April 23, 2024

This paid piece is sponsored by POET.

Every year, Earth Day is a call to action: a reminder that our planet’s health is in our hands and a motivation to take meaningful steps toward a brighter future.

POET answers that call. With a team dedicated to living every day like it’s Earth Day, POET’s core mission is to be good stewards of the Earth and give back to the communities it calls home.

“At POET, we recognize that every day is an opportunity to champion sustainability and environmental stewardship,” said Nathan Hay, vice president of people and culture. “In every aspect of what we do at POET — from our low-carbon biofuels and plant-based bioproducts to our team’s culture — we are passionate about innovation and changing the world for the better.”

On Earth Day, April 22, POET hosted its fourth annual volunteer event in partnership with the city of Sioux Falls. About 100 team members volunteered to assist in cleanup and maintenance projects at four local parks: Nelson Park, Kuehn Park, Tuthill Park and the River Greenway near Levitt at the Falls.

“While POET’s Earth Day event is a great reminder of the role we all play in our communities, we strive to work in sync with nature in all we do throughout the year,” said Alyssa Broin Christensen, vice president of team and community impact.

“It’s one thing to talk about making a difference, but actually supporting our team members to get out there and take action is what we’re all about. POET is proud to call Sioux Falls home, and we’re grateful to have the opportunity to do something positive for this community.”

This year, the POET team divided into groups to conquer a wide range of tasks, from landscaping projects like tree pruning, mulching and weeding to staining picnic shelters and picking up trash to setting up windscreens on perimeter fences.

Beyond just aesthetic improvements, they aimed to help prepare these facilities for the families of Sioux Falls to enjoy during the summer months ahead.

Sioux Falls wasn’t the only POET location to celebrate Earth Day; each year, POET’s Earth Day volunteer event is observed companywide, with participation from its 34 bioprocessing facilities and its corporate offices in Sioux Falls and Wichita, Kansas.

A few other highlights from the many Earth Day activities across the POET’s network include:

• POET’s Wichita office planted trees in the community.
• POET Bioprocessing – Fostoria, Ohio, led a community park cleanup with other local businesses and organizations.
• POET Bioprocessing – Hudson, South Dakota, hosted a litter cleanup and visited the local elementary school to do Earth Day-themed activities and give a brief presentation discussing what POET does and why it is important to care for the Earth.
• POET Bioprocessing – Coon Rapids, Iowa, partnered with Whiterock Conservancy to help mulch trees and clean up walking paths and bike trails.

“Our Earth Day efforts across the POET network are just one component of our ongoing commitment to leaving the world better than we found it,” Christensen said. “It’s a small but powerful reminder that when we unite behind a common goal, we have the power to influence real change.”

To learn more about POET’s sustainability efforts, visit poet.com/sustainability.