Today is World Environment Day (WED), an opportunity for us to consider our impact on the planet and how we can build sustainability into our everyday lives.
There is no escaping that this year WED is somewhat overshadowed by our ongoing battle with Covid-19.
That said, I think parities can be drawn between the two. Climate change and environmental degradation are happening on a global scale and, as with Covid-19, it will take our collective effort to turn the tide to protect our future. Much has been said about the natural environment rebounding as a consequence of our actions to curb the spread of this pandemic, with the more optimistic amongst us seeing a chance to reset and reshape the world in a more sustainable way.
History will judge us by our response to this pandemic, and the same can be said for the way we react to the environment challenges we face.
As we navigate through these uncertain times, it’s important not to lose sight of the positive steps which were already being taken to meet those challenges prior to the pandemic and the increasing importance with which sustainability is being treated.
For Sir Robert McAlpine, embedding sustainability into our operations has been a focus throughout my more than 12 years in the organisation and I’d like to take the opportunity, on World Environment Day, to share and celebrate some of the highlights of our recent performance.
While we have some positive results to share, it doesn’t end here of course, and we’re certainly by no means finished. We’re already building on this performance with our latest Sustainability Strategy, embedding sustainability yet further into our everyday thinking and operations.