Sierra Club of Canada Annual Report 2005 B.C. Chapter

Walking Our Talk:
Organizational Sustainability Report
Building on our tradition of innovation in the
environmental movement and in society, in 2005
we challenged ourselves with a sustainability assessment.
We looked at our environmental impact,
calculated our greenhouse gas emissions and scrutinized
our waste disposal habits. We also analysed
our social impact and our performance as an ethical
employer.
It was not an easy decision to make. We didn’t
know how many imperfections the study would
reveal. Also, if we were to replicate this periodically
- which is the only way to discern meaningful
trends - it would mean a considerable resource
commitment.
The 2005 assessment was conducted by members
of the Sustainability Solutions Group co-operative,
who generously donated their work.
...the findings supported
our efforts to minimize
our footprint,concluding
that “SCCBC is walking
its talk in terms of its
ecological impact”.
In the end, we decided to go ahead. We felt
it was an important opportunity to increase
accountability and build trust with our
stakeholders. And the results showed we
were right: while there is certainly room for
improvement, especially in terms of reducing
CO2 emissions, the findings supported
our efforts to minimize our footprint, concluding
that “SCCBC is walking its talk in
terms of its ecological impact”.
The study also endorsed our consistent
efforts to support our employees in their
professional development, personal growth
and maintaining a healthy work/life balance.
We’re looking forward to doing even
better in 2006!
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