Firefish Ltd Environmental Policy

Firefish was founded to do more than just business; it was founded with people at its heart, and the idea that if we bring together a bunch of smart people, support and empower them, we can do amazing things.  Central to this founding principle is the belief that a business should do more than just make money – it should have a positive impact wherever it can.  This starts with our impact on the people who work here and stretches out across the people we touch, our clients and respondents, our suppliers, to our local community and the wider planet.

Whilst we recognise the limits of us being able to change the world, we believe that whatever positive impact we can have, however small, is not only worth doing, it is our duty and our responsibility – as well as giving us personal purpose and reward.

We want to support and encourage all of our people to apply good environmental awareness and practices to their chosen work environment, whether that is in the office, home office and / or co working space.

This policy consolidates a set of commitments made by the Firefish Group for the continued improvement of our environmental performance.

The Firefish Groups environmental commitments are to:

• Fulfil all compliance obligations including laws, regulations and other requirements relating to our environmental aspects
• Take action to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions in line with Science Based Targets, compensate for unavoidable carbon emissions and seek opportunities to continuously improve our environmental performance and prevent pollution
• Be transparent in reporting our progress and challenges along our journey
• Dispose of all waste according to the principles of the waste hierarchy
• Ensure that consideration is given to purchasing environmentally sustainable products and services
• Provide information, instruction and training to staff as necessary on the environmental impacts of the Firefish Groups activities and on mitigating measures and initiatives to minimise these impacts
• Integrate environmental considerations into key business decisions
• Regularly monitor this Policy to ensure that it remains in line with legislative requirements, the activities of the business and other relevant requirements. It will be regularly reviewed and revised as necessary in the light of relevant changes to these
• Limit our impact on the environment and provide the necessary resources to do so. This Environmental Policy is endorsed by the senior management team

To meet our commitments, we will:

Travel

• Use online video meeting services in place of travel where possible
• Use travel options that minimize emissions e.g., trains & bikes over planes & cars
• When booking accommodation consider the environmental credentials and refer to the ‘Sustainable Accommodation Guide’
• Follow the guidance set out in the Travel Policy regarding travel and expenses

Food and Drink

• Commit to eating sustainable meals more regularly, avoiding food waste at restaurants, preferring vegetarian meals or ensuring meat comes from sustainable hunting or local extensive pastures, reducing over-stocked fish consumption and refusing consumption of endangered species
• Book sustainable catering services whenever possible from organisations providing local, organic, unpackaged and vegetarian food, and that use completely reusable, or biodegradable or recyclable materials
• Provide required information in expenses regarding food and drink

Paper

• Reduce the use of paper when working at home, and opting for online documents where possible
• Use online and digital media as a core means of communication
• Purchase recycled paper, we encourage everyone to use office supplies for home use
• Ensure double sided printing is your default setting
• Reduce, reuse, and recycle paper products whenever possible

Recycling

• Ensure safe management and disposal of e-waste generated from surplus, broken and obsolete electronic and electric devices (mobile phones, computers, laptops, tablets, TVs, head-phones) and other hazardous and toxic materials purchased for home office (ink cartridges, batteries, glue)
  • Where possible the above items for recycling can be brought into the office and recycled through the office recycling schemes
• Avoid the use of plastic (folders, bags, boxes, bottles, cups, plates and cutlery) by adopting reusable alternatives and using materials made of environmentally friendly resources where possible
• Upcycle, by searching for new uses for old items including electronics rather than discarding them or buying new ones

Energy and Water

• Use energy-efficient lighting, monitors, tea kettles, coffee machines, among other home appliances
• Reduce energy consumption by turning off lights, reducing heating, and unplugging appliances
• Check energy rating before purchasing new appliances and equipment.
• Turn off all office electrical items at the end of each working session (lights, computers, printers

Home & Office Supplies

• Reduce the purchase of non-essential office supplies such as paper, post-it notes, we encourage using existing office supplies where available for home use
• Purchase environmentally friendly and sustainable products including cleaning products whenever possible

Policy Version: 1.12

Environmental Manager: Vanessa Flockhart