1. Project: Turn off Indifference Turn on Responsibility
Category: CORPORATE SUSTAINABILITY&RESPONSABILITY
Summary
Eastern Lithuania suffers from a dominating public attitude of irresponsibility toward
electricity network matters. Theft levels of electricity and electricity network hardware
are high, individual human safety perception is low, and public willingness to perform
civil duty related to the electricity infrastructure (i.e. clearing branches close to
electricity wires on private property) is nearly zero.
The Client and the Agency developed a 10-year social responsibility programme
aimed at addressing and tackling the problem. The programme - “Operacija 2020” -
strongly involves local communities through the partnership with the Association of
Chiefs of Local Authorities of Lithuania and proposes to maintain a high media
profile.
In the first year, the programme started the process of changing people’s attitudes
toward the electricity infrastructure and their own duties, helping to achieve the
tangible results documented below.
Situation
Each year, AB “Rytų skirstomieji tinklai“ (Eng. transl. “Eastern Distribution Networks” -
further referred to by the acronym RST, renamed LESTO in 2011) suffers losses
amounting to millions of litas due to illegal consumption of electric energy, theft of
electric network tools, parts and equipment, intentional breakage of network
equipment. Due to carelessness and people’s passivity toward crime in the network,
irresponsible behaviour or lack of understanding regarding their own individual duties,
thousands of households are periodically left without electricity for several days
annually. 900 network breakdowns caused by broken trees in private territories were
recorded in 2009. Because of this, nearly 111,000 consumers were left without
electric energy for 20 days. Unsafe and irresponsible digging caused more than
13,000 residents to go without electricity for 4 days. Each year, 8 to 12 accidents
occur when people are injured (sometimes fatally) due to careless behaviour near
network equipment or forced entry into RST-protected areas.

2. In 2010, RST undertook an EU directive for rational energy consumption and
committed to reduce annual network losses due to burglary, theft, vandalism and
consumer unwillingness to do their duties 20% by 2020. This ambitious goal has led
to not only improvements in the company’s infrastructure, but also to a widely-known
initiative that prompts changes in people’s attitudes and behaviour – making people
act like citizens who treat electricity and its network as their own property. RST and
Integrity PR created a long-term social responsibility programme “Turn off
Indifference, Turn on Responsibility”.
Objectives of the programme
· To fight illegal consumption of electricity and intentional equipment damage
· To protect people from injury and accidents related to electricity
· To inform people about the possible dangers of electricity and to help them to do
their own duties as electricity consumers
Goals of the programme
· To encourage people to report illegal electricity consumption and unsafe behaviour
in the RST website and via confidence telephone lines
· To organize town meetings with local authorities and media to promote discussion
about unsafe and illegal electricity consumption as well as responsible resident
attitude and their duties on private property
· To provide information - guides, posters, information visualisations, electronic
brochures - for Eastern Lithuanian residents about the project increasing familiarity
with safe, responsible electricity consumption
· To organize problem-solving project competitions for local authorities and
communities
Stakeholders of programme:
· Residents of Eastern Lithuania (customers of RST)
· Regional media
· Local authorities
· Local communities

3. The results of the programme were measured by opinion polls (Omnibus), media
monitoring analysis, and internal research by RST on civic reporting (including e-mail,
web, and telephone calls regarding illegal electricity consumption, possible burglary of
electricity network equipment or vandalism).
Strategy
RST and Integrity PR created a long term social responsibility strategy and initiated
the campaign “Operacija 2020” (Eng. transl. “Operation 2020”) the goal of which was
to educate people and to promote responsible consumption of electricity and safe
behavior in risky territories. The Association of Chiefs of Local Authorities of Lithuania
was invited to become a partner in the programme. The programme activities
included media relations (meeting media and presenting related regional statistics,
informing them about telephone numbers and e-mail addresses to be used for
reporting important issues, delivering regular media releases), relations with local
authorities (personal meetings with chiefs of local communities and the communities
themselves to invite them to join the initiative and to participate in the project
competition), relations with local communities (public discussions and meetings), on-
line communication (guides for safe and responsible consumption of electricity,
visualizations on RST website), printed information about safe and responsible
energy consumption (guides, posters) were voluntarily distributed in 274 local
communities.
Execution
The programme was implemented in three stages:
· Public announcement. The programme launch in May, 2010 in Vilnius during a
national media conference that was organized together with partners – The
Association of Chiefs of Local Authorities of Lithuania.
· Direct communication to target audiences. The launch was followed up with
road-show meetings in 15 towns of Eastern Lithuania (July-October). During these
meetings, RST representatives together with journalists and local communities
discussed local security and responsibility issues. Posters and guides for safe and
responsible electricity consumption were provided. Local libraries received project
information. In July, the programme was supported by the project competition for local
authorities and communities – they were invited to provide their own ideas and
actions plans that could help solve local issues related to safe and responsible
consumption of electricity.
· Closure of the first year by capped of with an awarding to local communities for
best ideas and contributions to programme. The first stage of the programme was
finished in November. RST received 18 communities projects of which 6 were
awarded with financial support.

4. The programme was implemented according to the original plan. However,
participation of partners required more encouragement than planned.
Documented Results
· During the campaign, 18 meetings with local media and communities were
organized. In the meetings, RST started partnership with 99 local authorities.
· During June–September, 5000 guides for safe and responsible electricity
consumption were distributed in 274 local communities.
· RST received 18 original projects and 6 of them were awarded.
· Awareness of the initiative in Eastern Lithuania reached 16% after 6 months of the
educational campaign in national and local media (Source: Omnibus/ Baltijos tyrimai).
The initiative was widely discussed in national and regional media – 100 publications
in newspapers, internet, R&TV.
· Reporting on electricity theft increased by 80% in the first year of the programme.
The monetary value recovered from reported electricity theft fully covered the
expenses of the programme in 2010.
· On 28th April, 2011 LESTO (formerly and at the start of the project RST) was
awarded by the Ministry of Social Security and Labour, as well as the United Nations
Development Programme in Lithuania as the best debut for Social Company of the
Year – for LESTO social initiatives “Operation 2020”, “As Much as Needed”, and
“Electro Magic”.
Name of the link URL
http://www.lesto.lt/lt/socialine-
Website of LESTO atsakomybe/socialines-atsakomybes-
projektai/operacija-2020/951
Website of The Asociation of Chiefs of
http://www.seniunai.lt/lt/naujienos/?id=18244
Local Authorities of Lithuania
Website of the Ministry of Social
http://www.socmin.lt/index.php?-240869491
Affairs and Labour Labour