DS Smith Sustainability Report 2021

Page 8

REDEFINING PACKAGING FOR A CHANGING WORLD

Introduction from Miles Roberts, our Group Chief Executive The past year has seen unprecedented change globally for our customers, our employees and our communities. The need to remain safe has shifted societal outlook and consumer behaviour dramatically, and with many of these trends predicted to remain, we must continue to adapt our supply chains, revolutionise our technology and innovate our products. Through this period of uncertainty, we have remained committed to sustainability. Our Purpose of ‘Redefining Packaging for a Changing World’ has never felt more appropriate. Increasing our response to climate change

”I am pleased to announce our commitment to reach Net Zero emissions by 2050 and a sciencebased target for 2030.”

Although we have achieved 23 per cent reduction in CO2e per tonne of production since 2015, we must go further as climate change continues to affect our lives. I am pleased to announce our commitment to reach Net Zero emissions by 2050 and a science-based target for 2030. Whilst this will drive our work to decarbonise the energy used to power our circular business, this is only part of the solution. How we live our lives and run our businesses, including how we make, consume and dispose of products needs to be challenged, inviting fully renewable and recyclable packaging to play a vitally important role. Therefore, championing the transition to the circular economy is as important as reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Launching Now and Next

Building on the achievements of the past year, from training 100 per cent of our designers in our Circular Design Principles to implementing water stress mitigation plans at all relevant sites, the launch of our new sustainability strategy, Now and Next, was an important step for us. It creates new opportunities driven by customer innovation and industry collaboration. Our new strategy allows us to move beyond just having a strong circular business model ourselves to delivering more circular solutions for our customers and wider society – replacing problem plastics, taking carbon out of supply chains and providing innovative recycling solutions.

Circularity at the heart

At the heart of our commitment is our circular business model, which ensures that all our designs start with the circular economy in mind. It is why we are trusted by the world’s biggest brands to partner with them to tackle some of the biggest sustainability and circular challenges and respond to consumer demands. As a Strategic Partner of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, we continue to reinforce our leadership within the packaging industry and work to engage our employees and communities around circularity. Miles Roberts Group Chief Executive 6


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Articles inside

SASB Index

2min
pages 65-66

Performance overview

2min
page 55

GRI and SDG Index

3min
page 64

Miscellaneous indicators

1min
page 59

Governance

5min
pages 62-63

Our basis for sustainability reporting

3min
page 54

Conducting business ethically and responsibly

3min
page 48

Sourcing sustainably

3min
pages 40-41

Managing water responsibly

3min
pages 36-37

Driving carbon reduction

4min
pages 34-35

Protecting natural resources

3min
pages 32-33

Equipping people to lead the transition to a circular economy

3min
pages 30-31

Closing the loop through better design

7min
pages 22-25

Q&A with Adrian Marsh, our Group Finance Director

2min
page 9

Circular business – Circulating fibre around our business

4min
pages 12-13

Partnering with the world’s leading authority on the circular economy

7min
pages 14-17

Introduction from Miles Roberts, our Group Chief Executive

2min
page 8

Led by our Purpose – Redefining Packaging for a Changing World

2min
pages 4-5

Now and Next sustainability strategy

4min
pages 18-19

2020/21 Highlights

1min
page 3

Redefining packaging during the Covid-19 global pandemic

4min
pages 6-7
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