
R.S. Subramanian is the SVP of South Asia at DHL Express.
Social responsibility has been a fundamental pillar of the DHL Group for over two decades, well before it became a global focus. We understand that our decisions today have a lasting impact on future generations and therefore, our corporate social responsibility is not only a business mandate but our purpose. This purpose drives our actions, aligning them with our values and goals. It serves as a focal point, guiding our interactions and impact on the world. Whether we facilitate global trade across 220 countries and territories or honour our commitment to social responsibility, our ultimate goal is connecting people and improving lives.
At DHL, our purpose – ‘Connecting People, Improving Lives’ is deeply ingrained in our DNA. It influences our decision-making process, as we consciously consider the world we operate in. While our current goals are closely aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, we have been committed to social responsibility long before their existence.
To ensure progress, we have integrated social, environmental and governance goals into our Corporate Strategy 2030. Our bottom lines, which reflect our commitments include being an employer of choice, a provider of choice, an investment of choice as well as being a green logistics of choice. Through this framework, we measure our progress and focus our efforts on achieving these commitments.
Volunteering is essential to us at DHL: In the last year alone, over 1,400 employees clocked over 6,000 manhours on volunteering projects at DHL Express India. Additionally, our ‘Go’ programmes, which is part of our corporate citizenship, play a crucial role in helping us make a collective impact. These social impact programmes are GoTeach, GoHelp, and GoTrade and they play a key role in creating opportunities for economic growth and social empowerment.
Our journey towards sustainability is not isolated. We believe in actively involving our people as the foremost flag-bearers of our sustainable programmes. For example, our Global Volunteer Day’ (GVD) is our year-long approach towards volunteerism with a two-week action period. Today, we encourage our employees to volunteer for the communities or causes they support, wherever they can.
Volunteering is essential to us at DHL: In the last year alone, over 1,400 employees clocked over 6,000 manhours on volunteering projects at DHL Express India.
Additionally, our ‘Go’ programmes, which is part of our corporate citizenship, play a crucial role in helping us make a collective impact. These social impact programmes are GoTeach, GoHelp, and GoTrade and they play a key role in creating opportunities for economic growth and social empowerment.
GoTeach
The long-term success, sustainability, and innovative power of economies and societies rely on a strong educational system and targeted efforts to develop the next generation of working professionals. Recognising this, DHL established the GoTeach programme and partnered globally with Teach for All and SOS Children’s Villages to improve the employability of young people and prepare them for the workforce. Through GoTeach, along with our partners and dedicated employees, we are committed to making a lasting impact on the lives of young people and driving positive change in communities.
We collaborate with various CSR partners to enhance employability and support the youth in building sustainable sources of income. Numerous factors affect a student’s learning ability including poverty, substance abuse, and disability to name a few. To address this, we have partnered with NGOs that focus on educating and empowering children from diverse backgrounds, enabling them with employability and helping them establish sustainable income sources. One of our programmes supports teaching fellows who assist students in improving their learning capabilities. Additionally, we offer scholarships for higher education and ensure rehabilitation and education for child victims of drug abuse.
GoHelp focuses on disaster response and preparedness. At DHL, we understand that natural disasters can have devastating effects on communities worldwide. While we cannot prevent these events, we can certainly minimise their impact by utilising our logistics expertise and global network to support relief efforts. Since 2004, we have been deploying teams of DHL logistics experts to affected airports around the world, in collaboration with the United Nations and local government bodies.
We also provide training for tribal para-medical professionals. Our initiatives also support specially-abled children by granting them access to therapy, quality education, and vocational training. Furthermore, we provide a platform for rugby players to pursue opportunities in the Indian National team and work towards making Math more interesting for children and young adults. Overall, our efforts have positively impacted over 18,000 individuals nationwide over the last five years, empowering India’s youth with education and sustainable income opportunities.
One of the most powerful stories from our drug rehabilitation programme is that of a young boy from the streets of Ghatkopar, Mumbai, whose life was marked by poverty, neglect, and addiction. With an absent father and a mother facing her struggles, the child and his siblings endured violence and were addicted to substance use from an early age. His turning point came when Childline rescued him and placed him under the care of our NGO, where he received rehabilitation, and the emotional support he needed. The NGO also provided non-formal education and counselling, helping him cope with the loss of his mother. Today, this individual is on the path to a healthier and more hopeful future, a true example of how compassionate intervention can lead to positive change, even in the most challenging circumstances.
GoTrade is the most recent addition to our social impact programme. It focuses on supporting cross-border trade and sustainable growth. By increasing the involvement of SMEs in international trade and streamlining border logistics, it aims to drive inclusive economic development. Leveraging our global geographical footprint and comprehensive logistics network, we help SMEs access the global marketplace and collaborate with public sector partners to implement trade facilitation agreements.
GoHelp
GoHelp focuses on disaster response and preparedness. At DHL, we understand that natural disasters can have devastating effects on communities worldwide. While we cannot prevent these events, we can certainly minimise their impact by utilising our logistics expertise and global network to support relief efforts. Since 2004, we have been deploying teams of DHL logistics experts to affected airports around the world, in collaboration with the United Nations and local government bodies.
Through GoHelp, we provide expertise and assistance through two key initiatives: Disaster Response Teams (DRTs) and Get Airports Ready for Disaster (GARD). Our DRTs are specially selected and trained employees who are ready to be deployed within 72 hours in emergencies. Through the GARD programme, we help guide and consult airports on logistical challenges associated with disaster relief efforts.
