Eurocopter last week held the first board meeting of its new Corporate Foundation, which unites the company’s humanitarian and philanthropic activities worldwide,underscoring the company’s increased commitment to social responsibility.

The Eurocopter Corporate Foundation is an independent, apolitical and non-profit legal entity funded by Eurocopter, Eurocopter Deutschland and Eurocopter Group subsidiaries.The Foundation is dedicated to the following areas of service: emergency humanitarian aid;support for developing countries; assistance for the disadvantaged including the ill,handicapped, and those living in extremely difficult conditions; and youth development through the transfer of aeronautical know-how to underprivileged youth.

The Foundation’s outreach will extend to partnerships with selected non-governmental organizations and associations that have both a national and international scope. Eurocopter Group employees may participate in projects supported by the Foundation either by volunteering their time or offering a financial contribution.

“Social responsibility and providing help to those in need is a part of Eurocopter’s DNA. Many of our helicopters perform vital missions every day, and we have been involved for many years in a wide range of humanitarian initiatives,” explained Eurocopter President & CEO Lutz Bertling.“The Eurocopter Corporate Foundation provides an excellent framework to unify  and expand these activities, further underscoring our commitment to being a responsible corporation that contributes to the global community. I sincerely hope the creation of the Eurocopter Corporate Foundation will give our employees one more reason to be a proud member of the Eurocopter team.”

Mr. Bertling chairs the Foundation’s board of directors, which is composed of Eurocopter representatives and three external experts appointed for their skills and perspective in the areas of action of the foundation.

 The experts were named during the board meeting:

· Jean-Claude Deslandes, MD: an anesthesiologist specialized in emergency medicine, founder of Montpellier’s emergency ambulance service (SAMU);
· Jean-Paul de Gaudemar: education adviser to the Prime Minister of France and former chancellor of Aix-Marseille Academy;
· Egon Ramms: a former German Army general and commander of NATO’s Joint Force Command focused on the International Security Assistance Force mission (ISAF).