Commercial Interiors UK Sustainability Forums
Commercial Interiors UK supports and encourages its members to follow a code of sustainable best practice. Commercial Interiors UK itself is a member of FISP the Furniture Industry Sustainability Programme which promotes best practise to drive social, economic and environmental change, via continual improvement of member’s business operations. To support this, Commercial Interiors UK members have a sustainability network that holds two forums each year that allows members to meet, exchange experiences, ideas and to hear of latest developments from leading sustainability experts.
Sustainability Forum 17th November 2021
Commercial Interiors UK's third Sustainability Forum on the 17th November featured three brilliant talks that covered: the challenge that companies face on their journey to achieving Net Carbon Zero; how Senator Group have set up a zero to landfill recycling and reuse process for returned furniture; and a fascinating case study from EGE Carpets about their sustainability journey.
Speaker 1 - Jo Little of Planet Mark
Topic: Sustainability in Business: Understanding Net Zero Carbon
In this Decade of Action, organisations and individuals have recognised a need to respond to the climate crisis and act in order to protect the future of our planet and people. Understanding the impact that your business has on the planet is essential for identifying your progress in making reductions. In this session we’ll look at how your business can start on their sustainability journey, as well as demystifying commonly used terminology relating to net zero carbon and the main drivers for why businesses seek to set net zero targets and take immediate action.
Speaker 2 - Paul O’Brien, Sustain Recycling Manger
Title: Senator Group’s Sustain Operations with Paul O’Brien
Speaker 3 - Richard Strong, Ege Regional Account Manager
Title: Ege Carpets’ Sustainability Journey
Sustainability Forum April 2021
Introduction by Jeremy Stein, Managing Director of Commercial Interiors UK
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Speaker 1 - Elina Grigoriou
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Topic: SKA rating, Sustainability & Furniture for the Future
Elina Grigoriou is a London-based Interior Designer, Sustainability and Wellbeing Expert who passionately believes that style and sustainability can be mutually inclusive. She is an industry specialist in designing for wellbeing, conducting research and applying knowledge at every opportunity, continuously raising awareness of best practice on designing for wellbeing and sustainability in the built environment. Elina is a RICS Accredited SKA rating assessor, and her support and technical involvement in the SKA rating initiative since 2007, has been instrumental in bringing the system into effect. She represents GI as a RICS SKA Development Partner, is the SKA Technical Advisor to the RICS, and is Chair of the SKA Technical Committee; in addition, she advises on its future development and international expansion.
Elina will talk about the SKA rating assessment method, benchmark and standard for non-domestic fit-outs, how it works with FISP accreditation and will become increasingly important for the contract sector going forward.
Speaker 2: Richard Naylor, Sustainable Development Director at Hypnos
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Title: Hypnos: A Decade of Positive Action
Board level executive specialising in sustainable innovation and design; sustainable development strategies; developing and negotiating sustainable supply chains; sales and marketing strategies all within a framework of profitability, quality and compliance.
Speaker 3: Chris Francis, UK Sales Manager at Enkev (UK) Ltd
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Topic: The move towards using more natural fillings, starts with baby steps, not giant leaps.
Chris Francis UK Sales manager for Enkev and I’ve been working in the furniture and bedding sectors for almost 34 years. During this time I’ve worked within Retail, B2B and B2C Manufacturing, UK Domestic and Contract sectors, including the supply of fillings/foams as components and product development. I’ve been fortunate enough to have worked internationally including a project for the supply and installation of contact furniture for the Saudi Royal Family.
Sustainability Forum 5th March 2020
Commercial Interiors UK’s first Sustainability Forum was held on 5 March 2020 and was attended by 30 Commercial Interiors UK members. The lead speaker was Alun Watkins the Executive Director of PEFC UK (https://www.pefc.co.uk/). PEFC is the world’s leading forest certification system and works to ensure that forests are managed according to environmental, social and economic criteria. Alan spoke at length on the key issues that members need to be aware of to ensure good practice in supporting the stewardship and use of forested land. His talk covered the history of the different certification schemes, the maintenance of the Chain of Custody – from forest to end user, how to get certified and the key drivers for certification, including legislation. In the UK the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) FSC standards are also widely used by suppliers in the timber trade but the end goals of both bodies are the same. Both provide schemes to protect forests and ensure end users get the responsibly sourced timber they requested.
Webinar: Claire Menzies, Istoria Group 6th May 2020
Claire Menzies is Founder and Chairwoman of Bristol- and Indianapolis-based Istoria Group, a creative collective of three established sister agencies and two innovative start-ups. She is a proven entrepreneur, sustainability champion and passionate advocate for a triple-pronged ‘people, planet and profit’ business vision.
“It’s time to be brave and bold about solutions” 5 takeaways from Sustainability Expert Claire Menzies with Design Insider – complied by Blue Dot.
1. We’ve seen that current global supply chains are fragile and risky, and we have an over-dependence on the cheapest solutions. When we emerge, the environment will be different. We will be thinking about moving from the traditional linear economy (take, make, waste), to a more sustainable, circular economy. Any trends in sustainability pre-COVID are going to accelerate.
2. We as a society will re-evaluate how we measure success – GDP doesn’t measure what we value most.
3. Companies should reflect and take stock of their portfolio and consider threats (shut down what is no longer relevant) & identify new opportunities (double down on those).
4. Be realistic about what your clients are going through. Be informed about how things are changing. Don’t get left behind.
5. “Global problems do not always have global solutions” – John Gray in the NewStatesman. There will be an increased focus on self-reliance: planting our own food, shopping locally, and self-sufficiency in supply chains.
Thank you for stressing that “It is more important than ever to be a values-led organization”.