CITY DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED 
By
Singapore, 23 February 2012 - Sustainability was the buzz
word this morning at City Square Mall, Singapore's first
eco-mall, as real estate developer City Developments Limited
(CDL) and the Singapore Environment Council (SEC) -
officially introduced a make-over for the Project: Eco-Office
initiative at the 10th Anniversary Celebration
and Presentation Ceremony. The event was graced by Minister
for the Environment and Water Resources Dr Vivian
Balakrishnan.
Project: Eco-Office which was launched on 5 June 2002, is a
joint initiative by CDL and SEC. Targeted at the business
community, the outreach initiative provides organisations
with a 'starter kit' on cultivating
environmental-consciousness at the workplace. The aim was to
bring the environmental message to offices in Singapore by
making available posters and stickers with environmental
messages that could be displayed in one's office.
Said CDL Managing Director Kwek Leng Joo, "Project:
Eco-Office was born at a time when little was being done to
encourage the uptake of eco-friendly habits at the workplace.
As a major landlord in Singapore and a pioneer in the green
movement, CDL recognised the need to change the way
businesses work, think and manage precious resources at the
workplace. Together with SEC, this initiative was introduced
to reach out to businesses and office workers. In line with
our commitment towards environmental sustainability, we
leveraged on our position as a landlord to encourage every
new tenant to "green" their premises, providing them with a
Project: Eco-Office kit and engaging them in numerous green
outreach programmes."
Expanding on Project: Eco-Office further, an online
self-rating system was launched in late 2003 for offices to
determine how green they were. In 2005, offices that were
rated well were encouraged to participate in a formal audit
conducted by an independent auditor. Successful offices that
meet the mark are awarded the Eco-Office Label certification.
More than 100 offices ranging from the property, banking,
construction, pharmaceutical and electronic sectors, among
many others, have received the Eco-Office certification since
the programme was launched.
The SEC, which administers the Eco-Office certification, is
targeting to add another 100 new offices to the tally by the
end of this year. This is more than a 100 per cent increase
from the current number of offices which have received
certification. CDL and SEC hope to reach the target as part
of its efforts in contributing to Singapore's commitment of
reducing carbon emissions by 7 - 11 percent from BAU
(Business as Usual) levels in support of the Sustainable
Singapore Blueprint.
Explaining the bullish targets which have been set, SEC
Executive Director Jose Raymond shared that with a greater
awareness of environmental issues such as climate change, he
was confident that organisations will make the effort to
change, starting with their practices at the work place. "The
Eco-Office programme has been around for 10 years and we
expect its demand to increase as more organisations realise
the importance of conserving the environment and its
resources. This is the reason why the key message, constantly
carried on the newly designed Project: Eco-Office posters
emphasise that the earth's resources are finite and that we
should only use what we need."
Designed by boutique design agency Thinking Designs, the
new-look collaterals, which include thought provoking
messages like "What if you had to eat your coffee?", provide
office employees a constant reminder about the importance of
saving our world's natural resources while reflecting on
simple everyday routines, such as making a cup of coffee. A
new Project: Eco-Office Facebook page, www.facebook.com/projectecoofficewas also launched today. A daily green tip will
be posted on the Facebook page among other information like
links to stories on environmental issues.
The first batch of companies which were Eco-Office certified
received their certificates at the inaugural award
presentation ceremony in 2005. Pioneer batch of recipients
were Ricoh Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, the National Environment
Agency (NEA) Headquarters, and the Ministry of Environment
and Water Resources and CDL. These four organisations have
also been maintaining their Eco-Office status through
re-certification till today. In fact, NEA has the accolade of
having consistently achieved the greatest number of offices
certified under this bi-annual certification scheme.
Said NEA Chief Executive Officer Andrew Tan, "As the national
agency for promoting and sustaining a clean and green
environment in Singapore, it is important that we walk the
talk and set high environmental standards ourselves. NEA is
committed to improving our systems, engaging our staff and
meeting, if not exceeding, the "Project: Eco-Office"
requirements for certification."
