Mar. 24, 2011 (Canada NewsWire Group) --
TELUS supports Earth Hour 2011
VANCOUVER, March 24 /CNW/ - This Saturday night, TELUS and its team members will join tens of thousands of businesses and millions of people around the world by turning out the lights for 60 minutes in support of Earth Hour 2011.
TELUS will turn off all non-essential lights at 8:30 p.m. local time March 26 at 28 of its major buildings across Canada in response to Earth Hour 2011's global call to action in respect of climate change.
"By taking part in Earth Hour we are not only supporting a global initiative that raises awareness of the need for all of us to act responsibly, we are making a statement in support of environmental sustainability," said Josh Blair, executive vice-president, TELUS Human Resources. "Participation in Earth Hour is a symbolic gesture that serves as a catalyst for dialogue and year-round action as we work together as the TELUS team and as citizens of this great country to explore new ways of protecting our environment."
Last year, hundreds of millions of people in more than 120 countries and territories around the globe participated in Earth Hour.
TELUS is also inviting its 35,000 team members to get involved and turn out the lights and other electricity-consuming devices in their homes during the same time on Saturday night in support of the cause.
More on Earth Hour can be found online at www.earthhour.org.
Thinking green at TELUS
TELUS has made green initiatives a company priority.
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TELUS is targeting a 25 per-cent reduction in CO2 emissions by 2020 over 2009 levels and a 10 per-cent reduction in
energy consumption by 2020 over 2009 levels.
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60,121 tree seedlings were planted in 2010 through a TELUS and Tree
Canada partnership.
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TELUS recycled 156,615 wireless phones and smartphones in 2010.
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In 2010, TELUS held nearly 1.4 million teleconferences and video
conferences, saving its team members and customers nearly 600,000
tonnes in travel-related CO2 emissions.
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TELUS' consumption of office paper dropped from 117 million sheets in
2001 to 49 million in 2010.
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The Conference Board of Canada and the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)
named TELUS a 2010 Carbon Disclosure Leader in the Canada 200 category
for excellence in climate change reporting. TELUS is the only Canadian
telecommunications company to receive the honour among the 15 companies
identified for their exemplary practices.
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Over the past decade, TELUS was twice named the Best Environmental
Corporate Citizen in Canada by Corporate Knights.
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By 2015, 70 per cent of TELUS employees will work at home or on a mobile
basis at least part-time, reducing the need for commuting in vehicles.
- TELUS continues to cultivate a culture of corporate social responsibility through the TELUS Green Teams - the company's national network of environmentally conscious team members who volunteer their time to promote sustainability at work and at home. There are 15 TELUS Green Teams across Canada.
To learn more about TELUS' commitment to the environment and sustainability, please visit TELUS.com/csr.
About TELUS
TELUS (TSX: T, T.A; NYSE: TU) is a leading national telecommunications
company in Canada, with $9.8 billion of annual revenue and 12.3 million
customer connections including 7 million wireless subscribers, 3.7
million wireline network access lines and 1.2 million Internet
subscribers and more than 300,000 TELUS TV customers. Led since 2000 by
President and CEO, Darren Entwistle, TELUS provides a wide range of
communications products and services including data, Internet protocol
(IP), voice, entertainment and video.
In support of our philosophy to give where we live, TELUS, our team members and retirees will, by year-end 2011, have contributed $245 million to charitable and not-for-profit organizations and volunteered four million hours of service to local communities since 2000. Ten TELUS Community Boards across Canada lead TELUS' local philanthropic initiatives. TELUS was honoured to be named the most outstanding philanthropic corporation globally for 2010 by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, becoming the first Canadian company to receive this prestigious international recognition.
For more information about TELUS, please visit telus.com.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Chris Gerritsen
TELUS Media Relations
(403) 808-9591
chris.gerritsen@telus.com
