UNAOC and BMW GROUP renew ground-breaking partnership

New York/Munich (ots) - During the Alliance of Civilizations Group
of Friends Ministerial meeting held on Friday at the United Nations
headquarters, a major public-private partnership between BMW Group
(http://www.bmwgroup.com/) and the UN Alliance of Civilizations
(UNAOC) (http://www.unaoc.org/) was renewed. Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz
Al-Nasser, the UN High Representative for UNAOC and Mr. Bill
McAndrews, BMW Group Vice President, signed the agreement in the
presence of the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, ministers from over
100 countries, and the heads of international organizations as well
as media representatives. Mr. McAndrews was participating in the
ministerial meeting which was convened by Mr. Al-Nasser during the
68th Session of the UN General Assembly.

This renewal brings an exemplary shared project, The Intercultural
Innovation Award (http://interculturalinnovation.org/), to a new
level of activity, thereby highlighting the potential of
public-private partnerships in furthering the international
community's goals. The Intercultural Innovation Award is a global
venture, to identify and provide monetary and in-kind support to
grassroots initiatives that are working to alleviate identity-based
tensions and conflicts around the world. Last year, the award
benefitted over 140,000 individuals around the world. This
represented a two-fold increase from the previous year. Additionally,
since its inception, the award has tripled the number of communities
it is helping people in.

The two parties believe that this new model of collaboration
between the UN and the private sector creates deeper impact, as both
provide their respective expertise to ensure the growth of each
project. Crucially, this renewal means an increase in the level of
support that will be provided to the initiatives identified through
the award. Both partners manage the award jointly - mobilizing their
resources, time, and networks to support the awardees.

Pictures are available at:
Picture 1:
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130926/642766-a )

Picture 2:
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130926/642766-b )

For further questions please contact:
BMW Group Corporate and Governmental Affairs

Milena Pighi, Social Responsibility
tel: +49-89-382-21248
email: Milena.PA.Pighi@bmw.de

Alexander Bilgeri, Head of Business, Finance and Sustainability
Communications
tel: +49-89-382-24544
email: Alexander.Bilgeri@bmw.de