Group of Indian school children collaborating in 3M's Young Change Agents of Road Safety while standing in a semi-circle

Community engagement

Making a difference in the world through science

3M is committed to leveraging our people, products, and philanthropy to support communities through science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, workforce development, and community and environmental programs — with a focus on underrepresented populations and underserved communities. 3M helps build sustainable communities through strategic investments and the thoughtful involvement of 3M employees worldwide who volunteer to make a difference.

We also recognize the need to support financially insecure families with basic needs and services to thrive in their local community — so we dedicate a portion of our giving to hometown priority issues led by site leaders globally.

Key impacts

Addressing racial opportunity gaps

As a science-based manufacturing company, we’re motivated to support a more equitable pathway to science, manufacturing, and skilled trades jobs. To that end, in 2023 we invested another $13.1 million as part of our $50 million giving commitment over five years. Our efforts were recognized by the 2023 Racial Equity Dividends Index, which named 3M a high-scoring business for four out of seven categories, including Philanthropy & Investment.
Environmental justice

In 2023, we made steady progress in weaving a focus on environmental justice into key business processes and policies, as well as to define environmental justice principles. We acted on those principles by increasing site engagement with the local community at three prioritized locations. We also worked to amplify 3M’s leadership. In November 2023 we hosted 70 participants at the first 3M Environmental Justice Summit at 3M’s Innovation Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. This was one of the first times a corporation took the lead in drawing together the private sector, the public sector, and the community to share insight and drive action toward environmental justice.
STEM experiences
We support education initiatives that advance equitable outcomes in STEM for underrepresented students globally. Since 2021, we’ve supported over 2 million unique STEM and skilled trades learning experiences. We do this through several local and global programs.

Programs include:
- 3M Visiting Wizards – In partnership with the Bakken Museum, 3M volunteers provide science demonstrations and hands-on experiments to K-12 students
- 3M Tech Talks – Connects students, especially women and minorities, with 3M role models from a variety of technical job positions, degree levels, and backgrounds
- 3M Young Scientist Challenge – The premier U.S. science competition for students in grades 5 to 8, this competition seeks to spark curiosity in students and empower them to solve real-world problems that help improve lives