Sustainable Business

Making the Awards Sustainable

Thanks to the support of Carbon Planet, the 2009 Business Awards will be Carbon Managed. The Awards will neutralize its carbon footprint through the purchase of certified carbon credits. Emission levels will be based on a complete audit of the 2008 Awards, which produced 33 tonnes.

In addition, the electricity used by the Awards dinner venue Sheraton on the Park is being matched with accredited 100% GreenPower thanks to EnergyAustralia.

Environmental resources for business

There are some great resources available from government and the private sector to help you make informed decisions about sustainability planning. The Business Awards recognise green business initiatives in a number of ways, including the Lord Mayor’s Sustainable Business Award presented by EnergyAustralia.

City of Sydney Resources

GreenLeaders is a free service for small-to-medium businesses to help reduce environmental impacts while maintaining or improving profits. Visit the GreenLeaders Sustainable Business Program website.

If your business is located in the City of Sydney local government area, has between 5-20 full-time equivalent employees and is interested in improving on both your environmental performance and operating costs, contact the City of Sydney''s Environmental Development Unit on 9246 7807.

CitySwitch is a national tenant energy management program. Previously known as the 3CBDs Greenhouse Initiative, the program works with tenants to achieve improved office energy efficiency every hour of every day, thereby reducing the CO2 emissions attributed to climate change. Visit the CitySwitch website here.

Other Government Resources

How to save water and energy, implement cleaner production, switch to GreenPower, recycle, avoid chemicals, encourage sustainable transport and limit your waste, the NSW Government's Living Thing campaign. Visit the Living Thing website here.

The NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change's Sustainability Advantage program works with groups of businesses over a period of time to help them achieve changes.
Link: http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au:80/sustainbus/index.htm

Energy

GreenPower is a government accreditation program for renewable energy from sources such as sun, wind, water and waste. For more information visit the GreenPower website here.

Find out how many stars your business gets under Australia's built environment and building greenhouse rating schemes, NABERS and ABGR. Visit the Nabers website here.

For tips on improving your energy efficiency at work, have a look at EnergyAustralia's Ways to Save site here.

Green Events

Green business events checklist by ACF, NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change and Great Southern Events. Check out green events here.