside Cencora, have persevered to make significant strides.

ESG initiatives are pursued from a foundation of ethics, integrity, and transparency and we are focused on three priorities that align with our services and beliefs: purpose-driven team members, resilient and sustainable operations, and healthy customers and communities.

Today marks another milestone on this path of self-assessment and improvement as we unveil our FY23 ESG Report — a comprehensive overview reflecting our previous year's efforts towards creating a sustainable future.

Over the past year, our actions have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to social responsibility and environmental stewardship. From initiating sustainable supply chain practices to reduce our carbon footprint, to expanding access to vital healthcare services in underserved regions around the globe — our tangible contributions are evident. We have also partnered with community organizations on various humanitarian missions, reinforcing our belief that corporate entities can — and should — be instrumental forces for positive change.

"At World Courier, we understand that our responsibility to create heathier futures extends beyond delivering excellence in logistics. Our actions are not just about delivering packages — they're about making real-world positive impact. Our FY2023 ESG achievements highlight this commitment, from environmental stewardship to supporting patients in receiving life-saving medication. As we celebrate these milestones today, we remain steadfast in partnering with our clients to sustainably improve lives, globally."

— Paula Pulsoni, Vice President of Sales and Services, World Courier

Great-places-to-work awards

The Cencora and World Courier office in Lithuania achieved record-breaking success by being named the Top Corporate Social Responsibly (CSR) Initiative and Most Vibrant Workplace at the CEE Business Services Award for the third consecutive year. In addition, the team was also honored in a special category for humanitarian support to Ukraine.

Contributing towards training for care of premature babies

World Courier funded the initial €70,000 purchase of simulator baby “Paul” for the nonprofit organization Neišnešiotukas in Lithuania. The organization supports premature and sick newborns, their families, and the hospitals that care for them. This is the world’s smallest high-end patient simulator, which accurately represents a pre-term baby born in week 27 of pregnancy. Weighing less than 1,000 grams (about 2.2 lbs.), the simulator enables realistic training in neonatology. This partnership has facilitated the first-of-its-kind adoption of this medical device in Lithuania and the Baltic States.

Evolving our operations in sync with pharmaceutical innovation

A pharmaceutical manufacturer entrusted the dedicated World Courier team to transport a cutting-edge gene therapy from the U.S. to the UK to save the life of an infant born with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a rare genetic disease that leads to the progressive loss of muscle control and weakness.

Utilizing a thermal container to maintain a consistent temperature and monitoring the shipment by GPS locator around the clock, we also ensured that each piece of documentation complied with local regulations in both countries to avoid any customs-related delays as the shipment successfully made its way to the patient.

Read the full case study now

Working seamlessly across our united enterprise

Our team members at ICS (also part of the Cencora family of companies) recently received an emergency shipment order from a client who was seeking treatment for an 18-month-old child in critical condition. With the product stored in ICS’ Brooks, KY distribution center, ICS enlisted the help of World Courier colleagues to support delivery to Montreal, Quebec the following day. In less than six hours, the emergency shipment order had been received, the drug had been packed, and it was on a flight to Montreal, resulting in a positive outcome for the patient.

Investments in sustainable aviation fuel in partnership with Swiss WorldCargo

Operating on a global scale and united in our purpose, Cencora has continuously demonstrated its commitment to environmental stewardship. World Courier began supporting the use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) with Swiss WorldCargo, which will result in more than 146,500kg of reduced CO₂ emissions or the equivalent to more than 2,000 shipments from London to Switzerland. This effort ties into Cencora's science-based carbon reduction target of reducing absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 54.6 percent by 2032.

Championing packaging sustainability

Further growing our sustainability credentials, Cencora is committed to adopting sustainable packaging solutions where possible and removing single-use, petroleum-based materials like plastics and polystyrene foam from our operations and sourcing more ecological options. At World Courier, we incorporated sustainable packaging solutions resulting in more than 40% of World Courier shipments utilizing reusable packaging.

>40%

of our shipments use reusable packaging

Helping displaced residents in Luhansk region

In collaboration with K.tex LLC, we extended support to aid displaced persons from the Luhansk region in Ukraine. Over 5,500 residents of the Kreminna territorial community were compelled to abandon their homes and seek temporary shelter in various parts of Ukraine.

Despite this relocation, their needs for housing and basic necessities remain largely unmet. Our efforts have been particularly focused on those most vulnerable — families of caregivers, orphans, the disabled, large families, as well as families who have lost a soldier. In total, our initiatives are reaching out to help 198 families which includes 177 children,

But even in this difficult time, there are those among us who do not leave Ukrainians alone with their problems. We have joined K.tex LLC’s charity initiative “Care Package." As part of this initiative, we have committed financial support to this cause as we firmly believe it to be important to be an active participant in social responsibility, especially in times when many people need help and support.

We express our sincere gratitude to K.tex LLC for helping coordinate efforts, using the donation to make blankets and pillows for the families who have been forced to flee their homes in the Luhansk region.