Environment
As doing the right thing is a fundamental aspect of our culture, it is a key driver of our environmental approach. This is centred around all parts of the business taking responsibility for how our activities affect the environment and how we can reduce our impacts so that we all have a more stable environmental and financial future.
As a professional services business, XPS generates relatively low emissions, particularly when compared to other industries. However, we are still committed to reducing our own emissions and encouraging those in our value chain to lower theirs too.
Achieving carbon neutral status
In 2021, we became carbon neutral across our entire value chain. This followed an audit of our greenhouse gas emissions, which we undertook with the support of industry experts. Recognising a company’s environmental impact is not restricted to direct activity; we looked to quantify and offset the emissions associated with our supply chain. And to ensure that the exercise did not benefit from the effects of the pandemic and enforced closure of XPS office facilities, we chose to use higher pre-pandemic energy consumption data collated in 2019–2020.
Once we were able to identify and quantify our emissions, we moved to offset these via the acquisition of high-quality Carbon Credits from the UN Climate Now Initiative, a trusted, verified and PAS 2060 compliant scheme. To confirm our response to the climate emergency is appropriate, credible and sustainable, we aligned our carbon neutrality with ISO 14064, the international standard for quantifying greenhouse gas inventories, and PAS 2060, the verified carbon neutrality standard produced by the British Standards Institution (BSI).
Reducing our carbon footprint
Offsetting alone is not a long-term solution. A significant reduction in our carbon footprint is required. We have an ambitious strategy in place to achieve this, one that targets full alignment with the 2015 Paris Agreement well in advance of the 2050 UK milestone. As with our carbon neutral action, our Carbon Reduction Plan will comply with independently verified, industry-leading frameworks.
Building an environmentally friendly culture
Our employees are vital to helping us achieve our goals. We have developed an Environmental Management System which, as well as providing a framework for us to monitor, manage and ultimately reduce our environmental impact, helps raise internal awareness via events and seminars. Regular green initiatives, training videos, a dedicated Environmental intranet page, the appointment of Environmental Champions in each office – all are focused on raising awareness of our policies and fostering an environmentally friendly culture.
By working together, we can help drive positive environmental change.
Case study: Sustainable refurbishment of our Strand office
When the XPS office at 11 Strand streamlined from two floors to one during the pandemic, it was the perfect opportunity for a makeover.