For more like this story about Rolex from City A.M. – The Magazine, tap here Rolex is renowned for many things.
Expertly made watches, notorious preowned prices, and, most recently, putting emojis on a watch historically worn by presidents. It is not quite so well-known for is its efforts to protect the planet through its Awards for Enterprise scheme and its Perpetual Planet initiative . Rolex has been giving bursaries under the Awards umbrella since 1976, when then-CEO André J Heiniger set them up to mark the 50th anniversary of the Rolex Oyster, the world’s first water-resistant watch.
According to Heiniger: “We initiated the Rolex Awards for Enterprise out of a conviction that we had a responsibility as a company to take an active interest in improving life on our planet and in the desire to foster values we cherish – quality, ingenuity, determination and, above all, a spirit of enterprise.” Originally intended as a one off and to champion exploration for the sake of discovery, the Awards have now changed to support and promote long-term individuals and organisations who use science to understand and devise solutions to today’s environmental challenges. This change was further reinforced by Rolex’s Perpetual Planet initiative, set up in 2019 as an expanding portfolio of eco-centric partnerships, such as the Under the Pole expeditions that push the boundaries of underwater exploration.
There’s also the One Ocean Foundation and Menkab, both working to prote.