Corporate Social Responsibility Press Release
provided by 
10.08.2008 - 01:32pm ET
News from:
AT&T Inc.
AT&T Strengthens Commitment to Make Company, Customers and Communities More Sustainable
Company Issues Citizenship and Sustainability Report, Tracking Progress in Key Areas
(CSRwire) DALLAS, Oct. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) today
announced the release of its 2007/2008 Citizenship and Sustainability
Report, "Connecting for a Sustainable Future." The report highlights the
deliberate steps AT&T has taken to better align citizenship and
sustainability initiatives with its business and long-term growth
strategies. The report also features three areas in which AT&T is
intensifying its focus: reducing the environmental impact of its
operations, helping customers find ways to reduce their impact through the
use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) products and services
and applying innovation and technology to help address society's needs.
"AT&T takes our commitment to the community very seriously," said Randall
Stephenson, chairman and chief executive officer of AT&T. "This includes
our sustainability initiatives, which take into account the impact our
company has on the environment. It's one of the many ways we continuously
strive to be a solid corporate citizen."
AT&T has worked hard to be a good corporate citizen in the communities
it serves for more than 125 years. AT&T is committed to strengthening its
approach to citizenship and sustainability internally and to increased
transparency in communicating its performance externally.
"Since our last report, we've taken concrete steps to further define
and establish measurements for our performance," said Charlene Lake, vice
president of Public Affairs, Corporate Citizenship and Sustainability.
Some of the significant steps AT&T has taken to better integrate
citizenship and sustainability initiatives with its business, culture and
long-term growth strategies include: - The AT&T Board of Directors
expanded the responsibility of its Public Policy Committee to include
oversight in this area.
- AT&T appointed a senior executive to coordinate its citizenship and
sustainability program.
- AT&T put in place a Citizenship and Sustainability Steering Committee
that is made up of officers from across the company.
- AT&T worked with a nonprofit group, Business for Social
Responsibility, to further drive citizenship and sustainability programs
into the business operations of the company.
"We've been impressed by
AT&T's desire to focus on top strategic priorities and to innovate in the
use of information and communications technologies to address climate
change," said Eric Olson, vice president of Advisory Services for Business
for Social Responsibility. "Sustainability requires leadership, and
companies such as AT&T, which has a history of driving transformation in
its own industry, are well placed to provide it."
Other highlights from the report include:- Examining
alternative energy sources: In 2008, AT&T introduced a new fleet of
alternative-fuel vehicles. The company is also covering much of the roof
of its San Ramon, Calif., campus with a 1 megawatt solar panel system. In
addition, 10 percent of the electricity purchased for all facilities in
Austin, Texas, is coming from wind power. A new energy policy balances the
company's need for affordable energy with the pursuit of alternative and
renewable forms of energy that have less impact on the environment.
- Offering customers sustainable products and services: AT&T and Cisco
Systems Inc. launched the AT&T Telepresence Solution, a new video
conferencing service that combines rich audio with High Definition video
to create a unique "in person" experience, helping customers reduce
travel. The company provides its AT&T U-verse(SM) TV customers with
set-top boxes that meet energy-efficiency criteria set by ENERGY STAR,
making it the first video service provider to do so.
- Applying innovation to make a sustainable difference in society: AT&T
Labs -- the company's research and development arm -- is fostering a work
environment and culture that encourages its more than 1,100 scientists and
engineers to actively follow their passions and apply technological
advancements to address social and environmental challenges. AT&T
innovations are helping tackle a variety of global issues, such as climate
change through work on species migration and energy efficiency.
AT&T is
in the initial stages of establishing data-gathering systems and key
performance measures for its citizenship and sustainability efforts, and
the company is committed to providing increased transparency in
communicating its progress. AT&T plans to produce an annual citizenship
and sustainability report with updates on its performance, including
specific goals and measures.
"The efforts detailed in this report reflect the new AT&T," said Lake.
"We're making progress every day, but we know we have much more to do.
That's why we view this as a journey and an opportunity to continuously
strengthen our approach, our initiatives and our reporting."
Download the full version of "Connecting for a Sustainable Future" online
at http://www.att.com/csr. An executive
summary is also available online.
About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is a premier communications holding company. Its
subsidiaries and affiliates, AT&T operating companies, are the providers
of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. Among their
offerings are the world's most advanced IP-based business communications
services and the nation's leading wireless, high speed Internet access and
voice services. In domestic markets, AT&T is known for the directory
publishing and advertising sales leadership of its Yellow Pages and
YELLOWPAGES.COM organizations, and the AT&T brand is licensed to
innovators in such fields as communications equipment. As part of its
three-screen integration strategy, AT&T is expanding its TV entertainment
offerings. In 2008, AT&T again ranked No. 1 on Fortune magazine's World's
Most Admired Telecommunications Company list and No. 1 on America's Most
Admired Telecommunications Company list. Additional information about AT&T
Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and
affiliates is available at http://www.att.com.
(C) 2008 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. AT&T, the AT&T
logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T
Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies.
Note: This AT&T news release and other announcements are available as part
of an RSS feed at http://www.att.com/rss. For more
information, please review this announcement in the AT&T newsroom at http://www.att.com/newsroom.
For more information please contact:
Lauren Craig
AT&T Inc.
+1-608-497-1616
www.att.com
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