Second Worldwide ‘be green Day’ On October 18

Take the bike instead of the car, the stairs instead of the elevator, host video conferences instead of taking business trips, eat tofu instead of steak…There are countless ways to protect the environment and save energy at home and at work. And not just on "be green Day," the annual day of action which Bertelsmann is hosting for the second time on Oct 18 . Once again, all over the world and in every division, numerous plants, offices and sites will be participating.

Are we experiencing a new greening of public awareness, especially after Fukushima, or is this just a temporary phenomenon? How do we reconcile ecology and business? Where does our food come from? How do we dispose of our waste? How can we conserve our planet's resources? These and other questions will be tackled interactively on the day of action: in panel discussions with politicians, NGO representatives, journalists and academics; at cooking events focusing on vegetarian dishes made with local products; with screenings of the movies "Taste The Waste," "Serengeti" and "Jane's Journey” about the life of Jane Goodall "; with an art contest and various prize drawings... to give just a few examples.

At Bertelsmann, environmental and climate protection is an expression of social responsibility and therefore part of the corporate culture, and as such is already enshrined in the Bertelsmann Essentials. On this basis, the Bertelsmann Executive Board initiated the "be green" environmental and climate protection strategy in 2008. As part of this strategy, Bertelsmann drew up its first Group-wide carbon footprint and organized the world's first "be green Day" for employees last year.

Bertelsmann now aims to continue this tradition with its second international "be green Day." "Each of us can save energy, conserve resources and thus contribute to environmental and climate protection on any day and on many occasions without much effort," says Thorsten Strauß, head of Bertelsmann's Corporate Communications and patron of "be green Day." "With 'be green Day' we want to inspire our colleagues to reflect upon environmental and climate protection and take part. At central locations around the world, employees will be informed about how Bertelsmann and their local companies are already contributing to environmental and climate protection and how they can do their part," adds Strauß.

"With this goal in mind, environmental officers from the divisions have come up with exciting programs and have inspired many of their companies to participate in ‘be green Day’ with their own ideas," says Katrin Gaertner, head of the "be green" team and Vice President of Bertelsmann's Corporate Communications.