Greg Fenton discusses the creation of Lucy Group’s Sustainability Development Framework based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs).
Greg Fenton joined Lucy Group in October 2020 as Group Head of Health, Safety, and Sustainability. Since then, he has led the implementation of the Group’s sustainability strategy, including the recently launched Sustainability Development Framework.
Greg says: “Our Sustainability Development Framework provides a focus for our current sustainable initiatives and identifies areas to drive further improvement.”
Sustainability Development Framework
The framework sets out actions that Lucy Group has prioritised in order to deliver our Sustainable Development Policy in 2030 and beyond.
We have adopted the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) framework, and are actively working towards 8 of the 17 SDGs to monitor and align our commitment to a sustainable future based on our three key business pillars of People, Planet and Progress.
As a Group, we are focused on developing responsible and sustainable businesses that place people and the planet at the heart of everything we do to deliver progress with a purpose.
We are committed to working towards net zero emissions by 2050 and will do so by targeting areas that emit the most emissions.
Greg continues, “We will work toward improving the energy efficiency of our facilities, adopting green energy, and identifying freight and transport activities. Retrofit programmes will also enhance our property portfolio’s energy efficiency.”
Our businesses are establishing their own goals and implementing change, “We are installing solar panels and EV chargers around many of our sites and examining the carbon footprint of products.” Our training and communication packages have helped our employees understand how the business aims to be more sustainable and what contributions they can make within their local community.
Our Projects
The Sustainability Development Framework was one of the first projects Greg worked on, and other initiatives have since formed, “We aim to deliver our selected goals in other ways, such as emissions reduction targets, energy efficiency programmes and improved employee health and wellbeing”.
The safety of employees remains the main priority, and we continually examines ways to maintain high standards of safety by minimising risk and harm through improved operations procedures, knowledge development, and safety culture programmes.
In addition to the framework, we recently implemented a carbon accounting system. Greg explains, “The system assists in identifying the data needed to measure and verify our greenhouse gases (GHG) inventory. From this, we will set reduction targets that follow the Science Based Target Initiative (SBTI) approach.” The SBTI defines and promotes best practices in emissions reductions and net-zero targets in line with climate science.
Employee Contribution
When it comes to clearly communicating our sustainability initiatives, teamwork is the heart of Lucy Group, aligning with our business values, “We recognise that without knowledge, individuals cannot make informed decisions to drive continual improvement that helps deliver our Sustainability Goals. To address this, we have provided introductory presentations, detailed publications, and videos on the intranet.”
Individual businesses within Lucy Group have produced tailored modules and are looking for ways to deliver sustainability training during induction programmes alongside refresher packages. We have also provided regular updates externally through our social media channels to remain transparent with our business practices, “These posts are not only informative for our employees but the wider community.”
Communicating our sustainability initiatives goes further than this through our long-standing CSR programme that is mapped against specific SDGs. Our CSR Specialist, Cristiana Padilla, publishes a regular CSR and Sustainability newsletter, “The CSR newsletter highlights the activities undertaken by our employees and the business’s ongoing support to local community projects, charities, and schools. Each activity is mapped against specific SDGs to help educate employees and provide a link to our Sustainability Framework.”
Local and Global Initiatives
As a company, we regularly engage in fundraising, charity events, and make donations to good causes. In 2022, we have participated in over 150 activities globally, including helping to rebuild a school, refurbishing an orphanage , and the creation of green spaces to improve biodiversity globally. We also focus on education initiatives, “We provide IT equipment, run mentoring programmes, provide work experience days within our businesses, and run apprenticeship programmes.”
At the heart of Lucy Group’s values is “Working Together”, and a fundamental part of our framework is actively involving our employees in our sustainability initiatives, with knowledge being a shared benefit for all.
