Apr 06, 2010 at 02:57 PM
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Office Depot Goes Green With NASCAR Sponsorship

Office Depot, the Official Office Products Partner of NASCAR and co-primary sponsor of Tony Stewart's No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice team, announced today that it is partnering with EarthEra to make NASCAR a little "greener" in time for Earth Day.


To launch the partnership's first program, "Greener Shipping," Office Depot will balance the carbon footprint of the Subway Fresh Fit 600 race on Saturday, April 10, at Phoenix International Raceway. Through its purchase of EarthEra products, Office Depot says it will help balance the carbon footprint of not just the cars on the track, but fan travel, race team travel and track operations during the race. 100 percent of the revenue from Office Depot's purchase will be used to create new renewable energy projects, such as wind and solar, in the United States.

In conjunction, Tony Stewart's No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevy Impala will feature a special green-themed paint scheme during the Subway Fresh Fit 600 in Phoenix. The paint scheme will include the Office Depot and EarthEra logos on the car's rear TV panel with a "Greener Shipping" message.

"Our philosophy at Office Depot is that every step that individuals, businesses or sporting events take to 'grow greener' is a step in a positive direction," said Yalmaz Siddiqui, Director of Environmental Strategy for Office Depot. "By involving our NASCAR sponsorship, we specifically wanted to move the dialogue on going greener away from its typical niche, to a much wider audience."

Tony Stewart, who currently sits eighth in the Cup standings, says he understands the importance of greener alternatives and is looking forward to helping grow awareness of it.

"I love spending time outdoors, especially when I'm at home, and taking care of the environment is important to me," said Stewart. "As a business owner myself, I'm always trying to find better and more efficient ways of doing things to cut down on waste, and I'm proud to help get the word out about the partnership between Office Depot and EarthEra."

"We are proud to partner with Office Depot to reduce the carbon footprint of the race weekend at Phoenix International Raceway," said Nate Hanson, Vice President Power Marketing, NextEra Energy Resources. "We applaud Office Depot for continuing to take a leadership role in educating race fans, promoting greener office product solutions for its customers and for recognizing the benefits of EarthEra, a clean energy future."

To learn more about Office Depot's Grow Greener initiative, visit the website.