Contributions

In 2005, GM and the GM Foundation contributed more than $61 million to charitable causes through cash contributions, in-kind donations, and participation in charity events.  GM typically donates products, components, and other equipment to a variety of universities, colleges, vocational schools, secondary schools, and correctional institutions with automotive-service or engineering programs.  GM also donates non-product equipment and real estate to selected non-profit charitable institutions in the communities in which we operate.  In addition, the company participates in numerous charity events benefiting a diverse group of philanthropic causes and organizations.  These contributions reach their target groups through the GM Foundation and GM corporate contributions.

2005 Contributions Worldwide

In addition to corporate and Foundation support, the continued outpouring of support from the GM family in times of great need is considerable.  GM's employees are a diverse group of people who bring a wide array of unique and special talents to their company.  This year's initiatives have focused on:

• Disaster relief
• Civic and community support
• Support for education
• Support for arts and culture
• Support for health

Disaster Relief

In times of crisis, a community's needs spike sharply, and the response must be swift.  Since its inception in 2000, GM Global Aid has facilitated over $12 million in donations.  The program quickly directs funds from the GM Foundation to those in need and benefits from our national and international units contributing vehicles, supplies and volunteers.  An essential component is the Global Aid web site, which allows not only GM employees, but also others worldwide, to contribute funds to disaster relief efforts, many of which are matched by the GM Foundation.
In 2005, GM Global Aid facilitated the donation of nearly $8 million to organizations worldwide to assist in disaster relief efforts.  These donations included:

• $10,000 to the American Red Cross to assist with flood-relief efforts in Pensacola, FL.
• Over $21,000 to match employee contributions to CARE and UNICEF to assist in disaster relief efforts as a result of the South Asia earthquake and flooding in Central America.
• As a result of the tsunami in Southeast Asia, contributions from the GM Foundation and GM employees around the world totaled over $3.3 million.
• The GM Foundation, GMAC, and GM employees around the world contributed over $3.8 million to support disaster relief efforts as a result of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

2005 Hurricane Season

The 2005 hurricane season was the deadliest on record in the United States.  Several hurricanes made landfall, with the most powerful being Katrina, which devastated the Gulf Coast region, followed shortly thereafter by Rita, which caused damage to the Texas and west Louisiana coastal areas.

Hurricane Katrina was one of the fiercest ever seen in the U.S.  The major metropolitan area of New Orleans, LA experienced major breeches in its levee system, which resulted in extreme flooding throughout the city.  The American Red Cross indicated that this was the largest mobilization of its resources in its history for a single natural disaster.  Thousands of people in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi lost their homes, belongings and jobs, and were in need of shelter, food, water and medicine.  Approximately 750,000 survivors were dispersed across the nation.

GM, the GM Foundation, and GMAC were among the first responders to the relief efforts. 

• An immediate combined contribution from the GM Foundation and GMAC of $500,000 to American Red Cross Hurricane 2005 Relief fund.  $100,000 of this contribution was specifically designated to the American Red Cross Northwest Louisiana Chapter in Shreveport, LA (a GM plant city), which sheltered over 15,000 evacuees.  GM employees in Shreveport were instrumental in supplying volunteer services and goods to those impacted in their area.

• GM Foundation matched, dollar-for-dollar, employee contributions to American Red Cross Hurricane 2005 Relief fund.  A specific GM employee donation site was established on GMAbility.com.  Employee contributions eligible for this match, including gate collections, made across the world totaled over $1.6 million.

• GM Katrina Assistance Fund was established to assist evacuees with community-based projects, partnering with local non-profit organizations and utilizing GM and GMAC employee volunteers.  The contributions to these projects totaled $45,000.

• In-kind donations included nearly 150 vehicles provided to the American Red Cross, including HUMMERs, full-size SUVs, trucks, and vans; 10 vehicles were provided to the Humane Society of the United States to assist in the rescue coordination of abandoned, trapped, or displaced animals; 12 HUMMER H3s were provided to the Louisiana government for use in rebuilding efforts.

AMERICAN RED CROSS PARTNERSHIP

In 2005, the GM Foundation launched a six-year agreement with the American Red Cross over which time the Foundation will donate a total of $4 million to assist the Red Cross in its disaster and emergency relief programs.  This donation includes the procurement of HUMMER vehicles, which will be delivered to various Red Cross chapters across the U.S., allowing the chapters to strengthen their emergency preparation and disaster response capability. 

