Climate change – it’s real and we care very much about its effects both now and for future generations. Whilst it can seem too big for us to handle as individuals, it’s down to each of us to do our part, no matter how small, to make a positive difference. We believe the responsibility sits with government and businesses that have the authority to make changes to the way that people consume and behave. Which is why we’re setting out our emissions mission.
Here at Dabbers, we’re making efforts to do our bit to change the tide on the climate crisis. While we’re not yet the zero emissions vision of sustainability we’d like to be, it’s a start, and it is something we’d like to tell you more about.
Travel
Planes are bad news when it comes to emissions, so we’ve implemented a new holiday policy that gives all members of staff a free day of holiday for every journey taken by train rather than plane. By doing this we hope to help staff make better decisions in the face of lower air fares and faster flights. The largest factor for our team to not take the train is the extra journey time it takes over flying, which eats into their valuable holiday time. This scheme is designed to give them that time back.
Trees
Planting trees reverses the impact of land degradation and provides food, energy and income, helping communities achieve long-term economic and environmental sustainability. Trees also filter the air and help stave off the effects of climate change.
So in short – trees are great, and the more of them there are the better for the planet. At Dabbers we plant a tree a month on behalf of every employee in our company. Currently this equates to over 160 trees a year and as our team grows, the number of trees we plant will grow too.
Pensions
One of the most powerful actions an individual can take when it comes to climate change is to take control of how their money is invested, in particular their pension. The lovely folks at Make My Money Matter are creating a movement to educate and empower people to take control of their investments, and we’re right behind them.
We’ve taken control of our company pension scheme, moving away from companies that exploit fossil fuel resources and directly add to the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. Instead we’re using our collective pension pot to invest in renewable, sustainable and clean technology businesses.
Energy
We’ve chosen a renewable energy supplier that produces its electricity from responsibly sourced, sustainable biomass, which produces 86% less carbon than coal-generated energy. Our power is pumped from Drax Power Station, which is the biggest renewable generator in the UK and is also Europe’s largest decarbonisation project. The owner of the power station has started Europe’s first bioenergy carbon capture use and storage project, which if successful, will make the Drax Power Station the world’s first carbon negative power station.
Our team is aware of our energy savings efforts and together we make sure to switch it off if it’s not being used. Plus, we’ve installed SMART meters in our building that produce energy savings and help us to use energy more efficiently.
Consumption
One of the most important things to tackle in our emissions mission is the value we consume and throw away. We provide biodegradable straws and all of our till rolls are made from recycled materials. We’re moving away from using more energy intensive glass for packaged drinks, towards recycled (and recyclable) aluminium cans. We’ll be using 100% recycled napkins in the very near future and in an added effort to produce and consume less, we’ve now give away more experiential prizes and less products.
We take great care in the products we create for our audience. Our bingo cards are made from 100% recycled material. The membership cards we offer are made from sustainably sourced wood and metal to reduce plastic manufactoring and to provide a longer lasting card. Plus the cotton used for our tote bags and t-shirts is all organic, control union certified cotton.
Behind the scenes, we collate orders for different departments into one online order every two weeks to (or less if possible), meaning less packaging and less delivery miles. Sometimes ordering from separate suppliers is unavoidable, when this is the case, we purchase locally and responsibly. Where we order products internationally, we demand ship freight rather than air freight, and ensure that we take responsibility to manage the longer lead time.
Recycling
Our waste is recycled through a carefully selected waste disposal and recycling company. We chose the company based on their winning of the Green Apple Award in 2018, an award that was established in 1994 as an annual campaign to recognise, reward and promote environmental best practice in waste disposal and recycling around the world. This company consolidate their collections into as fewer journeys as possible, are investing in electric trucks and have a sophisticated distribution hub that is carbon neutral.
They are focused on developing a circular economy product range, which includes business cards made from coffee cups, printer-quality paper made from waste and uniforms and reusable drinking bottles made from plastic bottles.
Food
Finally in our emissions mission we tackle our kitchen offering. We’ve developed a new menu to give our customers a variety of options based on their eating preferences. We now offer a wider range of vegetarian dishes and have brought a vegan, plant-based burger onto our menu.
Where possible, all of our food produce is sourced responsibly and locally, reducing our exposure to mass farming and minimising the carbon footprint of our deliveries. We care as much about the treatment of farmed animals as we do about the carbon footprint of our suppliers.
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