The CO_you2 Programme

Tackling our carbon footprint is one of four pillars of our climate change strategy (see “Key material issues”). In 2007, we launched the COyou2 Programme because we wanted to make our commitment more tangible for our employees and help them to become more aware of climate change. The programme offers subsidies for a range of investments through which our employees can reduce their private carbon footprints. To our knowledge, it was the first global corporate initiative of its kind at the time.

CO_you2 payouts in 2015, by category

The investment options we offer for subsidies are clearly specified in the programme. Some of them are supported at all our locations, while others vary to account for regional differences in climate, living conditions etc. Our subsidies cover 50% of the investment amount up to a locally determined maximum allowance. All regular employees are entitled to apply and new employees can submit subsidy requests after three months following their hire start date.

In 2015, we granted a total of 2 361 subsidies spread across three product categories: home appliances, home infrastructure and mobility. For home infrastructure we introduced two new products in 2015: solar window films which can lower household energy consumption, and connection of homes to district heating. Over the past two years, electric-powered mobility has become more prominent with subsidies including e-bikes, e-cars and plug-in hybrid electric cars. In line with this trend, we introduced e-car charging stations at several locations.

Amongst the largest Swiss Re locations, uptakes per employee were highest in Slovakia, China, Germany and Switzerland. Our office in Slovakia has witnessed particularly strong growth recently and many new employees made use of the opportunity to claim subsidies in 2015. In Europe, in general, mobility is a popular category, with electric-powered vehicles and bicycles the most common subsidy types.

China is another location that has seen strong growth and, consequently, a high rate of subsidies. Energy efficient home appliances were particularly popular there, as elsewhere in Asia.

Number of CO_you2 payouts in 2015, per 1000 employees