Transco
Grassroots
Transco came to Kallaway
to develop ideas that
would help the company
demonstrate its commitment
to protecting the
environment, its desire
to work closely with
communities and its
support for education.
To help Transco achieve
these goals, Kallaway
created and implemented
Grassroots, an environmental
sponsorship programme
that offered £100,000
per annum to secondary
schools, community
groups and charities
for environmental
projects. Kallaway
promoted the scheme
nationwide, among
special interest groups,
councils and MPs and
secured regional,
national and specialist
press coverage.
The scheme encouraged
applicants to review
their local environment
and propose strategies
for improving it.
Transco awarded funds
to those schools,
community groups and
organisations that
would bring people
together to improve
their environment.
Proposed projects
were judged by an
independent panel
made up of educators
and environmentalists
and chaired by Bill
Oddie. Between forty
and fifty awards –
ranging from £250
to £25,000 –
were made each year.
Projects ranged from
planting 29,000 trees
in the Scottish Highlands
through to clearing
rubbish from waterways
to return them to
community use. All
the projects provided
practical opportunities
for stakeholders to
learn about global
environmental issues
through tackling and
examining such issues
on a local level.
The scheme enabled
physical interaction
with the environment
and provided a focus
for community involvement
across age groups
and backgrounds.
Grassroots proved
to be Transco’s
most successful community
initiative. The activity
provided a platform
that enabled the Transco
to communicate directly
with its target audiences.
In 2000, independent
research found Grassroots
to be among the top
five environmental
schemes operated by
a company. In the
same year, the scheme
accounted for more
than half the company’s
positive media coverage.
Over the ten years
of the project the
interest from schools
and other groups grew
to a database of 4,600
organisations which
received Transco Grassroots
information every
year. Over 75 per
cent of MPs invited
attended constituency
based activity and,
since 1996, 220 schools
received awards totalling
£500,000 |
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“The
Grassroots Scheme
has enabled
us to develop
an excellent
rapport within
the rural and
environmentalist
communities.
It has helped
us to draw on
the support
of MPs, landowner,
environmentalists
and the ‘
movers and shakers’
of the rural
community.”
John Wyche,
General Manager,
Transco South
West |
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