Today, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), announced that it has been awarded Bronze level membership to Investors in the Environment (iiE). This scheme is designed to help businesses reduce their environmental impact and raise awareness amongst their colleagues. It also helps businesses save money on their energy bills.
Bronze membership signifies that the RCVS has established a solid environmental policy and processes to measure its use of resources.
The RCVS has been working hard to improve its environmental footprint over the last few years. In July 2021, after a recommendation by the Environment and Sustainability Working Party (ESWP), the RCVS signed up to iiE.
The staff Green Team has been instrumental in the RCVS’s internal improvements. They support the College in making its work more sustainable and plan events to engage staff. The Environment and Sustainability Working Party has also been instrumental in improving the profession’s image.
The Green Team has developed an environmental policy that is available for all staff. The Green Team has taken a number of actions to implement the policy, including working with IT at the College to ensure that all screens have power-saving mode enabled on all computers. They also improved waste and recycling in the RCVS office premises. And they are looking into ways to make travel for work more sustainable. The College will now be striving for iiE silver, which is a higher level than Bronze. This will require the College’s to have a sustainable travel plan as well as an additional resource efficiency project.
Lizzie Lockett (RCVS CEO) said: I am proud of all the achievements made by the RCVS Green Team. I want to thank its members and for their hard work to make the RCVS a more environmentally-friendly workplace. The organisation and all staff members are committed to reducing our carbon footprint. It’s amazing that this iiE award has recognized the achievements we’ve made in reducing our environmental impact.
Sue Paterson is the RCVS Council Environment Lead. She said that she is delighted with the results of the RCVS Green Team’s hard work and commitment. I have noticed the small changes that the team has made at RCVS in the last twelve month, such as introducing power saving mode to employee laptops or running lunch and learning sessions where staff can learn more about the Colleges environment policy. These and other initiatives are a reflection of their desire to make College more sustainable. I am proud of their accomplishments and look forward to the College reaching Silver status in the not-too-distant.