DMA's 'Green 15' Wins ASAE's 2009 Associations Advance America Award of Excellence

Washington, DC, March 17, 2009 — The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) today announced its “Green 15 Standards & Environmental Action Program” has won the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) 2009 Associations Advance America (AAA) Award in a national competition sponsored by ASAE & The Center for Association Leadership in Washington, DC.

The prestigious AAA Awards program recognizes associations that propel America forward with innovative projects in education; skills training; standards-setting; business and social innovation; knowledge creation; citizenship; and community service. In receiving this esteemed award, DMA is one of only 21 other organizations to receive an Award of Excellence, and is now automatically included in the running to receive a Summit Award, ASAE & The Center’s top recognition for association programs.

“DMA is so proud to receive one of ASAE & The Center’s highest honors,” said Senny Boone, DMA senior vice president, Corporate & Social Responsibility. “The Green 15 program reflects DMA’s strong belief that the entire direct marketing community must practice eco-responsible marketing and meet the evolving needs of today’s consumers. It is vitally important that we all — marketers, suppliers, and consumers alike — join in the efforts to reduce waste and improve the quality of our environment.”

“DMA’s Green 15 program truly embodies the spirit of the Associations Advance America campaign. It is an honor and an inspiration to showcase this activity as an example of the many contributions associations are making to advance American society,” said 2008-2009 AAA Committee Chair, Janet C. Gibbs, chief financial officer for Feeding America.

As part of DMA’s ongoing commitment to responsible marketing, the Board of Directors formed the Committee on Environment & Social Responsibility (CESR) in 2005. Comprised of representatives from DMA member organizations, CESR works to identify environmental and social responsibility issues germane to the direct marketing community and help move marketers along a continuum of improvement in these areas.

In 2007, DMA’s Board of Directors, together with the CESR, passed a landmark environmental resolution calling for DMA members worldwide to incorporate and benchmark the Green 15, a set of eco-preferable, sustainable marketing standards which are divided into five key areas and cover the entire life cycle of the direct marketing process. The five key areas are: list hygiene and data management; mail design and production; paper procurement and use; packaging; and recycling and pollution reduction.

DMA also established target goals for marketers in key areas of the Green 15 and set timetables for measuring success. In 2008, it announced its first “green goal,” which seeks to achieve 1 million tons of carbon savings from 2009-2013 through widespread DMA member adoption of Green 15 list hygiene standards, as well as DMA member use of DMAchoice to reduce unwanted mail. DMAchoice empowers consumers to choose what commercial mail they receive in their mail and email boxes, all from a single, free, Web-based account.

DMA’s Green 15 Standards and Environmental Action Program proactively advance the case for environmental responsibility as a strategic business imperative and demonstrate the powerful role associations play in advancing America. Through DMA’s green programs and resources, members are energized and empowered to significantly improve their environmental impact, as well as help sustain America’s natural resources and economic viability by encouraging sustainable forestry, clean mill production, efficient transportation and list hygiene, as well as consumer recycling of mixed paper, and much more.

For more information about all of DMA’s green initiatives, including the Green 15, please visit www.dmaresponsibility.org/Environment.

About Direct Marketing Association (DMA)

The Direct Marketing Association (www.the-dma.org) is the leading global trade association of businesses and nonprofit organizations using and supporting multichannel direct marketing tools and techniques. DMA advocates standards for responsible marketing, promotes relevance as the key to reaching consumers with desirable offers, and provides cutting-edge research, education, and networking opportunities to improve results throughout the end-to-end direct marketing process. Founded in 1917, DMA today represents more than 3,400 companies from dozens of vertical industries in the US and 48 other nations, including half of the Fortune 100 companies, as well as nonprofit organizations.

In 2008, marketers — commercial and nonprofit — spent $176.9 billion on direct marketing, which accounted for 52.1 percent of all ad expenditures in the United States. Measured against total US sales, these advertising expenditures generated approximately $2.057 trillion in incremental sales. Last year, direct marketing accounted for approximately 10 percent of total US gross domestic product. Also, there are today 1.6 million direct marketing employees in the US. Their collective sales efforts directly support 9.3 million other jobs, accounting for a total of 10.9 million US jobs.

The Power of Direct: Relevance. Responsibility. Results.

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