The Raiffeisen Climate Protection Day
was held for the second time at the
UNIQA Tower.
The Raiffeisen Climate Protection Initiative (RKI) called into being in 2007 with UNIQA as a founding member is conceived as a proactive answer to the environmental challenges of the future. The goals of RKI are to make a substantial contribution to climate protection, lay the groundwork for the greatest possible synergies between members of the RKI in the area of climate protection and raise public awareness of the topics of sustainability, climate protection, energy efficiency and renewable resources. Projects in the areas of “Energy and Transportation” and “Building and Renovating” as well as various campaigns serve these goals alongside active climate protection by the participating companies themselves. Recent activities included participation in the Fourth Raiffeisen Energy Conservation day in February 2010 and support for the “Car Fasting” campaign, which led to a reduction in the number of car trips and rethinking of people’s own mobility behaviour during Lent.
UNIQA has published the UNIQA Climate Protection Manual for its employees in order to communicate the objectives of the Raiffeisen Climate Protection Initiative as well as specific suggestions for reducing one’s climate impact. Many topics related to the environment are covered in this guide. For instance, it sheds light on the way buildings are constructed and used, on driving by car and daily office operations from an environmental perspective. The climate-related activities of UNIQA as well as all of its climate-friendly insurance products are also presented. Tips on reducing energy and resource consumption in the office and at home round out this comprehensive resource on climate protection.
UNIQA’s active commitment to climate protection was proven in February 2008 by the issuing of an EU GreenBuilding certificate for the UNIQA Tower. The tower recognised by the Austrian Energy Agency as an “energy-conscious new building” is the first new office building in Austria and one of the first buildings in Europe to receive this certificate. Key factors for this recognition included the environmentally friendly heating and cooling system, which avoids significant CO2 emissions through the use of geothermal heating and cooling measures as well as district heating and the significantly higher energy efficiency compared to typical glass structures. The UNIQA Tower also received the Facility Award from the Academy for Technical Building Furnishings in June 2008.
UNIQA evaluated energy-saving measures based on the guidelines of the Raiffeisen Climate Protection Initiative from economical and environmental perspectives for the hotel project being planned by Jean Nouvel on Vienna’s Praterstrasse. Numerous projects, such as energy pilings and heat pumps, systems for heat recovery from refrigeration, ventilation and climate systems as well as wastewater, solar collectors for hot water production, the use of well water for facade cooling and the installation of low-energy lighting systems are now being realised as part of this construction project.
