Our vision is to be the leading charity that encourages the public to become more environmentally sustainable. This will be achieved by providing accessible and stimulating information, uniting people's views and evoking the desire for positive change.

We take the approach of being:

• Practical and positive - it can be hard for people to tackle overwhelming environmental issues like climate change so we break them down into small steps that everyone can take, like unplugging mobile phone chargers when they're not being used.
• Measurable - we help people to see the difference they are making by measuring the resources saved as a result of their actions and those of their community. For example, just 63 households in our Nottingham EcoTeams programme have collectively saved a massive 7 tonnes from ending up on the rubbish mountain.
• Interactive - changing habits alone is difficult. Watch a team of businessmen build a teetering tower of paper in their corporate lobby, and you'll see what's different about Global Action Plan. By supporting groups of people working together, we make taking action easier, more creative and much more fun.
• Inclusive - everyone gets switched on by different things. Working with all kinds of individuals and organisations has enabled us to come up with a range of imaginative ways to communicate. Try riding our Energy Bike for a totally different way of making the connection between energy use and climate change.

GLOBAL ACTION PLAN ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

Global Action Plan has a long standing track record in the promotion and practice of environmental sustainability.  We aim to lead by example, and are committed to pollution prevention and the minimisation of our negative environmental impacts, as well as those of our clients and partners.  We will reassess the extent of our environmental impacts annually, with a view to continual improvement and the prevention of pollution through our environmental management systems and processes.   

We will:

• Assess the extent and nature of our impacts on the environment.
• Minimise our consumption of resources and raw materials.
• Reduce our production of waste materials.
• Minimise our harmful emissions from transport and office energy consumption.
• Use environmentally sustainable products, from suppliers that demonstrate sound environmental performance, where possible.
• Promote good environmental practice internally as well as within business and the community.

We will do this by:

• Establishing an internal Green Team that will develop our environmental programs and processes, set responsibilities and monitor outcomes.
• Implementing an Environmental Management System compliant with the BS8555 standard.
• Complying with, and where possible exceeding, the requirements of relevant environmental legislation and regulations and other requirements to which the organisation subscribes.
• Communicating environmental responsibilities to all staff and providing training where required.
• Adopting waste minimisation as a priority - reducing, re-using and recycling materials where possible to divert waste away from landfill.
• Adhering to our purchasing policy and choosing the Best Practicable Environmental Option (BPEO) when making purchasing decisions.
• Minimising our day-to-day use of energy and using energy efficient appliances where possible.
• Using public transport where practical.
• Ensuring environmental considerations are taken into account when planning ahead in all business areas.
• Continuing to develop and run programs that raise environmental awareness and promote behavior change within business and the community.
• Objective and targets will be measured and reported upon with a view to continually improving our environmental performance.
• The policy will be made publicly available on our website and reviewed annually (next day June 2009).