The first HUMMERS were delivered in 2005 to Chapters in areas hardest hit by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, including Baton Rouge and New Orleans, LA; Biloxi, MS; and Houston, TX.  In addition, two HUMMER H1s were donated to the National Headquarters in Washington, D.C., to be used as communication vehicles.

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Civic and Community Support

The GM Foundation supports organizations that strengthen community awareness and improvement.  In 2005, the combined contributions from the GM Foundation and GM totaled $11.3 million for civic and community efforts.

Martin Luther King Memorial

Since 2000, General Motors has been a proud corporate sponsor of the Washington, D.C. Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, Inc., and its effort to build a memorial honoring one of America's greatest inspirational leaders.  The ceremonial groundbreaking on the much-anticipated project took place November 13, 2006 in Washington, D.C.  The King Memorial, the first on the National Mall to honor a person of color and a non-president, will stand on four acres at the edge of the Tidal Basin.  It will be situated adjacent to the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial and in a direct line between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials.  The site will create a visual “line of leadership” from the Lincoln Memorial – where Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963 – to the Jefferson Memorial.  GM is committed to being a driving force behind the memorial and honoring Dr. King’s contributions to the civil rights movement and humanity.  GM and the GM Foundation donated $10 million to the campaign, becoming the lead corporate sponsor in the effort to build the monument.  GM’s commitment will continue well beyond the groundbreaking by providing continued leadership for ongoing fundraising efforts.  So far, corporations, organizations, and individuals have raised two-thirds of the $100 million needed to build and maintain the memorial.

Nelson Mandela Children's Fund

The Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund (NMCF), founded by Nelson R. Mandela, is a development agency focused on changing the ways in which society treats children and youth in order to improve their lives.

In October 2002, General Motors (GM) South Africa entered into a partnership with the NMCF.  The partnership commenced with GM South Africa donating five Isuzu utility vehicles to the NMCF to benefit communities and in support of children and development.  Four vehicles were provided to four projects, with the fifth vehicle being used by NMCF Programs Department to access other community-based projects.

NMCF provided the vehicles to the following organizations:

• Umtata Child Abuse Resource Centre (UCARC), which works to uphold and promote the rights of the individual child and children in general, through its commitment to promoting cultural values and practices to promote children’s rights and accessibility to basic social services.  The vehicle allowed UCARC to reach remote communities, improved access to services, increased its ability to work with other service providers, and increased visibility of the project in the community.

• Sibusisiwe Home for the Mentally Disabled.  This organization provides day care and shelter for mentally and physically disabled children.  The donated vehicle is used to collect donated food and other basic needs; facilitate the safe transportation of children to clinics, hospitals, or to specialized medical consultations; and to enhance the commitment and capacity of staff since the vehicle can provide practical, quick, and reliable solutions to the many challenges faced by the home.

• Thembalethu Home Based Care (THBC)  The vision of this organization is to provide a haven of love and hope to those infected and affected by HIV/AIDS (estimated at 47 percent) and poverty (+60 percent unemployment) in the Nkomazi Region of Mpumalanga, South Africa.  The vehicle is used for project work, including its use as a hearse for the poorest of poor families that cannot afford funeral parlors, weekly food distribution of food parcels and bulk food to orphans and patients, delivery of medicine to home-based care groups and ARV clinic, and the transportation of care-workers, youth, caregivers, and orphans to functions and training courses. 

• Kingdom Trust is involved in programs that help orphans and vulnerable children affected and infected by HIV/AIDS.  It deals with a wide spectrum of related issues from a child, family, and community level.  Various services are provided, including counseling, life skills, assistance with schoolwork referrals, youth enrichment programs, art, and recreation.  Families are visited and assessed, children from parentless households are assisted with referrals for foster placement, and food parcels are provided for the families with the greatest needs.  In 2003, the Kingdom Trust was involved in 14 communities and seven in 2004/05.

The vehicles provided by GM South Africa have proven to be of direct and demonstrable assistance to organizations supporting the well being of children in South Africa.  The support also assisted families and communities of orphaned and vulnerable children to get resources, such as food, and complemented efforts to access services for children such as birth certificates, identity documents, and other devices from the state.

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Support for Education

During 2005, GM continued relationships with universities through the Key Institution Program, which is made up of schools selected primarily for the quality of their engineering and business programs.  Educational contributions from GM and the GM Foundation totaled more than $10.8 million in 2005, with approximately 80 percent directed to science and engineering, and much of the remainder supporting business education.  This support has been primarily in the form of cash grants and equipment donations.

