ABERDEEN colleagues at international law firm CMS have welcomed a new addition to the team this week: a colony of bees within their own beehive. The new honey-producing friends have been sited on the grounds of the firm’s Queen’s Road office after CMS announced it would set up hives across UK and other international premises to help promote biodiversity within its local communities.
Partnering with Bee Conservation, the firm’s bee gardens are designed to enhance the environment and ensure both the bees and ecosystems are well supported. Alongside housing the hives, the firm will provide enough pesticide-free, nectar-rich flowers and trees in the vicinity so the bees won’t need to travel significant lengths to find their food or compete with nearby hives.
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As part of its Bee programme, CMS will also establish “Bee Clubs” where staff will have the opportunity to learn the basics of beekeeping, overseen by professional beekeepers.
Barbara Mendler, Managing Director Operations and Strategic Projects at CMS, commented: “Biodiversity ensures we have functioning ecosystems that are essential for all life on earth. Bees play a vital role in maintaining and promoting biodiversity, pollinating the food we need to survive and many of the trees and flowers that provide habitats for wildlife. However, their numbers are declining. By bringing bees to CMS, we want to help sustain our vital ecosystems and enhance biodiversity in the communities where we operate.”
Norman Wisely, Managing Director of CMS’s Aberdeen office, said: “We’re delighted to accommodate the new hives in Aberdeen where we will be encouraging staff and clients to get involved by offering them the opportunity to learn about beekeeping and how we can best support these insects in their new home. We are incredibly passionate about our Bee programme, which is just one of the many projects we are undertaking as part of CMS’s wider commitment towards sustainability.”
As the first major law firm to announce its ambition to become carbon neutral by 2025 and set Science Based Targets to measure its carbon reduction progress, CMS is committed to leading the legal sector in sustainability and climate action. Sustainability is a central, strategic priority for CMS, and its Sustainability Board Committee, led by Senior Partner Penelope Warne, meet regularly to prioritise and oversee implementation of the firm’s climate change and sustainability commitments. The firm has introduced a programme of over 20 workstreams to address climate change and sustainability and is acting to meet its commitments.
Examples include:
· Launching the CMS ‘Social Impact Fund’, aimed at supporting organisations that make a positive social impact in communities where CMS staff live and work. To date, more than £100,000 has been donated to over 70 charitable and community organisations in 20 locations across seven countries. CMS has bold ambitions to grow the Fund.
· Launching the CMS ‘MyGreenerFootprint’ app to 3,200 of its people to help them assess their own carbon footprints and engage with the firm’s initiatives. CMS has committed to planting a tree in a sustainable reforestation project for everyone who downloads the app and subscribes to access helpful tips.
· Partnering with Young Citizens to create a bespoke educational programme: ‘Climate action: Using the law to drive change’, which aims to fill a gap in the UK educational system by developing students’ understanding and critical thinking around climate action. Launched in line with COP26, the programme has been downloaded by 271 teachers and is estimated to have reached 24,390 young people since November 2021.
· Renegotiating electricity contracts to maximise supply from renewable sources – seven of the firm’s eight UK offices now run on 100% renewable electricity.
· Using a print awareness tool to gamify paper saving across the firm, working with PrintReleaf to plant over 2,000 trees and counting to offset paper usage, using Forest Stewardship Council certified paper, and ensuring all paper is recyclable.
· Developing a social impact programme to support environmental volunteering for its people and clients. An example includes partnering with the Emirates Marine Environmental Group in Dubai to support its beach clean-up efforts.
· CMS is a signatory to the UN Global Compact, reinforcing the firm’s commitment to implement universal sustainability principles and to support UN goals. As a signatory of the UN Global Compact, CMS is part of the world’s largest corporate social responsibility initiative and is committed to meeting its business responsibilities in four areas: human rights, labour, environment, and ethics/anti-corruption.
In recognition of the firm’s efforts, CMS was awarded A- by the Carbon Disclosure Projects (CDP) for how its addressing Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. This is above the legal sector average score of C. CDP is an international, not-for-profit and independent verifier that holds company’s carbon reduction plans to account.
