Sustainability at Berlin Partner
26. July 2023 - Our means of transport has a major impact on the climate. Whether commuting, vehicle fleets or business trips: The mobility of employees causes a large part of a company’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Like many other companies in the capital, Berlin Partner has also taken a number of measures in recent years to enable climate-friendly mobility for its employees and to make commuting and business trips within Berlin as climate-friendly as possible.
These measures include a discounted BVG subscription (job ticket) that can be requested by all employees, as well as BVG tickets that can be borrowed on a daily basis. In addition, employees can use shared mobility providers (e.g. cars, bicycles or scooters) and have the costs reimbursed afterwards. Company accounts have also been set up for some providers to make the billing process even easier. Over the years, Berlin Partner has reduced its fleet from four company cars to just one company car with an electric drive. With “soft” offers such as the annual participation in the competition “Who cycles the most” and its communication within the company, an attempt is being made to encourage the use of climate-friendly mobility solutions. Of course, mobile working with home office regulation also helps to reduce work-related travel.
The largest source of emissions, however, are business trips in Germany and abroad. The Berlin Partner Travel Guideline is the central control instrument through which emission reductions are to be achieved. Business trips within Germany may therefore only be made in a climate-friendly manner and preferably by train; domestic flights are only permitted in justified exceptional cases. However, presenting Berlin as a business location, particularly at trade fairs worldwide, is one of the core activities of Berlin Partner’s business development mandate.
The CO2 emissions of necessary business flights have so far been compensated by the climate protection levy of the Berlin Nature Conservation Foundation. At least for business trips to neighbouring European countries, e.g. to Poland or the Czech Republic, the train is also increasingly used and events such as seminars and training courses that do not necessarily require physical participation, are now often implemented digitally.
In 2020, Berlin Partner developed a sustainability strategy together with its internal and external stakeholders and continuously reports on its activities and measures in accordance with the German Sustainability Code. Dr. Diana Woelki and Robin Bruck form the Sustainability officer duo together as a team. In this function, they coordinate sustainability measures and reporting and are internal and external contacts regarding this topic.
You can read the entire interview with Berlin Partner Sustainability Officer Robin Bruck here: Companies report: Reducing emissions through mobility measures - Climate economy (klimaschutz-wirtschaft.de)
Companies that would like to improve their company mobility management can seek advice in this regard from the Berlin Agency for Electromobility eMO. Within the framework of MOMA Berlin, eMO supports companies individually and free of charge with the first steps up to the implementation of sustainable mobility solutions in the company and for its employees.