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2010 Virtusa Environment Day

2010 Virtusa Environment Day

Published 06-15-10

Submitted by Virtusa Corporation

Virtusa celebrated 2010 Environment Day with an aim to create awareness across all regions of operations by uniting its employees to conserve the diversity of life on the planet and educating them on the current status of environmental biodiversity. Themed, "Save Species. Save Planet. Save Future", the Virtusa Environment Day is a program under the Virtusa Code Green banner and supported the World Environment Day (WED) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

As part of the pre-event activities, many competitions like debates, Flickr photography, video, drawing/painting competitions were organized. The competitions were open to Virtusans and their children. However, in the case of the Flickr photography competition, the public was invited to participate as well.

On the day itself, each Advanced Technology Center (ATC) in the different geographic locations organized separate activities.

At the Chennai ATC, a group of Virtusans joined up with Nizhal - an NGO, for the "Free the Trees" campaign and removed illegal advertisement boards nailed to trees. The campaign took place in a traffic heavy area and drew a lot of attention, evident from the policemen and the traffic constables offering their support for the initiative! At the Virtusa office premises, Nizhal, Greenpeace and homeplanguru.com showcased eco-friendly products and also shared hard facts about the pressing need for safeguarding our planet. Several other organizations also had stalls and exhibits.

At the Hyderabad ATC, the event comprised of environmental awareness sessions, stalls displaying eco-friendly products and screening Greenpeace's short films and documentaries. A highlight of the event was the session on organic farming by Dr. Raj Sekhar Reddy, Founder & MD of 24 Letter Mantra, who provided insights into the benefits of consuming organic food and the urgent need for mankind to move away from the current "pesticide-heavy" farming practices.

At the Colombo ATC, the event took place at the company's facility in Orion City and consisted of an environment awareness session and exhibits/stalls from different organizations featuring eco-friendly products and services. The event provided an opportunity for Virtusans to gain a deeper understanding of the environmental issues and the role they can play in conserving the environment. Otara Gunawardene CEO ODEL and Founder Emabark was the Chief Guest.

Company-wide Initiatives

Virtusa carries out a number of ongoing activities throughout the year with the view to drive environment sustainability across employees, suppliers and business operations:

1. Carbon Footprint Calculator: A carbon footprint calculator, which has been developed in-house, was launched internally in a few locations on the Environment Day for use by employees. The carbon footprint calculator will help Virtusans understand and get awareness on the individual carbon contribution. Each of us, in every action we take, in every purchasing decision we make, engages a chain of events that generate a series of unintended as well as intended effects that affect the environment. Measuring the carbon footprint can give one a clear understanding of where he/she is - the scale of his/her contribution - that directly or indirectly affects the environment.

2. Carbon Emission Test Program: At our Sri Lankan facilities, we conduct a voluntary carbon emission test program for employee vehicles. Several vehicles are tested and made more environmentally friendly.

3. Environment Friendly New Campus at Hyderabad: We are building our new campus in Hyderabad to support an eco-friendly atmosphere. High priority is being given to the efficient use of water, soil and landscapes in addition to the use of energy efficient and eco-friendly equipment, effective control and building management systems and the use of recycled material. The tangible and intangible benefits accruing from the green initiative include:


  • Energy savings
  • Water savings
  • Enhanced employee comfort level leading to health and safety benefits
  • Improved productivity

4. Collection and Recycling/Reuse of Waste Paper: At our Hyderabad and Chennai facilities, we collect paper waste. We partner with a leading private company to ensure proper recycling and reuse. The money received from this effort is used for other CSR activities such as a medical camp for orphanage kids. Through this effort, we are able to create awareness internally on re-using waste and are able to put the money received from it to a good cause.

5. Code Green Initiatives: We help reduce CO2 emissions from purchased electricity through Green IT and Green facilities initiatives.


  • Green IT initiatives include using energy efficient bulbs, implementing virtualization of servers, focusing on reducing paper consumption in printing, etc.
  • Green Facility initiatives include focus on effective recycling and reuse of waste, using energy efficient light systems, consolidating space utilization in datacenters/work floor areas, optimized air conditioning operations, etc.

6. Electricity Saving Campaigns: We conduct electricity saving campaigns to educate employees on the need to switch off computers, lights and other equipment when not in use, to conserve energy. Our company policy is to use low energy CFL bulbs wherever possible.

7. Our business partners such as contractors and suppliers have been encouraged to take responsible environmental initiatives. As per our Green Procurement Policy, preference is given to such suppliers.

By being proactively involved in saving energy and protecting the environment that we operate in, we spread an optimistic approach to the growing urgency to save the planet.

About Virtusa Corporation
Virtusa is a global information technology (IT) services company providing IT consulting, technology implementation and application outsourcing services. Using its enhanced global delivery model, innovative platforming approach and industry expertise, Virtusa provides high-value services that enhance clients' business performance, accelerate time-to-market, increase productivity and improve customer service.

Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Massachusetts, Virtusa has offices in the United States and the United Kingdom, and global delivery centers in India and Sri Lanka.

To learn more about Virtusa, please visit: www.virtusa.com.
"Virtusa" is a registered trademark of Virtusa Corporation.

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Virtusa Corporation

Virtusa Corporation

Virtusa Corporation (NASDAQ: VRTU) is a global information technology (IT) services company providing IT consulting, technology and outsourcing services. Using our enhanced global delivery model, innovative software platforming approach and industry expertise, we provide high-value IT services that enable our clients to enhance business performance, accelerate time-to-market, increase productivity and improve customer service.

We serve Global 2000 companies and the leading software vendors in Communications & Technology, Banking & Financial Services, Insurance, Telecommunications, and Media, Information & Entertainment industries. We build and sustain application platforms for our clients that create competitive advantage.

Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Massachusetts, we have offices and technology centers throughout the United States, Europe and Asia.

Headquarters -Westborough, Massachusetts, USA

Offices -Throughout US, Europe, Netherlands, Hungary and Asia

Technology Centers -US, UK, India, Sri Lanka

Number of Employees -Over 3600

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