ESG Report 2023/24

Florence, December 11, 2024

One year ago, the European higher education group AD Education of which Accademia Italiana is a proud member, published its first ESG report (Environment, Social and Governance), by committing to contribute to the transformation of the world and society in the face of climate and social challenges. The stated goals included carbon neutrality by 2030, campus sustainability, climate-related integration into education and training programmes, and social inclusion.

This second report highlights the progress made during the year, including joining the Convention des Entreprises pour le Climat programme, which highlights the role of education in training creative and aware professionals to imagine a sustainable future.

The objectives achieved during the last academic year were as follows:

• 70% of schools offered courses on environmental issues;

• 6,300 students took online courses at the Axa Climate School to better understand climate challenges;

• 4 campuses installed solar panels to increase the use of renewable energy;

• The Group’s ESG committeemeets once a month to guide the Group’s ESG strategy and national committees are operational in Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK;

• 15 campuses have carried out energy efficiency work (installation of low-energy lighting, connected thermostats, heat pumps, etc.);

• 2000 tonnes of greenhouse gases were offset through a carbon offset contract with SQC QualiCert;

• The Group has provided up to €1.5 million in financial support to enable all studentsto complete their studies.

In terms of the environment and greenhouse gas emissions, AD Education has set itself the ambitious goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2030. As an education player, the group’s mission goes far beyond reducing our emissions: raising awareness of climate issues among 36,000 students plays a key role.

As regards the environment, 2023/2024 has been characterised by three main achievements:

• Completion of a carbon assessment for subsidiaries in Germany, Spain, Italy and the UK, and contribution to a carbon offset programme;

• The integration of courses, new modules and even dedicated training courses on the theme of ecological transition into our schools' curricula;

• The mobilization of communication professionals, gathered for the second time by AD Education around ecological issues as part of the Com for Climate operation.

In particular, Accademia Italiana has inaugurated its new, modern and high-performance environmental campus for the Rome headquarters. In addition, students of the Interior and Product Design Course in Rome have conducted a project with the logistics operator Fercam on material recycling, designing modular chairs and tables using packaging waste as pallets, Plywood and other wooden elements discarded.

At a social level, one of the fundamental commitments is to offer an inclusive educational experience to all students, respecting diversity. The creation of the AD Education Foundation, under the aegis of the Fondation de France, aims to coordinate existing programmes and partnerships, but also to finance actions in favour of education and equal opportunities. 

As far as social commitment is concerned, the year 2023/2024 was marked in particular by:

• an increase in the budget for scholarships, particularly on the basis of social criteria, to allow more students from different social backgrounds;
   
• the launch of Skillers, a three-month distance training programme to help young people in difficulty find work.

Accademia Italiana, in the last academic year organized a creative contest on the campuses of Florence and Rome. The students involved had to create a poster campaign that promotes diversity and inclusion. 

In terms of governance, over the years, AD Education has developed rigorous decision-making bodies and control processes, whether in terms of ethics, respect for diversity or quality of the training we offer.

Work continued on several topics over the past year:

• The creation of ESG bodies in each country, which have defined their roadmap;
   
• Feminisation of management groups;
   
• The corpus of procedures is disseminated to all schools.

Finally, in 2023-2024, AD Education joined the Convention des Entreprises pour le Climat (CEC), a source of inspiration to rethink our business model in the context of environmental limits.

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