Reducing Our Environmental and Social Footprint
The Bank’s commitment to environmental and social sustainability includes an effort to minimize the environmental impact of its physical facilities and daily operations, and maximize the potential of its employees and neighboring communities. In 2006, the Bank made progress in measuring its consumption and waste patterns—a prerequisite for establishing and meeting targets to improve these patterns. With the establishment of a Greening the Bank Task Force, IDB is now poised to make more rapid and systematic changes to reduce its corporate footprint at its Washington DC headquarters and its 28 country offices.
Calculating the Environmental Impact of our Activities
The Bank continues its effort to be more resource efficient and produce less waste in its facilities. Notably, the Bank is pursuing additional energy and water savings through use of more efficient lighting, installation of faucets with automatic shutoff sensors, and other efficiency measures. The Bank has also begun the process of seeking certification that its headquarters building meets the LEED-EB Green Building Standard for Existing Buildings, which promotes the use of sustainable and energy-efficient materials and practices during building operation and remodeling.
(Figure 5.1)
Establishing a “Greening the Bank” Task Force
In April 2006 IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno announced the formation of an interdepartmental Greening the Bank Task Force . The task force will establish environmental programs and set targets for reducing the Bank’s footprint, initially at its Washington DC headquarters, and in the longer term at its country offices. The group will develop an action plan during 2007 that will include resource efficiency measures, recycling targets, suggested improvements to food catering facilities, green procurement guidelines, a greenhouse gas inventory, and environmental awareness-raising programs for the staff.
(Figure 5.2)
The IDB is also part of a DC Greening Network , whose members include the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation, Conservation International, World Wildlife Fund, and the Canadian Embassy. The group discusses environmental management and performance issues as well as convergence on the use of standards.
Conducting a Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventory
The Bank has made significant progress in the area of calculating greenhouse gas emissions resulting from its activities. In order to calculate the size of the Bank’s “carbon footprint” in 2006, IDB carried out a pilot greenhouse gas inventory of the Bank’s corporate activities. A greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory is a detailed calculation of the direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions produced from an organization’s activities and physical operations. In this case, the inventory included emissions from the IDB headquarters building, from business travel by all employees, and from holding the Bank’s annual meeting (with its associated travel and energy consumption). The result of a GHG inventory is given as the total amount of carbon dioxide equivalent produced by the organization over a given length of time. The preliminary results of the Bank’s inventory indicate that the IDB carbon footprint in 2006 was approximately 37,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalents (Figure 5.3).
The Bank is also interested in calculating the carbon footprint of the projects it finances. In 2005, the Bank made an effort to roughly calculate the carbon footprint of its portfolio of private sector projects. The Bank will now use this experience to make a similar estimation of the carbon footprint of its public sector projects. This will help the Bank to establish a baseline with which to measure and monitor the emissions produced by all its projects.
The Bank’s interest in mitigating its carbon emissions— which contribute to climate change—goes beyond just measurement. The Bank calculated and offset the carbon emissions resulting from its Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. This was the first time a multilateral development bank had held a so-called “carbon neutral” meeting, in which carbon dioxide emissions associated with the meeting are offset with compensating activities that absorb carbon dioxide (Box 5.1). In 2007, the Bank will look at ways to expand this initiative by offsetting emissions associated with all Bank travel, in addition to emissions from its building facilities.
Box 5.1 | The IDB’s First “Carbon-neutral” Annual Meeting |
 The idea of offsetting carbon emissions associated with business activities has been growing in popularity in recent years. Typically, a business or organization that wishes to be “carbon neutral” supports an activity—such as tree-planting or the use of an alternative fuel—that offsets the carbon emissions of its own activities. The IDB piloted this “carbon neutral” concept at its 2006 Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, making it the first carbon neutral annual meeting ever held by a multilateral development bank. The carbon neutral initiative demonstrates the Bank’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gases and combating climate change in the region. It directly supports the objectives of the Bank’s Environment Policy , the Action Plan for Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency, Greenhouse Gas Mitigation , and Carbon Finance , and the Sustainable Energy and Climate Change Initiative (SECCI).
The carbon neutral initiative in Belo Horizonte was a significant effort, offsetting the carbon emissions of the estimated 9,000 attendees at the annual meeting. Emissions were calculated on the basis of each participant’s long-distance and local travel, as well as emissions associated with staying at local accommodations and from the conference buildings themselves. The 2006 annual meeting generated an estimated 11,000 tons of CO 2 equivalents. To offset this, the Bank purchased 11,000 Verified Emission Reductions (VERs) that are internationally recognized as supporting activities that reduce carbon emissions. The money the IDB paid for the VERs will finance a project managed by a local NGO called Instituto Ecologica to substitute biodiesel for fossil fuels in the Bananal Island region in Brazil. The biodiesel will fuel water pumps for small-scale irrigation, tractors for agroforestry, and energy production for small-scale farmers. The benefits of the four-year project will be felt by low-income farmers in rural communities of the region.
