COMMUNITY

Source: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. Permission required for reproduction.

As a global organisation, NOL has a presence in many communities in Asia, Europe and the Americas. Our Compass, the document that expresses the Group’s vision and mission, also emphasises respect and support for our communities as important to our ongoing success. Accordingly, we strive to make a positive difference to people’s lives through a structured community relations program.

In 2008, NOL supported a range of causes across the globe. Our activities included services for the disabled and disadvantaged, corporate citizenship, arts and youth initiatives.

During the year, two major natural disasters occurred in Asia. The Sichuan earthquake in China and Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar impacted millions of lives. NOL responded quickly, with our employees making generous donations that were matched by the company. NOL also made direct contributions to the Red Cross. In total, more than US$230,000 was contributed to earthquake relief. In the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, our ship management unit created the “Hope Team”, comprising Burmese sea-going staff. Supported by staff donations, this group worked to provide food, medicine and shelter to victims in areas that could not be accessed by other aid agencies. The Hope Team established a distribution route to deliver supplies to villages in the Yangon area.

In January 2008, we celebrated the distribution of a S$1 million donation among ten deserving Singapore charities, including the Rainbow Centre for disabled children (top right). Also in Singapore, we were involved in an innovative art project in which a temporary gallery was constructed from 150 APL shipping containers as part of the Singapore Biennale 2008. The "Containart Pavilion" (top) was the work of Japanese designer Shigeru Ban. NOL and the artist previously collaborated in a successful New York waterfront project that also featured APL containers.

Elsewhere in Asia, APL and APL Logistics worked with Uplift International in Indonesia to deliver food supplies to children, while in China, APL supported the Half the Sky foundation to care for orphaned babies with a US$25,000 donation. Staff in Hong Kong and China donated funds to the Yunnan Hope project, assisting poor students.

In Sri Lanka, staff were directly involved in construction of facilities at a rural school, with the project supported by a donation from NOL.

In the US, APL celebrated its 160th anniversary with clean-up projects in San Francisco and Los Angeles, as a mark of appreciation to communities that have supported the company through its long history. The company was lead sponsor of the San Francisco Festival of Sail and is an ongoing supporter of the Bay Area Association of Disabled Sailors (bottom right). APL also assisted the American Cancer Society in a US$6 million fundraising event and worked with United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) to transport wheelchairs to almost a thousand people across Asia, South America and Eastern Europe. For its work, APL was named International Partner of the Year by UCP.

In Europe, we supported medical initiatives for children in Russia and Estonia and came to the aid of a St Petersburg orphanage when their heating system failed during a freezing Russian winter. In England, we continued to support the Junior Citizen school children’s safety program.

For more information about our community work and policies, visit our website at www.nol.com.sg