An excellent example would be the ‘Train the Facilitator GARD’ workshop which helped ramp up the number of GARD-trained airports in India. The training was conducted at Calicut International Airport in Kozhikode, Kerala, where 14 airport operations experts from across India gathered for a five-day training in 2018 to learn how to make their airports disaster-ready and to become national trainers for GARD workshops in India.
Our Disaster Response Team (DRT) in India supports the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) by using durable, waterproof DHL speedballs filled with 15-25 kgs of relief goods for airdrops. Unlike cardboard boxes, these bags prevent damage during delivery. Following GARD training in 2018, five employees were deployed to Kerala during its worst flood in 100 years, packing 5,000 speedballs for airdrop over affected areas. We recognise that our expertise in logistics, our global network, and our employees’ commitment could be used to support airports in the wake of a disaster and help people in need around the world. We have done so in Iran during the earthquake of 2003, Sri Lanka following the tsunami of 2004, and Turkey during the earthquake of 2023.
Another example would be when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, migrant workers in Singapore were heavily impacted, especially in dormitories where social distancing was difficult to action. We partnered with the Singapore Red Cross to sort, pack, collect, and deliver care packs as part of the GoHelp programme.
GoTrade
GoTrade is the most recent addition to our social impact programme. It focuses on supporting cross-border trade and sustainable growth. By increasing the involvement of SMEs in international trade and streamlining border logistics, it aims to drive inclusive economic development. Leveraging our global geographical footprint and comprehensive logistics network, we help SMEs access the global marketplace
and collaborate with public sector partners to implement trade facilitation agreements.
In India, GoTrade supports marginalised communities by providing entrepreneurship opportunities and developing sustainable enterprise models to address poverty, inequality, and unemployment. These programmes empower individuals with the skills to create a sustainable income source for themselves.
One of our programmes in collaboration with our CSR partners focuses on enabling unemployed women to create a sustainable source of income for themselves and their families. We teach them new skills such as producing hand-made candles, jewellery, and other artefacts. We also provide them with comprehensive training in digital literacy, marketing, sales, and operations to help enhance their business and sell across national and international markets. In March, two training sessions were conducted to help teach our beneficiaries the techniques of wrapping their goods to minimise breakage, thereby avoiding losses and negotiation to help them maximise their business opportunities. Today, 200 women have benefitted from the programme witnessing a 178 per cent increase in their incomes.
We received a fantastic testimonial from one of the beneficiaries of the women-led sustainable enterprise programme. While her family initially opposed her involvement due to household responsibilities, they now fully support her participation in the visits and stall setups, recognising the value of her focus on sustainable handicrafts and the additional income it brings. Another woman shared that although her husband was initially against her working outside the home, he now feels proud of her for contributing to the family’s finances.
We work alongside our CSR partners and have onboarded over 200 SMEs onto the government-owned non-profit ‘Open Network for Digital Commerce’ (ONDC) platform. With our support, these SMEs are provided with post-onboarding incubation support to enhance their order management capabilities. Through this, we will offer SMEs one-to-one support for order management, including selecting products, seller speed, pricing, promotions, order processing and transactions, and seller and customer support.
In addition to our direct interventions, we collaborate with governments and international organisations to enhance cross-border trade for MSMEs. Our efforts include our partnership with the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) to offer capacity-building sessions and workshops catering towards MSMEs across 76 districts.
At DHL Express, we live and breathe our purpose of “Connecting People. Improving Lives.” It is a big part of who we are as people and as an organisation, we understand that our role extends beyond delivering shipments. With our extensive workforce of 6,00,000 employees in more than 220 countries and territories across the DHL Group, we are not just a facilitator of global trade but also a global force for good.
Decarbonisation
Decarbonisation is a core focus for us, and integral to the DHL Group’s Strategy 2030: Accelerating Sustainable Growth. We are committed to reducing our GHG emissions to under 29 million metric tons by 2030 through investments in sustainable aviation, electrifying last-mile delivery, and ensuring carbon-
neutral buildings. Notably, we aim to power at least 30 per cent of our operations with sustainable aviation fuel by 2030 and reduce our Scopes 1 and 2 emissions by 42 per cent from a 2021 base year. Our goal is to have over 66 per cent of our delivery fleet be electric, and we have implemented a carbon-neutral design for all new and select existing buildings.
At DHL Express, we live and breathe our purpose of “Connecting People. Improving Lives.” It is a big part of who we are as people and as an organisation, we understand that our role extends beyond delivering shipments. With our extensive workforce of 6,00,000 employees in more than 220 countries and territories across the DHL Group, we are not just a facilitator of global trade but also a global force for good.
Sustainability is not just a mere checkbox for us; it is an integral part of our strategy – Strategy 2030: Accelerating Sustainable Growth. Through focused initiatives, we are leading the change in creating a sustainable future, where every delivery contributes to building a better tomorrow.
*Carbon-Neutral Building refers to a DHL internal rating standard for building emissions. It includes buildings’ operational carbon emissions according to Scope 1
and Scope 2, with 75 per cent or more carbon reduction and a maximum of 25 per cent offsets with verified carbon credits allowed (compared to a baseline where fossil energy is used for electricity and heating). The reduction of emissions is achieved by renewable energies, like solar PV, and the deployment of energy efficient technologies.