Today, I'm delighted to announce the release of Cisco's eleventh annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report. Cisco technology is an integral part of the Internet, and in the digitized era we enable the connections between people, processes, data, and things in ways that create social, environmental and economic impact. These connections make amazing things possible, and we're just getting started. For this year's full report, click here.

Every day, more and more people and things come online, and each connection brings with it unique and infinite possibilities. Whether it is connected education and healthcare, smarter cities, disaster relief and response, or more efficient government services, the sheer amount of these and future connections will not only drive business improvements, but also play a key role in resolving our most critical social issues. From water scarcity to hunger to economic inequality, these issues are challenging and complex, but also hold huge opportunities for governments, businesses, and communities to drive change.

Among the many important efforts, in this year's report, you'll find stories that share:

• How our flagship Cisco Networking Academy continues to help people lift themselves and their families out of poverty in developing countries, while also helping companies fill technology jobs and drive business growth in a digitized world.
• How technology improves access to quality healthcare and meets critical human needs for food, drinking water, and shelter.
• How we're addressing the challenges around the growing skills gap and global unemployment.
• How technology and our partnerships help military veterans transition to civilian life.

The report also outlines our supplier diversity and environmental impact efforts, as well as the tremendous difference our employees make through their generous donations and volunteer hours.

CSR has been a part of Cisco's culture since the beginning, and this year we've taken steps to further align CSR strategy with our core business strategy. We will continue to drive this integration and sharpen our focus on the most material CSR issues with our new Executive Leadership Team to achieve the greatest impact.

Our annual CSR report reflects our greatest efforts to make the world a better place while creating value for our customers, partners, the environment and global communities. I hope you'll join me in celebrating the life-changing differences we've been able to accomplish this year.