Report Highlights Centene's Commitment to Advancing Sustainability and DEI
Environmental Sustainability
Environmental sustainability is an important part of our day-to-day business operations at Centene. From energy-efficient buildings at our talent hubs, to enterprise-wide recycling initiatives and our hybrid and remote work culture, Centene cares about protecting the environment.
Our Employees and Environmental Stewardship
To raise employee awareness of environmental impacts, we developed learnings on our sustainability framework and responsible waste management practices. These learnings are available to all employees and cover the company’s assessment of climate-related risks and ways to reduce our consumption of energy, water and other natural resources.
In recent years, we have partnered with local communities, nonprofit organizations and other businesses to create a positive environmental impact through activities such as nature cleanups.
Eco-Friendly Facility Operations
As part of the adoption of a more modern, flexible work environment, we are reducing our real estate footprint by establishing strategically located talent hubs in communities we serve. The talent hub locations are designed to support enhanced workforce flexibility for improved in-office work, collaboration and engagement among our teams. Our flexible approach to work locations has resulted in fewer employees coming into offices, which reduces the need for physical office space, reduces daily employee commuting and leads to lower emissions and energy consumption.
St. Louis, MO
The campus of Centene’s global headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri, features two LEED Gold Certified buildings with vegetated rooftops and over 44,000 square feet of native plantings. The rooftop green space reduces storm water runoff while decreasing energy consumption and reducing the heat island effect..
Waste Reduction and Recycling Initiatives
To reduce the amount of waste we generate, we have implemented recycling and waste management practices throughout our facilities and encourage employees to refuse, reduce, reuse and recycle. These practices include:
EcoServ: Centene is working with programs like InstallNET’s EcoServ to resell, reuse and recycle office furniture for buildings or spaces no longer in use, resulting in over 828,000 pounds* of waste diverted from landfills.
*According to EcoServ’s Program Impact Report for January – December 2023
Print Optimization: Centene has established a multi-year workstream focused on electronic document delivery to enhance our member journeys and lower costs. We estimate this initiative helped us save over 99 million sheets of paper in 2023, leading to reduced waste and carbon emissions.
Food Services: Guckenheimer, Centene’s café food service provider, uses eco-effective systems to convert waste into renewable resources, such as turning food scraps into compost for local farms and converting cooking oils and grease into biofuels. In 2023, Centene’s corporate office in St. Louis composted an estimated 40,000 pounds with our food waste diversion program.
EV Charging Stations: Select Centene offices have electric vehicle (EV) charging stations installed to support EV owners looking to decrease their daily commuting emissions. Our owned offices have six chargers available currently, with active projects to install 10 more.*
*As of March 2024
Access to healthy, affordable food is a challenge for many of our members. Learn how Centene’s Ohio subsidiary, Buckeye Health Plan, is working to increase access to sustainable sources of produce for the communities we serve in Ohio.
