Changes in our supply chain

In order to achieve our aims we have implemented the following:

1. Our soap and cleaning products are supplied by Smol. We use their 100% recycled plastic bottles and refill them. The products are vegan, cruelty free, plant based and non-toxic to the environment. We fit in with a scheduled delivery slot to reduce additional vehicles on the road to reduce carbon emissions.

2. We have a contract with ‘Who gives a Crap’ as a supplier of our toilet rolls. These are recycled, plastic free and 100% biodegradable.

3. We use a local supplier for our stationary within walking distance of our offices. 

4. We had vegetables and salad delivered by Cyrenians Farm who support young people to run their social enterprise. We are looking at another similar initiative.

5. We use local charities NKS and Space @ Broomhouse to cater our events. NKS work to alleviate deprivation and isolation experienced by women and their families living in Edinburgh. Space @ Broomhouse provides kitchen training for people facing wellbeing and economic challenges. We bring our own metal cutlery and ceramic / porcelain crockery to all events to reduce single use plastic and general waste. 

6. We carefully choose local independent community venues for our events that promote their own environmentally friendly practices.

Reducing our carbon footprint

We use public transport wherever possible in all our work. We have a dedicated bike storage space in our offices and have supported one member of our team to upgrade their bike through the Cycle to Work Scheme. Media Education is a member of Enterprise Car Club. We have not purchased a company car as Car Club produces 27 % less emissions than the average car. For each Car Club, 22 private cars are removed from the road. We use the car club only when public transport is not possible.

We do not leave machines on standby overnight. Our lights are sensor activated. 

We are tenants of our building and as part of our environmental responsibilities, we are working closely with our landlord to put in place carbon reduction measures. This has resulted in switching to an energy provider that supplies 100% green electricity. Furthermore, we have supported the landlord to commission a building report by Business Energy Scotland which will result in completion of works in 2025 that will move the building away from gas central heating, increase roof insulation, replace windows, install air heat pumps, implement smart energy management systems and passive ventilation measures. Along with solar panelling and battery storage provision, the overall CO2 emissions are calculated to be reduced by over 40% with an estimated saving of 3.7tCO2e.

For delivery of our programme we liaise with partners to identify ways in which our projects can reduce their carbon footprint. This is part of our risk assessment for all work. This includes factors such as sourcing venues which reduce commuting for lived experience collaborators and sourcing catering from local suppliers. This risk area is identified as the Environmental Impact Assessment for all delivery work. We are developing this using Screen Scotland’s Sustainability in Production Best Practice Guide.

Raising awareness of the Climate Emergency

Media Education volunteers time, equipment and skills to support community activism. This has included attending rallies and supporting groups with social media footage and films as part of our ‘Public Demos and Campaigns Awareness Project’. Our team is actively supported to attend community protests and can do so in paid work time, providing this can be arranged around business activities. We believe in the power of people to unite to fight for protection of the planet and its people from exploitation and we actively support this. 

Media Education constantly develops and evolves its templates for community development and is currently developing a community change collective model with EVOC Edinburgh to increase people’s advocacy and ability in the city to have a measurable impact on their locality and improvement of the lives of people and planet. 

We have actively partnered and provided additional in kind support in the form of Creative Facilitation of climate change themed participatory arts projects for the following organisations: Scottish Communities Climate Action Network, Local Energy Scotland and Greenspace Scotland.

In the short term we are actively working to secure projects which focus on the environment and raising awareness of this issue and initiatives to reduce emissions. For example in 2024 we secured the contract to deliver Capital City Partnership’s Retrofit Advice Film for use on STV and in widespread training. In the longer term we intend to build towards grant applications to deliver climate focused projects. 

We have dedicated environmental officers; Anna Raczynski and Iain Shaw. They attend training on current legislation and codes of practice. As part of this, we are members of the Green Arts Initiative facilitated by Creative Carbon Scotland and Anna Raczynski has been appointed Green Champion. We have implemented an Environment and Sustainability Plan with timescales for our improvements.

A full copy of our Environment and Sustainability Plan is available on request.

For further information, please contact Anna Raczynski - Environment Officer - anna@mediaeducation.co.uk