When Ravi Chauhan joined BASF Canada in 2019, he brought an outlook on grassroots sustainability that corresponded closely to the company’s community-level objectives. He was also familiar with the local community around the company’s head office in Mississauga, Ont.
Not only had Chauhan studied at the University of Waterloo for a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies, environment and business, but he’d grown up in Brampton, only a few kilometres away.
“I’d studied the way companies balance sustainability while growing their business,” says Chauhan, a sustainability and government relations specialist at BASF, “and I knew there had been a strategic shift in the way companies approach sustainability.”
A subsidiary of BASF SE, a global chemical company, BASF Canada employs more than 1,100 people at production facilities and offices across Canada. At its head office, employees administer corporate functions such as communications, sustainability, health and safety and human resources.
In the Mississauga community, the company drives outreach initiatives focused on three key pillars: science, technology, engineering and math; sustainability and diversity; and equity and inclusion through monetary donations, partnerships and employee volunteer efforts.
Most recently, BASF launched a virtual food drive, where all donations went directly to local communities across the country, matched dollar for dollar. Since 2016 BASF has supported Indigenous Canadian students, through a partnership with Indspire, to pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees. With BASF’s sponsorship, more than 20 Indigenous students have received financial support for their post-secondary education.
“I’m particularly proud of our team for continuing to give back to the community and finding ways to make an impactful difference, even during the uncertainty due to the pandemic,” says BASF Canada’s president, Apala Mukherjee.
In 2021, the company began an awards program to recognize customers who demonstrate leadership in building a sustainable future. The program pays particular attention to customers who find innovative ways to integrate sustainability goals into their business strategy.
“Sustainability is not just about tackling climate change,” says Chauhan. “It’s taking a holistic view of our impact on the environment, the economy and society.
“In fact,” he adds, “sustainability has been a core part of BASF’s strategy for years. This is what excited me about BASF right from the beginning.”
Chauhan’s work at the company extends beyond his immediate community to other parts of Canada as well, and to all facets of the company’s operations.
“Our corporate sustainability team collaborates with different business units,” he says, “from agriculture and automotive to personal care and construction. It’s critical to connect and understand the challenges facing the customers of these different industries.”
While purchasing renewable energy for its sites, BASF Canada partnered with Bullfrog Power to support a new solar installation for Hiawatha First Nation’s community general store. With the arrival of COVID-19, one of the company’s sites began producing hand sanitizer, which it donated along with personal protective equipment to local Indigenous communities.
“It’s a way for us play our part as good corporate citizens,” says Chauhan, who has worked from home during the pandemic since March 2020, two months after he assumed his current role at the company.
For Mukherjee, sustainability is a key driver of the global organization’s strategy, involving more than 117,000 employees in almost every country in the world.
“In order to truly live by our commitment of ‘we create chemistry for a sustainable future’,” she says, “it’s vital that we contribute to the communities where we work and live. The past year has highlighted its importance.