GM has consistently been a leader among contributors to education, both in terms of financial support and the quality of the programs receiving support.

The GM Matching Contributions Program continues GM's support for education and learning by matching employees' contributions to a variety of eligible institutions.  Within program guidelines, the GM match doubles employee gifts, significantly increasing the impact on the recipients.  In 2005, GM matched more than $709,210, representing more than 1,972 employee contributions to 331 accredited degree-granting institutions and libraries.

GM also provides direct support to students.  In 2005, GM granted 1,000 scholarships, totaling more than $2 million, to outstanding engineering, environmental, public policy, and business students. In addition, many participating students completed summer internships at GM facilities.
The PACE Partnership links GM, EDS, Sun Microsystems, and UGS in the support of strategically selected academic institutions worldwide, to develop the automotive product life-cycle management skills of the future.

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Support for the Arts and Culture

For many years, the GM Foundation has been a major contributor to a variety of arts and cultural institutions.  The GM Foundation continues to support these organizations to promote appreciation of the arts, recognition of diverse cultures, and awareness of arts in education programs.  In 2005, GM and the GM Foundation contributed more than $2 million to a diverse group of these organizations.

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Support for Health

General Motors directs its health care philanthropic efforts to support various health-related activities and organizations that target access to appropriate care and communicating patient care standards.  In 2005, combined contributions from GM and the GM Foundation for health and human services were $14.3 million.

Access to Care and Information

When a patient is diagnosed, they, their family, and friends may want information, referral to community services, practical assistance, or counseling.  GM Health Care Initiatives (HCI) supports specific efforts that put patients, their families and doctors in touch with the critical information they need as quickly as possible.

Quality of Care Standards

GM HCI supports organizations working to communicate quality patient care standards to purchasers, providers, consumer organizations, individuals, policymakers, and health care researchers in a form that is useful for health care decision-making.  These standards of care should be driven by the quality of care, not only by the cost of care, and should include participation in clinical trials and quality of life considerations.

Select Disease Research and Prevention

GM supports organizations working to further research related to the causes, prevention, and treatment of various diseases, such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.

Cancer Research

GM established the GM Cancer Research Awards in 1978 to honor scientists worldwide who have been selected by their peers for hallmark achievements in research on the causes, prevention, and treatment of cancer.  Cancer research remains one of GM's philanthropic priorities, and this year marks the 28th anniversary of the GM Cancer Research Awards.  The awards, valued at $250,000 each, are considered among the most prestigious in medicine.  The awards have recognized the accomplishments of 108 Laureates, 13 of whom have gone on to win Nobel Prizes.  The GM Foundation contributed more than $1 million to the Cancer Research Awards program in 2005 and has contributed more than $53 million to cancer-related endeavors since inception.

Angel Flight America Partnership

Saab Automobile USA has signed a partnership agreement with Angel Flight America (AFA) to support and promote the charity's urgent air transportation services.  AFA, the U.S.'s largest aviation-related charitable organization, will receive $75,000 from Saab.  Saab will also donate the use of six of its 9-7X midsize sport utility vehicles for one year to be used by the organization's "Earth Angels."  AFA flies more than 90 percent of all medical/emergency "mercy flights" in the U.S.  AFA pilots, flying their own or rented aircraft, pay all the expenses associated with the flight.  In 2005 alone, Angel Flight America pilots contributed more than $25 million as they flew some 23,000 missions carrying more than 57,000 people, many of whom would otherwise have had no access to the urgent care they needed. 

Centers for Disease Control Foundation Partnerships

In early 2006, the General Motors Foundation and the Centers for Disease Control Foundation (CDC) announced a joint initiative resulting in the procurement of vehicles in eight developing countries over the next two years.  The Centers for Disease Control provides rapid detection and response for emerging health threats and supports disease research, prevention, and care in 43 countries around the world.  Under the partnership, the GM Foundation will fund the initial purchase of 16 vehicles in eight countries, including Angola, Cambodia, Kenya, Laos, Tanzania, Thailand, South Africa, and Uganda.  The CDC requested the assistance of the GM Foundation to help acquire the vehicles, which will be used to support emerging disease diagnosis and assessment, as well as malaria, HIV, and refugee health programs.

