A record total of about 180 organizations and 300 individuals pledged to take actions to reduce their resource consumption and environmental impact as part of this year’s Eco Action Day, Singapore’s largest business-led environmental awareness campaign.
The campaign, now in its eighth year, is organised by Japanese multinational Ricoh Asia Pacific, in partnership with government, civil society and private sector partners. Held on World Environment Day, the annual campaign seeks to raise environmental awareness among businesses by getting them to make small behavioural changes to conserve energy and resources.
The theme of the campaign for 2014 is “Green the Red Dot, Join the Movement”, a concept that is closely aligned with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) theme for World Environment Day, ‘Raise Your Voice, Not the Sea Level’, which shines the light on the urgency to help islands address the growing risks and vulnerabilities as a result of climate change.
This call to action was disseminated through bus advertisements, posters at commercial buildings, online advertising, roadshows and social media, as well as the Eco Action Day website, where businesses and individuals could register their pledges.
ComfortDelGro Corporation Limited is one of the 183 organisations that pledged to take measures such as setting all office air conditioning to at least 25°C and fitting lights with motion sensors.
Ms. Tammy Tan, Group Corporate Communications Officer of ComfortDelGro Corporation Limited, said: “ComfortDelGro is keenly aware of the important role we play in preserving our environment. Besides deploying environmentally friendly vehicles and undertaking green corporate initiatives, we also encourage our staff to do their part for the environment. To promote greater awareness, interest and participation among our staff, we have organised plant sales and garage sales of recycled items like books and clothing on previous Eco Action Days. This year, we have organised a newspaper collection competition to encourage our staff to recycle their old newspapers. We continue to look at new and interesting ways to make the green movement more fun.”
Mr. Nobuaki Majima, Managing Director of Ricoh Asia Pacific, applauded the record participation in the campaign, saying, “We are really happy about the achievement for this year, not merely because the campaign has reached new heights, but also because this is a reflection that people are getting more environmentally conscious”.
To further engage partners and stakeholders this year, Ricoh has also partnered with Eco-Business to convene the inaugural Eco Action Day Panel Discussion, entitled “Small island states and sustainable development: Singapore’s experience”.
A panel of distinguished speakers, including Mr Choi Shing Kwok, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources; Mr Christopher Ang, Executive Director of the Singapore Compact for CSR; Professor Kenneth Richards, Musim Mas Chair of Sustainability, NUS Business School; Mr Jose Raymond, Chief Executive Officer, Singapore Environment Council; Mr Kwok Yan Hoe, Deputy General Manager for Sustainable Design, Keppel Land; and Mr Adrian Lim, Head of Managing Director’s Office, Ricoh Singapore, shared their views on Singapore’s sustainable development at the discussion.
MEWR’s Mr Choi said: “Singapore is small and alternative energy disadvantaged, and we currently contribute only 0.2 per cent to total global carbon emissions. Notwithstanding that, we believe we need to do as much as we can to mitigate carbon emissions in Singapore. We have currently made a pledge to reduce emissions by between 7 to 11 per cent from our business as usual trajectory. We have also made a commitment that after a legally binding agreement is reached at the international level, we will raise this to 16 per cent by 2020. We want to bring about a fair and ambitious response by all parties to these challenges.”
Jessica Cheam, Editor of Eco-Business who moderated the discussion, said, “The record number of pledges received by the Eco Action Day campaign is encouraging, as it points to a widespread willingness amongst businesses and individuals alike to invest time and effort in reducing their environmental impact. We wanted to build this momentum further through the inaugural discussion, by bringing business leaders, policymakers and civil society together to discuss strategies for Singapore to balance economic growth with mitigating and adapting to climate change, and raise awareness of the challenges faced by small island developing states”.
For media enquiries, please contact Wong Yee Thing or Quah Geok Lan from the Eco Action Team at (65) 6830-5878 or info@ecoaction.sg.
About Eco Action Day
Every year, Ricoh, along with various supporting partners, engages its employees, customers, corporate neighbours and government organizations to rethink their action in the workplace, and take steps to reduce their impact on the environment.
Eco Action Day focuses on ways to conserve energy and resources within the office and beyond.
To date, more than 300 organisations, including multinational corporations, government agencies, private companies and tertiary institutions have participated in Eco Action Day.
For further information, please visit www.ecoaction.sg
About Ricoh
Ricoh is a global technology company specializing in office imaging equipment, production print solutions, document management systems and IT services. Headquartered in Tokyo, Ricoh Group, operates in more than 200 countries and regions. In the financial year ending March 2013, Ricoh Group had worldwide sales of 1,924 billion yen (approx. 20 billion USD).
The majority of the company’s revenue comes from products, solutions and services that improve the interaction between people and information. Ricoh also produces award-winning digital cameras and specialized industrial products. It is known for the quality of its technology, the exceptional standard of its customer service and sustainability initiatives.
Under its corporate tagline, imagine. change. Ricoh helps companies transform the way they work and harness the collective imagination of their employees.
For further information, please visit: www.ricoh.com/about/
List of Speakers for Eco Action Day Panel Discussion
- Mr Choi Shing Kwok, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of the Environment & Water Resources
- Professor Kenneth Richards, Musim Mas Chair of Sustainability, NUS Business School
- Mr Christopher Ang, Executive Director, Singapore Compact for CSR
- Mr Jose Raymond, Chief Executive Officer, Singapore Environment Council
- Mr Kwok Yan Hoe, Deputy General Manager for Sustainable Design, Keppel Land
- Mr Adrian Lim, Head of Managing Director’s Office, Ricoh Singapore
- Ms Jessica Cheam, Editor, Eco-Business (Moderator)
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