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| | May 2009 | | | | | | | RSA Insurance Group and Vita Launch Innovative Partnership to tackle Climate Change and Poverty
Business and Charity Join forces for First Irish Carbon Offsetting Partnership | RSA Insurance Group and Irish charity Vita today launched an innovative corporate partnership to encourage Irish workers and companies to offset and reduce their carbon footprint.
The scheme was launched today by Garden Designer Diarmuid Gavin at Harvey Nichols restaurant at Dundrum, Dublin.
This partnership is the first of its kind by any multinational corporation in Ireland and will educate both its own staff, and fellow businesses, on how to measure their carbon footprint and offset it by donating to environmentally sustainable projects in Africa.
RSA Ireland plans to roll the initiative, which is part of its Green World Programme, out to its own staff initially but will also be targeting it’s own suppliers, customers and broker companies to deliver it.
Its partner Vita is an overseas development agency with a focus on the environment and is able to deliver carbon offsetting to businesses and individuals through poverty reduction programmes it delivers in Ethiopia and Eritrea with Kenya starting shortly.
Vita installs prize winning fuel efficient stoves in households in Africa and plants the so called ‘miracle’ Moringa tree which is edible, medicinal and drought resistant. These programmes simultaneously reduce household carbon emissions and reduce hunger in Africa.
Vita’s Chief Executive John Weakliam said: “This partnership shows a new way for business and charities to work together, where the company uses its own larger resources to communicate our important messages to its audiences, while Vita remains focused on delivering benefits on the ground in Africa.”
RSA Ireland Marketing & PR Manager Pat Nally said: “As part of our wider Corporate Social Responsibility Policy, our Green World Programme aims to address the business practises of RSA Ireland’s own staff, customers and suppliers and to stimulate them to address the environmental impact of their actions on the wider world.”
“In this partnership with Vita we will be encouraging our staff and external business audiences to assess their personal and company carbon footprints and to offset some or all of this by donating to families in Africa with whom Vita works,” he said.
In conclusion Vita Chief Executive John Weakliam added that “by purchasing a stove for €40 employees in Ireland can offset approximately half of their annual carbon footprint bringing huge environmental and livelihood benefits to poorer parts of the world. Employees who participate in the scheme will also receive a carbon neutral certificate from Vita.”
To calculate your carbon footprint and offset it log on to www.vita.ie.
Further Information
Ronan Cavanagh, Montague Communications: (01) 830 3116 or (086) 317 9731.
Deirdre Lynam, RSA Ireland, Green World Programme Coordinator: (086) 241 5795. | | | |
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