Hamburg / Harsewinkel / München / Rostock / São Paulo / Singapur / Springe / Tallinn, 09/19/2017

‘be green Day’ across the Bertelsmann World

"Your commitment counts! – Together for more climate and environmental protection"–More than 60 Bertelsmann company sites in 19 countries have organized a "be green Day" under this heading since the launch of the "be green Day" campaign in April.

Our employees at Gruner + Jahr in Hamburg held their "be green Day" last week. The day of action started at the Baumwall site with a short presentation by the blogger Luise Rosemeier on "Zero Waste" – a way of life that aims to produce as little garbage as possible in the daily routine.

Afterwards, employees were invited to learn more about a variety of different topics – from mobility to new concepts for avoiding garbage – at the "be green market" in the foyer of the G+J building. Presenters included the car-sharing companies Car2Go and DriveNow, the beverage producer Lemonaid, the "packaging-free shop" Stückgut, as well as G+J’s company sports team and the "Geo schützt den Regenwald e. V." association.

To mark "be green Day," the G+J intranet "Greenport" hosted a competition in which employees were asked to submit photos of their paperless offices. The winners of the raffle received a €200 Stückgut voucher. At lunch, the company restaurant served appropriate dishes for "be green Day."

Numerous Activities at Locations around the World

Many other locations also devoted an entire day to environmental and climate protection in recent months. Here is a quick look at the various activities:

The Corporate Center in Brazil held its "be green Day" on Aug 31; it was simultaneously proclaimed "No Printing Day" in order to reduce paper consumption. In addition, the staff will collect books throughout the month of September, and subsequently donate them to one of the institutions supported by Bertelsmann Brazil. Protecting the climate and environment is important to the Corporate Center in Brazil beyond "be green Day" as well. The installation of a video conferencing system in São Paulo has greatly reduced the number of domestic flights within six months. This not only saves costs, but also makes a sustainable contribution to environmental protection. Paper and coffee capsules are recycled, roughly half of the employees walk to work, and no plastic bottles or cups are used anywhere in the offices, showing that every single person can contribute to protecting the climate and environment on a daily basis.

In Germany, things got very green at Verlagsgruppe Random House in Munich on Jul 12. During the day of action, talks and discussions on various topics were held throughout the company. The company Climate Partner impressively demonstrated how climate protection can be anchored in the core business. A CO2 calculator was used to calculate the emissions levels generated during book production and how these can be compensated for by supporting various projects to slow down climate change. A special highlight of the day was a "bee tour," where employees were able to get up close and personal with the small insects.

Arvato Direct Services in Rostock organized two "be green Days": the first on Jul 12 with an herb-planting campaign, the second on Sep 13 with the harvesting and tasting of the planted herbs. Together, a breakfast with herbed cream quark, salad, vegetable kebabs and fresh peppermint tea was prepared.

OurArvato Direct Services employees in Springe also organized several actions, beginning with the introduction of a new waste separation system on Sep 11.

Arvato SCM in Harsewinkel organized its "be green Day" on Sep 12 in cooperation with the nature and environmental protection organization WWF. At lunchtime, WWF representatives gave two keynotes on the topic of resource consumption, addressing the question of how each individual can do good for the planet basically without any effort. Before and after the lectures, high-quality reusable coffee cups could be purchased for a euro. The site paid for the remaining costs and also made a donation to the WWF "Preserving Domestic Diversity" project. The company restaurant team also actively participated by offering a "green" lunch menu.

Arvato CRM in Estonia also organized a "be green Day" back in mid-May, when it planted 1,000 trees in cooperation with the state forestry center. The company also donated one euro per tree to a housing project that looks after educationally disadvantaged young people.

Take Part at Your Location, too!

The "be green Day" campaign, coordinated by the Corporate Responsibility & Diversity Management department, continues until the middle of November. If you would like to organize a "be green Day" at your location before the end of the campaign in November and you need materials and access to the World Map on which all activities are documented, please send an email to corporate.responsibility@bertelsmann.de.