Workers at Amazon’s YVR4 fulfillment center in Delta donated over $12,000 to Earthwise Society and helped plant trees and other greenery at the society’s Boundary Bay farm last week.
Throughout the month of April, thousands of Amazon employees around the world stepped up to support clean-up efforts, tree plantings and other “green” activities as part of the company’s global Earth Month volunteer competition. At the end of the month, the teams with the highest number of volunteers received a US$10,000 grant to donate to an environmental charity of their choice.
YVR4 was Canada’s volunteer challenge winner. Employees from the site engaged in clean-ups at the Wellington Place Park along the Fraser River — successfully clearing over 150 kilograms of waste from the beach — and conducted an invasive plant pull at Ladner Harbour Park, removing nearly 70 kilos of English Ivy impacting the local eco-system.
“We are always very proud to support our operations employees in taking actions which contribute to the communities we work in, and Earth Month was an excellent example of this. We had an immediate impact on the environment with our clean-up activities, and the funds donated to Earthwise will go a long way towards environmental sustainability here in Vancouver,” Shailesh Kumar, senior operations manager at YVR4, said in a press release.
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The team chose to donate the grant to Earthwise Society because of the organization’s long history of environmental stewardship and making a positive impact in the communities where Amazon employees live and work.
“I remember my daughter mentioning the Earthwise Farm that she had gone to with the kids a few years back and how amazing it had been and an experience for the kids,” Ellen Girouard, workplace health and safety specialist at YVR4, said in a press release. Girouard was the one who nominated Earthwise to receive the team’s grant.
“The importance they had placed on the future — such as recycling, sustainability, planting without pesticides, using compost that is recycled — is the key to their story, dream and continued praise, and it’s why I nominated them.”
Volunteers from YVR4 delivered Earthwise a cheque for $12,810 last Wednesday afternoon (July 6), before taking a tour of the farm and spending an hour planting trees, perennials and other greenery.
Earthwise executive director Patricia Fleming said the society is honoured to have been chosen to receive such a generous donation.
“The contribution will make a real difference to our organization and to our community by helping to fund our ongoing environmental stewardship, education and food security initiatives,” Fleming said in a press release. “Thank you for recognizing Earthwise Society and helping us continue to have a positive impact on our community.”
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editor@northdeltareporter.com
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