Investors in the Environment (iiE) awards BSAVA with Silver Accreditation

1 November 2023

The BSAVA has been awarded with Silver Accreditation from Investors in the Environment (iiE) as part of their commitment to improving sustainability across the association.

In just a year, BSAVA’s accreditation has moved from Bronze to Silver, after setting up a Sustainability Working Group in 2020. Since the baseline in 2019, the BSAVA’s carbon footprint has reduced by 79%, with print paper also reduced by 89%. Changes were also made to the travel policy, meaning that there has been a significant reduction of 66% in transport related emissions in comparison to 2019. All BSAVA publications are now printed in the UK, reducing travel for carriage, and are also printed using carbon neutral or balanced printers.

BSAVA has also continued to participate in projects and initiatives which aim to reduce the environmental impact of the veterinary sector. In 2023, a carbon audit of BSAVA Congress was conducted, and a range of sustainable initiatives are being investigated for 2024, not just for BSAVA but for wider stakeholders attending who are keen to reduce their emissions too.

Over the next year, BSAVA are aiming for Green Accreditation and will be looking to continue their sustainability efforts, by monitoring other factors such as home working, adopting a new travel plan, and setting a target of a 2% reduction in resource usage.

Carl Gorman, BSAVA President and Chair of the Sustainability Working Group said: “I am very proud of BSAVA for achieving Silver Accreditation from Investors in the Environment (iiE), building on our Bronze Accreditation in 2022. Staff and volunteers have worked to ensure that we are aware of our environmental impact and taken steps to reduce our footprint. We have made a significant reduction in our carbon footprint since 2019 and will strive to build on this.

“As well as assessing our business carbon footprint, we took the decision to audit our annual congress to help identify areas where we can advise and encourage sustainable but practical travel. I’d like to thank our sustainability working group and all our staff for their engagement and look forward to working towards Green Accreditation.”

To find out more about BSAVA’s sustainability initiatives, visit: https://bsava.com/other/our-sustainability/.