Apart from the NEA, about 75 per cent of offices which are
currently certified are public organisations, like government
agencies, including ministries and statutory boards. This,
according to SEC, is an indication of how the Government is
taking the lead in encouraging organisations to be
environmentally conscious and in conserving the world's
natural resources.
**END OF MEDIA RELEASE**
NOTES TO THE EDITOR
About PROJECT: ECO-OFFICE
The Singapore Environment Council (SEC) and City Developments
Limited (CDL) launched the Project: Eco-Office programme in
June 2002 to mark World Environment Day. This project was
created to encourage more organisations in Singapore to
implement eco-friendly initiatives and practices in the
office. One of the key components in this project is a
certification scheme which allows organisations to gauge
their own environmental performance based on an online
self-rating audit. Formal site visits are arranged through
SEC and conducted by accredited external auditors when
offices meet the minimum requirements in the self-audit.
The core of Eco-Office focuses on the heart-ware of offices.
The project aims to gear human behaviour to change towards
being more environmentally-conscious in daily work
operations. This complements efforts to develop the green
infrastructure in buildings and offices, bringing into effect
cost savings in the thousands, as organisations work towards
keeping targets to lower consumption
for paper, utilities and so on. Visit our website at www.ecooffice.com.sg
www.facebook.com/ProjectEcoOffice
Established in 1995, the Singapore Environment Council (SEC)
is an independently managed, non-government organisation that
nurtures, facilitates and co-ordinates environmental causes
in
Singapore. SEC's work is founded on three pillars of action -
Firstly, partnership with the people,
private and public sectors of Singaporean society, to nurture
a culture aligned with sustainable development concepts.
Secondly, SEC rewards environmental excellence through awards
schemes and product endorsement programmes, such as the
Singapore Green Labelling Scheme. Thirdly, the SEC
collaborates with partners to develop and implement training
and learning programmes to build competencies in
environmental sustainability within companies, thus keeping
our business leaders
ahead of the curve. Visit our website at www.sec.org.sg .
@SECSingapore
www.facebook.com/SingaporeEnvironmentCouncil
quality homes to its name.
As Singapore's property pioneer, City Developments
Limited (CDL) is a listed international property and hotel
conglomerate with an impressive track record of over 22,000
luxurious and
Beyond shaping the cityscape with award-winning architectural
icons such as The Sail @ Marina Bay, The Oceanfront @ Sentosa
Cove and St. Regis Residences, Singapore, over the past four
decades, CDL has been leading the industry with green
building innovation since the 1990s.
Testament to its commitment towards sustainable development
and exceptional contributions towards Singapore's built
environment, CDL was awarded the Green Mark Platinum Champion
Award in 2011 and the Built Environment Leadership Platinum
Award in 2009 by the Building and Construction Authority
(BCA).
In championing the green cause, CDL not only focuses on
engaging its stakeholders and the wider community through
various platforms - but also in cultivating environmental
consciousness and action amongst the next generation.
Globally, CDL is the only Singapore corporation to be listed
on both the Dow Jones Sustainability
Indexes and FTSE4Good Index Series. Since 2010, CDL has also
been ranked amongst the Global 100
Most Sustainable Corporations in the World.
For more information, visit www.cdl.com.sg.
For more information, please contact:
Singapore Environment Council
Tel: (65) 6337 6062
Mobile: (65) 9147 8040
Email: jose.raymond@sec.org.sg
Singapore Environment Council
Tel: (65) 6337 6062
Mobile: (65) 9794 6340
Email: michele@sec.org.sg
Tel: (65) 6482 9315
Mobile: (65) 9751 1004
Email: belindalee@cdl.com.sg
City Developments Limited
Tel: (65) 6428 9330
Mobile: (65) 9690 8224
Email: eunicey@cdl.com.sg
