ON THE ROAD TO SUSTAINABLE, PROFITABLE GROWTH
During its 80 years, Finnair has carried 150 million passengers and employed tens of thousands of people in Finland and abroad. An airline's business arises from demand. Our operations, on the one hand, are vital for society and, on the other, have a impacts on the environment.
Measuring and reporting the implementation of social responsibility is a most complex and varied task. In addition to financial performance and product quality, however, companies' right to exist is increasingly also being assessed by other indicators. In this process, honesty and openness are fundamental.
Social responsibility is an accountability for the impact of the company's activities on the surrounding society and on the company's interest groups. It consists of three cornerstones, namely financial responsibility, responsibility to the community and environmental responsibility.
Social reporting improves transparency
Our goal is to communicate about our operations in a more versatile and comprehensive way. In this annual report we tell on a general level about our objectives and achievements. Further information about Finnair's social responsibility can be found on the Group's website, http://www.finnairgroup.com.
Finnair's business objective is to achieve sustainable and profitable growth. The reform of our financial management and administrative structure implemented in 2001 has clearly improved the transparency of our activities. In addition to regular quarterly reports, Finnair also publishes monthly traffic statistics.
In this early stage of reporting Finnair's social responsibility, we are focusing on defining aspects of social responsibility, refining existing data and creating reliable management systems in collaboration with our interest groups. Although we are taking our first steps on the road to reporting social responsibility, the actions of every Finnair employee are guided by responsibility in accordance with our values.
Wider reporting of environment effects
Air transport gives rise to many environmental and health effects. It is, on the one hand, the safest form of transport, but it also consumes natural resources, weakens air quality, generates noise and produces waste.
Active, organized environmental protection work began in Finnair more than a decade ago, when an environmental policy working group was established. Finnair's environmental organization has continued this work since 1991 and Finnair has reported on the Group's environmental impacts since 1997. We intend to develop environmental reporting to serve a wider target group, by communicating environmental matters in a more understandable way. To date, published noise and emission tables have mostly been of benefit to industry experts.
Responsible and transparent handling of environmental issues is an established aspect of the Group's business operations and decision-making. Finnair is one of Europe's leading airlines when it comes to taking the environment into account and, as a member of the Association of European Airlines (AEA), it is accountable for its emissions. Furthermore, as a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the oneworld alliance, Finnair strives towards common environmental targets worldwide.
Reconciling the demands of producing air transport services and environmental protection is seen in Finnair as an important challenge. Long-term environmental work is also being done in the Group's subsidiaries. Examples of this are Finnair Catering, which in 2001 became the first flight kitchen in the world to receive an ISO 14001 certificate, and Aurinkomatkat-Suntours, which has adopted a sustainable tourism programme as a key guiding principle.
During 2003 Finnair has adapted its organization to correspond to new environmental challenges: the fleet has been renewed with the best available technology, the oldest aircraft have been decommissioned and operations have been developed in the spirit of sustainable development. The objective is a reduction in greenhouse emissions, aircraft noise and the amount of unsorted waste.
Air transport - a part of modern society
We also wish to stimulate discussion on new aspects of air transport and its right to exist.
Efficient transport links and services are a prerequisite of modern Western society. Finnair, with its highly efficient, extensive route network, is an important part of Finnish infrastructure and competitiveness. Direct links to over 30 destinations abroad and 20 destinations in Finland, plus 60 leisure flight destinations, constitute an exceptionally diverse route network - and no similar network is offered in any of our neighbouring countries.
Air transport in Finland is the only area of public transport that does not need taxpayers' support. Finnair, indeed, finances a significant part of Finnish air transport infrastructure: Finnair directly employs around 10,000 people and generates for society tax revenues as well as a financial profit. Finnair also indirectly employs thousands of people in different parts of Finland and the world.
We feel that responsible corporate activity is worthwhile. A clear vision, sound values, consistent actions and open communications create for the 80-year-old Finnair - and through us for all our interest groups - the most enduring and best framework to succeed in the future.
Keijo Suila
President & CEO, Finnair Plc |