It started as an idea sparked over dinner in Amsterdam in 1998. It grew into a proposal that caught the imagination of senior managers.
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Today, that initial spark has grown into Project Better World, a programme that takes volunteer Shell employees to all corners of the globe and turns a sustainable development ethos into tangible action. It offers great personal benefits and learning opportunities to those involved but also enhances Shell's reputation as a caring innovator.
Through Project Better World, Shell employees can volunteer for activities coordinated by the environmental group, Earthwatch, or by the aid organisation, Voluntary Service Overseas. They give up some of their own time and money but are also supported by Shell to take part.
In the first four years of the programme more than 100 Shell employees, of which around one fifth have been from Shell chemicals companies, have contributed to a wide range of projects. Tasks have ranged from monitoring biodiversity in Africa's Rift Valley to exploring ways to preserve the forest habitat of an endangered possum species in Australia. From the lakes of Siberia to the rain forests of Brazil, employees from Chemicals - and across the Shell Group - are helping to make a difference.
Follow the links at the top of the page to 'Project Better World volunteer diaries' to read more about the experiences of Project Better World volunteers.
