SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)

17 GOALS FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership. They recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests. The SDGs build on decades of work by countries and the UN, including the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs

NO POVERTY

The first Sustainable Development Goal is the eradication of all forms of poverty, everywhere in the world. The United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda has identified the eradication of poverty in all its forms and dimensions as the greatest global challenge and an indispensable prerequisite for sustainable development. In Germany, the focus for this goal is on the constitutionally guaranteed minimum subsistence level for a dignified life. This is achieved through the principle of the welfare state. It is also important to combat relative poverty, in which social inequalities play a major role. In Germany, single parents and families with more than two children are particularly exposed to a higher risk of poverty. Wilhelm Kneitz AG counteracts these inequalities by providing an adequate income and creating a level playing field for all employees through a fair gender-neutral company policy and an open culture of discussion. Specifically, the following points are worth mentioning:

• Wage level significantly above the minimum wage
• 37-hour week with overtime compensation
• Company pension plan
• Premium and special payments
• Foresightful work schedule planning with consideration for work-life balance

ZERO HUNGER

For Germany, the focus for SDG 2 is primarily on promoting sustainable agriculture and, beyond that, providing all people with access to a healthy and balanced diet. Here, it is not so much the lack of food that plays a role, but rather the moderate use of food to avoid disease-causing excess. For Wilhelm Kneitz AG, this means that employees have the opportunity to eat a healthy and balanced diet at work. Wilhelm Kneitz AG offers the following options:

• Provision of free, purified drinking water, through water dispensers that are accessible at all times
• Break rooms with cooking facilities
• The presence of nearby food retailers with a wide range of products, as well as local restaurants, means employees have the opportunity to eat a varied, regional and fresh diet at any time.

GOOD HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

The focus here is on prevention and education. Wilhelm Kneitz AG attaches very great importance to the well-being and health of its employees. This is achieved through a diverse range of different sporting activities and preventive measures that strengthen team spirit as well as physical fitness. Wilhelm Kneitz AG offers the following to its employees:

• Back school
• 2 x a week gymnastics with instruction for each department
• Company running group
• Possibility of enhanced health care
• Company doctor
• An open culture of discussion on stress in the workplace (including company chaplain)
• In-house rehabilitation management

QUALITY EDUCATION

To achieve high-quality education, Germany focuses on equal and high-quality education across the entire spectrum of the educational process. From early childhood, through schooling, to vocational and university education, and lifelong opportunities for continuing education. Wilhelm Kneitz AG makes a tangible contribution to achieving this goal with the following measures:

• Apprenticeship provider in the commercial, laboratory and production departments
• Work experience for pupils and students
• Further training to become a master craftsman (CCI training company)
• Internal and external opportunities for further education

GENDER EQUALITY

With the goal of gender equality, all forms of discrimination and violence against women should be eliminated. For Germany, the focus is primarily on equal participation of women in the labour market and work-life balance, for both women and men, to enable a partnership-based sharing of family work. With Sibylla Naumann as a female member of the Executive Board, the management of Wilhelm Kneitz AG is 50% female. This is a model of male and female equality. This approach runs through all departments. Wilhelm Kneitz AG contributes to the achievement of this goal with the following measures:

• Female managers, authorised signatories and department heads
• Collectively agreed pay for all (irrespective of gender)
• Opportunities for part-time work, for better work-life balance

CLEAN WATER AND SANITATION

Since access to clean drinking water and sanitary facilities is available almost everywhere in Germany, the focus is more on securing these and improving water quality. The efficient use and sustainable abstraction of water are also a contribution to achieving the goal. In addition to the operation of the sanitary facilities, Wilhelm Kneitz AG also requires water to maintain the humidity in the production plant. The specific measures are:

• A modern efficient water-saving hall humidification system
• Regular testing of drinking water quality

AFFORDABLE AND CLEAN ENERGY

The availability of sufficient energy is the basic prerequisite for a humane society in which people can live in peace and prosperity. Fossil fuels have been instrumental in causing the greenhouse effect and they are also finite. One of the greatest challenges of our time is therefore to convert the energy supply to regenerative resources in the foreseeable future. As a manufacturing company, Wilhelm Kneitz AG attaches great importance to the topic of “regenerative energy sources” and is a pioneer in the use of renewable energies in production:

• Our own photovoltaic systems
• Purchase of green electricity
• Purchase of green gas
• Energy recovery through the use of waste heat from the air compressors

DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH

The aim is to promote lasting, broad-based and sustainable growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all. This means that economic growth on the one hand must not lead to inhumane working conditions on the other. Wilhelm Kneitz AG contributes to the achievement of this goal through the following measures:

