Kiwoom Securities Launches Full-Scale 'Everyday ESG' for All Employees

Kiwoom Securities, which has been practicing ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) activities in daily life such as deleting old emails and using eco-friendly business cards, is launching the second season of its walking donation campaign, "Kiwoom and Clear Season 2." Employees are actively participating in the management philosophy of considering ESG even in the small, easily overlooked moments from commuting to work to leaving the office.

According to Kiwoom Securities on June 12, the company is running the "Kiwoom and Clear Season 2" campaign throughout June, in which all executives and employees participate to collectively donate 100 million steps. The walking donation campaign encourages employees to practice carbon neutrality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions through walking in their daily lives. Participants donate their daily step count via the Big Walk application, a walking donation platform. This is the second time the campaign is being held, following last year’s inaugural event.

If employees achieve the goal of 100 million steps, Kiwoom Securities plans to donate 20 million won to the social cooperative "Hangang." "Hangang" is an organization that preserves the environmental ecosystem near Yeouido. The donated funds will be used for activities supporting biodiversity and responding to the climate crisis, and will later be connected to employee volunteer programs.

To encourage active participation, Kiwoom Securities provides a Heroes cooler bag as a daily attendance prize to employees who successfully donate their steps each day.

Last July, Kiwoom Securities held "Kiwoom and Clear Season 1." In Season 1, participants achieved a total of 116,390,000 steps, resulting in a carbon reduction effect equivalent to 10,652 kilograms. This is the same as planting 1,613 30-year-old pine trees.

Kiwoom Securities is making efforts to practice ESG in everyday life. At the company’s headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, the in-house cafe "Space K" on the fourth floor of the TP Tower uses only reusable cups instead of paper cups.

The in-house cafe is operated in partnership with the social enterprise "Bear Better," employing baristas with developmental disabilities to create job opportunities. A donation kiosk has also been installed, allowing any employee to easily participate in donations during daily life. Employees can immediately donate by tagging their employee ID after reading the stories of six donation recipients introduced on the kiosk. From the beginning of this year through May, employees have made more than 1,600 donations.

Since last year, the company has also been running a regular email deletion campaign. Employees voluntarily delete unnecessary emails that have accumulated in their inboxes. Old emails are cited as a major cause of increased energy consumption in data centers.

Employee business cards and diaries are also made from eco-friendly materials. Business cards are produced with recycled paper, and diaries use eco-friendly cover fabric and paper. During lunch breaks, the office lights are turned off to save energy. The company is continuously replacing its vehicles with eco-friendly models, and currently, 38% of all company vehicles are hybrids.

Within the company, the use of disposable items is minimized. For example, disposable cups are prohibited, and everyone from the CEO to new employees uses their own personal cups. The company also emphasizes waste separation. Recycling bins are placed on each floor to initially sort paper, plastic, and other materials. Before all waste is disposed of from headquarters, a final round of separation is conducted to maximize the recycling rate.

The in-house social contribution group "Kiwoom and Sharing," established in 2012, is also highly active. It is divided into three parts: youth support, support for people with disabilities, and support for low-income groups, aiming for continuous sharing rather than one-off events. This year, the group has carried out meal service volunteering for seniors with disabilities and outings for adults with developmental disabilities.

Um Joosung, CEO of Kiwoom Securities, said, "All our employees will continue to make small efforts in their daily lives for a sustainable future."