In 2019 we were one of the first businesses formally to declare a Climate Emergency.

We subscribe deeply to the notion of the Circular Economy, which is restorative by nature, designing and implementing systems that return nutrients to the planet rather than depleting them. We run our business like a living system meaning that all our stakeholders are vital and interdependent parts of the whole, rather than cogs in a machine.

Our deep rooted belief in the need for an accelerated transition to a regenerative, inclusive, stakeholder economy is at the heart of everything we do. It informs:

• the type of clients and work with which we want to engage;
• our charitable and advocacy commitments; and
• the way we procure products and services – both at work and at home.

Clients

Introduction

We are committed to supporting our client businesses towards a shared vision of a socially and environmentally regenerative economy. They, and we, have a vital role to play in this transition, regardless of their starting point.

But the line can sometimes be blurred between work that moves away from degenerative practices and that which reinforces the broken system.

Our guidance, and its associated practices, supports members of the Greenheart ecosystem as they navigate that line.

Our Principles

We do not, as a rule, refuse to engage with any client or sector provided always that:

1. the sector and clients activities within it are legal;
2. the project on which we are being asked to work has clear and mutually agreed objectives to reduce harm and/or increase the positive impact of that client;
3. we believe that the client is genuine in its intent to reduce harm and/or create positive impact;
4. we are confident that we are not being engaged simply in order for our credentials to improve the client’s own sustainability reputation; and
5. we are never knowingly complicit in greenwashing.

We hope and anticipate that these Principles match the personal values of our people. However, if individual consultants do not wish to work with a specific client/project on ethical grounds then they are welcome to say so in order that alternative team members can be found.

Our practices

As standard, we:

1. provide annual training for our ecosystem on greenwashing (how to spot it and avoid complicity);
2. ensure our contractual terms of engagement allow us to end a client relationship in circumstances we believe may give rise to a breach of one or more of our Principles (above)
3. undertake a risk profiling exercise for all new clients, or for new projects with an existing client.

A thorough process supports this policy, please ask a member of the Greenheart team if you’d like to know more.

Charity and Advocacy

The flexibility of our business model allows us to support, and campaign for, causes that are close to our core values.

We aim to give up to 5% of our working time to charities that promote or enable the transition to a regenerative economy.

Products/Services

This policy also informs what products and services we procure and how we do so, as well as how our people make choices outside the working environment.

We monitor our environmental inputs and outputs, therefore our footprint on the planet. We will be building a robust strategy to reduce our impacts and compensate for any harm we are not able to eliminate.  We will not make bold Net Zero declarations until we are happy with that strategy, but our intention is – of course – to become regenerative across our own operations.

We believe in giving the best possible chance to people who, like us, are passionate about doing what they do in the right way. So we choose our suppliers carefully, giving first preference (where we have a choice) to independent businesses, particularly those that are local to us or minority owned.

We commit to ensuring that any contractors we engage are paid at least the Living Wage.

We contribute to our local community and charities in which we believe both financially and in-kind by volunteering our time and expertise.

Whenever reasonably practicable, business travel is undertaken as follows:

• • less than 3 miles by foot or bicycle;
  • more than 50 miles by train and/or public transport; and
  • intermediate or rural journeys may require car travel, but alternatives (such as video-conferencing) are always sought

When we have no alternative to flying, we will offset the carbon generated by our flight.

Version 7 – October 2023