Our Commitment to Sustainability
Our sustainable journey isn't just about environmental factors, we believe it's about working together with local people and organisations to “Help build more resilient and sustainable communities”.
As a foundation that is a fundraiser, volunteer broker and grant maker, we're passionate about ensuring those environmental concerns flow through all of the pillars of our work”.
Where it all began
In 2015, all UN Member States adopted “The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” the Agenda provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for both people and our planet.
At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) which are calls to action, whether it’s to end poverty, improve health and education or reduce inequality – all while tackling climate change.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are founded on the principle that all parties have a role to fulfill, and collaboration across sectors is crucial for success. The responsibility lies not only with governments and civil society but also encompasses all sectors and stakeholders, including businesses, charities, and individuals. No single sector or organization can accomplish the necessary scale of change alone – it requires a collective effort and action from everyone.
Our sustainable journey so far
We cross-referenced all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with the initiatives that ZCT has backed in recent years through our current partners and charity friends, including support provided via grants, challenges, or skill-sharing, as well as our collaborations with suppliers.
We were delighted to discover that we have supported all 17 SDGs thus far. However, we recognized that to truly 'reduce inequalities and connect communities,' we must also assist our charity partners on their sustainability journeys.
Therefore, we created a Sustainability & DEIB Network especially for our charity partners to join. The network meetings, led by ZCT's Sustainability Manager, Carla Mandis, are held monthly and give our partners an opportunity to share learnings, tools and resources to support their own sustainability journey.
To compliment the provision of network support, we also launched our £100,000 (per annum) Sustainability Fund in 2023.
Since launch, we’ve pledged funds from our Sustainability funding pot, on a first come, first served basis, to support our charity partners with sustainability projects.
The funding pot for both 2023 and 2024 has already been fully allocated with 21 of our charity partners benefiting over the last year.
We've linked our funding to the 17 “SDG’s”, so whilst there is a primary focus on climate change, we’ve also supported our partners with other pressing needs, such as SDG 3 – Good Health & Wellbeing and SDG 5 – Gender Equality.
If you’d like to learn more about the 21 charities we've supported and the projects we've funded, either click here, or click the download image below.
