Press materials

HYUNDAI: GENESIS FOREST PROJECT Fact Sheet

For more information, contact:
Jon Bellinger
Ketchum Public Relations
312.228.6894
jonathan.bellinger@ketchum.com

Genesis Forest Project
As an automotive company, Hyundai realizes that it inherently is responsible for the health of the environment.  As such, the company has dedicated itself to making a difference and empowering change in fossil fuel consumption, fuel economy and carbon emissions.  Over the years, scientists and engineers have developed many elaborate inventions to reduce harmful carbon emissions and their impact, but one of the smartest ways to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) is also one of the most natural: planting more trees.

That’s why if you buy a 2009 Genesis sedan, Hyundai will fully offset your carbon output for one full year through the Genesis Forest Project.  The idea is simple: if you buy a Genesis, Hyundai will plant trees in a 3,000 acre tropical forest region in Brazil’s “Cerrado,” a vast tropical savanna that’s home not only to many endangered South American species, but that serves as one of the world’s most effective carbon sequestration systems. Through a partnership with CarbonFund.org, the Genesis Forest Project will offset 93,170 metric tons of CO2 over the next twelve months, and sustainably reforest a region that’s crucial to Earth’s environmental health.

In addition, part of the Genesis Forest Project will support eco-research and-tourism in Cerrado, fostering international environmental education while creating local jobs and enabling smaller businesses and individuals to take part in directly supporting local reforestation.

Illuminati Motor Works Partnership
Hyundai realizes that while effective, carbon offsets are a temporary fix to a larger problem, so in conjunction with the Genesis Forest Project environmental initiative Hyundai is also committed to helping make existing automotive technology more efficient in the long-term. To this end, Hyundai has partnered with Illuminati Motor Works, a group of weekend warrior engineers, automotive technicians, graphic artists and car enthusiasts who have teamed up to develop a market- and production-ready 100 MPG concept car to compete for the Automotive X PRIZE.

Impressed by the high fuel mileage IMW manages to wring out of regular, stock production cars, Hyundai wanted to see what the team could do with some its own models and sent them two cars—one Sonata and one Elantra—to experiment. Over the next few weeks, IMW will tear the two cars apart and try a wide range of eco-mods to determine which ones work the best and which ones are a waste of time and money.

Starting today, the team will live-blog their efforts each day on HyundaiEcoMods.com, and invite comments, feedback and participation from web users interested in learning how to turn their gas guzzlers into hyper-efficient driving machines using inexpensive, readily-available parts. Both novices and hardcore eco-modders and hyper-milers alike are welcome to participate.

Hyundai at 2008 Maker Faire

Finally, at the 2008 Maker Faire in Austin, Texas, Hyundai will continue to help DIYers boost their vehicles’ fuel-efficiency by providing a live, hands-on eco-modding workshop using their Hyundai Sonata and Elantra. Event attendees will be invited to try different mods on the two cars and learn how to perform the same alterations to their own vehicles back home.

Date: October 18 – 19, 2008
Location: Travis County Fairgrounds (Austin, Texas)