Corporate Responsibility and Environmental Policy

Executive Grapevine International Ltd (EGIL) is committed to operating responsibly, reducing avoidable environmental impacts and making fair, evidence-based statements about its progress.

This Policy sets the principles, responsibilities and practical actions that guide our environmental and wider corporate responsibility decisions. It does not claim that EGIL is carbon neutral, carbon negative or environmentally impact-free.

1. PURPOSE AND SCOPE

1) This Policy applies to EGIL's employees, offices, technology, purchasing, travel, content delivery, events, client work and material supplier relationships.

2) We take a proportionate approach reflecting the size and nature of our business while recognising that small organisations must still make accurate claims, manage material impacts and improve their decisions.

3) Our approach may be informed by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol and relevant United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Reference to a framework does not mean EGIL is certified, independently assured or fully aligned with every part of it.

4) This Policy should be read as an operational commitment. Specific performance claims or targets may be published only in accordance with section 10.

2. OUR PRINCIPLES

1) We prioritise preventing and reducing environmental impact before relying on offsetting or compensation.

2) We focus on areas we can influence directly and on material indirect impacts in our value chain.

3) We make decisions using the best reasonably available information and improve the quality of our measurement over time.

4) We do not exaggerate benefits, omit material limitations or present an intention as an achieved result.

5) We consider environmental responsibility alongside fair employment, accessibility, inclusion, ethical business conduct, data protection and the interests of our readers, clients, suppliers and communities.

3. GOVERNANCE AND RESPONSIBILITY

1) The Board and Founders have overall responsibility for this Policy. The senior leadership team supports delivery within its areas of responsibility.

2) A named senior owner shall coordinate environmental measurement, maintain the action plan, retain supporting evidence and report material issues to the Board at least annually.

3) Budget holders and project leads shall consider proportionate environmental impacts when selecting venues, suppliers, travel, technology, promotional items and delivery methods.

4) Employees are expected to follow practical energy, waste, travel, purchasing and information-management measures communicated by EGIL.

5) The Board shall review significant targets and public environmental claims before publication. Legal or specialist review shall be obtained where the claim is material, absolute, comparative or difficult to substantiate.

4. MEASUREMENT AND BASELINE

1) EGIL shall establish and maintain a documented greenhouse-gas inventory using a defined organisational and operational boundary.

2) The inventory shall include material Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions and shall identify material Scope 3 categories relevant to EGIL, which may include purchased goods and services, technology and cloud services, business travel, employee commuting, home working, events, venues, freight and waste.

3) Each published footprint shall state the reporting period, boundary, scopes and categories included, methodology, data sources, assumptions, estimates, exclusions and any material restatement.

4) Where supplier-specific or measured data is unavailable, EGIL may use recognised conversion factors or reasonable estimates, clearly recording the limitation and improving the data where practicable.

5) No percentage reduction or avoided-emissions claim shall be published without a documented baseline and a like-for-like calculation.

5. OPERATIONAL ACTIONS

1) EGIL ended routine commercial print runs for magazines, directories, guides and supplements in 2023 and moved core booking and document processes to digital systems.

2) We aim to avoid unnecessary printing and paper purchasing. Where print is required, we consider quantity, recycled or responsibly sourced material, production method and end-of-life options.

3) EGIL moved to smaller premises in June 2025. We aim to manage lighting, heating, cooling, equipment and office services according to occupancy and operational need.

4) Employees should switch off or place equipment into an appropriate low-energy mode when not required, subject to security, updates, remote access and business-continuity needs.

5) We seek to prevent waste, reuse suitable equipment and materials, and use responsible recycling or authorised disposal routes, particularly for electronic equipment and confidential material.

6) We review operational changes for unintended impacts. Removing one service or material is not described as an overall environmental benefit unless the wider effect has been assessed.

6. DIGITAL SERVICES AND TECHNOLOGY

1) Digital delivery can reduce some printing and travel but still uses energy, devices, networks, storage and data centres. We do not describe digital activity as impact-free.

2) When reviewing material technology and hosting suppliers, we may consider energy efficiency, renewable-energy information, data-centre location, equipment lifecycle, environmental reporting and the availability of reliable emissions data.

3) We seek proportionate efficiency in storage, data transfer, video, software and infrastructure without compromising security, resilience, accessibility, editorial quality or legal obligations.

4) Claims comparing a virtual event or digital product with a physical alternative must define the comparison and include material factors such as participant travel, venue energy, production, devices, data transfer and viewing assumptions.

7. TRAVEL WORKING PRACTICES AND EVENTS

1) EGIL operates a hybrid working model and conducts many client meetings remotely. Working location and meeting format are determined by business need, employee arrangements, accessibility and service quality as well as environmental considerations.

