LEVERKUSEN, Germany - Polymers company Covestro, formerly Bayer MaterialScience, has joined the UN Global Compact, a voluntary initiative by companies to adopt sustainable and responsible business practices. CEO Patrick Thomas signed the agreement to underline Covestro's stance of conducting high-level research and development into products that improve people's lives, while doing everything it can to help safeguard the Earth and conserve its resources.

"The concept of sustainability is the foundation for everything Covestro does, so our own initiatives to help protect people and the planet are perfectly in line with those of the Global Compact,” said Thomas. “We are committed to making these principles part of the strategy, culture and day-to-day operations of our new company."

Covestro's Chief Sustainability Officer, Richard Northcote, added, "The UN Global Compact is a great starting point, but we aim to do much more. As a leader in our field, the onus is on us to set ambitious sustainability targets for 2025 that will benefit both society and the environment. That is exactly what we intend to do."

Covestro has just adopted its new identity after becoming legally and economically independent from parent company Bayer AG on September 1. It supplies polymer products to key industries around the world, and is helping to meet the major challenges of our time, from climate change and resource depletion, to increasing mobility, urbanization, population growth and demographic change.

The UN Global Compact asks participating countries to adhere to 10 guiding principles in areas such as protection of the environment, human rights, labor practices and anti-corruption. It is the world's largest corporate responsibility initiative with over 8,000 business and non-business participants in 135 countries.