A new approach to environmental activities was made by SEKISUI Diagnostics in Kent, England. Instead of offering a single day, a whole week was planned to cover various topics around environmental awareness. It also allowed all SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) co-workers to participate, taking individual availability due to shifts into account. The result: high participation among deeply invested SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) colleagues, to the benefit of a local charity.
In difference to previous years, the CSR team of SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK), being newly-formed in the beginning of 2016, had much more time to plan this year’s activities. Planning started in February and aimed at adding the perspectives of the CSR sub-teams – namely the well-being team, community team & environment team – into the schedule. Basically, the CSR team had the following objectives in mind: a.) achieve a 100% participation rate among the SEKISUI Diagnostics staff; b.) support local charities and strengthen relationships; and c.) get people to become more environmentally aware throughout the year.
Besides the local Woodland Trust, who SEKISUI Diagnostics already supported in 2016, Kent Wildlife Trust was chosen to be in the centre of this year’s Environment Week. Apart from having a short distance between the charity headquarters and SEKISUI, local relationships helped establish contact with Kent Wildlife Trust, gaining their support very quickly.
In addition, early internal research showed that assigning a specific topic to each day would improve planning. The days were called:
- “Make A Change Monday”
- “Tread Lightly Tuesday”
- “Wildlife Wednesday”
- “Three R Thursday”
- “Green Food Friday”
- “Sort It Saturday”
- “Switch Off Sunday”
Kicking off with “Make A Change Monday”
Having representatives from Kent Wildlife Trust introduce themselves to the SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) staff proved to be a great start. In a short presentation, the workers learned about the environmental situation in Kent, what wildlife and habitats exist in the immediate area, and which green spaces are suitable for a family trip. It was concluded with a quiz about the wildlife situation in Kent. As a result, it gave the people an idea who they were supporting, getting them more invested into the goals of the Environment Week.
Treading lightly
Tuesday of the week was dedicated to raising awareness of one’s own ecological footprint during the daily commute. Having many people on site who go to work by bike or walk, the aim was to encourage co-workers to reduce car use. Some car share groups established themselves in the process.
Wildlife Wednesday
The following day, all workers on site found a seed package resembling the form of a bee on their desk. The message behind this: plant flowers to support the local bee population, which has seen a dramatic decrease. Apart from getting people to spend more time with gardening at home, eleven members of the SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) staff undertook a trip to the Kent Wildlife Trust site to learn more about the charity and to build bug hotels in the process. It was greatly received among the people and got them to spread the idea of wildlife preservation among their friends and family.
Turning waste into objects
“Reduce, reuse, recycle” was the motto of “Three R Thursday”, where people were asked to craft new items out of everyday items that would have been otherwise disposed, such as tin cans or plastic bottles. Those were put to a vote via e-mail among all SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) co-workers. In addition, bags made out of recycled materials were sold as well, with the raised money going to Kent Wildlife Trust. The same day, on-site waste management expert Darren Ladd informed some of his co-workers about current environment-friendly waste management efforts of SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK).
“As long as cake is involved”
The well-being branch of the CSR team got their cut into the schedule during “Green Food Friday”. The idea was to promote local food producers when getting ingredients for healthy food recipes. In the process, the staff was asked to bring in homemade items, which were sold to the benefit of Kent Wildlife Trust. The employees of SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) really excelled in offering delicious snacks, covering a great variety of cake, and bringing most of the staff together in the break room. People could also purchase the SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) cook book, which contained recipes contributed by colleagues on-site and revolved around healthy eating. Notable was that all ingredients could be obtained locally, combined with an index of local farm shops having these components available.
A display of local food offerings
During the whole week, SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) staff could purchase tickets for an internal raffle at the reception desk. Two baskets filled with ingredients from local farm shops, as well as the SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) cook book, were presented in break room as prizes for the winners of the raffle. The winning tickets were drawn on Friday, with Darren Ladd, Director High Volume Production on site, winning one basket. Alas, the other winner, Sally Rosser-Davies, couldn’t be determined at the time as she was on holiday, but it is safe to assume that she was very happy winning the basket as well.
Sorting out and switching off
The Environment Week entered weekend with “Sort It Saturday”. SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) staff were asked to look through their wardrobe and pick out clothes which have not been worn for some time. Instead of giving old but well-preserved clothes to landfill, people were encouraged to donate them to local charity shops. Closing the week, “Switch Off Sunday” raised awareness for unnecessary power usage. So people were asked to switch off devices completely if not used, instead of having them on stand-by. Plugging out electrical appliances off the wall was also suggested to save energy, thus protecting the environment.
A week to celebrate a whole year
During the whole week, the on-site CSR team managed to offer great variety on the topic of environmental awareness to the staff. “People already gave ideas for the next year”, Katie Smithers, Purchasing Specialist II and CSR team leader, noted, pointing out the enthusiasm about the week among the staff. “It really raised the profile of the Kent site enormously, there has been so much support”, Jason Portlock from the CSR team added. Both pointed out that the Environment Week should take its place as a celebration of a whole year of environmental awareness and sustainability. “The main goal is to get people to become more environmentally aware over the year”, Jason stated. To enhance the quality of the Environment Week even further, surveys and talks will be held, according to Katie. The employees already signalled that most would prefer manual labour, like gardening as it was in 2015, so focus might be on getting people more outside next year. “But especially the cakes went well, so there will be more baking”, Katie laughed.
What other companies could do
So what should other companies consider when planning environmental activities on their site? “Build into natural resources and local environment”, Katie stated, pointing out the important relationship between a company on one hand and local charities and authorities on the other. “You kill two birds with one stone: you do something for the environment and get the staff involved”, she elaborated further. And Jason added: “Do what’s achievable, don’t overstretch, and do something that you as a site feel you can accomplish.” SEKISUI Diagnostics (UK) indeed managed to get every employee into participation, supporting a local charity and raising environmental awareness. As a result of the week’s activities, a donation of nearly £1000 to the Kent wildlife trust was possible. The outlook for the site and its CSR team for 2017 couldn’t be brighter.
