Thomas Dunn
At Eastern Bank, sustainability is good business.
Eastern Bank has been dedicated to improving the communities we serve for nearly two centuries. We recognize that our products, services and operations have a local and, ultimately, a global environmental and social impact – this drives the continuous improvement of our sustainable practices.
It was adherence to those principles that resulted in the development of a comprehensive sustainability program that benefits our communities, customers and employees. This program provides an evolutionary manual and a guide to continuously improving sustainable practices. The program has earned “Sustainable Business Leader” certification from the Sustainable Business Network of Massachusetts (SBN). Our goal is to make measurable and significant changes in the areas of energy efficiency, water conservation, waste reduction, transportation management, pollution prevention and local purchasing.
Eastern Bank maintains four LEED-certified branches, more than any other bank in Massachusetts. Our facilities team annually identifies and executes new capital projects that result in a direct financial benefit to the bank, often working with third-party consultants. The projects include everything from major mechanical system improvements to practicing organic chemical free landscaping at our largest facility in Lynn, Mass. The procurement department has also made contributions to the mission – in 2012, procurement put the bank’s energy contracts to auction, which reduced energy expenses and allowed the company to purchase 100 percent renewable ”Green Energy Certified” electricity.
Eastern Bank’s executive management team also sponsors a “Sustainability Network” that consists of volunteers from departments throughout the bank. Network members meet on a regular basis and focus on awareness events and initiatives that help the company minimize its environmental impact.
While the direct outcomes of their actions are central to informing the work of facilities and procurement, the larger impact of the Sustainability Network is its impact on the culture of the company. The Facilities Department works closely with the network to address the cultural and educational aspects of the changes. This partnership allows Eastern to initiate new or updated programs – such as carpooling and recycling – and to inspire behavior change among our colleagues. It is within this context that departments can also develop programs, products and initiatives that promote and integrate environmental sustainability into the fabric of their work.
Employees regularly take the initiative to alter and introduce new processes, products and services that reduce our environmental impact and lower our carbon impact in our communities:
The bank saved $50,000 annually in its print budget and saved countless sheets of paper as the direct result of a bank teller’s suggestion to update a form that wasn’t fully utilized.
Thirty-five percent of the bank’s customers have opted in to receive electronic statements as a result of an initiative driven by the bank’s Document Management Department. Distributing statements electronically not only provides a nearly 90 percent financial savings on cost statement production, but saves more than 2 million sheets of paper annually.
Eastern also provides many sustainable benefits to its employees, including green dry cleaning and an MBTA discount program to encourage use of public transportation.
Forming Partnerships And Working Together
Eastern Bank also looks outside our company’s walls to benefit our communities. Through the Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation, we make financial donations to a wide variety of local nonprofits, including community farms and special events such as Boston’s GreenFest. We also participate in important community partnerships, including work with the North Shore Transportation Management Association and A Better City transportation management association, which promote alternative commuting. These programs provide additional incentives to Eastern employees who use alternative commuting methods, including public transportation, carpooling, walking or riding a bike. Eastern’s Sustainability Network partners with a local farm to provide Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) shares at our operations center. Employees who sign up for this service receive weekly deliveries of farm fresh produce brought to them at their office.
Eastern Bank’s Sustainability Team on the rooftop of the Lynn Operations Center with its solar panels.
Eastern Bank has a number of notable relationships in commercial banking related to sustainability. The bank’s commercial loan portfolio includes loans to environmental organizations with both local and global impact. The bank has developed an expertise in underwriting loans to solar farm development projects and has made $78 million in loans to solar farm development to date. Eastern also has a unique lending partnership with Equal Exchange, a fair-trade coffee cooperative. Equal Exchange maintains a line of credit with the bank that is secured by multiple three year certificates of deposits opened by smaller depositors. Finally, the bank partners with the commonwealth of Massachusetts in its HEAT loan program, which provides zero interest loans to consumers for residential energy efficiency improvements.
The sustainability program at Eastern is designed to include our employees, customers, communities, business and operational practices. All initiatives are required to be financially sustainable or have a significant benefit to the lives of our customers of employees. Our collaborative model of combining employee volunteers, community networks and business partners has proven to be a positive attribute of the program. Engaging thought leaders from within as well as outside the bank has strengthened Eastern in many ways beyond sustainability. We encourage all area business to begin similar initiatives – together, we can make a difference.
