BITCI News

Report outlines increase in companies signing up to low carbon pledge Ireland’s largest businesses are making steady progress on meeting net zero targets for greenhouse gas emissions despite global upheaval and uncertainties, a new report published today states. The report prepared by PwC, in partnership with Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI), states that progress

  We know the Irish workforce is aging. Estimates from the Central Statistics Office indicate there will be about 1.5 million people aged 65 or over in Ireland by 2051. Also, with the qualifying age for the old-age pension likely to be pushed out, people are going to be in the workplace for longer. As

Vodafone, as one of the world’s leading ICT companies, provides a strong example of how a company is successfully integrating ESG and sustainability considerations with its commercial / corporate strategy. To help the company realise its sustainable business strategy and goals, Vodafone has identified three purpose pillars to underpin its commercial activities: Inclusion for all

Food production, both globally and in Ireland, makes up over a third of overall GHG emissions. The Climate Action Plan (CAP) has a number of agriculture specific actions and where the additional measures are taken into account (With Additional Measures scenario) the anticipated result would be emissions decreasing to approximately 19 Mt CO2 eq by

Transport is a key area of the Climate Action Plan 2021 and targets set out aim to reduce emissions from this sector by up to 51% by 2030. Emissions in the transport sector have risen rapidly in recent decades and remain coupled to economic growth. As one of Ireland’s largest businesses, Dublin Bus recognises that

Together, building and construction are responsible for 39% of all carbon emissions in the world and therefore represent a must-win decarbonisation segment both globally and locally. Cairn Homes want to take a prominent role in promoting sustainable and attainable building in Ireland, while in parallel being respectful of the change this will have on both

Bank of Ireland is one of the pillar banks in Ireland and therefore recognises the important role it plays in driving attainment of the national climate targets.  Firstly, Bank of Ireland can show leadership through its internal focus on sustainability and secondly, by setting ambitious climate targets aligned to science-based targets (SBTs), the bank can

AIB Group has launched the AIB Community €1 Million Fund to support over 30 charitable organisations in communities across Ireland. The bank is asking its customers and the wider public to nominate registered charities that connect with causes that matter most to them and their communities. AIB will allocate €700,000 to charities chosen by its customers

Since the beginning of 2022, we have seen the publication of several worrying climate change reports. The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) rang alarm bells in February with their impacts of climate change report followed swiftly in April by their climate change mitigation report. Again the science is clear, human activities have and continue to increase greenhouse gas emissions leading to

Business in the Community Ireland Inaugural study of 120,000 employees lays foundations for diversity and inclusion in the workforce   Dublin, Tuesday, 10th May, 2022: The first report into measuring and setting workforce targets for diversity and inclusion has pinpointed higher levels of female participation at senior and executive levels than the national average. The

Today at the inaugural Elevate Pledge report launch we also announced our new Traveller Employment Programme, an important step-up in tackling the under-employment of Travellers. This programmes is an addition to our award winning employment programmes supporting people with high barriers to employment and it is funded by the Community Foundation for Ireland. Through direct

  As part of our Elevate Pledge Inaugural report launch, we delve deeper into some of the successful diversity and inclusion initiatives highlighted in the report. In this piece, learn about Sky Ireland’s New Horizons initiative. Sky is Europe’s leading media and entertainment company and is proud to be part of the Comcast group. What was your

  As part of our Elevate Pledge Inaugural report launch, we delve deeper into some of the successful diversity and inclusion initiatives highlighted in the report. In this piece, learn about Accenture’s Neurodivergent Internship Programme. What was your diversity & inclusion goal? Accenture is committed to accelerating inclusion and diversity for all and creating a work

As part of our Elevate Pledge Inaugural report launch, we delve deeper into some of the successful diversity and inclusion initiatives highlighted in the report. In this piece, learn about eir’s   Gender Pay Gap Report. What was your diversity & inclusion goal? eir is the principal provider of fixed-line and mobile telecommunications services in Ireland

As part of our Elevate Pledge Inaugural report launch, we delve deeper into some of the successful diversity and inclusion initiatives highlighted in the report. In this piece, learn about AIB’s Universal Inclusion Campaign. What was your diversity & inclusion goal? As a financial institution at the heart of the Irish economy, operating within a local

