Meeting the public at site level

1
Meeting the public at site level Open Door days
in Italy
G. Astarita
Federchimica
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Federchimica

• Italian Chemical Industry Federation
• More than 1.500 associated enterprises (small,
  medium and large with a turnover of 52 Billion of
  Euro and 187.000 employees) divided in
• ? 19 sector association
• ? 46 market subsectors.

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Initial Background

• 80 s diffusion and growth of environmental
  issues as a result of
• increasing welfare and environmental
  sensitivity
• instrumental use of environmental issues
• progress of technical knowledge
• increasing information diffusion
• direct involvement of general public.

4
Perception of Environmental Issues
Direct Experience
Fear
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Knowledge...

• necessary but not enough.
• Ignorance causes distrust
• knowledge does not necessarily imply confidence

6
Results from opinion surveys...

• Which Public Power is more effective in
  protecting environment?

7
Results of opinion surveys...

• The judgement on the quality of environment
• ( of positive opinions)

8
How to communicate ?

• Communicate above all with facts
• communicate with transparency
• communicate on the territory
• communicate through own employees.

Open Doors
Surveys italians and chemistry employees opinions
Federchimica Awards
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Open Doors Initiative
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Open Doors Initiative

• Born in Italy in 1987 before the Responsible Care
  Programme
• Today, it is an important part of Responsible
  Care Programme
• active for 14 years on all national territory
• about 600 sites participating in the period.

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Open Doors Objectives

• Improve chemical industry image in the civil
  society
• Underline, through products and practice, its
  contribution to

• Improvement of safety at work
• environment and health protection
• quality of life
• social and economic development

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Open Doors Targets

• Citizens
• Opinion Leaders
• Local Communities
• Mass Media
• Suppliers
• Employees
• Authorities
• Customers
• Foreign Markets
• Schools.

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Open Doors Growth and Changes

• Directed first to opinion leaders, then to local
  communities
• Internal public is progressively extended to
  customers / suppliers.
• Eventually, also schools have been involved.

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Open Doors 2000

• 85 Sites
• 13 Regions
• 2.000 Authority Representatives
• 300.000 people reached by communication action.

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Open Doors 2000 visitors survey.

• How many times did you visit a chemical site?

Many other occasions
First Time
Few occasions
12
66
22
16
Open Doors 2000 visitors survey.

• Do you think chemical industry openess in
  comunication is...?

Decreased
No answer
1
3
Increased
Unchanged
82
14
17
Open Doors 2000 visitors survey.

• How has your knowledge about chemical industry
  changed?

Unchanged
8
No answer
Improved
10
50
Much Improved
32
18
Open Doors 2000 visitors survey.

• How did you change your acknowledgement of
  environmental protection?

Unchanged
Much Improved
No answer
10
21
32
Improved
37
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Federchimica support to Open Doors initiative

• an operative guideline, graphical layout for
  invitations and posters
• assistance and support in relationship with media
  and institutions
• provision of documentation to be distributed (RC
  report, press release, survey questionnaire,
  Federchimica s brochure)
• but above all consultancy for event organization,
  press office and participation of Federation
  representatives, with speeches on RC Programme
  and chemical industry environmental policy .

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Open Doors
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Open Doors and Federchimica

• 14 years of work and experience made available
  for CEFIC and other Federations in view of
  European Open Doors Initiative

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Meeting public at site level

• Key points
• Initial background negative opinions favoured by
  lack of direct knowledge
• Objective image improvement by providing a
  direct experience and showing transparency in
  communication
• Federation consultancy on event organization,
  press office and relationship with authorities)
  Feder. Representative participation.
• Visitor s feedback collection