Each staff member can volunteer for two days a year.
Volunteering so far this year has included a beach clean at Grande Havre Bay, land management and habitat restoration at Vale Pond Reserve and at Pre D’Enfer Nature Reserve, and surveying ormers and crabs.
More recently staff raked the meadow at Jardin de Lorette. The resulting hay was taken to the Soil Farm and used for composting and mulching; some has already been used for their pumpkin patch.
Brendan Stewart, CEO of Investec, said: “We support several community and charity initiatives and events across the Channel Islands. La Société Guernesiaise fulfils a valuable role in both preserving and educating about Guernsey’s rich built and natural cultural heritage. It is important to us, as a business that has existed in Guernsey for nearly 25 years, that we contribute to the society and community in which we operate, and this partnership is symbolic of that commitment”.
Pictured: An Investec trio surveying ormers.
Lesley Bourgaize, Chairperson of La Société’s Reserves Committee said: “La Société is always extremely grateful when local companies support our work. By offering to supply regular work parties, Investec has allowed us to carry out extra work at two reserves.”
President of La Société, Trevor Bourgaize, added: “As well as maintaining reserves, La Société continues to collate data on local flora and fauna and we are grateful to Investec for helping us to gather data on both eelgrass beds and crab populations, both important indicators of the health of our coastal environment.”
La Société has very few paid employees, so structured volunteering is important to optimise its effectiveness. The three year partnership with Investec means La Société can plan ahead on their land management calendar to make the best possible use of volunteers’ time and effort.