On 18 April, SPbGASU held a meeting of students with Sberbank representatives. Its topic was the social projects of the Sber ecosystem, which are aimed both at the sustainable development of an individual company and at solving global economic problems.

The head of one of the St Petersburg offices of Sberbank, Dmitry Nogaev, explained that the meeting had educational goals: the banking sector stands not only for increasing the financial literacy of the population, but also for the formation of its environmental behavior, which directly affects the economy.

“In 2020, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, it was noted that 90% of risks in the economy are associated with trends in sustainable development. In 2010 experts considered the most likely and significant impact on the economy to be a collapse in asset prices, however, in 2020 the top five negative factors were headed by extreme weather events and insufficient climate action. As we see, economic risks have given way to risks associated with the environment, which is influenced by humans. It is expected that this year in 16 regions of Russia all waste fields will be filled, and by 2050 there will be more plastic in the world's oceans than fish. Sber’s environmental projects show that everyone’s feasible contribution to preserving the environment can improve the environmental situation while reducing their financial expenses,” he noted.

Dmitry Nogaev recalled that among Sberbank’s environmental principles are the rejection of non-ecological products, conscious consumption, long-term use of material assets, repeated recycling of materials and environmentally friendly behavior. Thus, by converting many documents into electronic form, the bank significantly reduced paper consumption, and achieved energy savings through digital hygiene and rational use of electronic resources.

In addition, participation in campaigns to collect plastic bottle caps made it possible to reduce funds for the production of bank cards, which are now produced from recycled materials.

Everyone can take almost all of these principles as the basis for their environmentally friendly behavior: for example, reduce the amount of plastic utensils and plastic bags used, use energy-saving light bulbs, consume water rationally, buy only really needed things, and donate unused items to recycling collection points or those in need. In addition, you can show concern for nature by not littering and taking part in environmental cleanups.

They also talked about the possibility of employment in the company. Dmitry Nogaev reminded the audience that Sberbank accepts students and specialists for internships, and not only in the economic field.