International Highlights From The Second ‘be green Day’

After last year’s premiere attracted a lot of interest, the second “be green Day” reached even more people around Bertelsmann this year. On Tuesday, at 44 sites in 15 countries, Bertelsmann companies across all divisions organized their "be green Day" – a day centering on the issue of climate, environmental and resource protection, and on which colleagues were able to partake of many activities, lectures, discussions, exhibitions and film screenings.

"I'm excited about the great response from around the world - the number of participating companies has increased by about 20 percent year-on-year," says Katrin Gaertner, Director of the "be green" Team and Head of Public Affairs at Corporate Communications. "Sustainability is a huge trend - and I’m delighted that the ‘be green’ Team has managed to turn Bertelsmann’s Environment day into an institution. As a company we want to be part of the solution, and not part of the problem!"

The environmental officers in the divisions and companies had come up with a slew of measures for the environmental action day. For example, at the RTL Group Corporate Center in Luxembourg, the group’s fourth "environMINDday" revolved around "green food," a topic that affects every employee and not only in the workplace. In his opening speech at the RTL Lëtzeburg Grand Studio Oliver Herrgesell, RTL Group Environmental Chief Officer, referred to meat’s influence on personal carbon footprints - in other words, people tend to underestimate the amount of direct and indirect carbon emissions caused by their own behavior. According to experts, a person can reduce their carbon footprint by up to 1.5 tons of carbon dioxide a year just by giving up meat. "This is more than you could achieve by switching from an SUV to a hybrid car," said Herrgesell.

A cooking show with the famous gourmet chef Michael Hoffmann was then held in Luxembourg. Hoffmann, who runs the Margaux restaurant in Berlin, was voted "Chef of the Year 2010" in Germany and has lectured at the École Supérieure de Cuisine Française in Paris since 2003. Located just yards from the Brandenburg Gate, his Michelin-starred restaurant is known for its spectacular vegetable-based dishes, 80 percent of which are from his own garden. In the 45-minute show Hoffmann demonstrated his passion for cooking that is both creative and environmentally responsible. Staff took the opportunity to taste the dishes based on herbs and seasonal vegetables. "Vegetables are not an accompaniment," said Hoffmann. "They deserve to be given center stage."

On the day itself, RTL Belgium employees learned more about recycling and waste recovery and RTL Nederland focused on the theme of energy saving, while Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland organized a speech and presentation by CEO Anke Schäferkordt on its first such day of action.
Numerous Arvato Entertainment Europe colleagues in Gütersloh answered the call to cycle to work on "be green Day" – despite the blustery and at times rainy weather. They included Michael Timmermeister , who cycles 13 kilometers from Rheda to Gütersloh every day, even in winter. Like quite a number of other Arvato employees he is doing a good deed for the environment as well as his own health. At Arvato Hightech in Herzebrock, staff could buy "Christmas tree seeds in a cup" for one euro - and the sale also continued yesterday. The proceeds will go to the "Wertkreis Gütersloh" charity’s " Kiebitzhof Reithalle " (Kiebitzhof Riding Hall).

In Poznan, Poland, "be green Day" focused on the proper separation of waste, among other things. Arvato staff were given detailed information about where each type of waste belongs - and more new containers were provided for easier disposal. The Arvato environmental code and a new environmental calendar gave additional useful tips and hints for protecting the environment.

At G+J's headquarters in Hamburg, the much-discussed film "Taste the Waste" was screened on the eve of "be green Day." It not only highlights the full extent of the global wastefulness and destruction of food, but also the social and political contexts surrounding the issue. On the day itself, G+J's cafeteria - supported by the magazine " Essen & Trinken " – offered only meatless dishes. The " GEO schützt den Regenwald " (GEO protects the rainforest) association sold sustainable products and presented its carbon-offsetting project in Nepal. The basic idea behind this is to offset G+J employees’ business trips by helping small farmers in the Himalayan country to help themselves. And of course, the popular "bike doctor" was also back to take a look at G+J colleagues' cycles.

As it did last year, Bertelsmann Unter den Linden 1 in Berlin marked the Group-wide environment day with a VIP evening event. Representatives from politics, business, culture and the media were invited to debate environmental and climate change issues. A panel discussion entitled "Turning Point", moderated by Klaus Liedtke, former Editor-In-Chief of "Stern" and "National Geographic," and featuring the trend researcher Prof. Peter Wippermann and former Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Klaus Töpfer , debated whether and to what extent ecology and economics can be reconciled. It quickly became clear that society still hasn't managed to follow up the increase in green awareness with effective action. The experts said the Earth's resources are still being depleted and nature is still not being given the priority it deserves as our habitat. But they concluded there is reason to hope that a rethink and redirection can be put into motion among political and corporate decision-makers.

Welthungerhilfe (World Hunger Relief) and Greenpeace stands set up at Bertelsmann Unter den Linden 1 in Berlin also gave staff the opportunity to learn about the two NGOs and talk to their representatives. At a "climate-friendly shopping" display, guests could use a hand scanner to choose from 15 foods. Instead of the item’s price, the receipt displayed the amount of CO2 per kilogram emitted during the product’s production, storage and transportation. The evening was rounded off with a screening of the visually stunning nature documentary "Serengeti," attended and introduced in person by its director Reinhard Radke.