As part of our Elevate Pledge Inaugural report launch, we delve deeper into some of the successful diversity and inclusion initiatives highlighted in the report. In this piece, learn about BT Ireland’s Early Career Programme. What was your diversity & inclusion goal? AT BT Ireland, one of our highest priorities is being a diverse, equitable and inclusive

As part of our Elevate Pledge Inaugural report launch, we delve deeper into some of the successful diversity and inclusion initiatives highlighted in the report. In this piece, learn about Energia’s Virtual Call Centre Teams. What was your diversity & inclusion goal? Diversity really matters to our organisation. It’s the right thing to strive for, and

At Business in the Community Ireland we champion the business transition to more sustainable and inclusive models that leave no-one behind. We pioneer collective initiatives and strategic services for business and today, over 120 of Ireland’s largest companies are members. We are a leadership forum, bringing together CEOs and C-suite to develop novel initiatives to

The Business Working Responsibly mark Insights Series Welcome to our  final article in our series of insights and trends from the 40 Business Working Responsibly Mark certified organisations. While the insights are gleaned from all certified organisations, particular attention is focused on the most recent trends from the current cohort. Our last topic is the Marketplace pillar.   The Marketplace pillar reflects how

In light of the ongoing war in Ukraine we have put together a list of organisations doing work in this humanitarian crisis and accepting donations from individuals and businesses alike. UNICEF   UNICEF is working across Ukraine to scale up life-saving programmes for children. This includes trucking safe water to conflict-affected areas; prepositioning health, hygiene and emergency education supplies

  The Mark is operated by Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI), the non-profit organisation dedicated to sustainability and third-party audited by the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI). Seven companies achieved the Mark for the first time with another ten achieving recertification. Over 200 business leaders attended Business in the Community Ireland’s virtual celebration

William Fry LLP is a leading, full service corporate law firm with more than 310 legal and tax professionals and over 460 staff. The head office is based in Dublin and they have offices in Cork, London, New York, Silicon Valley and San Francisco and a global law firm network to service their clients at

The Mark is operated by Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI), the non-profit organisation dedicated to sustainability and third-party audited by the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI). Seven companies achieved the Mark for the first time with another ten achieving recertification. Press Release Thursday 17th February:  Over 200 business leaders attended Business in the Community

Business Working Responsibly Mark series Welcome to our fourth article in the Mark Insights Series. Here we reflect on how Ethical, Social, and Environmental goals are embedded into the business value chain, which is essentially everything to do with an organisation’s products and/or services. The value chain begins with procurement practices and ends with ongoing

Business Working Responsibly Mark series: A Holistic Approach to Community Engagement Welcome to our third article in our series of insights and trends from our 40 Business Working Responsibly Mark certified organisations . While the insights are gleaned from all of our certified organisations, particular attention is focused on the most recent trends from our cohort under the new certification process. The

Business Working Responsibly Series: Environmental Insights Welcome to our second article in our new series Business Working Responsibly mark Insights with trends from our 40 Business Working Responsibly Mark certified companies. While the insights are gleaned from all of our certified companies, particular attention is focused on the most recent trends from our current cohort

The Business Working Responsibly mark Insights Series on Governance Welcome to our new series of sustainability insights and trends with data gathered from the analysis of our 40 Business Working Responsibly Mark certified companies . While the insights are gleaned from all of our certified companies, particular attention is focused on the most recent trends from our current cohort under the

What is digital pollution? Digital pollution is responsible for 3.7% of CO2 emissions globally – 50% more than air transport (2.4%) However digital pollution is an issue that is rarely identified, let alone addressed. People often think that online streaming, sending emails, and conducting online searches have no external environmental effect. Because digital pollution is

Darina Eades, Senior Adviser on Corporate Sustainability, supports companies to integrate social and environmental sustainability into the core of their business strategies. She is our BITCI Expert on Business & Human Rights and recently spoke at our Sustainability Revolution event. Following on from the recent publication of  How to Mitigate the risk of Modern Slavery , in this article Darina covers: 1) Why business action is

During our latest events series #SustRev21, our Sustainability Adviser Johnny Meehan provided a series of key tips to our audience of sustainability practitioners on how to drive radical action and change. Context is important. We are at the crossroads in how we work given the urgent need to tackle the climate and biodiversity emergencies and