European Sustainable Development Week in Kielce Industrial Park

Saturday, 25 September 2021, was dominated by ecology in the logistics park in Kielce. Raben Logistics Polska and Accolade, a company investing in modern infrastructure for business, together with the owner of Kielce Industrial Park and with the partner support of the Office for Entrepreneurship and the Investor Service Centre of the Kielce City Hall, jointly organized the Eco-Event as part of the European Sustainable Development Week. The event was held under the patronage of the Mayor of Kielce.

The Eco-Event is an example of an action that teaches by fun, educates, and at the same time helps achieve selected sustainable development goals, such as Goal 13 - climate action, Goal 15 - life on land, or Goal 11 - sustainable cities and communities. How the above-mentioned goals were accomplished during the meeting was witnessed by the invited participants, i.e. employees and collaborators of the organizers together with their families, representatives of other tenants of the park, as well as students and representatives of Primary School No. 25 in Kielce. Together they participated in many activities, such as planting trees and bushes or painting nesting boxes for swifts.

 Among the guests there were also representatives of the City Hall led the Deputy Mayor Agata Wojda.

“We are delighted that together with Raben we were able to organise an Eco-event where we could get to know the local community better and share our passion for sustainable and green solutions. Our long-term goal is to be a responsible partner, a good neighbour, and to make the regions in which we operate a better place to live. We believe that events like this will help residents learn about our approach not only to developing business in Europe, but also to developing regions for the sustainable future.” - says Michał Białas, Country Head Accolade Poland.

The program also included a fun and educational part related to both environmental topics and road safety. During the latter, Raben presented materials concerning the “Don’t be wild” campaign (niebadzdziki.pl). Those who were interested could also explore the backstage of the logistics chain and take part in a competition with prizes.

“I am glad that we were able to showcase the three pillars of our approach to social responsibility at the event: commitment to ecology, logistics education and road safety. In business we are guided by, among other things, a fair play approach and we want to be fair also to the environment by compensating the impact we have on it. As a company, we invest in more efficient and environmentally friendly transport solutions, we regularly measure CO2 levels, replace older vehicles with new ones, and plant trees to neutralise greenhouse gases...” - comments Adam Grzegolec, Depot Manager, Raben Logistics Polska in Kielce.

Care for the environment is one of the key pillars of Raben Group's sustainable development strategy, just like its influence on society. For years, the company has also focused on environmental education among its employees, their children as well as local communities. In order to protect the climate, a number of actions have been undertaken on a local, national, and European scale.

 “We feel responsible for the environment and we undertake various environmental initiatives, including providing low carbon or even carbon neutral services. We are developing a paperless culture and, just like during the Eco-Event, we educate our stakeholders and work with them for a better tomorrow.” – adds Adam Grzegolec.

Part of the event was a fundraiser for charity. The money raised was donated to the school to purchase educational materials.

“Actions related to ecology and climate change mitigation are one of our priorities. We run a number of initiatives in which we want to involve residents and work together for the benefit of the environment. We also carry out a program called “Green Patronage of Kielce” as part of which we cooperate with local and regional companies in greening urban spaces. I am very pleased that more and more entrepreneurs understand the need to engage in green projects and see them as the opportunity to build their image. Today, more and more companies are joining the ranks of socially responsible businesses. Thank you very much for that.” - stresses Agata Wojda, Deputy Mayor of Kielce.

The Eco-Event was the first event of this kind in Kielce Park. The organizers are considering organizing such events periodically. Meanwhile, both companies, Raben Logistics Polska and Accolade, intend to finance the construction of a Mediterranean garden in the Botanical Garden in Kielce.

The European Sustainable Development Week is an initiative to help organise activities that promote sustainable development and make these efforts visible on a common platform. The Kielce Eco-Event can be found at https://esdw.eu/events/__trashed-110/