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March 2006

All change for the Sustainable Business Partnership

The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Sustainable Business Partnership (SBP) is entering an exciting phase with the appointment of two new full time posts, with Stephen Duncan joining as SBP Manager, and Sharyn Kent as Marketing Co-ordinator. These two new posts represent a major step forwards for the Partnership and mean that it will be able to take forward a range of programmes and activities aimed at encouraging and supporting sustainable business practices.

The SBP is an informal partnership of representatives from businesses and support organisations across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. Its mission is to motivate all businesses in the area to adopt sustainable business practices. It aims to do this both by promoting sustainability to businesses, and by acting as a source of information, advice and contacts for businesses actively seeking to become more sustainable.

There are a number of ways that Stephen and Sharyn intend to achieve this, through the development of a comprehensive marketing and co-ordination strategy which will help the Partnership to engage directly with businesses and to bring businesses and organisations together to share good practice and information and to learn more about sustainability issues.

This will be achieved through two main activities; the Sustainable Business Network (SBN) and the Sustainable Business Forum (SBF). The former acts as a platform for businesses themselves to get together and discuss and learn about sustainability issues through a series of meetings at different locations across the county. Businesses who already have well established sustainability programmes will be able to share their experiences with others, as well as stay on top of the latest legislation through presentations from experts in the field. The SBF on the other hand comprises of support organisations such as local authorities and environmental consultancies with an interest in promoting sustainability. Meetings will focus on the sharing of good practice and collaboration on different projects.

On top of this Stephen and Sharyn will soon start work on the arrangements for the 2007 Sustainable Business Awards, showcasing and rewarding excellence in the field of Sustainability in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. Ceremonies in recent years have revealed an exceptionally high and inspirational standard locally, with many past winners being shortlisted for the recent SEEDA Sustainable Business Awards.

Busy and exciting times lie ahead for the Sustainable Business Partnership and both Stephen and Sharyn look forward to working with businesses and partners across the county to achieve their common goals. If you would like to know more about the work of the Partnership don’t hesitate to contact them on 01962 845591 or by e-mail at Sustainable.Business.Partnership@hants.gov.uk