We commit to being good corporate citizens, upstanding stewards of our local environmental resources, and good neighbors with Unshakable Integrity, one of our values. This is the driving force behind our Vibrant Communities goal to invest $50 million in our communities by 2030. We aim to enhance the communities where we live and operate by increasing access to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education; engaging in safety initiatives; and expanding sustainable environment programs.
Our 2023 Vibrant Communities Highlights
- Invested $3 million in the Center for Clean Hydrogen, as part of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership between the U.S. Dept. of Defense, the University of Delaware, Chemours, Plug, and the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, which will work to solve the challenges of creating low-cost clean hydrogen and efficient hydrogen energy conversion
- Expanded ChemFEST, our middle school partnership program, at five sites in the U.S. and Belgium
- Donated $350,000 to Discovery World Museum in Parkersburg, West Virginia and announced a ten-year STEM education partnership
- Hosted a community celebration for our Washington Works plant’s 75th anniversary alongside longstanding nonprofit partners
- Awarded Ingleside Independent School District with a $90,000 grant to advance STEM education at our Corpus Christi, Texas, site to celebrate 50 years of manufacturing excellence
- Funded $250,000 to launch the Diversity in Safety Scholarship in partnership with the National Safety Council to support students from historically marginalized backgrounds who are pursuing degrees at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Hispanic Serving Institutions
Expanding our STEM Education Programs
We have committed over $4 million to launch the Chemours Future of Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology School Partnership Program (ChemFEST), a global school partnership program aimed at building a diverse STEM talent pipeline. In early 2023, we broke ground at Wilmington, Delaware-based EastSide Charter School on a new 24,000-square-foot community STEM facility—the Chemours STEM Hub at EastSide Charter School. The Hub will offer public spaces for learning and improve access for students from more diverse backgrounds to be exposed to, excited by, and interested in STEM. We also expanded ChemFEST partnerships in site communities that include:
- Corpus Christi, Texas
- Fayetteville, North Carolina
- La Porte, Texas
- Louisville, Kentucky
- Mechelen, Belgium
Partnering for Progress
Consistent Engagement with Our Communities
All Chemours manufacturing locations have active community feedback mechanisms or Community Advisory Panels (CAPs)—a diverse group of community members representing the voice of those living near the sites. During 2023, we continued to assess and re-invigorate our CAPs that involves three steps:
- Ensuring that CAP membership is representative of the local community in terms of socioeconomic status, age, gender, race, and geographic location.
- Evaluating meeting agendas to ensure relevant content is being provided and that CAP members have ample opportunity to ask questions and offer feedback.
- Identifying a meeting cadence that provides the best opportunity for engagement with the CAP and any communications opportunities that may be available between meetings.
Our Washington Works and Chambers Works sites have already used this process to refresh their respective CAPS. As of early 2024, we have launched CAPs in Florida and Georgia to support our mineral operations; in Belle, West Virginia; and at the Chemours Discovery Hub in Newark, Delaware. We are evaluating ways to revitalize our CAPs in New Johnsonville, Tennessee, and Fayetteville, North Carolina, with remaining sites to be addressed in the future.
