Sustainability
Balancing growth and green
At The George Institute, we’re on an exciting journey to make sustainability a core part of everything we do. Our Sustainability Roadmap sets out how we’ll get there.
- In 2024, we’re laying the groundwork by finalizing our sustainability plan, conducting a thorough audit to understand where we stand, and listening to our stakeholders to learn what matters most to them.
- In 2025, we’ll start putting our plans into action—introducing initiatives to improve our performance, building better systems for tracking and reporting our progress, and tackling any gaps in the data we need to measure success.
- By 2026, we’ll focus on refining our processes, ensuring our data is accurate and reliable, and aligning with global frameworks to prepare for external reporting.
- Finally, in 2027, we’ll bring it all together by fully integrating climate reporting into our annual reporting cycles, ensuring sustainability is firmly embedded in how we work and how we share our impact with the world.
This roadmap is our commitment to making a difference for people and the planet.
Did you know all of us collectively flew over 5.3 million kilometres last year? This equates to flying around the globe 132 times travel and alone generated around 1,300 tonnes of CO2e. And our electricity use in office spaces added another 65 tonnes of carbon emissions. These figures highlight a pressing need to reduce our emissions - but we must do so without compromising the quality of research we conduct.
While the work we do is vital, it doesn't excuse the harm our emissions cause. That's why we are committed to addressing both sides of the equation - continuing our mission to improve the health of millions of people worldwide while also reducing our carbon footprint to minimise damage to the planet. Ultimately, this aligns with our Roadmap 2030 goal of ensuring operational resilience by sustainably generating and mobilising resources to enable purpose-led growth.
Our strategy is straightforward: start by making a baseline this year. Once that is in place, we will focus on implementation, gradually strengthening our initiatives, and by 2027, eventually integrating sustainability into our annual reporting cycles. This process will allow us to embed sustainability into our operational DNA.
In 2024, we fully offset the emissions generated by travel and office operations across all our locations in Australia, India, China, and the UK for the first time. This achievement is a significant milestone on our Roadmap to 2030, as we work towards creating a lasting positive impact through sustainable practices. It aligns with our commitment to building healthier societies, where equity, resilience, and impact are at the core of everything we do.
Our offices in Australia and UK are green buildings and have green energy or have renewable energy certificates purchased by the landlord. Carbon offsetting for our offices in China and India and travel for all offices has been purchased through South pole and UNFCCC. By obtaining this offset certificate, we are taking a meaningful step forward in reducing our carbon footprint. But this is just the beginning, as we continue working toward deeper reductions across all our activities.
One of the first steps in our sustainability journey involves using carbon offset certificates. These certificates allow us to neutralise a portion of our emissions by investing in projects that reduce or absorb CO2 from the atmosphere. In addition to offsetting emissions, we are proud to support a biomass-based power project by Harinagar Sugar Mills in Bihar, India. This initiative not only helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions but also promotes renewable energy development in the region, benefiting both the environment and local communities.
However, it's essential to remember that purchasing offset certificates is not the final solution. Offsetting our emissions doesn't give us a license to continue business as usual or justify increasing our emissions. Instead, these certificates are an initial step - a way to hold ourselves accountable for the impact we've already had, while we work toward deeper reductions in our operations.
While we've begun with measuring and offsetting emissions from our travel and offices, we are now working on a carbon emissions baseline for our research studies. This includes understanding the emissions of our suppliers and holding them accountable as well. Among a range of different initiatives underway, we are currently piloting the use of a 3rd party carbon emissions tool to assess the carbon impact of one of our trials.
People, communities, and the planet
Our sustainability efforts don't stop at internal operations. We are also engaged in projects that go beyond planetary health. By focusing on sustainability, not just in words but in action, we can make meaningful progress toward reducing our carbon footprint. Establishing a baseline this year is just the beginning. From there, we will drive forward with a clear strategy, aiming for genuine reductions - not just compensations.
The goal isn't to offset more, but to emit less. It's about building a sustainable future that we can all be proud of, together.
