In the same way as Publicis Conseil in France with its #NIBI program (“No Impact for Big Impact”), a number of agencies have now put in place processes designed to assess eco-friendly design options during the early stages of a project. If these parameters are duly considered, campaigns or digital solutions that consume less energy or raw materials, or that involve less travel or waste, can be achieved.
Employees remain very involved in internal initiatives related to the life of the Company, in particular eco-gestures on a daily basis, in order to limit environmental impacts, the two most significant of which are due to travel and transportation, and energy use.
At the same time, agencies are involved in local initiatives, such as Publicis Groupe UK, co-founder of the AdGreen coalition, which made available a carbon footprint calculator for production, or in France around carbon footprint measurement tools.
The impact of Covid-19 and the periods of strict lockdown were an opportunity to innovate, by profoundly revising the way in which communication campaigns were produced.
Employees are regularly informed locally in each agency of the progress made in the life of the agency. In most cases, this is the result of joint actions between the general services teams and volunteers within the agency, mobilized throughout the year. Depending on the issue, internal notifications make it possible to keep awareness high and monitor progress (in terms of reductions in electricity and paper consumption, improved waste-recovery management, etc.). As eco-actions are becoming more widespread, individual behaviors are changing and helping to reduce negative impacts.
The negative impacts of the Groupe that are taken into consideration when calculating greenhouse gas emissions come, in order of importance, from:
1. travel estimated at 288,965,000 km (calculation: business trips + employee commutes). Due to the multiple travel restrictions, 2020 has shown a sharp decrease in business flights and a general shift towards collaborative remote work tools (video & voice). Commuting journeys have also been greatly reduced.
For its company car fleet, the Groupe has adopted European objectives, i.e. CO2 emissions lower than 95 g/km by 2021. Finally, individual habits are starting to shift significantly with requests for hybrid and even electric vehicles;
2. energy consumption is estimated at 125,655,000 kWh. Renewable energy accounts for 33.5% of total consumption (based on the certifications given by electricity suppliers). As the actual consumption of the Epsilon entities now represents 20% of the Groupe’s total consumption, the data has been recalculated for 2019 to allow a reliable comparison between 2020 and 2019. Electricity consumption was significantly reduced in some entities due to the number of teams working from home. Efforts continue to improve energy efficiency and best practices (switch-off policy for computers and machines such as printers, as well as night and weekend lighting):
a. data centers: work to optimize and rationalize servers is ongoing, as well as the consolidation of applications, including digital products and services created for clients. This work is being conducted with the Groupe’s partners so that the results can be uniformly monitored. Efforts have been ongoing in all countries since 2016. Energy savings of 10% to 12% are made annually on server consumption in North America and Europe. An ambitious multi-year plan has enabled the number of machines to be reduced and all employees to be equipped with a range of powerful virtual tools with higher energy savings,
b. energy audits: pursuant to the application of directive 2012/27/EU, the agencies in Europe carried out energy audits enabling progress plans to be drafted for the coming years (for example, improvements to systems or the strengthening of individual and collective eco-friendly practices). In 2017, savings of 15% were recorded on electricity and heating at the head office in Paris. In the United Kingdom, the energy efficiency plan has been successful in London, with renewable energy targets set;
3.fixed assets (buildings, office materials such as IT equipment and servers, etc.). The Groupe seeks to use Green IT solutions in order to be able to work on more energy-saving computers and use more virtuous software packages and programs;
4. paper consumption: 257 metric tons were consumed, of which 68% were certified or standard-compliant paper (FSC, PEFC or other labels), as were consumables (ink cartridges, office supplies, etc.). For several years now, the “zero paper” policy has been encouraged everywhere. The rollout of applications such as “Follow Me” makes it possible to select printers according to the type of document to be printed and to use a badge to launch the printing, reducing paper consumption by 50% in just a few weeks;
5. water consumption is estimated at 506,374 m3 – approximately 6.4 m3 per capita. Agencies rent premises in serviced buildings which include local water supplies. The main improvements concern washroom facilities (sensors) and prompt response once a water leak is detected. Water is supplied from municipal distribution systems or private operators, under long-term contracts with the managers of the buildings in which the Groupe’s agencies are located. The aim is to reduce water consumption in all agencies;
6. the volume of non-hazardous waste recycled is estimated at 891 metric tons. Most of this waste is paper and cardboard. It is recycled with traceability (some agencies have traceability in place for 100% of these volumes). Given that the Groupe provides services, it does not manage any hazardous or toxic waste. In early 2020, the Groupe launched a global plan for single-use plastic, with the aim of achieving its elimination in all entities. Electronic waste is treated in WEEE recycling systems, under materials recycling contracts:
a. concerning the circular economy, for more than a decade now agencies have been voluntarily committed to promoting documents from recycled paper, plastic, fabric and other materials for paper publications or regular and one-time events, by working with suppliers who guarantee these recycled raw materials,
b. the issue of food waste has been monitored for a number of years now. In all agencies, employees must reduce waste day-to-day and support sharing initiatives to tackle food insecurity. For example, in the late afternoon, employees can go to the cafeteria (or kitchen or coffee room) to collect untouched food left over from meetings. In France, Sodexo, which is the Groupe’s partner, including for the Champs-Élysées and Bastille sites, is extremely proactive both in its own production chain (from upstream to downstream) and in its communication campaigns designed to raise the awareness of its employees and clients on food waste issues in corporate canteens. In 2020, the canteens were opened for a few weeks depending on changes in health constraints and the number of people authorized in the establishments.
The Groupe defends responsible, fair and sustainable food that is mindful of animal welfare, as evidenced by several projects carried out with various clients (see www.publicisgroupe.com, CSR section).
