Amazon in New York
Amazônia Brasil—a three-month exhibition featuring a 13,000-square-foot interactive ecosystem, including indigenous plants, a replica of the Amazon River, a life-size hut, and deforestation displays—launched in New York (New York, USA) on Earth Day (April 22). Sponsored by Alcoa, Alcoa Foundation, and IBM, the city-wide event promotes sustainability and shows the interdependence between the Amazon and New York City.
 more
Make an Impact
In a first for Australian industry, Alcoa and Greening Australia have partnered to develop a greenhouse footprint reduction program for the families of Alcoa employees and their immediate communities.
Known as Make an Impact, the program includes access to a greenhouse calculator and a kit featuring a range of tips on how to lower energy and water consumption and more effectively manage waste.
Educating Russian Youth on Conservation and Sustainability
“Friends of the Islands of Nature”—a new educational program in Samara Russia funded by a US$50,000 Alcoa Foundation grant—will provide innovative training, environmental projects, and research activities for youth through secondary schools, environmental and biological centers, and nonprofit organizations.
Aluminum and the Environment
"Aluminum man" is a popular part of the Aluminum Gallery exhibition, which opened at the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum in late January 2008 following its debut last year in Beijing. Sponsored by Alcoa Foundation, the free exhibition raises awareness of aluminum's positive impacts on the environment.
Protecting Oysters in South Carolina
Building and protecting oyster reefs is the goal of a US$200,000 Alcoa Foundation grant to the South Carolina Nature Conservancy. The multi-year restoration program will benefit commercial and recreational fisherman, coastal citizens, and the tourism industry.
more
Bringing Sustainability Awareness to the Scouting Movement
Through a joint effort of Alcoa Foundation and the World Organization of the Scout Movement, a new worldwide program will promote environmental sustainability awareness to Scouts. Funded by a two-year US$205,000 Foundation grant, the program will be piloted in several European countries, then launched at the 2008 World Scout Conference in Korea.
more
case study
Sustainable Forestry Combats Poverty in Honduras
 Thanks to the Rainforest Alliance and a collaboration between Alcoa and Gibson Musical Instruments, loggers in Honduras are legally harvesting mahogany for use in world-famous Gibson guitars. The wood is transported on muleback and shipped to the U.S., for which Gibson pays US$40,000 per month?a huge sum for the region's poor families. Because the wood is harvested sustainably, it also provides a future livelihood for the farmers while protecting the environment.
|
| | |
Disaster Relief for China Earthquake Victims
 Alcoa donated 1 million RMB (~US$150,000) to the Red Cross Society of China for disaster relief following the May 12 earthquake in China’s Sichuan Province. Alcoa Foundation has worked with the American Red Cross to set up a customized online site that will accept and track all donations from Alcoa employees. Click here to donate.
Improving Rehabilitation in China
The Huaqiao Goal Ground for Aged will improve its rehabilitation equipment, exercise, and treatment thanks to an Alcoa Foundation RMB550,000 (US$76,000) grant. The donation to the Kunshan Charity Federation Huaqiao Branch will support 11 rehabilitation centers for the disabled.
Keeping Kids Safe
Partnering with K.I.D.S. Foundation (Kids in Dangerous Situations) in Australia, Alcoa Foundation is in a US$400,000 multi-year partnership to support preventative safety programs in schools and local communities and build a burn survivors' network.
Wheelchairs for Kids
 Volunteers from Alcoa's Australian refineries built 11 wheelchairs and parts for another 200 for the Wheelchairs for Kids project in Western Australia. Since 1997, Wheelchairs for Kids has built—using recycled materials—over 8,000 wheelchairs for children crippled by landmines or disease. The organization received a US$3,000 Alcoa ACTION grant.
|
| | |
Helping People Transition into Work
A US$150,000 Alcoa Foundation grant will fund a new workforce skill development program at Eastern Iowa Community College (USA). The program—an extension of the college district’s existing Career Link Essentials+ program—will help low-income and minority residents transition into the workplace.
Providing Training in Tennessee
An Alcoa Foundation US$50,000 grant will enable the Tennessee Technology Center at Morristown to improve its technical training services. The center is one of 26 centers across the state that provides training for entry-level employment in business and industry.
Helping High-Risk Youth Prepare for the Future
 They are classified as "in crisis"—young people who are without a high school diploma, unemployed, in and out of jail, and without family or social support. To reverse that bleak future, Alcoa Foundation is partnering with Roca, Inc., a nonprofit community organization, on innovative projects to train and employ these at-risk youth, funded in part through a US$50,000 Alcoa Foundation grant.
more
|
| | |
Improving the New South Wales Community
 Employee volunteerism at Alcoa Australia Rolled Products (Yennora, New South Wales) resulted in US$21,000 in Alcoa Foundation grants to their community. The Honorable Linda Burney, New South Wales’ Minister for Volunteering, presented US$3,000 checks to seven community organizations.
Restoring Access in Quebec
Alcoa Foundation and Alcoa’s Deschambault smelter jointly contributed US$150,000 to reconstruct a new bridge over the Lachevrotière River in honor of the city’s 15th anniversary. Partially made of aluminum, the new bridge—to open in summer 2008—replaces the original bridge that was swept away by floods in 2005.
Supporting Libraries
In support of the Libraries for LIFE Capital Campaign for revitalizing neighborhood libraries, Alcoa Foundation is providing a US$400,000 grant to Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh to improve the children's areas. With 19 neighborhood locations, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh is the region’s most visited asset.
more
Museum Partnership in Canada
 Alcoa Canada and the Alcoa Foundation are partnering with the Musée de la civilisation de Québec, Canada, on a three-year program of cultural and educational community initiatives. To celebrate, the company presented a nearly eight-meter aluminum ingot to serve as a public bench in the museum square. A plaque attached to the bench highlights the work of Alcoa employees and the ingot's transition from bauxite to bench.
|
