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The Planet Mark: How Businesses Can Tackle Climate Change

water efficiency - H2O Building Services

 

There can be no denying the climate emergency that faces the world as a whole and, if there’s one thing the coronavirus health crisis has made abundantly clear, it’s just how interconnected the planet actually is… and what happens globally when just one part of this delicately balanced system is damaged.

 

The next ten years will be absolutely crucial for us all and for the planet, and the global pandemic has provided us with an incredible opportunity for us all to change the way in which we live – but action must be taken now.

 

The last six years, 2014-2019, were the warmest on record, with rising sea levels resulting in extensive flooding, forests catching fire everywhere with alarming regularity and the Arctic witnessing disturbing levels of melting ice.

 

If we are to continue operating successfully as a global society, greenhouse gas emissions will need to fall by 7.6 per cent annually over the coming decade in order to hit the 1.5 degree C goal as set out in the Paris Agreement – and businesses everywhere have an integral role to play in this endeavour.

 

The Planet Mark is a sustainability certification designed to help companies drive measurable change across the board – and have fun in the process. To help make reductions in your CO2 emissions from water, waste, energy, procurement and so on, you need to understand the impact your operations have on the earth.

 

It serves as an easily recognisable symbol of the progress you’ve made in terms of sustainability, bringing credibility to your business and what it is you do. You may also find that it helps to encourage others to take similar action, while building loyalty and trust with your clients and across the wider supply chain.

 

Toolkits are available on a wide range of subjects to help you implement a sustainability strategy, while workshops are also put on to help businesses focus on the most important issues, with expert advice provided on how to move forward with long-term ambitions.

 

There are also lots of webinars that could prove particularly useful, especially if you’re keen to really engage with your workforce on social and environmental causes. Topics include how to remain sustainable when working from home, whether effective communication is the key to a sustainable world, how to reduce digital footprints and so on.

 

To help celebrate the achievements made by different organisations, there is a Planet Mark Awards ceremony held each year, taking place in 2020 on October 15th (digitally, of course, thanks to the pandemic). Entries for the awards are now open, with the deadline set for September 4th – so you still have time to send your submissions in.

 

Want to find out more about water efficiency and how you can make improvements in this regard? Get in touch with H2o Building Services today.

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