As the first among Hungarian nonprofits, we have issued a sustainability report

As the first among Hungarian nonprofits, we have issued a sustainability report.

The Bátor Tábor Foundation has prepared its first Sustainability Report in full compliance with the global reporting standard (GRI). The Foundation has set a goal to achieve climate neutrality in its operations by 2030 through energy modernization, efficiency improvement, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and fuel consumption. A significant part of the Foundation’s emissions is attributed to the energy consumption of the campsite complex in Hatvan, amounting to 28.6 tons of CO2e in 2021, representing the annual emissions of Bátor Tábor.

In addition to its important social mission and its history of ethical and transparent operations, the Bátor Tábor Foundation is increasingly focused on the environmental aspect of sustainability. In 2021, a shortened ESG assessment was conducted to examine the sustainability of their operations based on environmental, social, and corporate governance criteria. As the next step, the organization prepared its first Sustainability Report in 2022, with the assistance of Planet Fanatics’ Network Ltd. The data calculations were based on the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, following international expectations. This resulted in the Sustainability Report covering the data from 2019 to 2021.

“As one of the influential foundations in Hungarian social life, we consider it our duty to serve as a good example to society by making our operations sustainable. We carry out our work, focused on providing assistance to children and their supporters, ethically, as fair employers, and on sustainable financial grounds. It is inspiring to see not only the quantified environmental impact but also to commit to clear and forward-looking goals such as achieving zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030,” expressed Erna Kindli, the CEO of the Bátor Tábor Foundation, emphasizing the milestone’s significance.

The Bátor Tábor Foundation has excelled in two aspects of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for decades, namely Health and Well-being (SDG3) and Reduced Inequalities (SDG10). Over the past 20 years, the Foundation has provided courage through its programs to more than 15,000 children and their family members battling cancer or other serious chronic illnesses, who still consider Bátor Tábor the most positively impactful environment in their lives. In addition to supporting the mental well-being of society, the Foundation also promotes a culture of giving and volunteering, contributing to the strengthening of social solidarity. Beyond the therapeutic camps, they also facilitate the integration of severely and chronically ill children into communities, as well as the development of healthy interpersonal relationships and social skills through hospital, online, and school programs.

“We collaborated with the Bátor Tábor Foundation in this form for the first time two years ago when they participated in our Sustainability Day online event. Last year, we conducted their simplified ESG assessment and calculated their GHG inventory. We highly value the cause represented by Bátor Tábor and the Foundation’s way of operating, and the challenge of preparing a report for a nonprofit organization based on the GRI used by companies was so unique that there was no question whether we would embark on it,” said Katalin Szomolányi, CEO of Planet Fanatics’ Network Ltd., about the cooperation.

To achieve the set sustainability goals, in 2021, the Bátor Tábor Foundation installed solar panels on their program building at the campsite in Hatvan, which was completed a few years ago. They also carried out the comprehensive replacement of boilers and maintenance of windows and doors. Since a significant portion of their emissions comes from electricity consumption, they place particular emphasis on measures aimed at achieving higher efficiency in the future. To reduce their indirect emissions, they plan to decrease the energy demand of their properties by 2030, and to avoid these emissions, they will increase their solar energy capacity. In order to reduce fuel consumption, they have been organizing carpooling tables for volunteers and staff for several years to optimize per capita fuel consumption. Additionally, they have set tasks for the modernization of their vehicle fleet and the acquisition of electric vehicles. The combination of solar energy supply and electric vehicles is important not only for reducing emissions but also for reducing dependence on external pressures and ensuring continuous operation.

The Bátor Tábor Foundation believes that civil organizations should follow the progressive models of the business sector, and sustainability is an area that affects everyone, regardless of the sector, and everyone has a responsibility to contribute. This is why they considered it important to take another step towards sustainable development.

The Bátor Tábor Foundation’s Sustainability Report can be downloaded in Hungarian from this link.