São Paulo, June 2, 2016 - Improving the lives of people through sustainable solutions in chemistry and plastics is the purpose of Braskem, the largest petrochemical company in the Americas. In addition to actions that foster the domestic petrochemical industry, the Company supports environmental, cultural and sports projects in Brazil and worldwide. In 2015 alone, roughly R$26 million were allocated by Braskem and its members for social and environmental, cultural and sports projects in Brazil.

"This incentive is part of Braskem's commitment to the communities where it operates, society, and the planet. We seek and support projects that are in line with our purpose of improving human and environmental development through chemistry and plastics," said Luiz Gustavo Ortega, Head of Sustainable Development in the Customer and Society Chain.

Some projects supported by petrochemical

Forest Factory Institute (IFF)

The Forest Factory Institute (Instituto Fábrica de Florestas - FFI), with support from Braskem, Cetrel - Odebrecht Ambiental, and the Industrial Development Committee of Camaçari (COFIC), trained in 2015 over 1,000 people and promoted awareness among 17,000 on the importance of environmental preservation. Also in 2015, the IFF produced over 116,000 seedlings. Of these, about 39,000 were planted and monitored.

For the construction of environmentally responsible communities based on the expansion, recovery and maintenance of green areas, with integrated environmental education, the IFF works in partnership with the local community to carry out seed collection, production and planting of native seedlings, and maintenance of areas planted. In addition, through the Environmental Education Program (PEA), it conducts training of teachers and guided visits to their School Nurseries for students of public and private networks.

ser + realizador

Ser + realizador is a collaborative initiative promoted by Braskem in partnership with Ambev, Bunge, Gerdau and Sebrae, which aims to increase the recycling of post-consumer waste in Brazil, combining the promotion of efficiency of the production chain of recycling with the inclusion and socio-economic development of garbage collectors. In 2015, it included 70 cooperatives, supported by several Brazilian states, including those where Braskem is present: São Paulo, Alagoas, Bahia, Rio de Janeiro, and Rio Grande do Sul. This year, 3,538 garbage collectors benefited from the project.

Edukatu

Edukatu, the first online learning network focusing on conscious consumption and sustainability, achieved in 2015 the milestone of 20,000 members, including students and teachers from over 2,000 schools in 27 states. Of these, over 7,000 were directly involved in intervention projects in their school communities, mobilizing about 43,000 people for conscious consumption.

Also in 2015, the mobilization campaign "A Natureza das Coisas" ("The Nature of Things 2015"), created to encourage the discussion and analysis of the impacts of the life cycle of products, ranging from production to use and disposal, involving schools from all over Brazil, reached over 10,000 people. At this edition, three professors were awarded, one from São Paulo and two from Alagoas. You can watch the video report on the winning school project on https://youtu.be/m0TTwWb5wDo.

Braskem and the Akatu Institute promote the platform with support from HP, Cargill Foundation, Sabesp, Costa Brava, KPMG, and Grupo Mais Unidos, as well as the institutional support of the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Education.