Deutsche Post DHL celebrates World Environment Day

Deutsche Post DHL will celebrate World Environment Day on Friday in all regions and business units. Staff members all over the world will take part in a variety of activities to help protect the environment. These include reducing energy consumption by turning off lights in buildings for one hour, refraining from printing and thereby reducing paper consumption for an entire day, refusing to use disposable utensils and dishes, making a conscious decision to bike or take public transportation to work and even activities that directly impact the local environment such as planting trees.

"We agree 100 percent with the goal of the United Nations to raise awareness among people of their personal responsibility toward climate protection," says CEO Frank Appel.

The staff at headquarters in Bonn have also been called to action. They and their families may volunteer on Friday afternoon to help clean up the "Weinberg Limperich" nature reserve in Beuel, a Bonn suburb. At the Post Tower, all lighting - excluding safety lighting - will be turned off from 1pm to 2pm as well the building's evening facade lighting.

More than symbolism

"Environmental and climate protection is not only important to Deutsche Post DHL on this day, it becomes more and more part of our everyday business," says Steffen Frankenberg, Vice President of the Group's GoGreen climate protection program. In 2008, Deutsche Post DHL set a target with GoGreen to improve CO2 efficiency within its own operations as well as its subcontractors by 30 percent by 2020.

This means that Deutsche Post DHL aims to reduce CO2 emissions by nearly one third from 2007 levels for every letter mailed, every item shipped and every square meter of warehouse space used. The first phase of this target will be to reduce CO2 emissions of internal operations by 10 percent by 2012. This phase will focus on optimizing aircraft and vehicle fleets, increase energy efficiency, develop innovative technologies, motivate employees to be more environmentally conscious and to integrate customers and subcontractors.