The label assesses the environmental performance of companies by rating their environmental initiatives on a scale of one, two or three stars after a thorough audit. The initiatives can relate to, for example, waste prevention, sustainable purchasing, rational energy and water consumption, noise management, or employee mobility.
Dirk Van Gerven, Managing Partner of NautaDutilh Brussels: "We're proud to see our efforts to reduce the environmental impact of our activities officially recognised. Environmental awareness has become deeply ingrained in our culture, as evidenced by the fact that almost 10% of our people contribute to the Think Green Committee, which has worked to create environmental awareness at the office since 2004. Sustainability is key to the firm's daily management, and we will continue to take steps to reduce our ecological footprint."
The initiatives that enabled us to obtain a three-star label include:
- Energy: Our offices are located in a green building with good insulation, high-performance equipment and alternative energy sources (solar panels and a geothermal heat pump for both heating and cooling).
- Waste prevention: We have taken many actions centred around the 3Rs (reduce, reuse and recycle), such as making reusable lunch bowls available to minimise waste, establishing a Green Box to encourage the internal reuse of office supplies, and the sourcing of fresh coffee beans from a Brussels-based family business.
- Water consumption: Rainwater is used for sanitary facilities as well as internal and external building maintenance.
- Mobility: We encourage greener commuting alternatives such as cycling, public transport or car sharing and organise an annual Mobility Week with fun activities and the possibility to try out different means of transport. In addition, a permanent pool of e-bikes is available for use during office hours.
NautaDutilh was awarded its first (one-star) Ecodynamic Organisation Label in 2006. In fact, NautaDutilh was the first law firm in the Brussels-Capital Region to earn an Ecodynamic Organisation Label and is the only law firm to date with a three-star label.
We will not rest on our laurels and will continue to take steps to make a positive impact and reduce our ecological footprint.