Amcor Celebrates World Environment Day by Launching 14th Annual Earthwatch Expeditions

SYDNEY, June 5, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Coinciding with World Environment Day, global packaging leader Amcor announces it is partnering with the Earthwatch Institute for the fourteenth successive year, to offer co-workers the opportunity to participate in environmental research expeditions to Brazil and India.

Bringing to life Amcor's Core Values of Social Responsibility and Teamwork, the Earthwatch expeditions will provide 15 co-workers with the chance to learn about, and contribute to, important research on topics such as conservation, biodiversity, climate change and ecosystem health.

Mr Ken MacKenzie, Amcor Managing Director and CEO says such expeditions are helping Amcor create a workplace culture that is passionate about sustainability.

"As a global packaging leader, we're acutely aware of our responsibility to create more sustainable packaging solutions that protect the products consumers need and enjoy on a daily basis," Mr MacKenzie says.

"Our co-workers play an important role in ensuring we continually improve our sustainability performance across our operations.  By providing the opportunity to participate in Earthwatch expeditions, we hope to inspire a workforce of leaders who value the environment in their everyday choices, both at work and in their community," Mr MacKenzie explains.

Five Amcor co-workers will spend two weeks near the Amazonian rainforest in Brazil to support research to help protect the jaguar, puma, and maned wolf that are being threatened by loss of habitat.

A further ten co-workers will spend 12 days working outdoors at the Himalayan Mountains in India. Working in a valley famous for its apple orchards and farms, the team will collect vital data to understand why flowering plants are disappearing and why the populations of pollinators such as bees and butterflies are declining.

The expeditions will take place in October this year.

Over the 14 years Amcor has partnered with Earthwatch, 120 Amcor co-workers representing 30 different countries have contributed more than 9,500 hours of research to help find solutions to a range of sustainability challenges.

Amcor has 38 packaging plants across the United States.

About Amcor
Amcor (ASX: AMC) applies art and science to create responsible packaging solutions that enhance the products people use in everyday life.  With global leadership positions in flexibles and rigid plastics packaging, Amcor continually innovates to find new and better ways to protect essential products such as food, beverage, pharmaceutical, medical, home and personal care. Headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, Amcor employs 27,000 people worldwide and has operations across 43 countries. For more information, visit www.amcor.com.

To learn more about Amcor's commitment to sustainability and responsible packaging, please visit www.amcor.com/sustainability

About Earthwatch
Earthwatch is an international environmental not-for-profit organisation that has over 40 years of experience in delivering scientific research, community engagement and education in support of biodiversity conservation. Earthwatch's mission is to engage people in scientific field research and education to promote the understanding and action necessary for a sustainable environment.  Earthwatch believes that sustainability can be achieved only if there is active involvement of people from all sectors of the community in creating the knowledge needed to solve the world's problems and promote positive change. For more information visit http://earthwatch.org/

SOURCE Amcor