Living in a Better World: 3 Ways Citi is Helping the Planet

As a global financial institution doing business in more than 160 countries, we have an expansive real estate footprint with more than 12,000 locations around the world. Our branches, ATMs, data centers and offices collectively consume the same amount of energy each year as countries like Senegal or Nicaragua. This is significant from both a financial and environmental perspective.

Here are 3 ways decreasing our environmental footprint enhances Citi and helps protect the planet:

1. Making a measurable impact. We actively manage our impact on the environment by having programs in place that reduce our carbon emissions, energy consumption, water use and creation of waste. In 2011, Citi achieved its first publically stated goal of reducing our emissions by 10 percent from a 2005 baseline. In fact, we reduced our carbon emissions by 13.5 percent.

2. Sustainability as good business. Making our operations more sustainable is simply good business. By reducing our environmental impact we lower our costs, and by lowering our costs we deliver value to shareholders. Incorporating sustainable design into the construction or renovation of a facility allows us to provide clients and employees with a better experience in the communities where we operate.

3. Attracting the best talent. Our environmental initiatives are extremely important to attract and retain the best talent. It is important to our employees to work in a green environment, know that they are part of an organization that strives to be the best corporate citizen, and feel confident in our management of environmental risks. We give all employees the ability to contribute to our sustainability efforts through individual actions as well as through local Green Teams. In fact, Citi has nine formal volunteer green teams, and more than 30 other sites where employees are also working on local sustainability initiatives.

By investing in the greening of our operations, we enhance Citi's brand, reputation and credibility as a driver of global progress. The business case aside, it is simply the right thing to do to improve the communities where our customers and employees live and work by making Citi a better place.