Starting Out
First out, it must be said, that we are exceptionally lucky to have two absolute stars on our team: Dan Paver and Mike Doyle. Both are based at our HQ in Sarasota and have been with TDS for years and know everything there is to know about ethically sourcing certified wood from all around the world. They’re without a doubt THE people to spearhead our journey towards FSC certification!
Dan and Mike are both super knowledgeable and passionate about sustainability and the environment, and their enthusiasm is infectious. They’re huge advocates of taking TDS to the next level when it comes to being sustainable. For some time now, they’ve been investigating how to get the FSC certificate and thought that a great starting point would be with our facility in Valencia, Spain.
Starting something new can be a daunting, but sometimes, the universe just aligns, and everything falls into place. That’s exactly what happened when we received the press release for the FSC Yachting for Forestry launch. No time was wasted, and we contacted Kristian Jorgensen from the FSC to discuss how we could get involved and start driving change within TDS. It was the perfect timing, and we were ready to roll up our sleeves and get started.
A Teams meeting was quickly set up with Kristian Jorgensen and Tijmen Hennekes from the FSC and it was fantastic! We chatted about the set-up of TDS and our practices, and what we could do to make a positive impact on the industry. We talked about relevant trends in the industry, like deforestation-free supply chains and sustainability practices and how they impact us. We also talked about European legislation, which is a bit of a minefield, but we’ll tackle that another day.
Kristian and Tijemn walked us through the 6-step approach to FSC certification that they advised we follow.
- Outline policy process
- Self-evaluation
- Training of relevant staff
- Policy making
- Innovation input and alliances
- Communication
After the meeting, we received an advisory document for yachting companies as well as a guide on how to make a policy. Our first step is to outline our policy process, and we’ve got a lot of reading and investigating to do but the ball is rolling! We’ll also need to put together the best team possible from the US and Spain to make this happen. But you know what? We’re really excited! We’re at the start of something great, and we can’t wait to see where this takes us.
Stay tuned for more updates on our progress!
