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For FedEx "Everything is Connected"August 25, 2010At FedEx, we recognize that our impact is greater than the services we provide. We are committed to being a great place to work, a thoughtful steward of the environment and a caring citizen in the communities where we live and work. We are passionate about sustainably connecting people and places and improving the quality of life around the world. This is how FedEx® introduces itself on the company’s website. This week’s blog began with a conversation I had with Bill Brown, Senior Counsel for FedEx. I met Bill at the 2010 annual meeting of the Conference of Western Attorneys General. I introduced myself as the author of GreenWorksGov and asked him if FedEx had made many changes in their business processes to lower their carbon footprint. I learned that FedEx has taken many significant measures in the last decade to transform its system of services and delivery to fulfill its commitment to be a “thoughtful steward of the environment.” I’m pleased to write about FedEx this week because they are a global force for sustainability around the world, and GreenWorksGov readers hail from nearly every continent.
Bill referred me to Mitch Jackson, Staff Vice-President for Environmental Affairs and Sustainability. Mitch leads FedEx’s sustainability initiatives, which touch on every aspect of the company’s operations. You can read up on their activities by clicking here. FedEx’s website is all you’d expect from a global company plus more. FedEx strives for transparency and its website offers up easy-to-find information on the company’s demonstrated commitment to sustainable business practices. One reason that the information is so easy to find is because sustainability is integral to the mission, values, and performance standards adhered to by FedEx and its employees.
I think it’s important to pay attention to FedEx for at least three reasons. First, they are a company with which most of us do some business; their green practices help us to achieve our goals with respect to factoring the carbon footprint of the materials, packaging, and transportation elements of our operations. FedEx started its sustainability program back in the early part of this decade, now called EarthSmart, a commitment to minimize the company’s impact on the environment. Today, for example, half of FedEx's pickup and delivery vehicles used in the London, U.K. area are electric or alternative fuel vehicles. And in general, FedEx has the industry’s largest fleet of hybrid electric package-delivery trucks. They’re still expanding that fleet, but not just by buying new hybrids. They’ve also learned how to expand the useful lives of some conventional diesel trucks by retrofitting them with hybrid electric drive trains. FedEx collaborated with the Environmental Defense Fund to help engineer the first hybrid commercial trucks in 2005. From the first 18 trucks in the fleet, FedEx now has 329 and there are 1,416 more throughout the US. Company-wide, FedEx has realized a 14% savings in fuel efficiency since 2005.
Second, we can borrow some of their ideas and apply them in our greening practices and educational institution outreach efforts. FedEx has targeted the paper services it provides and increased the percent of Forest Stewardship Council certified paper that the company buys. FedEx has a vision of their potential and their corporate responsibility to lead their industry and beyond into sustainability. On the global front, FedEx is collaborating with the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy on a study due out later this year on the success and risk factors for nations who strive to achieve both environmental sustainability and economic sustainability and the links between them.
Last, we can draw inspiration to reach into our communities by learning what FedEx is doing in service to others and in support of environmental protection. For example, FedEx joined the efforts to protect sea turtle nests and eggs from potential impacts of the Gulf oil spill by donating resources to transport hundreds of nests containing thousands of eggs to Florida’s Atlantic Coast for temporary protection during the hatching season. I think it serves to underscore the commitment to green internal operations when a business supports and encourages its employees to engage in “external” actions to protect the environment and our natural resources. “Everything is Connected”, is an apt title for FedEx’s 2009 annual Global Citizenship Update.
I recommend spending some time learning more about FedEx and studying its successful example. The takeaway for me is that sustainability is elevated to the mission of the company, aligned with its business goals across the enterprise, and viewed as a necessary condition for the company’s success. The message is clear and consistent. FedEx has earned its industry leader ranking. I think the sea turtles are in very good hands.
For its efforts and accomplishments, FedEx is the recipient of numerous awards in 2009 and 2010:
Dow Jones Sustainability Index North America
Boston College-Reputation Institute 2009 CSR Index Top 10 Ranking
Newsweek Greenest Companies Ranking Top 100
EPA Green Power Partnership Printer’s List No. 1 Ranking
Green Grades Office Supply Report Card’s Top Ranking
Flight Safety Foundation’s Honeywell Bendix Trophy for Aviation Safety
2009 W3 Awards’ Gold Award in the business category for its Citizenship Blog at blog.fedex.com
FORTUNE Magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For”
And, so far in 2010
The Lindbergh Foundation Corporate Award for Balance 2010 (joining past years’ winners: Patagonia, Google, The Jacoby Group)
The International Charter’s Committed to the Environment Award 2010 (the first transportation company to receive this award)
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