Seventh CoP submitted

We have just presented our progress report for the period 2016-2017 to the United Nations Global Compact.

Since July 2010, Van Os-Sonnevelt endorses the United Nations Global Compact. The commitment means that as a company we actively contribute to the realization of the 10 Principles on sustainable entrepreneurship and that we also endorse the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.

Every organization that subscribes to the Global Compact is obliged to report annually on the progress achieved on various sustainability aspects. Van Os-Sonnevelt recently submitted its Communication on Progress for the seventh time. You can download the document via the link below.

Fifth Communication on Progress available

Our fifth Communication on Progress for the United Nations Global Compact has been submitted. In this report, you can read what measures we took in the last year to become more sustainable.

Van Os-Sonnevelt has been supporting the United Nations Global Compact since 2011. This means that the company actively commits to the Ten Principles of sustainable business and reports on an annual basis on the progress that has been made in several fields of sustainability.

For the Belgian exhibition industry, the 2014-2015 season was all but an easy year. Several events were cancelled or postponed, others shrank and ran on low ebb. Nevertheless, Van Os-Sonnevelt managed to maintain its market share and further reduce its ecological footprint.

The Communication on Progress 2014-2015 is available in English and can be downloaded from the UN Global Compact website via the link below.


Download the CoP here in pdf-format.

Fourth CoP for UN Global Compact

Today, Van Os-Sonnevelt has submitted its fourth Communication on Progress to the Global Compact of the United Nations. Until December 15, 2015 the company has the Active status.

The Global Compact is a global platform for companies and organizations that have committed to implement systematically ten universally accepted principles of sustainability into their operations. The principles relate to human rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption. They were formalized in the 2007 Geneva Declaration.

Companies and organizations that endorse the Global Compact have an obligation to annually publish a Communication on Progress on how they are trying to implement the 10 Principles in their activities. Belgium has 70 participants in the Global Compact. Of these, 34 companies have the status Active Reporting.


Check the Van Os-Sonnevelt page on the United Nations website here.

GC Active status confirmed

Van Os-Sonnevelt submitted its third Communication on Progress to the Global Compact of the United Nations and continues its Active status for another year.

In 2010, Van Os-Sonnevelt subscribed to the United Nations Global Compact and committed to implementing and actively promoting the 10 principles of the Global Compact. These ten principles relate to core sustainability subjects as human rights, labour rights, anti-corruption, the environment and product liability.
Companies who support the global Compact are to report on the progress they made on a yearly basis. We managed to submit our CoP for the reporting period Juliy 2012-June2013 on schedule and were granted the Active status for another year.
The CoP is, for the moment being, only available in Dutch. A summary in English will be made available on our website soon.

Learn more about the UN Global Compact here.

UN Global Compact

UN Global Compact is the world wide movement of companies that endorse business ethics.

In August 2010 Van Os-Sonnevelt signed the Global Compact of the United Nations. By signing the document, the company commits itself to respecting the 10 principles of the Global Compact. These principles relate to working conditions and labour relations, gender equality and anti-discrimination, respect for the environment, social responsibility and anti-corruption.

From July 2011 onwards, you can read the annual Communication on Progress in the CSR section of this website. More information on the UN Global Compact and its reporting members can be obtained from the UN GC website.

www.globalcompact.be

Certificate Corporate Social Responsibility

Van Os-Sonnevelt has successfully participated in Quadrant, the Learning Network for Corporate Social Responsibility of VOKA Halle-Vilvoorde.

In the Learning Network Corporate Social Responsibility, businesses engage in a dialogue with one another and with specialized consultants of Sustenuto in search of higher levels of sustainability for their activities. Theoretical concepts are interspersed with practical exercises and testimonials from former participants who applied Quadrant insights into their own businesses.

Van Os-Sonnevelt’s Christophe Landuyt took part in the sessions of the Learning Network. He made himself familiar with the basic principles of sustainable business and sought means to apply new insights to the maximum in the daily activities of Van Os-Sonnevelt and in its dialogue with customers and suppliers. During the Community Day on April 7th at the social centre ‘La Ferme de nos Pilifs’, Christophe received the CSR certificate on behalf of Van Os-Sonnevelt.