• Compliance with the Code of Conduct
• Corporate social responsibility as an integral part of management
• Cooperation with almost exclusively regional and European-based partners and suppliers, for whom local laws apply and child labour, as well as inhumane employment conditions, are ruled out.
• Possibility of anonymous use of an analogue or digital suggestion box

INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE

The focus is on building resilient infrastructure, promoting broad-based and sustainable industrialisation, and supporting innovation. For the German government, this goal includes the incentive to enable companies to develop dynamically and sustainably through structural and industrial policy measures. To this end, cooperation with stakeholders from municipalities, business, science and civil society is to be promoted. Wilhelm Kneitz AG works very innovatively and with the latest technology. In addition, the following measures are being taken:

• Cooperation with universities, colleges and industrial partners
• Design and development have a very high priority
• Production using the latest equipment

REDUCED INEQUALITIES

Wealth and income are unequally distributed around the world. In Germany, too, the gap between rich and poor has widened. Relative poverty and inequalities within a society harbour great potential for conflict. Therefore, the goal is to enable a fair distribution of wealth and income. Wilhelm Kneitz AG counteracts this inequality by implementing the following measures (partial overlap with the measures for SDG 1):

• Pay according to the collective agreement
• Guarantee of special payments and bonuses
• Non-discriminatory recruitment process
• Further qualification offers
• Trusting cooperation with the Works Council

SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND COMMUNITIES

The goal is to make cities and settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable. Cities are the engines of the national economy, culture and innovation on the one hand, but on the other hand, they are also the source of the majority of CO2 emissions and social problems. Wilhelm Kneitz AG is actively involved in social projects, institutions and local events. This form of participation contributes to an increase in the quality of life of the residents of the market town of Wirsberg. Examples include (financial and social) support for the following institutions and projects:

• “Herbert Kneitz” Day Care Centre
• The fire brigade
• Local clubs
• The church
• Projects in the market town
• Good connection to the bike path network, covered bike park for employees

RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION

Sustainable consumption and production processes must be ensured. This means consuming and producing in such a way as to meet the needs of all generations (including future generations) without exceeding the limit of what the earth can take. For Wilhelm Kneitz AG, sustainability plays a major role at all levels. The specific measures are:

• Certification of the environmental management system according to ISO 14001
• Product made from our own recycled production waste
• Research into products made from renewable raw materials (e.g. hemp)
• Sustainable and resource-saving use of working materials through progressive conversion to digital processes
• Preparation of a sustainability report

CLIMATE ACTION

Immediate action must be taken to combat climate change and its effects. SDG 13 is designed to protect the global climate and is one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century. Rapid and ambitious action to reduce climate-damaging emissions is essential for global sustainable development. Wilhelm Kneitz AG has already taken numerous measures to ensure climate protection (See SDG 7, 12). The measurable actions are:

• Calculation and disclosure of our carbon footprint
• Switching to renewable energy sources
• Climate neutrality for the whole of production as of 2022

LIFE BELOW WATER

The aim is to conserve and sustainably use oceans, seas and marine resources in the interests of sustainable development. Ecologically intact marine ecosystems are crucial to the stability of our climate. Wilhelm Kneitz AG contributes to this goal by:

• The use of water-saving processes (see also SDG 6)
• No generation and discharge of water-polluting substances through business operations
• Recycling of all usable waste at certified disposal companies

LIFE ON LAND

Without intact ecosystems, there is no basis for any life or economic activity. The goal is to protect and restore terrestrial ecosystems and promote their sustainable use. Furthermore, forests are to be managed sustainably, desertification combated, soil degradation stopped and the loss of biodiversity put to an end. Wilhelm Kneitz AG contributes to the achievement of these aims with the following measures:

• A large green area around the company building, which is permanently landscaped and maintained

PEACE, JUSTICE AND STRONG INSTITUTIONS

Peace and sustainable development are mutually dependent. All people should be given access to justice. In addition, efficient and accountable institutions are to be established. The rule of law forms the basis for functioning democracies and respect for human rights. The specific contributions of Wilhelm Kneitz AG are:

• Compliance with the Code of Conduct
• Corporate chaplain
• Works Council
• Owner-managed company with a long-term location perspective

PARTNERSHIPS FOR THE GOALS

Strengthening the means of implementation and breathing new life into the global partnership for sustainable development. This objective is primarily concerned with the financing of development programs and cooperation between the states concerned and transnational institutions. The goal is thus predominantly at the political and global level. Wilhelm Kneitz AG contributes to the achievement of the goal:

• Support through memberships in networks that promote national and international cooperation (e.g. Lions Club)
• Membership in associations
• Taking on voluntary work