HIV/AIDS

For General Motors, HIV/AIDS is a global human rights and health and safety issue.  As part of our ongoing commitment to human rights globally, through our endorsement of the Global Sullivan Principles, adherence to the GM Core Values, and commitment to our internal credo "Winning with Integrity,” GM has been and will continue to be at the forefront of the HIV/AIDS issue.

We recognize that our economic success is inextricably linked with the health and vitality of the communities where we operate.  While GM's business operations worldwide have not been significantly impacted by the HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria pandemics, we recognize that our business success will continue to be tied to a healthy, productive workforce and a healthy, viable customer base.  We have health and safety protocols in place to address tuberculosis and malaria and have been especially proactive in efforts to build awareness of HIV/AIDS.

HIV/AIDS is a preventable disease that affects:

• the productivity of employees, especially those in developing nations,
• the very fabric of family and community in which our employees live and work,
• and the macroeconomics of a developing nation's future.

As HIV/AIDS is preventable if those at risk are educated about the dangers, GM has determined that we can have the greatest impact by focusing on awareness building, with particular emphasis on high-risk communities where we have operations.  Our HIV/AIDS strategy has two key dimensions:  programs for our employees, their families, and communities; and outreach to the global community, creating partnerships with industry, governments and NGOs.

Workplace Programs

General Motors is committed to provide a safe and healthy work environment for our employees worldwide.  We have developed and implemented a workplace program which is aimed at preventing new infections, providing care and support for employees infected and managing the impact of the epidemic in the organization and the community. 

GM's HIV/AIDS workplace programs seek to ensure a policy of nondiscrimination and support for those employees living with HIV/AIDS, as well as to invest in prevention, through education and awareness, to reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS in our employees, their families and their communities.

While each HIV/AIDS program is tailored to honor country laws, trade agreements, and cultural sensitivities, common components make up the framework of every program.  Using the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) HIV/AIDS templated education and prevention program, GM is targeting manufacturing sites in high-risk areas in the Asia Pacific and Africa regions.  The program was successfully piloted in GM Thailand in 2001, followed by GM India, GM South Africa, GM Indonesia, and GM East Africa.  We are initiating implementation of this program in multiple GM China facilities.  Programs typically include top leadership engagement; a human resource policy on HIV/AIDS; cross-functional steering committees; peer training; new-employee orientation; family and community outreach; and relationship building with private sector, governmental, NGO, and health care organizations.

Many of our programs have been acclaimed locally and nationally.  The National HIV/AIDS Partnership recognized GM with a Pioneer Award at its first ever "Red Ribbon Leadership Awards on 2005 World AIDS Day at the United Nations," for demonstrated and exceptional corporate leadership and social responsibility. 

GM Health Care Initiatives, under the direction of the Corporate Medical Director, oversees GM HIV/AIDS programs that:

• Operate employee programs in South Africa, Kenya, Thailand, Indonesia, and India and are rolling out programs throughout the rest of our Asian operations.  Programs provide employees with education and awareness; address the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS, provide access to medical services, including voluntary testing and counseling (VCT) and treatment tailored to national and local laws and cultural sensitivities.
  
  (Of note: GM South Africa monthly VCT campaigns, such as the "I Know My Status drive”; GM India and Thailand poster contests; and condom distribution as part of GM East Africa's "Dual Method" campaign.)

• Support community outreach initiatives such as an HIV/AIDS Hotline in Thailand and awareness training at community events, health centers and schools in India, Thailand and South Africa which are conducted by GM employee peer educators.

• Help support an orphanage in Thailand caring for over 500 children of AIDS patients and those that have succumbed to the disease.
• Donated five trucks that allow the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund in South Africa to help HIV-positive children. 

Community Partnership at General Motors East Africa

On June 14, 2006, General Motors East Africa signed an agreement with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) mission in East Africa and Family Health International to form an innovative alliance aimed at addressing the problem of HIV/AIDS through job creation. 

The new partnership, called LifeWorks, will strengthen the economic capacity of economically vulnerable women and orphans who reside in communities surrounding truck stops along transport corridors.   Bill Lay, the Managing Director of General Motors East Africa, will co-chair the LifeWorks Partnership Business Advisory Council that will provide business expertise to the partnership.   GM staff will train targeted groups in strategic planning and business skills at a total cost of about $240,000 over four years, and USAID will match this amount.

