Despite problems of semantics the concept of sustainable development has an important advantage in that it recognizes the interdependence of the economic, environmental and social spheres. This highlights the fact that sustainable development is not something that we as a company can achieve by ourselves. Instead, we must work closely with our customers, suppliers and the rest of our stakeholders to ensure that our products are meeting real needs and being produced in an nvironmentally sound manner. Being an active member of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and other environmental networks, along with our stakeholder consultation activities are, we believe, the best ways of developing our commitment and contribution to sustainable development. From our viewpoint sustainable development is also - as it says - about development and this means that industry can gain without the environment having to lose and vice versa. We believe that Novo Nordisk can make an important contribution to a sustainable future through the products we make and the technologies and processes we employ. And we do believe that we can be part of the solution - not the problem. In the process of evolving sustainable development from an abstract concept to a set of operational management tools we believe that it is important to take a practical and structured approach - setting targets, quantifying results and documenting progress. To kick off this process at Novo Nordisk, my colleagues and I in Corporate Management initiated a project in 1997 with the aim of identifying focus areas for the company within the sustainable development agenda. The outcome of what we called the "Values in Action" project was, among other things, to work in a structured and targeted manner with bioethics in the same way as we have been doing with environmental issues for a number of years, and to publish a social responsibility report around the year 2000. Our strategy for improving our environmental responsibility has been to engage stakeholders, involve employees and set targets for continuous progress and these key elements will also form the basis for our approach to sustainable development. Transparent and responsible action is at the heart of being considered credible and trustworthy. I hope this report echoes our endeavours to document the soundness of our business. Let us know what you think of this, our fifth report. We do welcome and learn from your responses. Use the feedback form or contact us at Environmental Affairs: +45 4442 2554 or by e-mail: enviro@novo.dk |
