Societal Engagement

Stakeholder and community engagement

• Continuing dialogues with local communities through Community Advisory Panels and various programs
• Donating to support medical professionals and vulnerable communities in response to local pandemic outbreak

Stakeholder and community engagement is an essential part of BASF’s sustainability strategy. At BASF, we aspire to grow our business in ways that are sustainable from economic, environmental, and social perspectives. To foster and enhance mutual understanding with our neighbouring communities and stakeholders in an open and transparent manner, we have been actively conducting community programs in China in past two decades.

The Community Advisory Panels (CAP) are one of the most important platforms where BASF actively engages with local communities around its major production sites. CAP members selected from the local communities meet up with BASF site management to discuss topics of common interests on a regular basis. In Greater China, BASF supports CAPs in Shanghai, Chongqing, Nanjing, and Zhanjiang.

In Shanghai, the CAP of Shanghai Pudong Innovation Park (Pudong site) held its 9^th meeting with more than 20 community representatives in early 2022, inviting them to visit BASF Minhang site and learn how BASF contributes to the automotive industry through its advanced sustainable coating solutions.

In late May, 40 community representatives – from both the BASF Pudong site CAP and local Lingqiao community – participated in the "BASF Good Neighbor" online event. Representatives from the BASF Pudong site shared updates on the close-loop site operations, and expressed deep gratitude to the frontline community workers, volunteers, and resident representatives.

In Chongqing, BASF invited 20 resident representatives from the neighboring community to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival at the site. Dr. Jan Nouwen, General Manager of BASF Chongqing site, shared with the representatives the site operation status. BASF employees and local representatives made dumplings together. All handmade dumplings were delivered to the local nursing home.

In response to the pandemic outbreak in Shanghai, in April BASF donated one million RMB to Shanghai Soong Ching Ling Foundation to support front-line medical professionals, along with the elderly and other vulnerable communities.

Science education

• Celebrating the 20^th anniversary of BASF Kids’ Lab in Greater China with various new programs and initiatives
• Publishing BASF’s first Chinese science picture book, Cool the Planet – Lead a Low-carbon Lifestyle
• Cotinuing Community Science Talk in Zhanjiang
• Fostering young talents during Hackathon 2022

BASF believes that chemistry plays a significant role in tackling various challenges in daily life, and education is key to achieving personal success and societal sustainability. BASF has been committed to promoting science education in Greater China, and to supporting the SDG4, “Quality education”.

Over the past two decades, BASF has been organizing Kids’ Lab events in Greater China. The program promotes science education among kids, enabling them to explore the wonder of chemistry and foster their interest for scientific exploration via interesting hands-on experiments. In 2022, BASF celebrated the 20^th anniversary of BASF Kids' Lab in Greater China through various programs and formats.

In July, BASF launched its first three-day Kids' Lab online summer camp, in collaboration with the China Science and Technology Museum, Shanghai Science and Technology Museum, and Chongqing Science and Technology Museum. Kids played with experimental kits provided by BASF at home. Tailored for Chinese children, the new experiment called “Magic Ink” guided kids to proactively solve problems in an inquiry-based learning approach.

BASF also donated 1,000 sets of Kids’ Lab experiment kits to Maitian Education Foundation, benefiting 2,000 students across the country. With the support of volunteers from the Maitian Education Foundation, nine experimental programs were completed, and 335 students participated. More programs will be arranged in 2023.

In August, to inspire the young generation around low-carbon concepts, BASF, together with Juvenile and Children's Publishing House, published its first Chinese science picture book, “Cool the Planet – Lead a Low-carbon Lifestyle.” In conjunction with the launch of the book, BASF donated 1,000 books to Shanghai Soong Ching Ling Foundation, to plant "green" seeds in more children’s minds. These books were distributed to schools in remote areas and schools for children of migrant workers in Shanghai.

In Taiwan, BASF brought the interactive Kids’ Lab program to Hai-Chian Elementary School in Taichung. Students got to know the importance of water resources and learnt how dirty water can be turned into clean water through chemical reactions.

In Zhanjiang, BASF continued its Community Science Talk to build a strong connection with local communities to enhance their awareness on biodiversity and ecology conservation. In 2022, the program focused on marine ecological protection, specifically on white dolphins, an endangered species that is occasionally spotted around the area.

To further cultivate and nurture potential talents in the chemical industry, BASF continued to support the 4^th Young Talents’ Chemical Innovation Challenge (2022 Hackathon), organized by the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation (CPCIF). With the support from BASF’s mentors, the “BOOST PTBA” team, with students from Beijing Institute of Technology and China Agricultural University won the third prize.

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Volunteering for the people and the planet

• Employee volunteers contributed to reducing plastic wastes in the environment
• Launched local biodiversity protection programs in Zhanjiang
• Donation to kids in Yunnan
• Celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival with local communities in Taoyuan, Taiwan

BASF aspires to contribute to a better planet and encourages its employees to participate in various local volunteering projects.

Around 2022 World Clean-up Day, as the co-founder of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW), BASF launched its annual employee volunteer clean-up campaign. Under the AEPW’s initiatives of “Clean4Change” to promote reduction and elimination of plastic waste in the natural environment, over 110 BASF employees from Shanghai, Guilin, Tianjin, and Taipei participated in the activity with their family and friends. A total of 580 kilograms of waste was collected, including polystyrene foams, plastics, PET bottles, bottle caps, and fishing nets.

In July, BASF, in partnership with Zhanjiang Birds Watching Society Association (ZJBWS), launched a local biodiversity protection program, with the focus on natural education and the protection of endangered birds. In October, employees from BASF and ZJBWS participated in the pilot bird watching activity at Jijia town, Leizhou City. Over 160 birds were monitored, including spotted eagles and crested serpent eagles which showed up for the first time in 2022 in Zhanjiang. This bird watching activity provided the groundwork contributing to future biodiversity protection.

As a responsible corporate citizen, BASF continuously devotes to charity projects to bring positive impacts on vulnerable communities surrounding the sites. In early 2022, BASF Venture Capital (BVCC) donated winter clothes together with 680 brand new notebooks donated by colleagues to two kindergartens and one primary school in Yunnan.

In Taiwan, nearly 40 BASF employee volunteers and their families participated in a yolk pastries DIY event in Taoyuan and delivered handmade pastries to underprivileged elderly communities. In addition, BASF employee volunteers also donated yolk pastries to eight children’s homes located in several cities where BASF production sites are situated.