PRESS RELEASE
RSA Announces UK Entrants for European Business Awards
The RSA Environment Awards Forum has announced the 12 UK Entrants selected as finalists for the European Business Awards for the Environment (EBAE). With 6 of the entrants being Scottish businesses, the announcement was made at the Scotsman Hotel in Edinburgh, in conjunction with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.
The EBAE recognises outstanding, new or innovative contributions to sustainable development and the UK finalists will compete for a prize against winners from 28 other countries on the European stage.
UK Entrants for Europe are selected from the winners and runners up of RSA Accredited award schemes. RSA Accreditation is only achieved by a select number of environmental and sustainable award schemes, who demonstrate the high standards expected by the RSA’s Environment Awards Forum. This means that those chosen for Europe are ‘the best of the best’; the most far-sighted, responsible and innovative companies from across the country.
The UK has had at least an award winner in every EBAE since 1994.
The biennial EBAE is comprised of four award categories in which companies are rewarded for; outstanding new or innovative management practices, products, processes and international co-operation activities which contribute to economic and social development without detriment to the environment. An additional award was introduced in 2012 for biodiversity; selected from entrants to the other categories.
Dr Malcolm Aickin, Chair of the RSA Environment Awards Forum, said “The UK Entrants for the 2014 EBAE have been selected from the winners of 6 of the 13 UK Accredited Award Schemes. The UK has always made an excellent showing in Europe providing significantly more winners than any other European Country. This year the entrants represent a very broad range of activity and diversity of achievement. Their collective strength gives high hopes that our winning record will continue.”
All of the UK Entrants will now go forward to the European finals, to be held later this year.
2014 UK Entrants:
Management
- Brand-Rex Ltd: “The pathway to Carbon Neutrality” and “2015 for 2020: 20 Steps we can make by 2015 for a better vision of our future”
- Nestle UK Ltd: Lighthouse 1
- The Bay: The Bay Fish & Chips, Stonehaven
- Transport for London: TfL’s commitment to sustainable travel
Product & Services
- CPT EALABC: LC Super Hybrid
- Dryden Aqua: AFM® Activated Water Filtration Media
- Parax Paper: The ecologically friendly alternative paper
- Vegware: Zero waste food packaging
Business Process
- Berendsen UK: Water and Energy Management
- Cynar Plc: End of Life Plastics to Usable Liquid Fuels
- Dry Lube: Better for your people, your environment and your business
International Business Cooperation
- Mainetti (UK) Limited: Plan M – Making Mainetti Sustainable
RSA Accreditation
The
RSA Environment Awards Accreditation Scheme has been in operation for the past 12 years, with the aim of helping to differentiate the large number of award schemes currently in existence. It does this by accrediting awards to objective standards, ensuring that there is a benchmark for those that reward real progress towards sustainability.
Currently 13 award schemes in the UK are accredited by the RSA and are the only feeder schemes that can submit entries into the European Commission’s biennial European Business Awards for the Environment (EBAE). The prestigious EBAE awards play a crucial role in demonstrating progress on environmental and sustainable development issues worldwide.
EBAE Awards
The European Business Awards for the Environment are awarded by the European Commission every two years and aim to recognise and reward European companies which set an example by successfully bringing together innovation, economic viability, environmental considerations and social equity.
The scheme comprises four award categories in which companies are rewarded for outstanding new or innovative management practices, products, processes and international co-operation activities which contribute to economic and social development without detriment to the environment. An additional award was introduced in 2012 for biodiversity; selected from entrants to the other categories.
To be eligible for the European Business Awards for the Environment, companies first have to win a national award from amongst the schemes which are organised in individual European Union member countries every year. This means that the companies awarded the European prize are ‘the best of the best’; the most far-sighted, responsible and innovative across Europe. In the UK entries are selected from the winners of Accredited Award Schemes. Details of these can be found at
Participation is open to companies from all EU member states and Turkey. The submission of entries to the European awards competition is managed by national coordinating bodies. In the UK the coordinator is the Royal Society of Arts for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) on behalf of the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA).
