WongPartnership will have its carbon footprint monitored as part of a new government-sponsored program. The firm has also launched an environmental & green economy practice to capture a new market for “green” and renewable energy transactions.
WongPartnership is piloting an online software program called CarbonView, which will monitor the firm’s carbon emission and waste levels. It was among five other organisations that were approached last year by the CarbonNeutral Company (the providers of CarbonView) and the Singapore government, as part of an initiative to reduce the city-state’s carbon footprint. A group of 30 lawyers and staff have volunteered to act as ‘carbon cops’ within the firm to enforce waste-reduction initiatives (such as cutting down on the use of paper and plastic cups) and propose new green policies.
In line with this program, the firm has also launched a new environmental & green economy practice consisting of ten lawyers and headed by partners Low Kah Keong and Rosabel Ng. Low (pictured, left) said on both the government and private sector levels, environmental issues are gaining momentum worldwide. “We believe there is a growing demand for lawyers who are familiar with environmental change issues,” he said. “Even before we officially launched this practice, we had already represented clients that are operating in this space,” he said.
In line with this program, the firm has also launched a new environmental & green economy practice consisting of ten lawyers and headed by partners Low Kah Keong and Rosabel Ng. Low (pictured, left) said on both the government and private sector levels, environmental issues are gaining momentum worldwide. “We believe there is a growing demand for lawyers who are familiar with environmental change issues,” he said. “Even before we officially launched this practice, we had already represented clients that are operating in this space,” he said.The firm has already helped EPURON on its investment in renewable energy projects in Asia, and Keppel Corporation in its JV to develop an “eco-city” in Tianjin. It hopes to bring in more work through the new practice and will share the firm’s own experience in going green to clients through forums. “We’re increasingly seeing more clients wanting to walk the green talk, and to get more involved in green business opportunities,” said joint practice head, Ng.
The firm has already helped EPURON on its investment in renewable energy projects in Asia, and Keppel Corporation in its JV to develop an “eco-city” in Tianjin. It hopes to bring in more work through the new practice and will share the firm’s own experience in going green to clients through forums. “We’re increasingly seeing more clients wanting to walk the green talk, and to get more involved in green business opportunities,” said joint practice head, Ng.While the initiatives will boost the firm’s CSR image, it will also benefit the firm through cost cutting. “Our starting point is to focus on reducing our carbon footprint and waste we generate in our line of business; this is not so much a costs-cutting exercise,” said Ng (pictured right). “However, we do see [some] benefits, such as …when we recycle more and use less, and when we employ energy-saving measures or make more efficient use of our energy resources. Assuming we successfully reduce about 10% of our emissions and waste, there should be a correlated decrease in our operating costs.”
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