2) For necessary business travel, employees should consider whether a remote meeting is effective and, where practical, choose lower-impact travel consistent with time, cost, safety and accessibility.

3) Home-working impacts may be estimated within the greenhouse-gas inventory using a documented method. We do not assume that every day worked at home produces a fixed emissions saving.

4) For events, we consider venue accessibility and transport, energy, catering, materials, freight, waste, delegate communications and opportunities for remote participation where suitable.

5) We aim to limit disposable promotional products and select useful, durable, reusable, recycled or responsibly sourced items where merchandise is appropriate.

6) Delegate information and event materials should be digital where effective, while providing reasonable alternatives for accessibility, inclusion, security or operational need.

8. SUPPLIERS AND PURCHASING

1) We apply proportionate environmental and ethical considerations to material suppliers and purchasing decisions, alongside quality, security, accessibility, cost, resilience and service requirements.

2) For higher-impact or strategically important suppliers, we may request information about environmental policies, emissions measurement, targets, energy, materials, waste, labour standards and relevant certifications.

3) We prefer specific evidence over general sustainability statements. A certification, target or offset claim shall be considered in context and verified where it materially affects the purchasing decision.

4) We aim to work constructively with existing suppliers on improvement. EGIL may require corrective action or select an alternative supplier where a material risk is not addressed.

5) Employees must not select a supplier solely because it uses terms such as green, sustainable, eco-friendly or carbon neutral without understanding the basis of the claim.

9. PEOPLE COMMUNITY AND BUSINESS CONDUCT

1) Corporate responsibility includes treating employees, readers, clients, contributors and suppliers fairly and lawfully.

2) EGIL supports equal opportunity, inclusion, accessibility, employee wellbeing, responsible editorial practice, data protection, information security and compliance with anti-bribery, modern-slavery and other applicable laws and policies.

3) We encourage employees to identify practical improvements and raise environmental, ethical or compliance concerns through appropriate internal channels without fear of retaliation for a concern raised in good faith.

4) Community, charitable or volunteering activity may be supported where it is consistent with business resources and approved arrangements. Such activity shall not be used to obscure material adverse impacts elsewhere.

10. TARGETS OFFSETS AND ENVIRONMENTAL CLAIMS

1) Our ambition is to measure our material greenhouse-gas emissions, adopt a credible reduction plan and work towards substantially reducing our operational and value-chain footprint.

2) EGIL may retain 2030 as an internal planning horizon for assessing the feasibility of a carbon-neutral or net-zero-aligned position. It shall not make an unqualified public claim that it will be or is carbon neutral by 2030 until the boundary, pathway, interim targets, progress, residual emissions and role of offsets are defined and support the claim.

3) EGIL shall not claim to be carbon negative by 2035 unless a credible methodology demonstrates emissions reductions consistent with an appropriate pathway and durable removals exceeding all residual emissions within a clearly stated boundary.

4) Offsets do not replace direct reduction. If offsets or carbon credits are used, EGIL shall disclose the quantity, project type, standard, vintage where relevant, retirement evidence, boundary and the proportion of the claim dependent on them.

5) Environmental statements must be clear, accurate, current, specific and supported by evidence held before publication. They must explain material qualifications, boundaries, comparisons and exclusions.

6) Absolute claims require a high level of substantiation. Comparative claims must use a fair, like-for-like baseline and state what is being compared.

7) The following figures from earlier drafts must not be republished unless the underlying calculations and evidence have been validated: 50 tonnes of paper saved annually; a 60 per cent reduction in giveaways; commuting emissions reduced by more than 80 per cent; emissions reduced by hundreds of kilograms per client; and ten office days per employee per year.

11. REPORTING AND REVIEW

1) EGIL shall review this Policy at least annually and after a material change in premises, working model, services, suppliers, regulation or environmental strategy.

2) Internal reporting should record material actions, the greenhouse-gas inventory, progress against approved targets, data-quality limitations, missed actions and priorities for the following period.

3) External reporting shall distinguish measured results from estimates, intentions and future ambitions. It shall state whether information has been independently assured.

4) If EGIL discovers that a published environmental claim is inaccurate or materially incomplete, it shall correct or withdraw it promptly and retain a record of the change.

5) Questions about this Policy may be sent to [email protected].

Executive Grapevine International Ltd

Registered in England & Wales: 2789779 | VAT: 6259453 20

Gate House, Fretherne Road, Welwyn Garden City, AL8 6NS, United Kingdom | +44 (0)1707 351451

Last reviewed by: Helen Fish, Director, 11 September 2026