Legendary broadcaster Sir David Attenborough spoke to the United Nations Security Council yesterday, reminding world leaders that "climate change is the biggest threat to security that modern humans have ever faced".

Photo by John Cairns (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

"I don't envy you the responsibility," he went on "that this places on all of you and your governments."

David Attenborough is of course best known as the narrator of BBC wildlife documentaries like Planet Earth, but in recent years he has been dedicating more and more of his time to raising awareness of the dire consequences of climate change.

During yesterday's virtual Security Council meeting, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson followed up Attenborough's warning with a call for action - to help the nations of the world to prepare for those consequences and work towards reducing global emissions to 'net zero'.

Do your bit for the environment

We each have a part to play in cutting emissions and turning the tide of climate change. Businesses are under particular pressure to minimise their impact on the environment - if you're unsure how to make your business greener, adopting an environmental management system (EMS) and gaining ISO 14001 certification is a good place to start.

NPT Management Systems can help you to assess your company's eco-friendliness, then plan and implement an EMS that helps you to improve in this area. Call 02380 659 867 today to discuss your organisation's requirements with an ISO 14001 specialist.

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READ MORE: What are the benefits of an environmental management system?

Businesses of all sizes across all industry sectors can have a huge impact on the world around us - you don't have to be an oil company or a multinational fast food chain to damage the environment through waste, pollution, and general carelessness. As a business owner, it's your responsibility not only to ensure the profitability of your organisation but also to minimise the environmental impact of your day-to-day operations.

One of the best ways to make sure that your business is as green as possible is to plan and implement an environmental management system (EMS) within your organisation. A good EMS will control your energy consumption, your use of natural resources, and your handling of waste and refuse, all while helping you to keep your business running smoothly.

Here are just a few reasons to implement an environmental management system and get your company ISO 14001 certified:

• Minimise the environmental impact of your organisation
• Save money by driving down your energy usage and reducing waste
• Streamline the way you handle and dispose of waste
• Verify that your business complies with the latest environmental legislation

ISO 14001 certification can even make it easier to access insurance cover. If you'd like to find out how NPT Management Systems can help you to plan your EMS and gain ISO 14001 certification, please contact us today to discuss your requirements with an expert.

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Flomatik Network Services have been a client of ours for a number of years. We help them with their ISO 9001 certification and ISO 27001 accreditation.

Now we have helped Flomatik to achieve yet another milestone: we assisted in the planning and implementation of their new company-wide environmental management system, and we were very pleased to learn that they had successfully achieved ISO 14001 certification via a UKAS-accredited body.

Flomatik are an established UK-based network services company who work with a number of major network operators, technology vendors and engineering companies to design, build and operate the next generation of networks. Having already implemented a successful quality management system (QMS) and an effective information security management system (ISMS), Flomatik were keen to improve their processes further by instating an ISO 14001-compliant environmental management system (EMS) to reduce their environmental impact and minimise waste throughout the organisation. NPT Management Systems provided advice and assistance throughout this process, ensuring that Flomatik would realise their goal of achieving ISO 14001 accreditation.

Here's what Paul Upshall, Flomatik's Head of Business Operations, had to say about the help we provided:

Flomatik have been using NPT for several years and have enjoyed outstanding levels of service from Neil and associates. With Neil's help, we have established and maintained robust quality management systems that consistently impress both our customers and auditors. Working with NPT, we have introduced 27001 and 14001 in less than two years.

Neil's practical, professional approach is reflected through the organisation, maximising efficiency of delivery and cost savings.

Our journey with NPT will continue as we transition to the latest standards and introduce a fully-integrated QMS.

If you're looking to gain ISO certification, contact NPT Management Systems today for professional advice from experienced ISO consultants.

Monday 5th June 2017 was World Environment Day. Organised by the UN, World Environment Day is an annual day for "encouraging worldwide awareness and action for the protection of our environment"; it was first held in 1974, and it has only become more relevant and more important as the environment has changed and environmental threats have been brought into sharper focus.

Since the news is currently saturated with election news and other big stories, you may well have missed that it was World Environment Day earlier this week. However, there's no wrong time to think green, so in the spirit of World Environment Day 2017, here are 3 quick tips for making your business that little bit greener:

1. Look everywhere for opportunities to save energy.

When it comes to reducing energy usage, every little helps. Look for places where electricity is being wasted on your premises, even in small amounts: are you leaving lights on when it isn't necessary? Are people forgetting to turn their computer monitors off at the end of the day? Are you turning the heating on when it isn't needed, or leaving it on even once everyone's warmed up? This attitude - looking everywhere for possible improvements - can be applied to all kinds of other wastage, too. Are you using too much printer paper? Failing to recycle office waste properly? Handing out printed payslips when you could be using an electronic system?

2. Switch to eco-friendly products.

Many common workplace items can be replaced with more environmentally sound alternatives if you're so inclined. Look for recycled printer paper, energy-efficient light bulbs, and computers (and/or whatever other machines you rely on) with good energy ratings. Again, look all over your premises and ask yourself which of the things you see could be swapped for something greener.

3. Implement an ISO 14001-compliant environmental management system.

ISO 14001 is the globally-recognised standard for environmental management systems, and if you plan and implement an EMS that complies with ISO 14001 requirements, you will be ensuring that your organisation is minimising waste and limiting environmental impact.

If you need help implementing an environmental management system and achieving ISO 14001 certification, please call NPT Management Systems on 02380 659 867 or email enquiries@nptmanagementsystems.co.uk to discuss your company's requirements.

In September 2015, ISO published ISO 14001:2015, a revised version of their standard for environmental management systems. The updated standard (which has supplanted the previous revision, ISO 14001:2004) is designed to better align with other standards such as ISO 9001; it also places more focus on the people at the top of the organisation, and on considering the entire environmental life cycle of products and services.

If your business is certified to the old ISO 14001:2004 standard, you will need to transition to ISO 14001:2015 within 3 years of the new standard's publication. This means that you have until September 2018 to transition, but it may be a good idea to make the change sooner rather than later - upgrading to the new, more streamlined standard should benefit the overall running of your business, and you don't want to risk losing your accreditation when the old standard expires.

Fortunately, the transition to ISO 14001:2015 is easy with the help of NPT Management Systems. Our expert ISO consultants will help you to identify and implement any necessary changes in your environmental management system; we can also assist with getting re-certified by a UKAS-accredited body.

If you need help transitioning to ISO 14001:2015, please contact NPT Management Systems today.