(picture (c) C-photos

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Towards more sustainability

From September onwards, Van Os-Sonnevelt will take part in Quadrant, the Learning Network for Corporate Social Responsibility of VOKA Halle-Vilvoorde.

In the Learning Network Corporate Social Responsibility, businesses engage in a dialogue with one another and with specialized consultants of Sustenuto in search of higher levels of sustainability for their activities. Theoretical concepts are interspersed with practical exercises and testimonials from former participants who applied Quadrant insights into their own businesses.

Van Os-Sonnevelt participates in the third cycle of Quadrant in order to improve the strategic embedding of the sustainability policy and the full integration of various actions and measures in our ISO 9001 quality management system.


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Van Os-Sonnevelt joins UN Global Compact

In August Van Os-Sonnevelt joined the United Nations Global Compact strategic policy for businesses, actively endorsing ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption.

Launched in July 2000, the UN Global Compactis both a policy platform and a practical framework for companies that are committed to sustainability and responsible business practices. As a leadership initiative endorsed by chief executives, it seeks to align business operations and strategies everywhere with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption.

Through a wide spectrum of specialized workstreams, management tools, resources, and topical
programs, the UN Global Compact aims to advance two complementary objectives:
- Mainstream the ten principles in business activities around the world
- Catalyze actions in support of broader UN goals, including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

By doing so, business, as the primary agent driving globalization, can help ensure that markets, commerce, technology and finance advance in ways that benefit economies and societies everywhere and contribute to a more sustainable and inclusive global economy.

We invite you to take a look on the UN Global Compact website and consider joining the movement too.

Learn more on the UN Global Compact

More than making money...

Van Os-Sonnevelt endorses the Sustainable Entrepreneurship Principles of the Corporate Funding Programme organization and obtained the Corporate Social Responsibility Certificate.

Corporate Funding Programme or CFP is a unique network of companies interested in supporting development programmes on the one hand and non-governmental organizations with development projects that support local economy. CFP prepares, monitors and fulfills the engagements taken by member companies, thus enabling to develop corporate social responsibility and corporate citizenship without losing too much time and energy in follow-up of projects.
Since 2004, Van Os-Sonnevelt has been supporting a rural development programme in Chitima, Moçambique, where farmers learn to use oxen to work their land.


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Sustainable pedaling

Van Os-Sonnevelt recently bought two bikes that can be used by employees to commute between the company and the railway station in the town center of Londerzeel. The purchase is part of a mobility program of the Flemish government.

Sustainable job mobility has been identified as a priority by both government and companies with a high corporate responsibility. Easy access to jobs and low(er) environmental impact of commuter traffic are two of the main criteria for government funding of job mobility projects that have both an ecological and a social vocation.

For the Londerzeel project, local companies bought 80 bikes that will be available for employees. In cooperation with the not for profit organization Intro, a bike collect & return point will be opened near the railway station. Commuters can pick up a bike in the morning and return in the evening when they go home. The bikes will be maintained by a team of trainee-repairmen.

Van Os-Sonnevelt was one of the initiators of this joint project of the local industry association IGL, the Flemish Chambers of Commerce, industrial estate manager Haviland and the town council. We bought two bikes to give the project a kick-start.


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Van Os-Sonnevelt diversity policy

In December 2006, Van Os-Sonnevelt was among the first companies in its industry to sign the diversity policy developed by the Diversity Entrepreneurs Platform.

As a consequence, the company will maximize opportunities for people who are hard to employ in the regular job market: foreigners, older people, disabled people…
The Diversity Entrepreneurs Platform is a joint initiative of the employers’ organizations VOKA, VKW and Unizo. It started end October 2006 and aims at stimulating employers to embed diversity in their human resources policy.
“The Diversity Entrepreneurs Platform hands us several tools to successfully implement a diversity policy throughout the entire company”, says Gerard van Os. “When done properly, diversity increases the employees’ involvement in the corporate social policy. It would be great if, through signing the diversity policy, we could add to a better understanding between people who differ from one another.”


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