Citibank Korea leads efforts to respond to climate change

Citibank Korea CEO Yoo Myung-Soon, left, with World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Korea director Hong Yoon-hee, at Citibank's headquarters in Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of Citibank Korea

Citibank Korea signed a sponsorship agreement with World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Korea for “Change Now for Tomorrow” ― a climate-action partnership ― while the Citi Foundation donated $250,000 (280 million won), the bank said Wednesday.

Change Now for Tomorrow, launched in 2018, responds to climate change by raising public awareness of the issue and urging companies to change their ways, according to Citibank.

Citibank Korea and WWF Korea will continue contributing to achieving the 1.5 degree Celsius Paris Agreement goal by strengthening climate action in Korean society.

The Paris Agreement's aim is to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping the global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius, according to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

“Citibank has recognized the gravity of climate and environmental issues, so it has worked in diverse areas to respond to climate change, including awareness campaigns, Citibank Korea CEO Yoo Myung-soon said. “We remain committed to continuing our efforts as a responsible corporate citizen to make society more sustainable, one of our key social contribution areas.”

The latest move is part of the firm's efforts to fulfill the global environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) drive. ESG is popular in Korea, with major banking groups jumping on the bandwagon for sustainable growth.

The concept of ESG started making global headlines this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Citibank Korea is also on track to embrace ESG as its crucial task for co-prosperity with society and the environment. The company has conducted a set of campaigns for the nation to tackle the pandemic this year.

Aside from the latest donation, the local subsidiary of the global banking group has conducted a series of other social actions here. They include the so-called “jubgging” campaign ― a portmanteau of jogging with the Korean verb meaning to pick up something. Citibank Korea ran the campaign marking the June 5 World Environment Day, with executives and employees joining the drive.

“Citibank Korea will continue pushing for sustainable and sincere corporate social responsibility acts by teaming up with relevant organizations,” a company official said. (Advertorial)