Being nominated or shortlisted for awards can be a mixed blessing. How can firms identify those which offer real value? How can they spot those which are recognized by the business community and recognize what the company has done to merit them? VIBES, Vision in Business for the Environment of Scotland, is one such award. It sets out to recognise firms of all sizes and sectors that employ environmental best practice in their day-to-day activities.
Entry for this year’s BIBES Awards ends at the end of next week
What sets VIBES out from the rest is the level of detail which the judges use to assess the nominees. They don’t just pay fleeting attention to the application, checking to see whether the right boxes have been ticked. Inspectors go to the premises and test out whether the claims made are justified; they also offer advice on improvements which mean that if a company didn’t win on one occasion, it had a better chance the following year. What they’re looking for includes cutting down on resource use, increasing sustainability, improving the firm’s reputation and benefitting the company’s bottom-line.
This year as the deadline approaches, the Energy, Enterprise and Tourism Minister, Fergus Ewing, is urging businesses to get recognition for their work towards developing the country’s water. It follows the Scottish Government’s decision to support the VIBES Hydro Nation Award. This recognises businesses that have proven expertise in maximising the economic benefit of water resources in at home or overseas.
Fergus Ewing
Scottish Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Trade
Only three per cent of the world’s water is fresh and is distributed unevenly across the globe. All too many people around the world don’t have ready access to clean water and sanitation. When the Scottish Parliament passed the Water Resources (Scotland) Act recently, its stated objective was to seize opportunities to improve how Scotland uses water for economic gain, environmental improvement and social benefit. It also looks to promote Scotland as a ‘Hydro Nation’ and set an example to the rest of the world.
In Fergus Ewing’s view, “The sustainable management of environmental resources represents a win-win for business, reducing costs and enhancing value of products and services. The VIBES Awards celebrate businesses who are already winners. Scotland is fortunate to have a plentiful and carefully managed supply of water but in a world of increasing water scarcity and climate uncertainty we must raise our game even further and play a leading role when it comes to managing our water resource.”
George Ellen, from Scottish Water and member of the VIBES steering group explained that water is “absolutely key to our national identity, from our reservoirs and lochs to the life source of some of our most iconic industries, such as the Scotch whisky sector. Managing our water resource with imagination is crucial to our future success and a key component of the transition to a low carbon economy. We look forward to seeing more entries for the VIBES Hydro Nation Award and more of the exemplar work of Scottish businesses in this area.”
There are ten award categories for businesses to apply for this year, including the VIBES Hydro Nation Award and the new Circular Economy Award. VIBES is free for businesses operating in Scotland to enter and today VIBES has announced that the deadline for entries has been extended to 5pm on Friday 12 July.