1. Statement of Commitment
Sustain Right is committed to protecting the health and safety of its people and minimising the environmental footprint of its operations. Recognising that we advise clients on environmental performance and social responsibility, we hold ourselves to the same standards we recommend — embedding Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) considerations into how we work every day.
2. Scope
This HSE Policy applies to all employees, consultants, interns, contractors, vendors, and visitors at all Sustain Right offices, client sites visited in the course of work, off-site project locations, and travel undertaken on company business.
3. Health and Safety Commitments
- Maintain a safe, clean, and ergonomically appropriate work environment at all our offices.
- Comply with all applicable health, safety, fire, electrical, and building safety regulations.
- Provide first-aid facilities, clearly marked emergency exits, fire extinguishers, and periodic safety drills.
- Identify and assess workplace hazards proactively and implement appropriate controls.
- Brief team members on site-specific safety requirements before any client-site visit, audit, or assessment.
- Provide appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) when conducting on-site assessments at manufacturing, processing, or industrial facilities.
- Promote mental wellbeing through reasonable workloads, manageable timelines, leave entitlements, and an open culture around mental health.
- Maintain zero tolerance for harassment, intimidation, or unsafe behaviour in the workplace.
4. Travel and Field Safety
Significant portions of our work involve travel and on-site engagement with clients. Team members travelling on company business shall use reputable transport providers, comply with site-specific safety protocols at client locations, avoid travel in adverse weather or security conditions where possible, and stay reachable through company communication channels. Female team members travelling for work shall not be assigned overnight site visits where adequate safety arrangements cannot be reasonably ensured.
5. Environmental Commitments
5.1 Office Operations
- Minimise paper use through digital workflows, electronic signatures, and cloud-based collaboration.
- Adopt energy-efficient lighting, equipment, and HVAC practices at our offices.
- Segregate waste at source — dry, wet, and e-waste — and dispose through authorised handlers.
- Reduce single-use plastics; provide reusable utensils, water dispensers, and cloth bags.
- Conserve water and report leakages promptly.
5.2 Travel and Emissions
- Prefer virtual meetings over physical travel where practical and effective.
- When travel is necessary, prefer rail over air for shorter intercity journeys and public transport over private cabs within cities.
- Measure and disclose our own operational carbon footprint, and pursue reductions over time consistent with the science-based approaches we recommend to clients.
5.3 Procurement
- Prefer vendors with credible sustainability practices.
- Source supplies (stationery, marketing collateral, refreshments) responsibly where feasible.
- Avoid procurement of materials with known unethical sourcing concerns.
6. Roles and Responsibilities
- Management — Provides leadership, resources, and accountability for HSE outcomes.
- All Team Members — Work safely, follow HSE guidelines, report hazards, and protect resources.
- HSE Coordinator (designated) — Coordinates safety drills, incident reporting, and HSE awareness.
- Contractors and Vendors at our premises — Comply with applicable HSE requirements while working on our premises.
7. Incident Reporting
Any accident, injury, near-miss, fire, environmental release, or unsafe condition shall be reported immediately to the HSE Coordinator and management. Reports shall be investigated, root causes identified, and corrective and preventive actions implemented. Reporting an incident in good faith shall not result in any adverse consequences for the reporter.
8. Emergency Preparedness
Our offices maintain emergency contact information, evacuation plans, and basic first-aid arrangements. Team members shall familiarise themselves with the evacuation route at their work location and with the location of fire extinguishers and emergency exits. Periodic drills are conducted to test preparedness.
9. Continuous Improvement
We commit to continuous improvement of our HSE performance through periodic review of our practices, learnings from incidents and near-misses, alignment with evolving standards (including ISO 45001 and ISO 14001 principles), and engagement with our people on what could be done better.
10. Review
This HSE Policy shall be reviewed annually and revised as required to reflect changes in our operations, applicable regulations, and best practice.
For HSE questions, please contact us at hello@sustainright.com.