Three years ago, the Association unveiled its Sustainability Initiative—an industrywide commitment to boost operating efficiency, recycling, and energy-efficient product applications.

Aluminum Industry's History of Addressing These Issues:
• The development of the aluminum can recycling infrastructure in the 1970s proved that an initiative driven largely by environmental concerns could be economically advantageous to both consumers and industry. 
• The Dow Jones Sustainability Index, developed in 1999, lists companies based on their recognition of the risks and opportunities that arise from sustainability issues in their business plans—and their effectiveness in addressing them.  The Index, which includes a number of the larger aluminum manufacturers, routinely outperforms the larger stock market—evidence that "going green" is good for business.
 

How Do the Aluminum Industry's Sustainability Efforts Relate to Employees?
• It is our responsibility to recognize and adapt to the changing business and political environment in which we operate.
• From CEO to plant manager to office worker, it is our shared responsibility to educate ourselves on aluminum's value as a sustainable material and to conduct our business in a sustainable manner.
• Simply recycling one's aluminum cans at home and in the office, and implementing energy-efficiency measures at the plant level, are small but measurable steps that make a big difference!

Aluminum Association Staff Have:
• Implemented a number of projects pursuant to the industry's Sustainability Initiative, including life-cycle analyses of the aluminum can and semi-fabricated aluminum and automotive products, as well as a material flow analysis.
• Sought and obtained input from our member companies for much of this work—and we offer our sincere appreciation to those who have responded to our inquiries seeking data at the plant level.

Looking Forward
• We will continue to seek your assistance in our endeavor to realize the ultimate goal of achieving a truly sustainable industry across all of our upstream and downstream operations.
• The Association's Employee Sustainability Kit, which can be downloaded here (right-click and "save target as"), gives an overview of our industry's history, aluminum's uniquely sustainable characteristics, and the Aluminum Association's ongoing sustainability efforts.

Contact Us
Please feel free to contact Stephen Gardner, Vice President of Communications, at sgardner@aluminum.org for further information on the Association's sustainability efforts.