The Bank also conducted two other carbon neutral conferences in 2006: the “Sustainable Energy and Climate Change in Latin America” conference in its Washington DC headquarters, and the “Fourth CSR Americas Conference: Good Business for All” in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil. @ www.iadb.org/carbon_neutral |
Encouraging Sustainable Corporate Procurement
 The Bank hired Cameron Cole/Green Seal in 2006 to assist it in developing an environmentally and socially responsible procurement program for its headquarters building in Washington DC. The Bank’s Corporate Procurement Policy requires it to integrate socially responsible suppliers and environmentally friendly products into its supply chain. The program will identify sustainability standards for procuring the range of products and services the Bank uses in the course of its daily operations, from copier paper to furniture, and janitorial services to cafeteria food services. The consultants are collaborating with the Greening the Bank Task Force, internal customers, and other international financial institutions to develop a list of appropriate and consistent standards to incorporate into Bank procurement contracts.
Box 5.2 | Saving Trees, Saving Money |
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In order to promote greater cost efficiency and environmental responsibility the IDB discontinued the use of printed deposit notifications in late 2006. This initiative translates
into a paper saving of almost 160 reams per year and an annual cost savings of $30,000 ($11,000 in paper costs alone). The savings come from reduced purchases of paper forms and printer cartridges, lower maintenance expenses on folding and sealing machines, and reduced costs for distribution, handling, and filing. |
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Maximizing the Potential of Our People
There is an important connection between an organization’s sustainability and how it manages its human resources. IDB's employees are its greatest resource, representing the organization and the region to which we belong. In 2001, with the initiation of its Human Resources Strategy, the IDB began to streamline its human resources policies and services for a Bank staff of almost 2000 employees. Within this staffing landscape, talent management is balanced by nationality representation and inclusion of Bank stakeholders. Effective use of these human resources requires a vibrant Bank culture that offers continual learning opportunities that build the organization’s social capital and strengthen its core competencies.
Enhancing Diversity Among our Staff
Diversity at the IDB is a concept mandated by the Bank’s Institutional Strategy, the Human Resources Strategy, and the Action Plan to Promote Diversity at the Bank, the latter of which set forth race and ethnicity (particularly African, Asian, and indigenous heritage) as “dimensions of diversity.” In addition to nationality and gender, these dimensions are the focal points for human resources action in staffing, climate enrichment, and accountability. The Diversity Internship Program for Afro-descendants and Indigenous Peoples was established in 2004 and institutionalized in 2005. In 2006, the design of the Junior Professionals Program was expanded to include two diversity participants. (IDB Staffing Location ) | (IDB Staffing country of origin)
To build on the progress so far on gender diversity, the Bank has created a Task Force on Women to review the implementation of recommendations from a similar Task Force 10 years ago. The task force will issue its report and recommendations in 2007, including a chapter on managing work and family life.
(Total Staff) | (Professional Staff) | (Executive Staff) | (Administrative Staff)
Strengthening Staff Competencies
The Bank’s Office of Learning is designed to maintain and develop the technical knowledge skills of all Bank staff. Its strategic objective is to align staff learning more closely with the Bank’s business priorities in three areas: the Bank’s development effectiveness agenda; support to the private sector; and the Bank’s institutional governance goals.
Based on the concept of a thematic community or network, the Office of Learning has adopted a bottom-up approach for assessing the learning needs of staff at headquarters and country offices, for managing knowledge, and for identifying the learning events that address the staff’s knowledge gaps. Courses and initiatives are developed in coordination with Bank departments, with universities and other academic centers, and with other multilateral development banks.
In recent years the Bank has been working to develop a set of staff competencies that reflects the institution’s primary business. The main purpose of the IDB Competency Initiative has been to identify the knowledge and capabilities required of staff to support the institution’s objectives, and to promote their development and consistent application. The IDB competency model was developed with the active participation of staff from different departments. It consists of three elements: technical competencies, core competencies, and supervisory competencies.
Offering a Variety of Staff Services
The IDB offers a full menu of support services to its staff (Table 5.1). It also supports a variety of internal associations, cooperatives, and groups that serve staff needs and interests, including social affiliations and activities. Examples include the Staff Association, Credit Union, and IDB-DC Solidarity Program. In addition, the Bank provides for periodic open forums with opportunities for dialogue between staff and upper management. The Bank also has numerous programs to support staff including: the Bank’s Family Association; the Professional Women’s Network; the Diversity Group; and Young Connection. There is also a Staff Retirees group, which interacts with other Bank groups and initiatives, such as the Solidarity Program (Box 5.3) through which the Bank provides staff with volunteering opportunities.
