Promotes products the beekeepers produce & organizes recreational educational activities about bees, rural products and the natural environment
About
The business was founded at the end of 2014, as an agrotourism company. The initial idea was to show tourists a unique experience in nature, through showcasing beekeeping, herb collecting and explaining the properties of the local herbs. They would arrange luxury services – for example, having brunch in a remote area with fresh and local products. Around 2018 they realized that schools were also interested. Schools reached out to them to have visits with the kids. The experience was really good, the kids loved it. Due to her experience as a biologist educating is something she is really passionate about so she decided to focus more on schools. Tourism and tourist agents were no longer their focus. That was a turning point for the company as they focused on having a better space, better premises to facilitate school visits. Their focus turned from luxury services to then focusing on education. This in turn had an environment turn – they now also had to think of their use of paper, paper cups etc. But nowadays the tourist sector is also interested in alternative agricultural services. Tourist agents are also interested in having Ecophysis be a part of their tours of Cyprus.
Sustainable Development
The core value of Ecophysis was doing something that is sustainable they wanted the Pure Hospitality of Cyprus to be shown. After 2018 they realized that they are more interested in Educations and young people vs tourists. Back then the tourist sector was not ready for sustainable agriculture. All their products and services promote a lifestyle near nature, preserving nature and on how we can handle herbs we pick up and bees. This all showcase the sustainability they want to promote. An important moment for the company was when they decided to go plastic free. They replaced the plastic bottles that they used for over 20 years with glass jars. Now they only have glass jars and all the systems that allows this transition (eg. washing machine for glass), their labels are also new to allow for the shape of the jars, be according to the law and have an attractive design for their clients. This process is more expensive, and it also adds to the working hours as it needs more attention and space to save them. But this was a decision they felt they wanted to make, and it also improves the quality of their products.
Sustainability Impact
Sustainability development definitely impacts the company in a positive way, guests are excited to explore sustainable places like our organization. Also the quality of our products with the glass jars is better and out labels are more attractive. However, with the change of jars to glass ones they also lost some clients who wanted plastic jars who felt glass jars was not convenient for them. The founders of the organization Georgia and Kostas are responsible for the implementation of sustainable development. Georgia (founder) explained that Kostas (co-founder) has the values and passions for sustainability while Georgia has the scientific background and is able to translate those values into practice.
SDGs goals and Sustainable development strategy
Goal 2. Zero Hunger: Promote sustainable agriculture through ethical beekeeping. Also honey never goes bad so they also educate people to understand that honey never goes bad even if it changes forms (eg. If it crystalizes it does not mean its bad, it is due to the weather – it is colder). Additionally, they hold workshops on collecting herbs. They believe that nature can offer more than we think, for example they teach which herbs can be found in your own back yard that are not only edible but also nutritious. Lastly, they also deal with a lot of kids that have nutritional difficulties but really like honey.
Goal 3. Good Health and Well-Being: Honey has anti-bacterial properties which is beneficial for the body. Through this they promote natural nutrition for your body as well as your skin with workshops on how to make your own balms which are great for the skin. Their educational workshops promote good health and well being through the connection of nature.
Goal 4. Quality Education: They are very focused on giving quality educational workshops. They do not charge a lot for the educational workshops such as: beekeepers for a day and how to make balms and ointments.
Goal 5. Gender Equality: The company follows a woman led structure, Georgia is a woman and the boss (Kostas embraced this and never had an issue with it). Through their company they promote female bee keepers as well as encourage girls to try it out in their workshops. In Cyprus there are only 3 or 4 women beekeepers and one of them is Georgia. Through these workshops they promote equal gender roles in children.
Goal 8. Decent Work and Economic Growth: Ecophysis is also promoting to young people that you can create a successful business in a village. When they were starting their business they felt strongly about wanting to develop something from a village, they did not want to go to the city. Vavla the village they ae based in only has 30 inhabitants. In this way they are helping the economic growth of the village by bringing people in through their workshops. In addition they are looking to expand their team and want to find employees from the nearby villages, helping people that want to stay in the village find jobs.
Goal 15. Life on Land: They are actively promoting the need to keep our natural vegetation in order for bees to be able to produce and thrive through their workshops. They encourage people to stop removing natural vegetation. It is important to understand that even in our own yards you can leave flowers for bees. It is important to stop ‘tidying up’ our gardens. They are actively trying to connect people with nature (eg. Stop using pesticides).
Strategy & Mission
When they started, they had a written strategy which was focused on tourism. Which is still relevant as every Sunday they have events that people can openly visit. However, this is something that in the future they will only be able to maintain if they have more employees. Before she started the business Georgia was working as a scientific officer for environmental organizations, so she had a lot of experience in researching and promoting SDGs strategies both in Cyprus and the EU, going to parliament etc. She was aware of all these efforts to protect the environment and be sustainable. This helped in having a strategy about sustainability without being conscious about it.
Innovative approaches &Challenges
The main challenge was profitability, some of the sustainable practices they have cost a lot more. Some of the new adaptations they want to include in their practices are also very expensive so it is not something they can do right now. For example to clean the water, to be able to re-use it but that is an expensive system that they need to look more into. Because they are in agricultural land they get water from the community but this is not sustainable it would be more so to be able to recycle water and use it for irrigation; thus not consuming drinking water for irrigation.
