Casella Waste Systems, Hula and Mamava have joined VBSR’s core group of Champion Members. (photos courtesy of the organizations)

Casella Waste Systems, Hula and Mamava Become VBSR Champion Members

Values-led innovators Join Leading Vermont Businesses for People, Planet and Prosperity

Burlington, Vt. (February 9, 2023) –
 Today Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR) announced that Casella Waste Systems, Hula and Mamava have joined the organization’s core group of Champion Members. VBSR’s cohort of 24 Champion Members, which includes King Arthur Baking Company, Seventh Generation, Ben & Jerry’s, and Green Mountain Power, are corporate social responsibility icons – in Vermont and beyond. Brands around the globe look to these Vermont industry leaders to learn how to guide their businesses toward a just, thriving, and transformative economy that works for all people and the planet.

Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (Rutland, VT) is the Northeast’s largest recycler and most experienced fully integrated resource management company. Casella established Vermont’s first recycling facility in 1977 and has grown its operations to provide services to more than 900,000 residential, commercial, municipal, institutional and industrial customers throughout the Northeast.

The company currently recycles over 1.2 million tons of recyclables and organics each year, and through its continued commitment to sustainable resource management, aims to grow that number to 2 million tons per year by 2030. A charter member of the EPA Climate Leaders, Casella was awarded the EPA’s Climate Leadership Award for Excellence in Greenhouse Gas Emissions after reducing its carbon footprint by more than 45% between 2005 and 2010.

“For nearly fifty years, sustainability has been at the core of Casella’s mission, values, and services. And, because of this, our company has always been organized around the idea that our job is to protect, conserve, and renew resources,” said John W. Casella, chairman and CEO of Casella Waste Systems. “As a long-time member of VBSR, we believe strongly in the power of like-minded businesses coming together and collaborating for the betterment of the state. We’re honored to be a Champion Member of VBSR and look forward to learning and contributing alongside our peers.”

Since opening in 2020, Hula’s coworking campus (Burlington, VT), business incubator and venture capital fund have played a critical role in supporting the development of Vermont’s technological business sector by concentrating on attracting businesses, supporting their growth, keeping them in Vermont and creating jobs. Architecturally, Hula’s refurbished factory setting is a net positive campus with a megawatt solar array, 100% renewable energy, geothermal heating and cooling, EV charging stations and offsets for all employee travel.

Pairing a changemaking, inviting space with a strong emphasis on employee culture and supporting a healthy work/life balance, Hula practices and models a focus on health and wellness through professional growth opportunities, flexible schedules, and time off. The onsite fitness center, showers, locker rooms, bike storage, beach access, and more support this ethos.

“Hula will always take a triple bottom line approach when it comes to our business practices,” said Russ Scully, owner and developer of Hula. “We understand the importance of creating a sense of belonging to our community, going the extra mile when it comes to social and environmental impact, and helping grow the economy of Vermont through job creation and business collaboration.”

Mamava (Burlington and Springfield, VT), the leading expert in lactation space design, is dedicated to transforming the culture of breastfeeding in the United States. With a firm belief in championing the local economy with quality jobs, the company is on a mission to celebrate and support all breastfeeding parents through design that is accessible, functional, beautiful, and easy to assemble and maintain. Where possible, the Mamava product and supply-chain team sources materials made with pre-consumer recycled content.

Driven by a collaborative framework, the Mamava business model empowers employees to be co-creators of their work culture, mission and success. And, as a Certified B Corporation, Mamava lives out the philosophy that businesses can be a force for good and believes that B Corps practice better business for the benefit of everyone – employees, customers, communities, and the environment.

“We fully embrace VBSR’s mission to leverage the power of business for positive social and environmental impact,” said Sascha Mayer, co-founder of Mamava. “At Mamava, we believe in corporate social responsibility and taking good care of our colleagues as we work toward a healthier society. That’s an ethic we share with all VBSR Champion Members and we look forward to ongoing collaboration and knowledge sharing with these leaders.”

VBSR Champion Members include The Alchemist, Ben & Jerry’s Homemade, Casella Waste Systems, Ceres Collaborative, Champlain Investment Partners, Chroma Technology, Dinse, Green Mountain Power, Hula, King Arthur Baking Company, Lawson’s Finest Liquids, Mamava, National Life Group, Northfield Savings Bank, Paul Frank + Collins, Seventh Generation, SunCommon, TruexCullins Architecture + Interior Design, Union Mutual, VEIC, Vermont Creamery, Vermont Family Farms, Villanti Printers, and VSECU.

About VBSR
VBSR is a statewide, non-profit business association with a mission to leverage the power of business for positive social and environmental impact. VBSR’s 700 member businesses and organizations strive toward a just, thriving, and transformative economy that works for all people and the planet through shared learning, building connections, and collective action. Learn more or join the cause at www.vbsr.org.