The seminar "Sustainability in the Peat Industry" took place on April 26th and 30th, and its aim was to promote the sustainable development of the industry and its participants. During the seminar, Agnese Alksne-Bensone introduced the concept of sustainability and its regulations, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, as well as other rules and laws that are already affecting companies and will continue to affect them in the near future. Artūrs Jansons encouraged the participants to look at global processes and the challenges and opportunities they create for the peat industry.
At the end of the first day, Jānis Brizga informed the participants about how to calculate the CO2 footprint. We started the second day of the seminar with a discussion on whether the industry needs a Memorandum of Commitment to implement sustainable business practices in the peat sector. Agnese Alksne-Bensone outlined the process of developing the memorandum, its costs, and timelines. The attendees agreed that the memorandum is necessary and also encouraged the organizers to repeat such a seminar so that other employees of the company could be trained. The seminar concluded with the game "Carbon Neutrality Strategies," led by Krista Griķe and Artūrs Jansons. The participants' task was to choose the most appropriate strategy to reduce CO2 emissions by 50,000 tons per year. They had to decide on the strategy, tactical steps, and activities to achieve the goal.
Sustainability is not simply a modern buzzword used to promote marketing activities. It is a requirement defined by the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive to provide information on the company’s business model, how it impacts social and environmental aspects, and what the influence of large external trends will be on the company's development in the future. This is explained by Agnese Alksne-Bensone, co-founder of the Latvian Corporate Social Responsibility Platform (CSR Latvia). The idea to organize the seminar on sustainability in the peat industry came from Sabīna Alta, the Deputy Chairperson of the Board of LNKB, who works on sustainability issues at SIA "Laflora". The seminar was organized by LNKB in collaboration with the lecturer and expert team from CSR Latvia.
Key points discussed in the seminar:
Transition to renewable energy sources.
Organizing infrastructure, implementing energy efficiency measures, and revising policies related to transportation, involving employees in these activities.
Purchasing carbon credit certificates.
Creating short-term or long-term strategies.
How selected activities will affect brand value.
The required investment volume.
The impact of chosen solutions on economic sustainability and how long-lasting the effects will be.
The game participants assumed various roles and developed strategies from different perspectives, according to their job positions: environmental specialists, sustainability experts, quality managers, finance experts, human resources specialists, marketing and communications specialists. The CEO and owners were also assigned their own roles and responsibilities.
