In the U.S., we continued our partnership with The Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL) to offer a rolling grant program recognizing rural, small, and tribal libraries that support underserved communities in the U.S. and U.S. territories. Many rural libraries were impacted by the pandemic, especially those in under-served communities. Libraries are lifelines in countless ways, from serving as trusted sources for reliable information and providing access to important services and resources, including internet hotspots for families without internet service. In 2023, the program recognized over 40 libraries across the U.S. that support underserved communities.
Years: 2023
PRH Supports Pride Event at New College of Florida
In May, Penguin Random House donated over 150 LGBTQ+ books across eleven divisions for a student-led Pride event at the New College of Florida. The school has been in the news recently as a site where partisan politics and educational freedom are clashing in a way that’s not unrelated to the wave of book banning we’ve been seeing throughout the nation. As a result of the recent appointments by Gov. DeSantis to the New College Board of Trustees in support of his views, students have been restricted in the kinds of activities they can do with school funds—including DEI and LGBTQ events like Pride.
Triple Your Impact with the NYPL
We are proud to continue our partnership with the New York Public Library (NYPL). This program is part of our ongoing commitment to support a culture of reading and build the widest audiences for authors. This partnership with NYPL, where we tripled all donations made to the organization, helps to ensure that New Yorkers can utilize the vital services provided by their libraries free of charge, including access to books, computers, early literacy workshops, and job training classes.
PRH & Little Free Library Launch Mental Health Libraries
Through a new partnership with Little Free Library, we are sponsoring 20 Little Free Library book-sharing boxes granted to high-need communities via Little Free Library’s Impact Library Program across the U.S., providing more than 500 mental health–focused books and over 30 titles for these libraries, and offering an additional 2,000 books for a national giveaway.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion U.S. Report 2022-2023
At Penguin Random House, we work to incorporate DEI into the DNA of every aspect of our company culture. Our DEI Values guide us as we continue our efforts to build a more inclusive and equitable culture for our employees, creators and partners. In this report, we reflect on our work throughout the past two years, while also looking ahead to all that’s yet to come.
Expanding Global Access to Books with Save the Children
In the face of educational disruptions following the pandemic and the mounting book banning crisis, Penguin Random House announced an unprecedented book donation to long-standing partner Save the Children to help spread the joy of reading to kids everywhere. The historic donation is the largest global book donation in Save the Children’s history and will provide more than one million books to children across the globe over three years.
According to UNESCO, 244 million children did not attend school in 2022—and by 2030, the organization predicts that 20% of young people and 30% of adults will be unable to read. Penguin Random House’s partnership with Save the Children helps combat this global education crisis by providing age-appropriate books that support kids’ literacy skill development and ensure they have opportunities to learn both inside their schools and within their communities.
From accelerated learning for out-of-school children to school-based reading clubs run by trained volunteers, Save the Children programs that have been or will be supported by Penguin Random House’s book donation so far include:
- ‘Early Steps to School Success’, which provides early childhood development services to children ages 0-5 and their families in under-resourced communities, and Head Start programs across rural America
- Indigenous-led literacy initiatives in communities across Canada
- Safe spaces where children and families participate in educational activities, play games and receive support for physical or mental health concerns in Jiangna Township, China
- Elementary schools in four regions of Germany, including Berlin and Brandenburg
- Inclusive learning environments in India, including, but not limited to, school libraries, district education and training facilities, mobile learning centers and evening education support centers for young adults
- Early childhood centers in Mexico City
- Early childhood development centers in a South African province damaged by severe flooding in 2022
- Primary schools within low income-communities across the U.K., including England and Wales, as well as in partnership with a local book project in rural Scotland
To learn more about the partnership, click here.
Zero Waste Initiative
Corporate Services and the Sustainability Subcommittee have formed a Zero Waste Task Force to execute on a long-term Zero Waste initiative for the company’s New York City office, rethinking how we reduce, divert, and dispose of waste that ends up on-site. Achieving zero waste means conserving all resources with responsible production, consumption, and reuse of materials with no discharges to land, water, or air that threaten the environment or human health. We have been tracking our waste diversion for 1745 Broadway on a monthly basis for over a year now to inform and quantify our waste diversion efforts. We diverted 167 tons of items from landfill primarily through recycling and donation programs in the first 12 months of tracking.
Our Partnership with One Tree Planted
We care deeply about the planet and creating a business that gives back to nature. In 2022 we partnered with One Tree Planted, a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to global reforestation that plants trees to restore nature and biodiversity. As part of this partnership, for every new employee that joins PRH U.S., we donate to have a tree planted in their honor. We also celebrate career milestones by donating to have the corresponding number of trees planted for the number of years worked in five-year increments. To learn more about One Tree Planted, click here.
Reducing the Environmental Impact of Our Freight and Shipping
Since 2009, PRH has been a member of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) SmartWay Transport Partnership, an innovative collaboration between the EPA and the freight industry designed to increase energy efficiency while significantly reducing greenhouse gases and air pollution.
When carrier capacity fluctuates, the Transportation Department focuses on securing the best resources to move our freight, including utilizing freight carriers who are considered best in class. Volume shifts and capacity constraints during 2021 (the latest EPA data set year) required working with a vast array of carriers which slightly decreased our overall percentage of SmartWay carrier miles, but we maintained our status as a SmartWay Partner.
Transition to LED Lighting
Beginning in 2018, Penguin Random House U.S. started shifting to LED lighting and is now saving more than 2.75 megawatt hours annually, including:
- All floors of our New York City headquarters building (saving more than 743,000 kWh annually)
- All lighting in the Westminster office areas (saving more than 400,000 kWh annually)
- Westminster warehouse areas (saving more than 1 megawatt annually)
- In 2022, we completed installation of LED lighting throughout the Hampstead Distribution Center
- Starting in 2023, we are installing LED lighting in the Crawfordsville distribution center (saving more than 600,000 kWh annually)