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Sustainability at GRS

For us, sustainability means that we do not think of our environment, our life (together), our economic actions and our work separately but rather as a whole, with each affecting the other. It means that we are aware of our social responsibility and act in a resource-conserving manner.

Applying this to the day-to-day work of GRS means that we do not only orient ourselves on bare figures, but also include social, ecological and economic aspects in our decisions. We are convinced that this will also benefit us as a company in the long run - because only sustainable action guarantees sustainable success.

We are therefore expressly committed to sustainable corporate governance as described in the German government's sustainability strategy, in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, and in the philosophy of sustainable corporate action underlying the German Sustainability Code.

How do we put our convictions into action?

Taking on and living up to ecological and social responsibility is part of our DNA. We have expressed this in our mission statement: We protect people and the environment by further developing the safety of technical installations. 

Making and further intensifying our contribution to the fight against climate change plays a very important role for us. We strive to work in a resource-saving way and continuously endeavour to keep our carbon footprint as small as possible. For example, half of our company cars are already equipped with hybrid drives, energy is saved as much as possible and used responsibly, sustainable purchasing is promoted, and paper consumption is reduced to a minimum. We support climate-friendly mobility for our employees by promoting subsidised tickets for public transport, a bicycle-friendly infrastructure, and by participating in campaigns such as "CITY CYCLING". Finally, the possibility of mobile working also allows climate-friendly savings of resources through the associated elimination of commuting distances.

For us, sustainable corporate governance takes into account not only the ecological but also the social aspect. Here, we are guided by the German government's Public Corporate Governance Code. We promote the compatibility of family and work through flexible working hours and flexitime models, daycare slots as well as parent-child rooms that can be used in the event of childcare bottlenecks, and mobile working.  Our social commitment also includes making a contribution to better education by supporting schools - for example, through the participation of our experts in lessons - and by developing appropriate media offerings to impart knowledge.

Sustainability means diversity

Just as biodiversity allows stable ecosystems, social diversity is a feature of tolerant and successful (corporate) cultures - this applies all the more to research institutions like GRS. Accordingly, as an employer we attach importance to a gender and generation ratio that is as fair as possible. Being party to a collective wage agreement, we also ensure that women and men are paid equally well. The fact that we employ people from almost 40 countries is also part of our lived diversity. 

Publications on the topic of sustainability

Our efforts for sustainable action are summarised in our biennial Sustainability Report. In addition, we publish an annual Corporate Governance Report in which we present our measures for sustainable corporate governance.