Business Objects (NASDAQ:BOBJ) (Euronext Paris ISIN code: FR0004026250 -
BOB), the world’s leading provider of business
intelligence (BI) solutions, today announced that as part of its Insight
Americas conference in Orlando, Florida, it is holding a Carbon Offset
Challenge to demonstrate the value of applying collective intelligence
to solve environmental issues. In addition, Business Objects has
partnered with the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, a non-profit
organization dedicated to developing new sources of renewable energy.
The company plans to donate $50,000 for the purchase of nearly 4,000 ‘Green
Tags’, renewable energy certificates which
will offset the carbon emissions produced by individual attendees’
travel to and from the conference.
The Carbon Offset Challenge asks attendees to estimate the total carbon
impact of all visitors traveling to and from the Insight Americas
conference and enter a guess through a web form on Insight, the company’s
online community, found at http://insight.businessobjects.com/greentravel.
Insight is dedicated to harnessing the power of community collaboration
on data analysis and visualization, and using the results in a
meaningful way to help companies, individuals, and non-profits find a
solution.
As part of the challenge, attendees calculate the amount of carbon
emitted by their travel to the conference. The individual with the
closest correct estimate of the total carbon emission impact of all
attendees will be awarded ‘Green Tags,’
donated by the Bonneville Environmental Foundation to offset the
estimated annual energy emissions of their home.
"The goal of the Insight Community is to
change the way the world attacks and solves issues of global importance,”
said Marge Breya, chief marketing officer at Business Objects. "This
challenge can give us all a clear snapshot of how we collectively impact
the earth’s resources on a daily basis, and
lets us harness the intelligence in the greater community to do
something positive about it.”
Business Objects worked with Bonneville Environmental Foundation to
purchase nearly two thousand Green Tags to offset all attendee
conference travel, equal to planting 760 acres of trees. Additionally,
as part of its Project Green Light initiative, Business Objects
partnered with the Orange County Convention Center to utilize and manage
recycled products and materials related to Insight Americas ‘07.
These environmentally friendly measures include the printing of all
materials on recycled paper and the use of recycled napkins, boxes,
biodegradable pens and glass barware and mugs instead of plastics.
"We welcome the trend toward a more
environmentally sustainable approach to doing business,”
said Heidi Eggert, vice president of marketing at Bonneville
Environmental Foundation. "Business Objects’
commitment to greening the Insight Americas event combined with its
innovative approach to inviting the community to participate in the
effort really raises the bar with regard to corporate environmental
responsibility and sets a new standard for environmentally responsible
business conferences.” Carbon Offset Challenge the First of Several Challenges Ahead
The Carbon Offset Challenge is the first in a series of challenges to be
launched and explored by the Business Objects Insight community. Future
challenges will engage visitors to use data discovery and visualization
to solve and better understand a wide range of environmental and
economic problems impacting the global population today.
Business Objects Insight community’s next
data-driven challenge will launch in November and be selected by
community vote. Insight participants will choose between a range of
economic and social development topics including poverty and
microfinance, the global digital divide, global access to healthcare
services, and clean drinking water. In addition to awarding prize money
for the winner of each challenge, Business Objects also plans to donate
money to select non-profit partners who can then utilize the community’s
winning solutions to further work on championing their cause.
To sign up now to vote and participate in the Carbon Offset Challenge,
or for more information on the Insight community, please visit http://insight.businessobjects.com About Business Objects
Business Objects has been a pioneer in business intelligence (BI) since
the dawn of the category. Today, as the world’s
leading BI software company, Business Objects transforms the way the
world works through intelligent information. The company helps
illuminate understanding and decision-making at more than 44,000
organizations around the globe. Through a combination of innovative
technology, global consulting and education services, and the industry’s
strongest and most diverse partner network, Business Objects enables
companies of all sizes to make transformative business decisions based
on intelligent, accurate, and timely information.
Business Objects has dual headquarters in San Jose, Calif., and Paris,
France. The company’s stock is traded on both
the
Nasdaq (BOBJ) and Euronext Paris (ISIN: FR0004026250 - BOB) stock
exchanges. More information about Business Objects can be found at www.businessobjects.com.
The Business Objects logo, BusinessObjects, and EPM XI are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Business Objects in the United States and/or
other countries. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks of
their respective owners.
