At Dehong, we aim for our schools, staff and students to “Live Worldwise” and are committed to providing purpose-driven learning experiences that are guided by a deep sense of connection to people and the planet. As part of the Education in Motion (EiM) family of schools, we are also committed to embedding sustainable and global citizenship practices in everything we do. Thus, we are pleased to announce EiM’s third Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Report, covering the academic year 2022-2023. This annual ESG report represents our group-wide commitment to developing, measuring, maintaining, and reporting on sustainable and global citizenship practices across the group.
What is ESG?
ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance Reporting and is an approach that evaluates the extent to which an organisation works on behalf of goals within environmental, social, and governance areas. The ESG report follows the Global Reporting Initiative Standards (GRI) issued by the Global Sustainability Standards Board. We have created four focus areas under our sustainability ESG approach: - Learning, Planet (E), People (S) and Policy (G), setting out initiatives and progress indicators at a group and school level.
Across all EiM schools, we are guided by the “students come first” philosophy – where each student’s unique strengths and interests are recognised and celebrated. Today, it is more apparent than ever that this approach is crucial to nurturing intrinsic motivation both in and out of the classroom, inspiring students to make the world a better place for all. As part of our commitment to sustainability and robust governance, our ESG report is not just an exercise to highlight our achievements as a group, but also a chance to provide ourselves with an honest assessment of where we are and where we need to be going.
Key Highlights from EiM's ESG Report
Our third ESG report lays out in detail our priorities for the 2022/2023 academic year, organised under Learning, Planet, People, and Policy, the four ESG pillars that provide the lens through which we focus our sustainable goals, progress indicators, and outcomes.
Learning
Under Learning, our initiatives are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the more personal Good Life Goals (GLGs), emphasising global citizenship and sustainability in education. Each of our schools have implemented their own Global Citizenship Framework using the UN SDGs, promoting competencies within the framework such as service, sustainability, intercultural understanding, diversity, and social justice.
Planet
In Planet, we continue to uphold our environmental stewardship through initiatives like the Carbon Roadmap project, aimed at reducing campus emissions and enhancing sustainability practices across our campuses. This commitment extends to innovations in campus infrastructure and sustainable resource management, including advancing food waste management and exploring sustainability in uniform procurement. Through the exploration of new sustainability practices, significant efficiency gains are expected, as well as financial savings – encouraging stakeholders to think about holistic solutions that are also environmentally and socially responsible.
People
People focuses on empowering our staff and creating a diverse and inclusive group committed to lifelong learning and professional development. Initiatives like the Employee Value Proposition (EVP) campaign and the Staff and Student Wellbeing Frameworks emphasise the importance of physical, mental and emotional wellbeing in our communities. Looking to the future, we can expect even more changes to be implemented through our Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ) Framework, underscoring our dedication to creating a supportive and inclusive workplace
Policy
In Policy, new governance frameworks that promote transparency and ethical practices across our organisation were implemented after the COVID pandemic – to ensure that our schools emerge stronger than ever in terms of safety and security. At the forefront of everything we do as educators is utmost priority on safeguarding, and with the return to campus, a comprehensive refresh of post-COVID safeguarding protocols was executed. All of this was overseen by EiM’s highest governance body, the Group Executive Board (GEB), also responsible for overseeing every aspect of the group’s ESG strategy and goals. Additionally, this past academic year saw new measures employed for cybersecurity and data protection; digitalisation is key to EiM’s development in a more connected world.
Finally, we would like to acknowledge the students, educators, staff and other stakeholders who contributed to embedding sustainability and global citizenship into our mission on a daily basis. This report reflects their dedication and achievements in advancing sustainability education across our global network of schools, and we are pleased to feature some of their contributions in their own words in this report. By holistically engaging our stakeholders, the ESG report plays a key role in identifying material issues that matter most – incorporating perspectives and feedback from across and outside the group will help us to set a strategic direction, while revising and enhancing areas that require further strengthening such as governance.
Our aim is to inspire future leaders who are not only equipped to navigate global challenges but also prepared to innovate towards a sustainable future for everyone – and we extend an invitation to all of our stakeholders to join us in this endeavour and exciting journey.