In September 2015, all 193 Member States of the United Nations adopted a plan for achieving a better future for all — laying out a path over the next 15 years to end extreme poverty, fight inequality and injustice, and protect our planet. At the heart of “Agenda 2030” are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which clearly define the world we want — applying to all nations and leaving no one behind.
The new Global Goals result from a process that has been more inclusive than ever, with Governments involving business, civil society and citizens from the outset. We are all in agreement on where the world needs to go. Fulfilling these ambitions will take an unprecedented effort by all sectors in society — and business has to play a very important role in the process.
MORE ABOUT SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT:
https://unglobalcompact.org/what-is-gc/our-work/sustainable-development
For full reference please visit website:
https://unglobalcompact.org/sdgs/about
No matter how large or small, and regardless of their industry, all companies can contribute to the SDGs. While the scale and scope of the global goals is unprecedented, the fundamental ways that business can contribute remain unchanged. The UN Global Compact asks companies to first do business responsibly and then pursue opportunities to solve societal challenges through business innovation and collaboration.
Global challenges – ranging from climate, water and food crises, to poverty, conflict and inequality – are in need of solutions that the private sector can deliver, representing a large and growing market for business innovation. In the rush to transform business models and systems for the future, integrity and values will have a huge role to play. For companies wanting to advance the SDG agenda, the job starts by acting responsibly – incorporating the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact widely into strategies and operations, and understanding that good practices or innovation in one area cannot make up for doing harm in another.
See what you can do:
https://unglobalcompact.org/take-action/action
For full reference please visit website:
https://unglobalcompact.org/sdgs/about
1. Understand the SDGs and link relevant targets to your business activities
The very first step for companies in their SDG journey is to learn more about each of the goals, the relevant targets, and KPIs to see how they are directly and indirectly related to their business activities.
For example, Schneider Electric connected its business activities to all 17 goals via 5 megatrends: Climate, Circular Economy, Ethics, Health & Equity, and Development.
2. Define priorities
Companies should prioritize SDG targets by considering which will have the biggest impact in terms of risk or opportunity in medium- to long-term and which goals the company has the ability to contribute to achieving progress in. It may be that a company is contributing to all of the 17 goals, but when allocating resources and defining the timeline, it is important to start with those targets which create the largest impact. As an example, the Chinese technology company, Huawei, actively worked on developing the ICT Sustainable Development Goals Benchmark. They explored the relationship between ICT and sustainable development and identified the goals with the biggest correlation to the ICT sectors: SDG-4 – Quality of Education, SDG 3 – Good Health & Well-being, SDG 9 – Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure. These sectoral benchmarks can be used as the first step for the company to understand their impacts across different goals.
3. Set the goals.
Once the key SDGs are identified, it is important to link those goals to actual business targets and KPIs to monitor and communicate progress. Quite often, companies may already have existing targets and actions which they can leverage while developing their SDG strategy. Many science-based target (SBT) committed companies use their validated targets to monitor performance on the SDG 13 – Climate Action and SDG 7 – Affordable and Clean Energy. For example, Unilever provided a clear link and details on how their carbon positive targets align with various initiatives such as RE100, SBT, and contribute to the relevant SDGs.
4. Integrate.
In order to make the SDG strategy viable and effective, companies must integrate these targets into the existing strategy, taking into account business models, procurement and R&D processes, and supply chain transformations. By realigning sustainability strategies to achieve both corporate goals and the SDGs, companies can identify areas where they can draw from existing commitments and projects to contribute positively toward SDGs. Novo Nordisk partnered with Washington and Lee University to analyze how some of their existing programs are impacting SDGs and created an interactive chart showing those connections.
5. Innovate and collaborate
The SDGs provide a framework for innovation, creating business growth opportunities and new business models, products, or services that drive progress toward the goals. Following the framework also helps to identify partners within sectors and across different industries which enable organizations to scale up their efforts and ultimately achieve the goals. As part of their work on SBTs and SDG13 – Climate Action, Nokia identified that Radio Access Networks result in a global energy bill of over $70 billion. To address the need to decouple data growth from energy use, the company developed an innovative AirScale radio base station solution (BTS) for mobile operators, which consumes 28% less power and helps to build zero-emissions networks.
6. Report and communicate
Companies need to be ready to communicate their progress in addressing goals linked to the SDGs. It is crucial to integrate the SDGs in the core business reporting process to avoid duplicated efforts and ensure transparency and accessibility of their performance to various internal and external stakeholders.
Useful tools and methodologies are emerging for companies to understand better how they can contribute to the SDGs in a holistic way.
As an example, in August 2019, three accounting associations (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ) and Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)) jointly published SDG disclosure recommendations linking various reporting frameworks including the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC), the Taskforce on Climate related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and the UK Financial Reporting Council (FRC) aimed at supporting organizations with their reports on progress towards the achievement of the SDGs.
For detailed strategies and examples, you can read the full article here:
https://www.gresb.com/nl-en/6-ways-business-can-align-with-sdgs-and-make-an-impact/
In February 2023, the Fairpreneurs project team gathered for their inaugural Transnational Project Meeting in Szczecin, hosted by the University. Delegates from Denmark, Ireland, and Cyprus joined forces to advance the project, focusing on the development of methodologies for the WP2 Good Practice Compendium and Curriculum Kit. The discussions explored identifying and engaging suitable businesses as case studies, establishing criteria, and formulating key interview questions. Additional talks delved into curriculum content, from modules and learning objectives to activities. The productive meeting concluded with a cultural stroll and a partner dinner in the city, cementing collaboration and setting the stage for future project milestones.