Blog
Embracing learning and development to expand opportunities
Our 2019 Earth Day Challenge made a global impact. We accomplished 359 projects in 25 countries and volunteered 10,657 hours to the earth. We cleaned up nearly 2 million square meters of land and planted over 6,600 trees and plants.
From April 1st to the 14th, 39,800 of us, from 70 of our sites, did our part to better our planet.
For the earth and our communities
We engage directly with the communities where we work and strive to continuously deploy climate-conscious, environment-friendly programs.
For the third year in a row, we received tremendous support from not only our employees, but also external volunteers, which included the families of our employees. Our activities benefited 56 nonprofit organizations across the globe. This effort brought us closer to the communities where we work.
Alignment with our ongoing environmental commitments
The Earth Day Challenge is aligned with our ongoing commitment to advancing sustainability, and with our Flex 20 by 2020 goals, which in turn, align with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
Our participation to the United Nations’ Global Compact and 10 principles to meet fundamental responsibilities for bettering the environment, human rights, labor and anti-corruption all contribute to our commitment.
This year, we volunteered to clean up beaches, revitalize public spaces and schools, create furniture out of recycled pallets, and plant trees. We cleaned roads, parks, forests, and even did some deep diving to clean garbage in the ocean. We initiated campaigns to reduce paper and plastic use, and to encourage the use of bicycles and public transport to reduce CO2 emissions.
We held vegetarian days in our cafeterias, and delivered 100 different environmental training sessions to employees at our sites around the world.
We applaud all the initiative taken in all our communities. Below, highlight three of our sites that went above and beyond the call by including at least one community activity, having a participation rate of more than 60% of total site employees, being innovative, scalable and contribute to Flex 20 by 2020 goals and SDGs
Earth Day Challenge winners
Americas
Manaus, Brazil
At our Manaus site, we had an employee participation rate of 62% and completed 11 Earth Day Challenge activities, spanning from revitalization activities and environmental cleanup to educational activities, including a theatrical performance.
Our team removed more than a ton of waste; which included filling 33 bags, each with a 100-liter capacity with plastic garbage from the Mindu river. We planted 68 trees and built a sustainable community garden, revitalized a school, computers, and a bus shelter. We held events for the elderly, for children, and for the community, sharing information, skills and time.
We spread environmental awareness and helped transform our internal and external community on the concept of a sustainable environment. Our activities benefitted more than 2,200 people.
The Earth Day Challenge is a great opportunity to show our employees that everyone can make a difference in environmental and community issues. Amazing activities are performed with dedication, passion and a big synergy between Flex employees, local government and our communities.
– Thiago Pinto, Quality and EHS Manager at Flex Manaus – PCBA, Brazil
Asia
Cebu, Philippines
Plastic pollution has always been a major problem in the Philippines. Our team in Cebu focused on this for the Earth Day Challenge with a #breakfreefromplastic initiative.
Using recycled plastic bottles, we created a beautiful vertical office garden in-house, then shared and helped recreate the garden in community. We also held education sessions on the impact of plastic pollution and took action by cleaning up 50 kilos of waste from the coast and ocean. 74% of our Cebu site employees participated.
We also distributed metal straws to help phase out single-use plastic straws, to further reduce the use of plastic.
s responsible global citizens it is our commitment to protect our environment. This all starts with awareness and actionable events that each person proactively participates. A simple act of cleaning up our shorelines of harmful plastics is a step towards our goal, not just for us but for the generations to come.
– Nilo Nimis, General Manager at Flex Cebu, Philippines
EMEA
Corlu, Turkey
Earth Day offered the perfect excuse to mobilize 67% of Corlu’s team ‘tired of seeing tires’ to get rid of them along the road between our Corlu site and the local town of Velimeşe.
More than 2,500 people travel the 9km stretch of road between the town of Velimeşe and the free trade zone in Çorlu every day. We worked on raising awareness about the Ergene Municipality’s Environmental Cleaning service, then worked together with their 25-person team to remove more than 50 tires off the road. Staff from other companies in the area also got in on the cleanup effort, further strengthening our community ties.
Our continued commitment
We run a profitable business; but we are also determined to be good corporate citizens. The Earth Day Challenge plays a central role in our climate adaptation approach. It is critical that we partner with and empower our communities to combat and become more resilient to the realities brought on by climate change.
We embrace our role as a sustainability leader by driving awareness and inspiring action from employees and our communities. We are proud of our activities and our accomplishments.
We are committed to being part of the solution, doing our part to build a better, more sustainable world.
