"Historically, the chemical industry has grown in response to worldwide demand for products that lead to an improved standard of living," Chowdhry said. "This industry growth has been achieved through increased use of fossil fuel and other depletable natural resources, often with consequent adverse effects on the environment. But that is changing.
"As we enter our third century at DuPont, we are transforming ourselves to grow sustainably to increase societal and shareholder value while decreasing our environmental footprint," Chowdhry noted. "By integrating emerging technologies like biotechnology and nanotechnology with our strengths in chemistry and materials science, we will rely on technical innovations to develop new products and processes that use renewable resources, consume less energy, and produce less waste. We call it "Sustainability through Integrated Science.'"
DuPont is pursuing its third major transformation in its 200-year history. Throughout the 19th century, the company was known for explosives. In the 20th century, DuPont became a diversified chemical company. Today, DuPont is a science company focusing on synergies among its strengths in chemistry and materials science and emerging technologies like nanotechnology and biotechnology.
Since the early 1990s, DuPont has been recognized as a leader in corporate environmentalism, earning a number of awards including the World Environment Center's Gold Medal. DuPont has consistently earned high marks on social responsibility and environmental progress in surveys such as Fortune Magazine's "Most Admired Companies" and t
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Contact: Anthony Farina
anthony.r.farina@usa.dupont.com
302-774-4114
DuPont
15-Feb-2003