Sustainability first – the only way to be

Climate change is a reality that all of us need to deal with. As floods, droughts and forest fires become more common in different parts of the worlds, and cities are recording ever escalating Air Quality Index scores, it’s time for collective action to combat the causes of climate change to mitigate its effects. As a responsible corporate entity, Allcargo Logistics and its group companies, ECU Worldwide and Gati-KWE are taking affirmative, forward steps to safeguard the environment and conserve it for the future. This is the first in a series of articles on the group’s sustainability measures.

With Care for Environment and Society forming a core value for the logistics conglomerate, sustainability is built into its DNA and informs various decisions such as the way business is done, the work culture, and the choice of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives that are undertaken.

The environment policy focuses on reducing impact on the environment, integrating sustainability across facilities and operations and enabling employees, partners, business associates and customers to go green and adopt eco-friendly practices.

Business Actions

On the business side, various environment positive decisions are made to mitigate the impact on the environment. A few of them are mentioned below:

• Installation of solar panels to reduce the use of thermal energy
• Provision to recharge the ground water through the use of paver blocks that allow water to percolate through to the ground
• Use of recycled materials such as fly ash bricks, to name just a few.

Corporate Social Responsibility

Taking a further step in this direction, the philanthropic arm of the group, Avashya Foundation also focuses on conserving nature along with building programmes in the spheres of Environment, Education, Health, Women Empowerment, Disaster Relief, and Sports. This takes the form of different initiatives such as:

• Efforts to green the earth through tree plantation to offset the carbon footprint
• Beach and river clean-up drives to clear the coast, thereby reducing the danger to marine life from plastic and other non-biodegradable debris
• COVID-relief initiatives, support for medicines and treatment, skills training and educational counseling

Employee Action

All of these initiatives are made powerful by the active participation of employees, who are not only encouraged to partake in activities such as tree plantation and clean-up drives, but are also encouraged to make a sustainable shift in their lifestyle through steps such as:

• Reduced use of plastic
• Responsible utilization of resources like water
• Saving electricity by taking the stairs, switching of lights, fans, and ACs when not in use
• Limiting use of paper and ensuring paper is fully utilised before being discarded

Everyday individual choices, when made on a large scale, can have a huge effect in reducing our collective carbon footprint. Being an organization that has a presence in 180 countries, one can imagine the multiplier effect of these actions.

This 360-degree approach to sustainability has been possible because of a management and leadership team that holds the environment close to their heart and remains fully invested in being responsible corporate citizens. The zeal to protect the environment is visible not only among team members, but also is a special priority for the senior management, leading from the front when it comes to sustainability.

Conclusion

With a commitment that is driven from the top, a passion that is shared by all and core values that institutionalize Care for Environment and Society, it is no surprise then that sustainability is a key priority for the global logistics powerhouse.