corporate responsibility
Ensuring the Handprint of Our Work Far Exceeds the Footprint of Our Organization
Our Corporate Sustainability Plan is divided
into three strategic areas
How we make an impact through sustainability services
We aim to increase the positive impact our organization has on the environment. We call this increasing our ecological handprint. We do this through the work we do with our clients on global projects, helping them reduce their environmental impact in their operations through our climate and performance engineering services.
How we reduce our carbon footprint
Reducing carbon emissions in our own operations is how we reduce our footprint. RWDI has incorporated many office policies that reduce waste and emissions in our day-to-day operations.
How we help improve our local communities
At RWDI, caring for the planet, our communities, and our team members is at the core of our values. We are dedicated to creating a positive social impact through our business relationships, policies, and practices.
Making an impact through climate & performance solutions
Drawing on decades of expertise, we support our clients’ ambitious sustainability goals, providing results with a positive impact on both the environment and the people that occupy it. Here are the services where we make the greatest impact:
Air Quality
Effectively manage air quality for regulatory compliance and human health with expert testing and analysis.
Building Sciences
Create high-performing, efficient, and resilient buildings with smart building science solutions.
Extended Producer Responsibility Consulting
Get practical, high-impact strategies for extended producer responsibility to meet compliance and reduce risks.
Geoscience
Get expert analysis of soil, rock, and groundwater to help choose the right site, reduce risk, and design with confidence from day one.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Get data-driven confidence in GHG emissions reporting to quantify emissions with confidence, flag risks early, and meet compliance.
Land Use Consulting
Keep your project moving forward with expert studies and practical solutions for soil, water, and land development.
Sustainable Buildings
Make data-driven decisions that reduce environmental impact, improve building performance, and protect long-term asset value.
Urban Design & Masterplan Consulting
Create vibrant and future-focused communities with climate-informed master planning.
Wind Engineering
Minimize wind-related risks and optimize the performance of your structure.
What is climate & performance engineering?
Climate and performance engineering is a comprehensive approach to addressing complex engineering and environmental challenges in the built environment. This ensures projects are tailored to their specific climate, enhancing efficiency, sustainability, comfort, and resilience against natural disasters. It minimizes negative environmental impacts while maximizing performance.
Reducing our carbon footprint
We are fortunate to have a wealth of technical expertise within our organization, which we have leveraged to create a science-based, engineering-driven sustainability plan that ensures responsible targets for our business that will deliver meaningful impact.
Lower our scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions
We are conducting a baseline assessment of our global GHG emissions impacts. This step will lay the groundwork for developing future sustainability strategies, ensuring we stay at the forefront of environmental stewardship.
Global LEED certifications for offices
We achieved LEED EB Gold certification for the Guelph headquarters, LEED EB Gold for the Trivandrum, India office and LEED CI Gold for the Portland, USA office. We have actively pursued and supported accreditations for staff, including WELL AP, LEED AP, Sustainability Facility Professional (SFP), and Certified Passive House Consultant, to enhance our knowledge in sustainability and demonstrate our commitment to the industry.
Waste management with model shop supplies
To enhance our operational efficiency and reduce environmental impact, we are introducing a foam densifier to manage the waste generated by our CNC machines. This initiative will significantly reduce storage and transportation needs, streamline our operations, and divert substantial amounts of business waste from local landfills.
RWDI energy star portfolio manager
Building on our successful implementation of wind tunnel energy meters in our headquarters building, we are creating a centralized tracking system through the RWDI Energy Star Portfolio Manager. By consolidating energy meter data from all feasible office locations, we can efficiently manage and monitor our energy consumption across our global portfolio, driving our commitment to performance engineering that minimizes impact.
Environmental sustainability policies
We have implemented several sustainable policies across our global offices where feasible, and which are followed by all of our LEED certified offices. From eliminating single-use plastics, cradle to cradle policies, waste and energy reductions strategies, and policies for locally sourcing food, agriculture, and compost.
Helping improve our local communities
Our commitment to enriching the communities we serve is reflected in our long-standing support for local charitable organizations and global initiatives that align with the causes we passionately believe in.
Our annual Eco Challenge puts our Mission Statement to profit its people, partners, and planet into action. It amplifies our positive impact by encouraging staff to participate in advancing our sustainability goals, while reinforcing a unified company culture.
We are dedicated to promoting careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through various initiatives for a range of ages from elementary through to university and college. Our biennial “Girls in Engineering Day” consistently attracts record numbers of attendees, with RWDI volunteers contributing to its success.
Over the years, RWDI’s charitable giving has been driven by the generosity of individuals, teams, and regional offices donating their time and financial resources to great charitable organizations. From office bake sales and participating in run for the cure for cancer research, to food and toy drives over the holidays, our staff is eager to help local communities year-round.
Supporting our communities with RWDI GIVES
Charitable giving and community support has always been central to RWDI’s corporate culture.
RWDI GIVES is our voluntary employee donation program where RWDI matches donations made by our employees to support nonprofit organizations. Such donations are selected by our employees, who prioritize action over advocacy with a core mission to protect the environment, support our communities, or improve physical or mental health.
$207,300
collectively donated by RWDI employees through RWDI’s corporate giving programs.
Some of the organizations our team has supported:
