DHL provides mentorship and contribute to ecological diversity

by Press Release on 2011-09-07 03:15:23

DHL provides mentorship and contribute to ecological diversity on Global Volunteer Day 2011

Singapore, 6 September 2011: DHL, part of Deutsche Post DHL, the world’s leading postal and logistics group, marked Global Volunteer Day 2011 in Singapore with a community activity over the weekend on Saturday, 3 September. About 450 employees from its Express, Global Forwarding, Supply Chain and Global Mail divisions participated in three activities - a touch rugby clinic, an educational visit to Science Centre Singapore and a tree planting exercise, held across Singapore. The employees provided sports and educational mentorship as well as participated in reforestation efforts as part of its global drive to give back to local communities and to inculcate for the spirit of volunteerism among employees.

“Global Volunteer Day is one of the many ways that our employees give back to the community that we call home. In keeping with DHL’s Corporate Responsibility principles, we are bringing together our people to support members of our community who need support, to rejuvenate the environment and to make Singapore a better and greener place to live in,” said Herbert Vongpusanachai, Managing Director, DHL Express (Singapore).

This year, DHL worked with five Voluntary Welfare Organizations (VWOs) – Andrew & Grace Home (AG Home), Boys’ Town, Chen Su Lan Methodist Home, Children-At-Risk Empowerment Association (CARE) Singapore and Singapore Indian Development Association (SINDA); to befriend these underprivileged youth through fun and educational activities such as Touch Rugby coaching and a visit to the Singapore Science Centre. Some DHL employees planted 120 trees at Dairy Farm Nature Park.

Details of the Global Volunteer Day Singapore activities included:

GoTeach (Touch Rugby clinic): Volunteers partnered with DHL Ta’Moko Lions Rugby Football Club (RFC) to coach and provide mentorship to over 30 youths from AG Home and Boys’ Town. Through the fun sport of Touch Rugby, DHL volunteers hope to instill the sport’s positive attributes such as integrity, discipline and respect to the youths.

DHL is a founding member of the DHL Ta’Moko Lions RFC, a local non-profit organization that seeks to infuse character development skills in youth facing social and academic challenges by utilizing sports as a way to coach them on leadership, emotional self-awareness and teamwork.



GoGreen (Tree-planting): As part of its GoGreen commitment to reduce the company’s carbon footprint by 30% by 2020, DHL partnered with the National Parks Board (NParks) to plant 120 diverse saplings at Dairy Farm Nature Park. A dairy farming area turned vacant state land, the site was exposed to illegal dumping before the NParks took on the task of rejuvenating the area. The newly-planted trees will help to revitalize a piece of barren land and support the plant biodiversity of Singapore. Some of the tree species being planted include:

· Dyera Costulata – used to make pencils and the latex for production of chewing gum

· Garcina atroviridis – used in cooking food such as curries and soups

· Syzygium polyanthum – this species and the rest are used in traditional medicine or yielded for timber.

 
GoTeach (Educational visit): About 120 children and youth from Chen Su Lan Methodist Home, CARE Singapore and SINDA were accompanied by DHL volunteers as they participated in a fun and educational session at the Science Centre Singapore. Under the guidance of their mentors, the children experienced the adventures of a ‘Gallery Hunt’. These young participants learned about the remarkable bond between humans and animals in an iMAX movie entitled ‘Born to be Wild’ at the Omni-Theatre.



Ms Ruby Chew, Assistant Director, AG Home said, “Sports is one of the core programs for us.  It is a good form of discipline and also helps built team spirit. The rugby clinic is a good platform for our girls to develop interpersonal relationships with people outside of the Home, and to also let them know that there are people who care for them. The girls had a great time and we want to thank DHL for inviting us. It is an honor and privilege to be a part of DHL Global Volunteer Day.”

Mr Sam Ang, CEO, South East Asia, DHL Global Forwarding, commented, “DHL believes that its people are its greatest resource and that a concerted outreach effort will inspire a stronger commitment among employees to continue volunteering on an individual basis, even after this annual initiative. We believe that inculcating values and highlighting the positive action we can take towards our environment is important. All our initiatives aim to provide participants with opportunities for hands-on learning in an enjoyable and engaging way.”

“Through coming together globally on a common platform that is Global Volunteer Day, we hope to aid the sustainable and positive development of the next generation as well as the physical environment that we live in. We believe that business can thrive in pace with a flourishing society, and this forms the cornerstone of what DHL terms as ‘Living Responsibility’,” said Mr Richard Winnall, Country Manager, DHL Supply Chain Singapore.

Introduced in Asia Pacific in 2008, Volunteer Day has expanded into Americas, Middle East, Africa and Europe over the years, and continues to build on its success by involving more employees than ever before. From 1 to 10 September this year, Deutsche Post DHL offices around the world are participating in many diverse community projects in support of various local causes. These programs deliver to the company’s three Corporate Responsibility programs – GoTeach (championing education), GoGreen (protecting the environment) and GoHelp (delivering help after natural disasters).