From little things big things grow. Such is the case with Serco Goes Green, a cross-business initiative that nurtures innovative, grassroots environmental projects within Serco’s business units.
Through Serco Goes Green, frontline team members with ideas to improve Serco’s performance in reducing its carbon footprint, diverting waste from landfill and minimising resource consumption can get the support they need to get their ideas off the ground. And the germination of these ideas from a centralised working group means the wider business can benefit from the learnings and implement similar programs in other parts of the business, thereby helping Serco become greener across all operations.
“The Serco Goes Green Network fosters colleague innovation, pride, and care for the environment. Our frontline teams are the key to our success as an impact partner, and this network is the key to our ability to take great ideas, build upon them, and replicate them across all our contracts for the benefit of the environment, our customers, and the communities we serve,” says Paul Stevens, Head of Health Safety & Environment Asia Pacific.
The Serco Goes Green working group comprises a broad range of people ranging from frontline workers through to members of the Asia Pacific executive leadership team, who act as Green Ambassadors across the business.
Education campaigns about recycling and containers for change schemes with proceeds donated to charity are just a few of many projects currently underway in the Justice and Immigration sector.
Another Justice and Immigration initiative sees Clarence Correctional Centre working towards a zero waste to landfill goal. While it has historically cost around $9,000 a year to send organic waste generated at the facility to landfill, the installation of a black soldier fly farm means this waste is now processed onsite to produce high-protein livestock feed and fertiliser. These products are then sold into the local food supply chain, with some of the chicken farmers who buy them supplying eggs back to the prison, thereby closing the loop.
Textile waste from Clarence Correctional Centre is managed by an external supplier, which breaks it down into its raw materials of PET and cellulose for use in new products, and Acacia Prison, has long been recognised for its environmental sustainability, having been the recipient of a number of state and national awards.
Collectively these efforts will help Serco reach its overarching goals of switching from brown to green energy to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030 and the diversion of as much waste as possible from landfill by phasing out single use plastics, introducing biodegradable products and reusing or recycling where possible.
As it continues to incubate initiatives such as these, Serco Goes Green has a key role to play in turning grassroots programs into green shoots across the wider business.