A healthy workplace
Offices should be healthy places. At least one person in each SBN office gets regular First Aid training. It’s important to focus on your own health and safety too.
Here are some of the things individual SBN staff have committed to:
- Exercising regularly. Yoga, Pilates, swimming, walking, running and cycling are top of our list.
- Integrating exercise into our daily routine, such as cycling or walking to all meetings within a 5km radius
- Learning to surf
- Learning to meditate
- Paying more attention to posture and not being too sedentary at work
In your community
Everybody should be encouraged to take part in community activities regularly. Here’s a selection:
- Community tree planting
- Community river restoration
- Volunteering with a local organic food co-op
- Hosting a working bee to clear rubbish from reserve land and waterways
- Bee-keeping
- Picking up litter
- Volunteering at schools, with children’s sport and Scouts
Valuing people
Everybody should have an active learning programme, a healthy work-life balance and team building opportunities. Individual SBN staff have committed to:
- Training in mindfulness, to apply to work
- Attending SBN’s Leadership in Sustainable Business course
- Taking a Te Reo Maori class
- Attending SBN and non-SBN learning events
- Taking part in a Continuing Education programme
- Benefiting from SBN’s Time Off in Lieu policy to ensure a healthy work-life balance
Transport
SBN’s main office is in Britomart, Auckland’s public transport hub. We have a public transport card, a pedal bike and an electric bike for all staff to use. We have a hybrid car for when we need a vehicle. We measure the carbon dioxide emissions from our work-related travel using the Annual Carbon Emissions calculator.
Our staff have committed to:
- Taking public transport or cycling/walking to meetings and to/from work wherever possible
- Using a car share scheme for vehicle use in the city
- Using electric-only vehicles at home (car and bike)
- Donating to Million Metres when flying
Purchasing
It’s important to reuse or recycle, and avoid buying things in the first place where possible. Look for products and services that are organic, Fairtrade, recycled and/or have other sustainability certifications where possible. SBN members are a great source of business supplies. Our staff are going to:
- Reduce plastic and micro-fibres from all purchases
- Buy more organic, local and Fairtrade food
- Purchase third party verified products where possible
- Take reusable containers when buying lunch from a takeaway café
- Buy new items as little as possible, instead looking for pre-used items. When buying new, seeking out well-made, long-lasting products
- Support SBN members by purchasing their products where possible.
- Donate to the Million Metres Streams Project
Waste
Now is the era of the leaner and increasingly waste-free office. You can support this through composting, reusing and recycling, paper-free communications and following circular economy principles.
Our staff are:
- Only using reusable shopping bags
- Minimising use of single life packaging
- Repairing products rather than replacing them
- Composting food waste
- Purchasing second hand clothing or from brands that have Fairtrade or circular economy initiatives in place
- Keeping a container for takeaways at our desk
- Only using reusable takeaway cups for coffee
Energy reduction
SBN aims to reduce its energy use by 10%. We also measure our CO2 emissions using the Annual Carbon Emissions calculator.
Our staff will be:
- Using solar panels at home
- Always working to reduce energy consumption, for example through turning off appliances, and using energy efficient appliances
- Installing more energy timing devices at home
- Installing double glazing
- Taking shorter showers by using a timer
Good luck setting your own sustainability commitments!