Employees bring their passion to work for WWF

Looking out the window this morning on my bus ride to work, I marveled at how nature transitions from season to season. This year, many of us felt the effects of a harsh winter, from the ice storm to the polar vortex. The scenes of bundled up people, scurrying for warmth were common. Now, as the rain slowly washes this all away, I can only recall the winter as a fleeting moment. Cheesy as it may sound, I was distracted this winter season by the overwhelming warmth and passion of WWF’s Living Planet @ Work green champions, who through all of it, showed their unrelenting commitment to the conservation of our planet.
A few months ago we launched our Arctic Home campaign to support WWF’s conservation work in the Arctic. This area is facing significant changes due to climate change and melting sea ice, making the future uncertain for species that depend on the sea ice, like the polar bear.
Through the harsh winter months, Living Planet @ Work champions rallied together within their companies to raise money through Polar Bear Week. This majestic species of the North was the perfect icon to educate and inspire employees about Arctic conservation. All donations raised during the week were directed to the Arctic Home campaign and matched dollar for dollar by Coca-Cola®.*
In just a few weeks, champions and green teams from more than 25 companies hit the ground running. They hosted bake sales, dress down days, polar bear trivia challenges, documentary screenings, and even polar bear dips!

Collectively, the Living Planet @ Work community raised over $132, 000 for WWF’s Arctic conservation work. With the match by Coca-Cola,* it will be doubled to $264,000!
This funding will help WWF roll out the lessons learned through its Arviat Defense program to two other Arctic communities and work with the Polar Bear Conservation Centre at the Assiniboine Park Zoo, compiling traditional knowledge from northern communities to create a map of all known polar bear denning areas in Nunavut. For more information on these projects and more, visit WWF’s Arctic webpage.
On behalf of the Living Planet @ Work team, I’d like to thank the employees from all the companies for helping us raise these critical funds – it COULD NOT have been done without their efforts!
BAR Engineering
Bentall Kennedy
Brookfield Johnson Controls
Bullfrog Power
Carbon Neutral Shredding Company
City Plastics Inc.
Deloitte (Vancouver and Windsor office)
Dixie Outlet Mall (Ivanhoe Cambridge)
FCB Canada
Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise
HP Canada
Hydro One (Barrie office)
Lake View Credit Union
Lindt & Sprüngli
Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment
OLG Casino Sault Ste Marie
OLG Point Edward Casino
Ontario Power Authority
Blackberry Ltd.
RSA Canada (select offices across Canada)
Somerville Merchandising
Staples Canada
Symcor
Town of Huntsville
Watters Environmental Group
WWF-Canada staff!
Are you passionate about the planet and want to engage your colleagues in fundraising for environmental conservation? Visit, Living Planet @ Work’s Spring Things workplace giving campaign OR e-mail the team to learn more.
*Coca-Cola® generously pledged to match donations dollar for dollar until March 15, 2014, to a maximum of $1 million USD (Canada and U.S. only).