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Foreword by Werner
Wenning
We want to shape a sustainable world for future generations!
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| Werner Wenning,
Chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer AG |
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Dear readers,
With its realignment, Bayer has taken on a new shape over the
past couple of years. Having successfully adopted a holding
structure with subgroups responsible for the operating business,
supported by three independent service companies, we have now
decided to transfer the majority of our chemicals business and
some areas of our polymers operations to a new company –
Lanxess – which is to be listed on the stock market as
an independent organization. The future Bayer Group will therefore
be able to focus entirely on its core competencies in the areas
of health care, nutrition and high-tech materials. Our ultimate
goal is to offer products and technologies that help make life
healthier and more pleasant. That objective is clearly expressed
by our new corporate slogan: Bayer: Science For A Better Life.
Much has changed at Bayer, but we have remained true to our
fundamental principles, including our commitment to sustainable
development (Glossary»), the vision generated by the community of nations
of how to reconcile economic progress with a sustainable future.
Alongside economic and ecological requirements, the concept
of sustainable development embraces a commitment to society.
We are proud to rank among the leaders in industry as a whole
– not just the leaders in the chemical industry –
in all three areas.
In summer 2000, when UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan approached
selected international companies with the idea of a global pact
to promote respect for human rights and environmental responsibility,
Bayer did not hesitate to endorse the idea. The principles of
corporate social responsibility (Glossary») form an integral part of our
corporate philosophy because we believe they are inseparable
from sustainable development.
Bayer was among the founding members of the UN Global Compact (Glossary»),
comprising eight German companies and about 50 companies worldwide.
We are aware of our responsibility to society and play an
active role in preventing child labor, eliminating discrimination
and promoting health, nature and the environment in many parts
of the world. These are the standards that shape our present
and future decisions.
Sustainable development also involves a responsibility to
ensure that products are manufactured in a way that is safe
and environmentally compatible and saves resources. We have
been committed to these goals for decades.
We have also set
standards in the field of social and societal responsibility.
In the early twentieth century, Bayer set up Germany’s
first training workshop, pioneering cultural facilities and
a wide range of clubs and societies for employees to use outside
of work. Our commitment to society has long extended beyond
the factory gate. These days we organize, fund and support
several hundred social projects throughout the world.
Accordingly, our Sustainable Development Report does not simply
focus on environmental data. We want to show you what Bayer
is doing to balance economic, ecological, social and societal
requirements. We believe it is important to publish our sustainable
development objectives as a yardstick against which our performance
can be measured. We regard that as an important part of our
dialog with the general public.
The following pages show how young people in many countries
see the future. Bayer aims to combine expertise with responsibility
to help turn their visions into reality.
Sincerely,
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