World Bank Case Study – Cutting costs while saving the environment​

The World Bank Group is a global financial institution committed to supporting low- and middle-income countries. Their extensive global network spans more than 189 member countries. With their mission of reducing poverty and promoting prosperity through the implementation of sustainable solutions, the World Bank embarked on a transformative journey with Vivreau to address the use of single-use plastic bottles at their headquarters in Washington, DC. The World Bank Group wanted a more environmentally friendly solution for hydration.​

The World Bank recognized the need to align its operations with its sustainability goals, which included reducing plastic waste and promoting eco-friendly practices within its catering operations. Prior to the Vivreau hydration program, they relied on plastic jugs or single-use plastic bottles, tailored to the number of attendees at an event. Midgie Cajayon, Food Services Officer at the World Bank, realized that this approach not only contributed to environmental pollution but also caused logistical overhead costs and time in managing the disposal of plastic waste.

​In April 2021, Midgie Cajayon began to weigh several options and selected Vivreau as the preferred and trusted water expert partner for the World Bank. Besides offering premium water dispensers with excellent water quality, Vivreau attentively listened to their challenges and needs and presented a customized water hydration program.​

The water hydration program designed for the World Bank included five Vivreau high volume water dispensers located throughout the cafeteria’s building, two Vi-Taps and custom glass bottles with the World Bank logo on the front. ​

The main program benefits for the World Bank:​

1. Sustainability – successful alignment of operations with sustainability goals by reducing both single-use plastics and carbon emissions.​
2. Cost savings – switching to refillable glass bottles reduced costs and improved the profitability of their water program during catered events.​
3. Health & wellness – unlimited still, sparkling, and hot water for staff supported culture and wellness goals.​
4. Brand Building – custom branded glass bottles elevated the brand presentation in front of media, guests, and other stakeholders.

For the implementation of the Vivreau hydration program, a buy-in from various stakeholders throughout the organization, including leadership, was needed. To achieve this, the food service department partnered with the sustainability department to initiate an educational campaign. This campaign focused on raising awareness within the organization about the environmental impact of single-use plastic bottles and highlighted the advantages of transitioning to the Vivreau hydration program. ​