Community

Westport's employee leadership team, established in 2007 to drive community engagement and community enrichment, brings together the various volunteer activities, events and initiatives that Westport employees were already involved with into one coordinated effort.

Westport's vision of community is broad and encompasses the actual communities in which we live and work, our immediate neighbours in Vancouver and our workplaces. The team has an ambitious mandate to have its activities leave a positive and measurable impact on the community.

A recent survey indicates that Westport employees are concerned about three significant issues that compel them to take action: 

• Poverty facing children and seniors; 
• Environmental issues including climate change, air quality and sustainability; and 
• Education efforts related to science, technology, the environment and business acumen.

The four platforms of the community impact program are the vehicles by which Westport can have the greatest impact on the issues of community, environment and education:

GIVE

GIVE develops and organizes opportunities for Westport employees to give gifts of money and donated items. In 2007, GIVE coordinated the donations of 47 units of blood, assisted with a successful United Way campaign that raised nearly $74,000 and achieved a participation rate of 75% and collected food donations, school supplies and cash for the Surrey Food Bank in two separate drives.

LEARN

LEARN provides a forum for internal education and dialogue on topics related to Westport's business activities and environmental topics. An effort is made to source external speakers who are leaders in their respective fields and profile the work or contributions of Westport employees. 

HELP

HELP arranges organized opportunities for Westport employees to volunteer their time and talents in the community. Westport supports this effort and provides each employee with a 16 hour paid allotment to volunteer with a charitable organization of their choosing. HELP arranged five different volunteering opportunities throughout the year at the Surrey Food Bank, the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, the Union Gospel Mission, Glen Eden Multimodal and the Developmental Disabilities Association of Vancouver with employee volunteers accumulating more than 300 hours in support of these initiatives. 

TEACH

TEACH coordinates employee efforts to participate in student mentoring programs, volunteer as science fair judges and develops new initiatives to encourage students to explore careers related to science, technology and the environment.