Through our work with veterinary professionals, BSAVA recognises the importance of a One Health approach to ensure the health of animals, people, and the environment. We acknowledge that our operations have an effect on the environment in terms of the use of raw materials, emissions to air and water, and waste generation, and are investing in ways to minimise the impact of our work on the environment. We also support our members by providing resources to help small animal practices work towards more sustainable ways of working.

Our Progress

The BSAVA Sustainability Working Group (SWG) was established in 2020 and demonstrates BSAVA commitment towards environmental sustainability and will assist small animal practices to work towards sustainable ways of working. Those who are interested in finding out more about the work of the Sustainability Working Group can contact sustainability@bsava.com

BSAVA is a member of the national environmental accreditation scheme Investors in the Environment (iiE). We were delighted to achieve Green Accreditation with iiE – the highest achievable level – in 2026 (see certificate here). This builds on the previous achievements of Silver Accreditation in 2023 and Bronze Accreditation in 2022.

Sustainability activities of note include:

  1. Investing in electric vehicle charging stations and a major solar panel installation at Woodrow House (BSAVA’s office) to reduce energy usage.
  2. Measuring resource use and carbon emissions from BSAVA’s operations.
  3. Supporting our members to help them embed sustainability into their practice, through a range of resources. This includes running a major series on sustainability topics in Companion and hosting a collection of sustainability resources in our Library. We have also created resources on responsible antibiotic and parasiticide use and co-funded the development of a Veterinary Carbon Calculator.
  4. Participating in collaborative initiatives to tackle sustainability issues across the veterinary sector, such as the Responsible Use of Medicines Alliance – Companion Animal and Equine (RUMA-CAE), Animal Medicines Amnesty and the new Veterinary Sustainability Roundtable.
  5. Being signed up to Publishing Declares, as major publishers.