Supporting our communities throughout 2022

At TELUS International Ireland, our corporate social responsibility activities reflect what’s important to team members in our focus on social impact. Our CSR strategy is made up of three key pillars; Community, Education and Sustainability which act as our north star in terms of how we support many worthy causes.?

Our team members want to be part of something bigger.

When given the opportunity to make a meaningful difference in their own communities, our team members reward us with their ongoing commitment and loyalty. Beyond single-day activities, we are dedicated to creating ongoing, lasting partnerships with both our charity partners and customers. Looking back on 2022, I am truly proud of how our team members have embraced opportunities to support these causes through volunteering and fundraising. Below I have outlined some of our biggest achievements in the community over the course of 2022:

TELUS Days of Giving

In June, over 260 team members took part in the TELUS Days of Giving #GOALLOUT virtual challenge by walking, running or cycling 200km, the equivalent of the Ring of Kerry. This two week long event raised a total donation amount of €44,000 which was divided evenly between our non-profit partners - My Lovely Horse Rescue and Aware. Each team member that completed the challenge had the option of having five trees planted on their behalf or to help develop recycling ecosystems in coastal communities by removing plastic from the ocean.

In addition to this, in October more than 80 TELUS International Ireland team members volunteered at the My Lovely Horse Rescue centre in Kildare. Our team took on four key tasks over a four hour period: revamping the feedroom with a new layout and adding storage units; creating a dog play area; planting a ‘Farmacy’ of medicinal herbs and plants; and rejuvenating the garden to make a quiet space for volunteers, as well as general maintenance and upkeep such as painting and replenishing.

ECO Dreams Day

Earlier this year, in an exciting new volunteering initiative designed by our ESG focused employee resource group called Dream Green, our volunteers worked with Cork-based charity Cope Foundation on a project that benefited the local community as well as the environment. Providing a variety of support and services, Cope Foundation enhances the lives of more than 2,800 children and adults with intellectual disabilities and autism. After two years of Covid-19 lockdowns the organisation's allotment-style garden in Ballincollig had become overgrown. Together with Cope service users our volunteers worked on revamping the space - digging and weeding raised beds, planting bee and pollinator-friendly plants, painting fences with eco-friendly paint and planting sensory plants and herbs along the walkways.?

Supporting Biodiversity

We once again celebrated World Bee Day in 2022 with a bespoke beekeeping workshop with honey produced from beehives introduced to the Cork campus last year. The honey produced by our very own 60,000 native Irish honey bees was sold and all proceeds were donated to the Irish Bee Conservation project. TELUS International Ireland is committed to improving local biodiversity and is a proud supporter of the All Ireland Pollinator Plan on their mission to create an Ireland where pollinators can survive and thrive.

World of Work

As part of Business Action on Education, our internal Giving Back Committee supported an initiative called Business in the Community Ireland. Working with secondary schools in Cork and Dublin, TELUS International team members had the opportunity to run specially designed workshops for the students, speaking about their roles and careers at TELUS International, as well as our company’s culture and values. The aim of this programme is to help promote the overall strategy of educational inclusion, which is tackling a number of key issues: literacy, numeracy, retention rates and engagement, developing ties with future talent, and providing insight and support to principals and teachers.

Art Brings Us Together by TELUS International

One of our more recent CSR initiatives, Art Brings Us Together by TELUS International is an innovative art programme aimed at young people who identify with having an intellectual or physical disability. We launched this programme in November of this year alongside our partners at Macroom School of Art.

Young artists from 15 special schools located in both Cork and Dublin were invited to take part in a series of creative workshops. Over the last number of weeks, TELUS International Ireland volunteers have visited 11 schools so far, and it has been such an incredible experience. The aim of these creative sessions is to provide an engaging environment for creative young people to produce their own artwork. The programme was developed through a passion for creativity, inclusivity and celebration, and to promote artistic abilities among the students by encouraging originality and expression. At TELUS International Ireland we care so much for our communities and we’re extremely lucky as team members to work for an organisation who shares our love of giving back.

I’ve loved seeing the children taking part in the programme, embrace an opportunity to create something truly unique to them and share it with the world.

Looking back at some of the fantastic initiatives carried out by TELUS International Ireland in 2022, there is an incredible sense of pride. I’m proud to work for a business that cares so much about the people in its local communities and beyond. I’m proud of our charity partners and the work they do every day to ensure the world is a better place and I am incredibly proud of all of my team members and colleagues at TELUS International Ireland for everything they do that allows us to support these amazing organisations. We genuinely do give where we live, and the team demonstrates this every day. 2022 was a great year giving back and I look forward to sharing what’s in store for 2023!