News

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22 Apr 2008

DLA Piper launches Global Waste Awareness Campaign to support its Sustainability Initiative

Press Release

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DLA Piper announced today that it will launch an environmental awareness campaign which will run from 1- 9 May. The announcement coincides with Earth Day as the global organisation makes final preparations for its nine-day campaign focusing on waste reduction. To further the achievements of DLA Piper's Global Sustainability Initiative the waste campaign, named "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle", will raise staff awareness of ongoing efforts to minimise waste of all types in each of its 64 offices worldwide.

In December 2007, DLA Piper became the first global legal services provider to achieve ISO 14001 certification across all its operations worldwide. Using its environmental management system, DLA Piper will become more sustainable in each of its four key impact areas: energy, waste, business travel and procurement. The awareness campaign builds on existing achievements to encourage all staff to first minimise waste and then to recycle where possible.

"A culture of sustainability cannot be created in a vacuum and we're excited to recognise and share the unique efforts of our local offices to reduce their impact on the environment," said Senator George J Mitchell, Chairman of DLA Piper. "This campaign serves as an important forum necessary to continue strengthening our commitment to the global ecosystem."

Every day from 1- 9 May the campaign will encourage DLA Piper employees to change the way they work. Staff will also be given an opportunity to learn more about the positive changes taking place in their local office, and in other markets, that will move the global organisation closer to its waste reduction targets. Highlight of activities during the campaign:

• 1 May - Climate Change Summit Day – Global communication about the campaign and information and ideas on how to reduce waste. There will also be a global screening of HRH The Prince of Wales' May Day Business Summit on Climate Change in London, which is partly sponsored by DLA Piper. DLA Piper Chairman, Senator George J Mitchell, will participate in a panel discussion about the international effects of climate change at the event. UK Prime Minister, Gordon Brown is also a keynote speaker at the event.
  
• 2 May - Local Day – Office-wide communication about local waste reduction activities, an interactive map detailing the waste management efforts of each local office and a 'green breakfast' featuring locally made and low-packaged goods that will be available at many DLA Piper offices.
  
• 6 May - Heroes Day – A day to spotlight employees from all offices who are making extraordinary contributions to the Global Sustainability Initiative.
  
• 7 May - Personal Challenges Day – All DLA Piper people will be encouraged to make pledges to reduce their waste footprints - from trying double-sided printing to using a ceramic mug for their coffee.
  
• 8 May - Sustainability Firm-wide – Communication on office-wide changes to reduce waste, such as switching to recycled or eco-friendly paper for printed materials and increasing the number of electronic publications for clients and internal news. An update on climate change projects supported by New Perimeter, DLA Piper's international pro bono affiliate. Projects supported include subsistence farmers in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda who help to generate carbon credits through afforestation and reforestation that can be sold as credits to offset greenhouse gas emissions.

"We want all our offices to be as sustainable and as environmentally friendly as they can be and we can only achieve this by encouraging all our people to support our Sustainability Initiative," said Nigel Knowles, joint CEO of DLA Piper. "There are a number of things that we can do to move closer to our goals but it is the commitment of our people that will really help to drive our achievements. We employ over 8000 people and our experience shows that increasing the use of double-sided printing and encouraging staff to only print what they really need has a significant impact on reducing waste. This campaign builds on our established best practice and is designed to encourage everyone to keep making those small but important changes."

DLA Piper's waste awareness campaign is part of its overall commitment to reduce and manage the impact of its operations on the environment. The Global Sustainability Initiative, DLA Piper's business-wide plan to reduce its impact in the areas of energy, waste, business travel and procurement, was launched in January 2007.