● Ovidio Claros Polanco, president of the CCB, announced in the framework of the #SomosSostenibles event that the entity will participate in COP16, with the purpose of sharing experience in services at the forefront to promote sustainability and how it has materialized in more profitable companies that contribute socially and environmentally.

● Next June 12 #SomosSostenibles will reach the region with workshops at the CCB headquarters in Chía, Zipaquirá, Fusagasugá and Soacha.

Bogota, June 2024. The #SomosSostenibles, an annual event held by the Bogota Chamber of Commerce (CCB) that seeks to positively impact Bogota and the region by providing tools to achieve triple impact companies that are committed to economic, social and environmental sustainability.

During the event, the CCB connected entrepreneurs with various sectors of the economy, organizing panels with key players to ensure that companies in sectors such as gastronomy, technology and fashion are immersed in the latest sustainability trends. In addition to the talks, there were workshops, exhibitions of sustainable materials and inputs, commercial samples of companies, and catwalks of sustainable products and services.

Ovidio Claros Polanco, President of the Bogota Chamber of Commerce, stated that “At the Bogota Chamber of Commerce we are committed to materializing sustainability actions in companies by accompanying them in the implementation of good practices that allow them to manage resources appropriately, with the aim of achieving more competitive companies that generate greater profitability in the businesses of our entrepreneurs in Bogota and the region, and at the same time achieve a social and environmental impact. This initiative represents a solid commitment to sustainable development and the well-being of our business community in Bogota and the region.

For the CCB, it is the responsibility of each company to articulate strategies that promote the responsible management of these resources to ensure long-term sustainability, and the entity is here to support them in the process.

Entrepreneurs speak

The event featured the participation of Simón Vieira, Sustainability Director of Wok Restaurant, who focused his lecture, “Sustainability on the plate: sustainable strategies from the food chain”, on the environmental and sustainable axis of companies. Vieira stated that “In our business, the objective is to promote good waste management, incorporate the efficient use of resources in our daily activities and strengthen our value chain and responsible consumption”.

Patricia Vélez, country manager of SmartClarity Colombia, stated that energy efficiency has an impact on the ethical and corporate strategy of organizations, so we must reduce consumption in order to produce more. We must all be agents of change and SmartClarity is dedicated to energy management where they carry out diagnostics to evaluate the measures to be taken for energy consumption and savings, and from there they develop projects that allow them to provide solutions based on coaching.

Jorge Cifuentes, manager of Sackprom, a company dedicated to the manufacture of paper and cardboard packaging for food. He assures that they are committed to sustainability from the eco-design for the development of packaging that can be used for recycling and for the use of waste, with the fusion of plastics with paper to give strength to the cardboard. This has been achieved thanks to the training they have received from the CCB. “The new generations, the markets, today's buyers, demand sustainability and it is our responsibility as companies to produce in a sustainable way”.

Dora Isabel Martínez, creative director of Isadora Martin, a sustainable fashion brand based on circular economy that is certified as a green business. She transforms new remnants left over from the textile industry into garments, assuring that “sustainability is inherent to human beings, but we lost it along the way. We are returning to lead a more practical life, making ourselves responsible from the use of waste. She added that she was part of the circular economy route of the CCB and is part of the Adelante 2 project, with which she has achieved training, visibility and important spaces".

Daniel Ruiz, corporate social responsibility leader of Pinturas Bler de Colombia, which manufactures paint for different sectors from domestic to industrial. "Previously, sustainability was something more reputational. Today it is life or death. In the company we manage sustainability from our renewable energy projects with the use of solar panels, the adequacy of the water we have used in the processes to reuse it and reduce consumption of drinking water; and in the product itself we have reduced toxic components and the packaging is recycled and recyclable.