Philadelphia Union Partners with Braskem to Advance the Circular Economy with Closed Loop Recycling and STEM Education

PHILADELPHIA, June 19, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Braskem (B3: BRKM3, BRKM5 and BRKM6; LATIBEX: XBRK), the largest thermoplastics polyolefins producer in the Americas and leading producer of biopolymers in the world, and the Philadelphia Union, of Major League Soccer (MLS), jointly announced today that they have formed a new multi-year partnership to advance the Circular Economy with Closed Loop Recycling and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education initiatives with local youth.

Jean-Paul Dardenne, Philadelphia Union Senior Vice President, Corporate Partnerships, commented, "As a club, we pride ourselves on innovation and a community-first approach on and off the field. We are excited by Braskem's vision of sustainability and furthering STEM education in our schools. This partnership is a commitment to a brighter future for our fans and surrounding community."

Core to the new partnership is a Closed Loop Recycling Program through which the Philadelphia Union will work in conjunction with Braskem to promote the collection and recycling of polypropylene (PP) cups and caps used at the Talen Energy Stadium. The program is aimed at diverting thousands of pounds of PP cup usage annually at the stadium. Through the Closed Loop Recycling program, all plastic beverage cups sold in the stadium will be made of PP, which is fully recyclable and identified with the number "5" consumer recycling identification code. PP cups and caps will be collected at all events taking place at Talen Energy Stadium.

Recycled cups and bottle caps collected from the stadium will be used for a range of initiatives including plastic applications within the stadium itself as well as fan engagement activities and the construction of a promotional structure at the stadium to further encourage fans to participate in the Closed Loop Recycling program. 

To further extend the partnership engagement within the community surrounding the stadium, Braskem will launch a STEM education program in direct coordination with the Philadelphia Union across 10 public schools located in Delaware and Gloucester counties. The partnership's STEM education program will highlight the benefits of sustainability, environmentally conscious plastic use, recycling, as well as sports, health and fitness.

Mark Nikolich, Braskem America CEO, commented, "Braskem and the Philadelphia Union's new partnership focused on advancing the Circular Economy, as well as STEM education, reflects our joint commitment to a more sustainable future as well as our pride in being active and engaged in making our communities better. Our partnership with the Philadelphia Union is a perfect platform with which to engage fans of all ages around embracing the benefits of migrating plastic use to a circular economy, all while helping our youth discover opportunities in STEM education to help carry our vision for a more sustainable society forward into future generations."

To facilitate the process, the Philadelphia Union will place polypropylene cup collection bins with Braskem branding on the stadium concourse and around the main entrances. To encourage fans to participate in the program, recycling bins will include messaging about the new polypropylene cup recycling process, consistent with other messaging to be contained throughout the stadium including LED signage, public event announcements, and more.

In support of the partnership's new cup and cap collection and recycling program, the Philadelphia Union has also created reward programs to incentivize both fans as well as stadium hospitality employees to actively participate.  At select Philadelphia Union games a fan seen properly recycling stadium cups will be awarded a Fanatics gift card.  During Union matches, each relevant vendor at Talen Energy Stadium will be incentivized to collect all beverage caps for recycling. There will be a cash prize at every Philadelphia Union game for the hospitality employee who collects the most bottle caps for recycling.

Braskem's partnership with the Philadelphia Union is part of the company's broader commitment to a more circular economy as well as more sustainable solutions for society as a whole, for more information please visit  www.braskem.com/Principal/circulareconomy and www.bluevisionbraskem.com.

To learn more visit Braskem's booth #44 at Green Sports Alliance to be held at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia from June 19-20, 2019.

ABOUT PHILADELPHIA UNION
Philadelphia was awarded the 16^th Major League Soccer franchise on February 28, 2008 and the Union were officially named on May 11, 2009. Owned and operated by Keystone Sports and Entertainment, LLC, the group launched the Philadelphia Union's inaugural season on March 25, 2010 and opened Talen Energy Stadium on June 27 of that year. Throughout the club's history, the Union have reached the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final in 2014, 2015 and 2018, and have also reached the MLS Cup Playoffs in 2011, 2016 and 2018. In 2019, Philadelphia Union are celebrating 10 years of top-flight action at Talen Energy Stadium, a soccer-specific stadium that has hosted internationally known clubs Celtic, Chivas de Guadalajara, Everton, Schalke 04, Aston Villa, Pumas UNAM, Stoke City, Crystal Palace, AFC Bournemouth, Swansea City AFC and Eintracht Frankfurt. For more information about Philadelphia Union, visit www.philadelphiaunion.com.

ABOUT BRASKEM
With a human-oriented global vision of the future, Braskem strives every day to improve people's lives by creating sustainable solutions with chemicals and plastics. Braskem is the largest producer of thermoplastic polyolefins in the Americas and the leading producer of biopolymers in the world, creating more environmentally-friendly, intelligent and sustainable solutions through chemicals and plastics. Braskem exports to clients in approximately 100 countries and operates 41 industrial units, which are located in Brazil, United States, Germany and Mexico, the latter in partnership with the Mexican company Idesa. For more information, visit www.braskem.com.

Braskem America is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Braskem S.A. headquartered in Philadelphia. The company is the leading producer of polypropylene in the United States, with six production plants located in Texas, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, an Innovation and Technology Center in Pittsburgh, and a new operation in Boston focused on leveraging groundbreaking developments in biotechnology and advanced materials. For more information, visit www.braskem.com/usa. 

ABOUT BLUEVISION
Bluevision was created to represent actions and initiatives that focus on sustainability and which bring a positive impact to the planet and people's lives. It is a platform that shows the capacity of the human being to actively influence the course of the planet through their actions and everyday lives. Through facts, stories and curiosities, Bluevision connects people who are seeking innovative and society-oriented solutions that use resources in an intelligent way. For more information about Bluevision please visit: www.bluevisionbraskem.com 

SOURCE Braskem

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