DHL EXPRESS Country Manager Yati Abdullah teaching a lesson alongside a Teach For the Philippines Fellow. Photo: Bob Manzano, Deutsche Post DHL Group

 
 

Taking Action for the Global Goals Towards Zero Emissions Logistics

By Prof. Dr. Christof Ehrhart (Deutsche Post DHL Group), Deutsche Post DHL
11:05 AM, September 15, 2017

Deutsche Post DHL Group is the world’s leading mail and logistics company. The Group is focused on being the first choice of customers, employees, and investors in its core business activities worldwide. As a longstanding partner of the United Nations (UN), Deutsche Post DHL Group strongly supports all Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and we have set the course for sustainable development across our family of divisions.

Deutsche Post DHL Group supports all 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations and commits to the needs of our stakeholders and our planet. Many aspects of the SDGs have already been incorporated into our corporate activities and programs.

To showcase how Deutsche Post DHL Group makes a contribution to society in numerous areas, we have developed the Impact Wheel. The circular infographic depicts a wheel that turns with a vast range of socially significant products and services serving as its spokes. Every time the wheel turns, it not only supports our corporate strategy goals, but also highlights how our core business activities – especially in the areas of environment, health, and logistics infrastructure – deliver on behalf of sustainable development worldwide.

One visible proof point of the company’s efforts is the StreetScooter. The StreetScooter is a leading-edge electric vehicle developed by Deutsche Post DHL Group for environmentally friendly urban delivery. Following a successful pilot project in Bonn, parcel delivery in six major German cities has now been transitioned to the purely electrically powered StreetScooter. For the coming year, the company plans to produce and bring 10,000 of these vehicles into operation. Urban delivery with electric vehicles reduces emissions of greenhouse gases in residential areas.

Photo: Deutsche Post DHL Group
Photo: Deutsche Post DHL Group

Minimizing business’ impact on the environment

The StreetScooter is situated in the environmental protection area of the Impact Wheel. Deutsche Post DHL Group is a pioneer in this area. With its Groupwide environmental protection program GoGreen, the company has improved its CO2 effi ciency compared to the baseline 2007 by 30 percent already – four years ahead of schedule. The company's new climate protection target announced in March 2017 is groundbreaking for the transport sector: By the year 2050, we intend to reduce all logistics-related emissions to zero. We will achieve this goal with the help of new technologies, the dedication and expertise of our employees, and through collaboration with our customers and partners. In this way, the Group is making its contribution to the goal set at the UN Climate Conference in Paris to limit global warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius and to SDGs 11 (Climate Action) and 13 (Sustainable Cities and Communities). These two goals are among five SDG priorities Deutsche Post DHL Group has selected, reflecting the company’s responsibility and best possible impact on solving sustainable development challenges: quality education; decent work and economic growth; sustainable cities and communities; climate action; partnerships for the goals.

Making quality education accessible for all

As one of the world’s largest employers, we rely on people. It is our employees who connect with people and improve their lives. This is why a future-oriented and sustainable human resources development is key to ensuring our long-term business success. We provide lifelong development opportunities to our employees and training programs to potential future employees. We also provide vocational trainings for individuals with disabilities, as part of our inclusive and equitable quality education. 

With our GoTeach program we are committed to improving educational opportunities and the employability of young people. Our partnership with Teach For All aims to unleash young people’s potential. The educational network – committed to addressing the worldwide problem of educational inequity – is driven by the idea that every child, regardless of their parents’ socioeconomic status, should have access to quality education. 

Through our strategic partnership with SOS Children’s Villages as part of the GoTeach program, we foster the empowerment and employability of young people from challenged socioeconomic backgrounds.

DHL Impact Wheel

“From now until 2050, our mission will be to drive our business toward zero emissions logistics. We are setting the standard for the future of the transport sector and doing our part to help the world community reach its goal of limiting global warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius.” 

Frank Appel, Chief Executive Officer, Deutsche Post DHL Group

Supporting growth by facilitating global trade

Logistics is the backbone of economic development and prosperity. As a global logistics provider, we facilitate global trade to support economic growth. In doing so, we create jobs for our 510,000 employees as well as our partners and suppliers. In everything that we do, we follow our principles for a responsible business practice. Our employees are our company’s biggest asset. We act as a responsible employer based on our Code of Conduct. This includes protecting human rights, offering reasonable working conditions within the local context, and engaging our diverse employees. 

Collaborating with partners to ensure sustainable impact

Entering new and fostering existing strategic partnerships is one of Deutsche Post DHL Group’s core strategic pillars when it comes to tackling global challenges. With our corporate responsibility programs, we build on trusted and global partners such as the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the United Nations Development Programme for our GoHelp activities. Beyond that, Deutsche Post DHL Group relies on an open dialog with our internal and external stakeholders to ensure a responsible and sustainable business. 

The exchange that ensues from these alliances has a significant impact on the success of our efforts in the area of corporate responsibility. We build on the social commitment through the global volunteering of our employees. By helping solve problems in their local communities, they not only make a contribution to society, but also create a sense of community and teamwork that carries over into the workplace.

DHL volunteers support after natural disasters in Latin America. Photo: DHL
DHL volunteers support after natural disasters in Latin America. Photo: DHL

Value contribution is important

Deutsche Post DHL Group is dedicated to being actively involved in achieving all of the 17 SDGs, with a particular focus on quality education; decent work and economic growth; sustainable cities and communities; as well as climate action and partnerships for the Goals. 

Corporate responsibility is embedded in the company’s strategy to become the benchmark for responsible business practice: Customers benefit from the fact that the company helps them to implement their own environmental and sustainability goals. Employees feel motivated by Deutsche Post DHL Group’s sustainable management approach. Investors can chose a company with strong corporate responsibility credentials and thus lower investment risks.

This is how Deutsche Post DHL Group not only meets its operations requirements but also adds value for its stakeholders as well as for society and the environment.

About the Authors
Ehrhart, Christof
 
Deutsche Post DHL

Deutsche Post AG, operating under the trade name Deutsche Post DHL, is a German courier company and the world's largest. With its headquarters in Bonn, the corporation has 467,088 employees (FTE 421,270) in more than 220 countries and territories worldwide and generated revenue of €56.63 billion in 2010. Deutsche Post is the successor to the German mail authority Deutsche Bundespost, which was privatized in 1995. Currently, 21% of its shares are held by the state-owned KfW bank, 79% are freely floating; 65.6% of which are held by institutional and 13.4% by private investors. Since its privatization, Deutsche Post has significantly expanded its business area through acquisitions. Deutsche Post is listed in the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index.

 Source: Wikipedia

 
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect CSR Manager's editorial policy.
 
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