Writing the Future Together
My favorite highlighters are the BIC Thin Brightliners, and on my probably 16th pack of them in my lifetime, I came across a note from the company: “Fight for Your Write”, visit us online. The thought intrigued me, so I did.
The company has set aside initiatives for sustainable production by 2025, promoting access to education, and community regrowth worldwide. For a publicly held company that makes everything from lighters to markers, generally deemed disposable products made to last, it is a breath of fresh air in a world where many companies could be doing more for their footprint - environmentally and culturally.
MORE ON THEIR INITIATIVES
Sustainable Development: https://www.bicworld.com/en/writing-the-future-together
The BiC Corporation has set aside 5 goals for sustainability in a full - spectrum viewpoint of production - from the making the product to where it ends up. These goals are action - oriented and encompass the company’s core values. This means a lot as a consumer - what the company is doing immediately aligns to the people who make the products. That is a connection and passion that some companies have trouble attaining. As somebody who has worked in and out of factories in their lifetime, seeing what goes on behind the scenes can very much lackluster and purpose. Why work for a company that doesn’t seem to have a positive undertone beneath what YOU are doing everyday? If it is not for bettering the planet, the communities, or the products, things will become stagnant. And unless you desire to do the same thing everyday for the rest of your life, how can you know that you are bettering anything in a wider reaching perspective?
One of their strategies is to standardize an economical product design, that will in turn reduce the material and chemical demand of item production. BiC is also striving to use alternative materials, or recycled material, in this stream of products where applicable. In a similar vein, the company is aiming to have their factory run on at least 80% renewable energy by 2025, and beyond 2025, 100%. They are commiting to a safer work environment, where less accidents means less waste; no spills, no injuries, no unnecessary pollution. I used to work in the Health and Safety Department at a Paint Company, and working on the job one can see many unnecessary and avoidable instances as such occur. For example, dropping a box of mid - production powder paint can produce hazardous or flammable dust clouds, that when cleaned up, still stains the ground and pavement. In a runoff situation, this can get into the water systems. These safety standards only can make a difference when the employee follows these procedures, and undoubtedly is an integral part of production improvement. As a former environmental / coastal sciences major, environmental issues can be multi- faceted and this wider reaching perspective that the company takes is impressive. The BiC enterprises have also made a goal to sustainably source their incoming material as well, which is an even wider - reaching perspective. These inputs are also stretched to last - so that the factories sustainably, produce, ship, and package these products. Reducing the environmental strain through such a platformed approach is a model that many companies should consider looking into. Education is another aspect of sustainable development, and the company has more regimens for such.
Sustanibility Graphic from BiC's Site
Commitment to Education: https://www.bicworld.com/en/our-commitments/commitment-education
Education is a vital part of the BiC Corporation values. After all, a company that makes products used in nearly all institutions of learning should strive to give back to those areas. This is considered a philanthropic approach. Employees volunteer vast amounts of their time and conduct fundraisers to reach these education goals. They want to improve the access to education, help children learn how to write, and help grow innovation in the learning community on a social and economic level. The value of writing opens so many doors for people - it is in a sense a dying art, but writing by hand can help people retain information. In my own experience, as a college student at Louisiana State, taking notes was a method of lecture absorption for me. I would create an outline in pencil, then comb through my notes with a black or blue pen and draw out the more significant items. Then terms, names, or big concepts, could be noted with my favorite highlighters. This process of writing, looking at, and rewriting was very effective for me. Handwriting is also an artistic process (cursive, calligraphy, or freeform) and in a world of typing and how- many -words- per - minute, it is a very bright feeling to see a company fighting for this forgotten artform. Whether it is an academic door, or an artistic one, children need to be taught how to write because it has the potential of opening so many doors for them later in life. They can use their tools for their purpose... but they need to be given these intellectual tools in the first place.
Made to Last Products: https://www.bicworld.com/en/our-commitments/affordable-products-made-last
I have never had a BiC lighter that hasn’t worked, and most people pocket them before there was a chance of running out of fluid. Most people seem to walk off with the highlighters as well - I told you sixteenth pack and I have no idea where they have gone. Joe Schmo obviously knows how good those yellow ones are. BiC describes their product concepts as being “only what is necessary ‘ (which can help align with the sustainability goals), and modern (innovative), readily available (education goals), and affordable (alleviating accessibility concerns). This is why their products are engineered to be lightweight and long lasting. The products do end up being more reliable and long lasting then most competitors in my opinion. These values stretch across their various product lines - their initiatives are clearly permeated and displayed through every aspect of the company.
Values that Extend Through the Company: https://www.bicworld.com/en/our-commitments/uniting-our-people-around-key-values
Whether it is a product made to last, or an employee volunteering time to help a child learn how to write, the BiC Corporation clearly signifies their own values. The companies’ philosophy is "Honor the past, invent the future" and mirrors their biggest values: Ethics, Responsibility, Teamwork, Simplicity and Ingenuity. The 2025 sustainability goals tacke many facets of these core items. At the heart, ethics is sustainability. Caring for your brother by doing the right thing, our planet is our brother and all men share it. The company is taking responsibility by caring for it, and the employees are doing so much teamwork and hard work day in and day out within the company to keep inching ever closer to being where they desire. Their products are ingenious because of their simplicity and reliability, but also because of the continued innovation behind them.
For a company that has factories worldwide, incorporating multiple cultures as such, all of this positivity is nearly overwhelming. I have never seen a company have such forward - thinking goals and likewise be making such long strides for that success. This is a company hidden under our noses - or our hands - for the better part of most of our lives. Many children are familiar with the logo. I would bet nearly everybody who has used a lighter, a shaver, or a highlighter has been exposed to this brand. And it means a lot to me to see such an everyday, commonplace, and essencial company to have such strong people behind it. I will never look at a highlighter the same way. It’s BiC or nothin’!
For more information feel free to visit their site:
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