Twist Bioscience Releases Inaugural ESG Report Highlighting Achievements and Initiatives in Diversity and Sustainability
Twist Bioscience Corporation, a company enabling customers to succeed through its offering of high-quality synthetic DNA using its silicon platform, released its inaugural environmental social and governance (ESG) report highlighting Twist’s approach to sustainability, social responsibility and commitment to ethics. “Our commitment to writing the future of sustainability begins with the reduced chemical footprint of our silicon-based synthetic DNA platform and enables our customers to more sustainably develop therapeutics, diagnostic tests, agriculture yields, and so much more”
“We are proud to share the results of our ESG report, which reflects the ongoing work since our founding that demonstrates our commitment to ethical practices, recruiting and developing a diverse global workforce, and fostering a corporate culture where employees feel valued, respected and have a sense of belonging,” said Angela Bitting, SVP, corporate affairs and chief ESG officer for Twist Bioscience.
“Our commitment to writing the future of sustainability begins with the reduced chemical footprint of our silicon-based synthetic DNA platform and enables our customers to more sustainably develop therapeutics, diagnostic tests, agriculture yields, and so much more,” continued Bitting.
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Commitment to a Diverse Workforce
Twist employs a diverse workforce and as of December 2020, 63% of Twist’s workforce was made up of people of color, with women of color making up 27% of the organization. Women make up 39% of the global workforce at Twist and are well represented in leadership positions, accounting for 42% of the executive team and 30% of the Board of Directors. Twist is committed to continuing to increase diversity in its growing workforce over the long term, with the short-term goal of increasing the percentage of women and racial diversity by 3% by the end of 2022, as compared to the end of 2021. To support diversity in recruiting and inform strong biotech curricula, the company is partnered with California Community Colleges and educational initiatives aimed at training the next generation of biomanufacturers.
In addition to providing flexible work arrangements to employees, Twist has several programs in place to encourage career growth and development, including internal leadership programs, specialized trainings, an online learning platform and tuition reimbursement of up to $5,250 per year. Twist also encourages employees to participate in philanthropic initiatives and provides 8 hours of paid time off per year for volunteer efforts.
Sustainable Platform and Practices
Twist’s silicon-based synthetic DNA platform offers a more sustainable alternative to legacy methods by miniaturizing the chemical reaction. Twist’s silicon chip has the same footprint as the 96-well plate used in traditional DNA synthesis approaches but contains millions of nanometer-scale devices, allowing Twist to synthesize over one million oligos at once, compared to 96 oligos generated by other approaches. Twist’s approach uses 99.8% less reagent per gene and does not produce excess oligo, completely removing oligo waste from the gene synthesis process.
As part of Twist’s commitment to sustainability beyond its platform, the company has implemented internal recycling programs, including a plastic glove recycling initiative that has diverted over 11 thousand pounds of plastic waste from landfills.
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Ethical Practices Across the Organization
Twist has a comprehensive privacy policy in place and has obtained a certificate for the highest level of information security recognized by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The company also works with governments as well as other DNA synthesis providers to develop, promote and evolve a consistent set of biosecurity best practices.
Twist performs rigorous biosecurity and export control screening to ensure that sequences of DNA that could pose significant risk if misused are not synthesized and shipped to unlicensed organizations. The same high ethical standards are applied across the organization and include meticulous record keeping, reporting and allocation of personnel resources to ensure that employees follow set policies and procedures.
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