Employees from local pharmaceutical company, Chiesi Limited, have been turning theory into practice as part of their commitment to help those in need in Manchester. The company marked the United Nations coming together to review progress against their sustainability commitments by having their own ‘We ACT - Day: We Actively Care for Tomorrow’ programme of community initiatives. The activities focused on and highlighted Chiesi’s commitment to supporting the local environment and community, whilst also improving the health and wellbeing of its own staff.
During We ACT Day 2019, employees held a ‘Disco Soup’ event, making soup, to music, from surplus supermarket vegetables, under the supervision of Back on Track - a local Manchester based charity that enables disadvantaged adults to make lasting, positive changes in their lives. The soup was in turn served by Chiesi volunteers at the ‘Coffee for Craig’ soup kitchen. A knitting group was also started, dedicated to knitting blankets, hats and scarves for the elderly and homeless. This was on top of a number of initiatives which had already been launched with the aim of generating real change: reducing paper consumption, eliminating the use of plastic bottles, introducing recyclable materials and using renewable energy, to name but a few.
“We ACT Day represents the roadmap for how we operate both in our business and in our community here in Manchester.”
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Tom Delahoyde, Managing Director, Chiesi UK. “We are motivated and inspired by the reaction to We ACT by the Manchester community. We want to lead by example, using our business as a force for good and hope other large corporations in the area will join us in reducing their impact on the environment and preserving resources for future generations.”
Siobhan Pollitt, Chief Executive, Back on Track, “We greatly appreciate Chiesi’s support this ‘We ACT Day’. Our volunteers are at the centre of what we do which is why partnerships with local businesses, such as Chiesi, are essential in making sure we can continue to deliver an exciting programme of learning and support. By working together we can enable disadvantaged people in Manchester to make lasting, positive changes in their lives.”
Chiesi has committed to being carbon neutral by 2035 and is the first pharmaceutical company in the UK to be awarded B Corp®* certification, a hard-won accolade given to companies that meet the highest standards of social and environmental performance. We ACT Day was based on the Strategic Sustainability Plan, initiated by the company’s European head office based in Italy, which seeks to contribute to some of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set out in the United Nations 2030 Agenda.