Last April IVI celebrated the 8th edition of its International IVIRMA Congress in Palma de Mallorca, showing the company´s clear commitment to sustainability. Social and environmental commitment were of fundamental importance to defining and launching the event, the strategic plan of which was influenced by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) established by UN, resulting in the first global health congress integrating SDG. This global initiative comes to life with the purpose of ending poverty, protecting the planet and seeking to ensure peace and prosperity to everybody.
In this context and as part of its environmental commitment, IVI is working towards reducing carbon footprint; and offsetting the CO2 emissions generated during the 8th International IVIRMA Congress serves as an example. That way, 48 tons of CO2 registered were compensated by sponsoring 300m2 of Oceanic Posidonia, an initiative within the SAVE POSIDONIA project for conservation of this endemic species in the ecosystem of the Balearic Islands.
“We are aware of the need for getting involved in environmental sustainability from a global perspective, as we have done during the congress. All the initiatives implemented by us point in the same direction, one that governs our commitment to sustainability, towards balance on our planet and creating environmental legacy“, says Andreu Miguel, Global Head of HR and Sustainability at IVIRMA.
Other actions implemented during the congress with regard to climate change were: the provision of 100% renewable energy, not only to the Convention Centre where the congress took place, but also to Palma Bay Hotel, the team´s accommodation; the efficient use of energy in the spaces used by IVI and during the activities, avoiding wasting resources, even if of renewable origin; and the offsetting of 33 tons of CO2 equivalent to air travel by IVI employees, among other adopted measures.
A sustainability plan was designed in order to establish actions carried out during the 8th International IVIRMA Congress, focused on 4 areas: the first one, as already mentioned, within the framework of “Climate change”, followed by circular economy, people, natural resources and local production; and the results of which we publish today, on the occasion of International Environment Day.
Recovery of 2.300 kg of organic waste and 800 kg of glass waste
This objective, forming a part of the area: “Circular economy: Zero Waste Philosophy”, could be achieved thanks to implementing various actions, such as developing a mobile application to provide information for the attendees, installing screens for the consultation of scientific posters and for signage, all this under the motto: “0 paper, committed to the planet”; or simplifying the set design of the conference rooms and meeting rooms.
This adds up to the involvement of the participating stands in optimising and recycling materials, acknowledging the most sustainable stand: Merck. Awarded with a diploma that recognises it as the owner of the sponsored Posidonia area, named from now on Marck Posidonia, in honour of the recognition.
Another noteworthy initiative was waste sorting to facilitate its proper collection and recycling and also, the commitment of IVI to prevent excess waste by using compostable materials as a substitute for single-use plastic items.
People: equality and inclusiveness
The area was represented by various initiatives, all geared towards including groups at risk of exclusion through the ADECCO foundation, the absence of physical accessibility barriers in congress spaces and the visibility of the social initiatives, facilitating the presence of a Doctors Without Borders stand.
Under the umbrella of this conference, a donation of 3.000 € was made to a social project chosen by the congress´ attendees from a selection of 3 projects put forward by IVI Mallorca employees and the Balearic Islands community. The winner was a project presented by the Rafa Nadal Foundation Center, a social integration facility for more than 200 minors at risk of social exclusion in Palma de Mallorca.
In addition, and in the spirit of IVI´s social commitment, drinking fountains were installed for the participants at the expense of the social enterprise Proyecto 3 Glops, a local initiative where the employees are people with disabilities who participate in the whole production process, from the design to the market launch.
Natural resources and local production
During the 8th International IVIRMA Congress we took actions to promote water efficiency, as well as including local products in the menu with the objective of supporting the consumption of Zero km food, which is more sustainable environmentally and socially.
“The 1.674 attendees to our 8th International IVIRMA Congress coming from 78 countries, the 17 aware and dedicated stands which shared our unwavering commitment to SDG as the central pillar of our sustainability strategy; and the achieved results that support this necessary and binding commitment, help us to stay on the path with a clear objective: Innovating with heart to create meaningful lives”, Miquel concludes.
IVI´s environmental commitment
Environmental preservation and respect are one of the cornerstones of IVI´s conduct as a global company. IVI has a waste management procedure applied in its clinics, the objective of which is to handle he generated waste correctly.
Moreover, IVI takes measures aimed at reducing paper consumption, such as introducing biometric signature and patient portal.
Regarding energy, management action is focused on making improvements to reduce its consumption and ensure increased energy efficiency of the facilities.
In 2016 all the Spanish clinics underwent an energy audit with the aim of optimising the actions to be implemented in this regard.