German Business Association (GBA) in Vietnam calls on its member corporations to “go green”

Posted on 20 October 2010

The German Business Association in Vietnam, with more than 160 member corporations, is the first Business Association in Vietnam to support, promote and recommend the WWF Green Office programme publically and pro-actively.

The Chairman of the German Business Association, Mr Alexander Bischoff, explains that ongoing support for the programme will improve environmental awareness and energy savings, amongst – and hopefully beyond – its member corporations.

“Protecting the environment, especially in Vietnam, is no longer a private task but a responsibility for all the society, and therefore its corporations and businesses”, Mr. Bischoff said.

“The World Bank calculates that Vietnam may incur a loss of up to 5.5% of GDP (gross domestic product) due to environmenalt pollution and wasted energy each year. Therefore, as Vietnam reached a GDP of US$76 billion in 2008, the nation lost around US$4.2 billion. Furthermore, the country also has to spend around US$780 million yearly on community health problems aggravated by pollution-induced diseases, also according to the global lender.”

Mr Bischoff added that some GBA member corporations have already experienced success as WWF Green Offices. “They have reduced their consumption of electricity, paper and water remarkably, while the number of staff using sustainable transport to commute to work has risen. This shows that the WWF Green Office programme benefits the corporations, while at the same time creates environmental awareness amongst employees, who transfer their knowledge into their homes, and to family and friends.”

Mr Bischoff also noted that Germany and its corporations in Vietnam are among the leaders in applying Green Solutions and technologies, while the German Embassy in Vietnam supports the growth of long-term environmental-protection and preservation programmes throughout Vietnam.

WWF Vietnam Green Office Coordinator Ms Tabitha Carvan thanked the GBA for showing environmental leadership. “WWF greatly appreciates the GBA’s valuable support. We hope that many GBA member corporations and other business community members are inspired to join the Green Office programme and help make a difference to the environment in Vietnam.”

The WWF Green Office programme, started by WWF Finland in 1997, helps businesses and other organizations make simple, practical changes to their office environment and to employee behaviour to help mitigate the effects of climate change.

Current Green Office Vietnam members include TANNER Vietnam. the Finnish Embassy, the British Embassy and British Consulate-General, Conforama, OUT-2 Design and Toyota Motors Vietnam.

For further information on the WWF Green Office programme, please contact:
English
Ms. Tabitha Carvan
Green Office Coordinator
WWF Vietnam
D13 Thanh Long International Village
Cau Giay District
Hanoi, Vietnam
Tel: +84 4 3719 3049 ext. 135
Fax: +84 4 3719 3048
Email: [email protected]

Web: http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/where_we_work/greatermekong/our_solutions/projects/green_office/

For further information on the German Bussiness Association, please contact:
Ms. Nguyen Khanh Ly
Office Manager
German Business Association – GBA
05th floor – Somerset Chancellor Court
21-23 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street
District 1 – Ho Chi Minh City – Vietnam
Tel: (84) (8) 3823 97 72
Fax: (84) (8) 3823 89 09
E-mail: [email protected]
www.gba-vietnam.org

HCMC, October 8th 2010 – World Wide Fund for Nature Vietnam (WWF Vietnam) and the German Business Association (GBA) in Vietnam today announced that they will collaborate to support, promote and recommend the WWF Green Office programme to all its member corporations.The German Business Association in Vietnam, with more than 160 member corporations, is the first Business Association in Vietnam to support, promote and recommend the WWF Green Office programme publically and pro-actively.The Chairman of the German Business Association, Mr Alexander Bischoff, explains that ongoing support for the programme will improve environmental awareness and energy savings, amongst – and hopefully beyond – its member corporations.“Protecting the environment, especially in Vietnam, is no longer a private task but a responsibility for all the society, and therefore its corporations and businesses”, Mr. Bischoff said.“The World Bank calculates that Vietnam may incur a loss of up to 5.5% of GDP (gross domestic product) due to environmenalt pollution and wasted energy each year. Therefore, as Vietnam reached a GDP of US$76 billion in 2008, the nation lost around US$4.2 billion. Furthermore, the country also has to spend around US$780 million yearly on community health problems aggravated by pollution-induced diseases, also according to the global lender.”Mr Bischoff added that some GBA member corporations have already experienced success as WWF Green Offices. “They have reduced their consumption of electricity, paper and water remarkably, while the number of staff using sustainable transport to commute to work has risen. This shows that the WWF Green Office programme benefits the corporations, while at the same time creates environmental awareness amongst employees, who transfer their knowledge into their homes, and to family and friends.”Mr Bischoff also noted that Germany and its corporations in Vietnam are among the leaders in applying Green Solutions and technologies, while the German Embassy in Vietnam supports the growth of long-term environmental-protection and preservation programmes throughout Vietnam.WWF Vietnam Green Office Coordinator Ms Tabitha Carvan thanked the GBA for showing environmental leadership. “WWF greatly appreciates the GBA’s valuable support. We hope that many GBA member corporations and other business community members are inspired to join the Green Office programme and help make a difference to the environment in Vietnam.”The WWF Green Office programme, started by WWF Finland in 1997, helps businesses and other organizations make simple, practical changes to their office environment and to employee behaviour to help mitigate the effects of climate change.Current Green Office Vietnam members include TANNER Vietnam. the Finnish Embassy, the British Embassy and British Consulate-General, Conforama, OUT-2 Design and Toyota Motors Vietnam.For further information on the WWF Green Office programme, please contact:EnglishMs. Tabitha CarvanGreen Office CoordinatorWWF VietnamD13 Thanh Long International VillageCau Giay DistrictHanoi, VietnamTel: +84 4 3719 3049 ext. 135Fax: +84 4 3719 3048Email: [email protected]: http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/where_we_work/greatermekong/our_solutions/projects/green_office/For further information on the German Bussiness Association, please contact:Ms. Nguyen Khanh LyOffice ManagerGerman Business Association – GBA05th floor – Somerset Chancellor Court21-23 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai StreetDistrict 1 – Ho Chi Minh City – VietnamTel: (84) (8) 3823 97 72Fax: (84) (8) 3823 89 09E-mail: [email protected]