Public Education and Awareness Campaign

GM recognizes that the HIV/AIDS pandemic is too large for any one entity to solve; governments, civil society, and the business sector all must get involved.  We believe that through partnerships of all kinds, the world can put an end to the ravages of this terrible disease.  To this end, GM is sponsoring the dissemination and distribution of A Closer Walk, the critically acclaimed film by Oscar-nominated Director Bob Bilheimer that explores the intricate relationship between health, dignity and human rights and shows the harsh realities of HIV/AIDS in the world.

A Closer Walk raises fundamental questions about our responsibilities to one another and offers hope amidst tragedy.  The film was conceived as a tool to create a groundswell of public opinion that will dramatically alter the climate in which global priorities about HIV/AIDS are established, and policies are made.  The premise of the project is that until such time as the enormous power of concerned and committed public opinion is brought to bear on the devastating human tragedy that is HIV/AIDS, the crisis will only worsen.

GM's awareness and education campaign is in its fourth year.  By the end of 2006, A Closer Walk will have been seen by more than a billion people in theatres, auditoriums, town halls, classrooms, churches, NGO venues, private homes, and on television networks around the world.

Some Highlights

• A Closer Walk has premiered in cities across the globe, including New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Washington, DC, Toronto, Bangkok, Kiev, Johannesburg, Durban, Phnom Penh and New Delhi.
• A Closer Walk was chosen to open the 2004 AIDS Film Festival at the Scala Theatre in Bangkok, Thailand in July at the 15th International AIDS Conference.  Over 900 people attended the Asian premiere of the film.
• The world premiere television broadcast took place on World AIDS Day, December 1, 2004 in South Africa on SABC-TV on primetime and uninterrupted.  GM partnered with SABC and GM South Africa to sponsor the broadcast.
• On March 5, 2005, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation aired an uninterrupted, nationwide broadcast on CBC Newsworld, followed immediately by a panel discussion, "What Can I Do?"
• September 2005, Cambodian national broadcast sponsored by the United Nations Development Program.
• · The U. S. television premiere of A Closer Walk was broadcast on August 31, 2006 on PBS stations across the country.
• Film trailer sponsored by GM at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival on screens stationed at the "Red Carpet" and "Festival Stage".
• Ambassador John Rood distributed copies at the Caribbean Regional Chiefs of Mission HIV/AIDS Conference in Nassau, Bahamas in October 2006.
• Plans for broadcasts in India and China are in the works.

GM's partners in this global endeavor include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the M.A.C. AIDS Fund, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, amfAR, the Global Health Council, Action India Trust, UNDP, the World Bank, International AIDS Trust, the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (GBC), the Asia Society, and RADAR/Canadian Rotary.  A full listing of A Closer Walk events can be found at http://www.acloserwalk.org.

Douglas Gardner, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Resident Coordinator, Cambodia, premiered A Closer Walk (ACW) in September 2005.  He writes,

"The power of ACW is that it reaches people at a very inner level.  It touches everyone, regardless of their location on the planet.  Not only does it open up issues on HIV/AIDS, but it advances related issues of human rights, children, women and more.  For our work in the UN on all of these issues, the film was so very welcome."

In short, we are grateful that General Motors chose to sponsor this film.  Please know how valuable it has been in our outreach to people throughout Cambodia… We plan to keep the momentum going with a deeper and wider response that leverages the charge that ACW has given."

It All Comes Together

In November 2005, GM South Africa (GMSA) was honored in Johannesburg by the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) for its corporate social investment and HIV/AIDS program.  Winning the top accolade, the Star-of-the-Stars Award, GMSA was recognized for taking a creative approach to HIV/AIDS awareness for its role in the screening of the AIDS documentary A Closer Walk on South African TV station, SABC2.

Added to this were the awareness efforts of the company's trained, employee-peer-educator group which brought the film to an additional 18,444 people.  The judging panel commented, "Innovative ideas and programs like GM's A Closer Walk are vitally necessary to make a significant enough impact on the disease.  Well done to all involved and we encourage you to put even more effort into distributing your documentary as widely as possible and as quickly as possible.  Our future depends on it." 

GMSA is partnering with the GMSA Foundation to develop a curriculum based on A Closer Walk with the goal of distribution into all South African schools.  Louis Hattingh, GMSA Employee Benefits & Services Manager states, "Apart from awareness, voluntary testing and counseling, and treatment, our comprehensive HIV workplace program focuses on empowering our employees with awareness skills so that they are able to empower others.  To this end, we believe that the documentary A Closer Walk is a powerful tool able to reach people irrespective of their race, gender, and education; and this is the ultimate objective of our awareness campaigns."

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