Health and Safety
The Bank has a series of staff rules which set out staff benefits, including all aspects of health and safety. In addition, internal informational websites keeps staff informed by providing health-related information in each of the countries where the Bank has offices. The Bank’s Employee Assistance Program provides supplemental independent support to staff, and resources are provided with respect to dependent care, spouse counseling, and the search for housing. With respect to health and safety conditions, internal records and statistics are maintained through an internal health unit.
Providing health, travel, and safety information to the staff is a high priority for the Bank. Management keeps staff informed of safety issues through a system of online bulletins and notifications, and holds educational seminars to alert the staff on how to protect themselves, especially when traveling on mission. The Bank also provides on-line links to health-related information in each of the countries where the Bank has offices. This information is customized by the country offices themselves to ensure that it is appropriate and up to date. Similarly the Bank keeps staff informed of security issues both at headquarters and in country offices by means of notifications, bulletins and seminars.
Cuadro 5.1 | Servicios de apoyo institucional del BID |
Tipo |
Servicio prestado |
| Orientación educativa |
Se orienta al personal sobre opciones disponibles en el campo educativo, desde preescolar hasta la universidad . |
| Orientación profesional |
Seminarios sobre transición profesional y orientación sobre búsqueda individual de empleo para los cónyuges y compañeros registrados de los empleados del BID . |
| Orientación sobre cuidado de personas mayores y hogares monoparentales |
Orientación sobre cuidado de personas mayores, grupos de apoyo para hogares monoparentales y consejos sobre adquisición de vivienda . |
| Orientación confidencial |
Orientación confidencial para el personal y miembros dependientes elegibles cuyos problemas estén afectando su vida profesional y personal. |
| Cuidado de niños en casos especiales |
Proporciona un lugar para dejar a los hijos de los empleados cuando las escuelas cierran o cuando no se dispone de los servicios de cuidado regular. |
| Abuso doméstico |
Seminarios para crear conciencia sobre el abuso doméstico; incluye opciones de protección y prevención. |
| Programa de asistencia a los empleados |
Estos servicios incluyen orientación individual y consultas administrativas. La meta del orientador es ayudar a los empleados a resolver sus problemas de manera práctica e inmediata o referirlos al servicio apropiado en caso de que se requiera una solución de largo plazo. |
| Servicio de guardería |
Servicio completo de guardería en el lugar de trabajo durante la jornada laboral. |
Box 5.3 | IDB-DC Solidarity Program: Engaging the Local Community |
The IDB-DC Solidarity Program was launched in 1998 to support the fast-growing Hispanic and Caribbean communities in and around Washington, DC. The program provides grants, volunteers, donated equipment, and technical assistance to more than 40 partner organizations. Since its founding, it has awarded more than $2.3 million in grants to community-based organizations in such areas as childcare, youth services, business development, health, education, employment, and violence prevention; grants in 2006 totaled $255,000.
In 2006, the IDB-DC Solidarity Program focused on strengthening its partnerships with local partner organizations and forging new alliances to mobilize additional resources for the local Latino and Caribbean communities. To this end, IDB President Moreno launched the new Latino Federation of Greater Washington initiative, which aims to build Latino engagement in all aspects of philanthropy: as donors, volunteers, grantmakers, and grantees.
In partnership with the Hispanics in Philanthropy (HIP) Foundation, the IDB-DC Solidarity Program also cofounded and played a catalytic role in launching the Funders' Collaborative for Strong Latinos in Washington DC . This collaborative pools together resources from major donors involved in the Latino community in Washington DC to build capacity among local nonprofit organizations. The collaborative has already mobilized more than $500,000 in its first year of operations.
In addition, the Solidarity Program also partnered with the Washington DC Mayor’s Office on Latino Affairs to launch the first-ever high-definition television (HDTV) documentary about the history of the Latino community in Washington DC.
The IDB-DC Solidarity Program was also active in the promotion of community service activities through its internal volunteer network of more than 400 volunteers. In the last six years, the program has provided more than 870 recognition awards to Bank staff, families, and retirees that participated in events organized or sponsored by the Solidarity Program. Since the inception of the IDB Solidarity Award three years ago, seven staff members and teams have been recognized for their outstanding contributions to the community.
The Bank maintained the “My Business Cares” Seal in 2006, granted by the Greater DC Cares, the Greater Washington Board of Trade, and the Washington Business Journal for its work with the DC Latino community. The seal recognizes organizations that promote employee volunteerism and donate funds and in-kind goods or services to organizations located in the Greater Washington DC area.
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