Sustainability lies at the heart of APS Bank’s values – it underpins its business strategy and is a core pillar of its Corporate Social Responsibility programme.
It is this value that inspires the Malta Sustainability Forum – an event that, organised by APS Bank plc, works towards raising awareness on the topic of sustainability, with the aim of empowering citizens to make conscious decisions towards a more sustainable life.
APS Bank’s role is strengthened by the fact that sustainability and Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) are increasingly becoming interchangeable. This was outlined by APS Bank CEO Marcel Cassar, who in his welcoming address to this year’s edition of the Malta Sustainability Forum, defined sustainability as “Meeting the needs of today without threatening the future”.
“Banks are at the heart of business decisions – and such decisions should not lead to environmental degradation,” he added, while referring to the three Ps: people, planet and prosperity. The CEO also referred to another ‘P’: peace, where resources are used for welfare and not war.
Now in its third year, the 2022 edition of the Malta Sustainability Forum, themed ‘Sustain Tomorrow Today’ opened on April 7 with an online session that was open to the public. This event, entitled ‘Level Up for Carbon Neutrality’, brought together a number of distinguished guests, who delivered various talks about the topic.
Guests included President George Vella, who highlighted how the quest for sustainability is one for survival and ensuring a good future; British High Commissioner to Malta Katherine Ward LVO OBE, who focused on COP26, which was hosted by the UK; Prof. Charles Galdies, who gave an insightful presentation on how climate change is impacting Malta; and Prof. Simone Borg, Climate Action Ambassador, who elaborated on what is Malta doing to reach its targets.
Talks were followed by a panel discussion on what businesses are doing to combat climate change and how are they overcoming obstacles. The discussion featured: Perit David Xuereb, former president of the Malta Chamber of Commerce Enterprise and Industry; Ing. Mario Schembri, founder of AIS Group; Giovanni Bartolotta, Chief Risk Officer and ESG Committee member at APS Bank plc; Gonca Kara Demir, who works with EIT Climate and KIC Hub Malta; and Suzanne D’Amato Gautam, president of SEAM and founder and CEO of Eco Market Malta. The final part of the Forum featured three brief presentations on how we can all make more sustainable decisions in daily life such as fashion and food.
During the panel discussion, various issues were highlighted. Perit Xuereb said that all citizens have a role in combatting climate change and that, “Despite Malta’s size, the country can turn its challenges into opportunities. This was emphasised by Ing. Schembri, who said that since the biggest influence for businesses is customers, these also have an important role to play in the quest for sustainability. APS Bank Chief Risk Officer Bartolotta commented how an ESG strategy is critical to business, while D’Amato Gautam emphasised the need for stakeholders to work together in bridging the gap between what is needed and what is currently being done in the areas of education, innovation and new products.
In conclusion, Liana DeBattista, Chief Strategy Officer at APS Bank plc, said that it is important for everyone to work together – and that if everyone made every moment count, then actions will be fruitful in the quest for sustainability.
For more information visit https://maltasustainabilityforum.com/.