By
Maegan Toups
August 7, 2023
Updated
October 9, 2024
Welcome to the first in the series of our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) update. This bi-annual blog will provide an overview of our CSR activity and future plans.
What is CSR?
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a concept that has gained significant traction in recent years as businesses recognize their responsibility to not only generate profits but also contribute to the well-being of society and the environment.
CSR encompasses a range of voluntary actions taken by companies to address social and environmental issues, going beyond legal obligations and traditional business operations.
It involves integrating ethical practices into business strategies, such as promoting sustainable development, supporting community initiatives, ensuring fair labor practices, and reducing the environmental impact of operations.
By embracing CSR, we aim to create a positive impact on stakeholders, including employees, customers, communities, and the planet, while simultaneously enhancing their reputation and long-term sustainability.
At Airswift, CSR is more than a check box, self-regulation exercise
Its more than donating money to a specific charity and more than just a feel-good factor.
Historically both legacy companies, Air Energi and Swift Worldwide Resources, had a strong history of supporting charitable causes and giving back locally.
From providing education to the people in the areas where we operate, to setting aside an entire day of volunteering in our local communities each year, supporting initiatives is embedded into who we are as a company.
After the merger of both organizations in 2016, it was important to continue our culture of giving and together as Airswift.
We decided to support Relay For Life, the world’s largest fundraising event and movement to fight every cancer in every community.
With 60+ offices all around the world, doing one relay event is a challenge for us, which led us to create the concept of a virtual Relay For Life back in 2016.
Since then, many other organizations have followed suit so their employees can be engaged and collaborative no matter where they’re located.
Our recent CSR success
The Relay For Life programme is our biggest initiative
Last year, we launched the ‘I hope for…’ campaign to help employees visualize the impact they could have in the fight against cancer. This personalized approach included writing down what we hope for and sticking it on the office walls.
More than 40 relay events took place over four months, including a triathlon in the UK, a dance-a-thon in Houston and a half marathon in Singapore.
The donations went to a range of cancer charities including Cancer Research UK, American Cancer Society, National Cancer Society Malaysia and many more. All of the charities aim to reduce the threat and impact of cancer through successful education, prevention and clinical support.
Our CEO, Janette Marx, also recently took part in American Cancer Society’s nationwide CEOs Challenge where she participated in a virtual step-tracking fitness challenge.
Janette completed over 56,000 steps by walking to work, walking with different teams throughout the day and taking the stairs, which helped raise over $5,000 for Hope Lodge in Houston. The challenge also helped to create a culture of health in the workplace and raised awareness about the importance of an active lifestyle in cancer prevention.
Batam Women’s Build and Habitat for Humanity Indonesia
In addition, with our newly opened office in Batam, we raised funds and provided support to Batam Women’s Build and Habitat for Humanity Indonesia.
The organization is a group of international expats and local Indonesians currently residing in Batam Island (part of Riau Islands in Indonesia) who are on a mission to provide adequate housing for all.
We are on the way to raising 4,000 SGD, which is enough money to build an entire Habitat home in the area. As well as shelter and security, the home will provide electricity, running water, and toilet facilities to a family.
Other projects
Fit2Be
Fit2Be is an Airswift's initiative to raise awareness and funds to combat cancer. In 2023, the program was focused on preventing breast cancer and raising money for the American Cancer Society's breast cancer research and prevention efforts.
The whole idea behind it is to create healthy habits that help our bodies prevent and if necessary, combat and beat cancer. Over the span of three weeks, each region will lace up to walk, jog, and run to the challenge's finish line.
Environment Week
Previously known as our yearly Airswift Earth Week, we've renamed it to World Environment Week to coincide with the United Nations Environment Programme's initiative for World Environment Day.
Each year, our international branches unite to engage in local community actions and elevate consciousness, demonstrating Airswift's dedication to sustainability.
You can check out more about this initiative here.
Our future CSR plans
The near future will see our next Relay For Life campaign gain momentum and take off once again.
Our employees are going above and beyond to plan activities and fundraisers that will create awareness and inspire donations for such a worthy cause.
As well as the awareness it creates and money it raises, the charity events are a great team building exercise internally.
Individuals from the C-suite all the way through to more junior level staff have been enthusiastic about being involved and working together to create something so impactful.
Across the whole company, we are truly committed to ensuring we give back to the communities we work in so we can make a difference in people’s lives.
CSR is more than turning up to a charity event and more than adding it to our list of achievements. It’s a passion that runs in our blood.
