On one level – with the agreement made at the Paris Climate Change meetings, and the establishment of the UN Sustainability Goals – progress was made in 2015.

At the same time, the Volkswagen scandal raised serious questions about the effectiveness of corporate sustainability efforts. Industrial society’s impacts became ever clearer with the hottest year on record and reports that around three million people die each year as a result of air pollution.

For co-ops, sustainability featured as a core topic in 2015. It was a central theme at Congress in Birmingham and also at the International Co-operative Alliance General Assembly in Turkey. So how has that intention been carried forward into 2016?

We asked a number of co-ops about what their sustainability priorities are for this year.

Refocusing and refreshing environmental effortsCalverts, the London-based worker-co-operative design agency, has an effective ISO14001 environmental management system (EMS) in place and is refreshing environmental objectives in 2016 to make sure it continues to deliver.For Midcounties Co-operative, reducing resource use and waste are dual priorities for 2016, while Delta-T Devices is focusing on one particular resource – energy – adding new insulation around the site.

Jonathan Atkinson from the Carbon Co-op suggests that one thing co-operatives should do right now is to get a professional energy audit done.

The need for more radical action is becoming ever clearer and so is the need to challenge how we do business

This is really important for homes and co-op businesses. It may cost a little up front but if done by an expert, will provide a road map for improvements that will pay back in no time.

For Andy Cresswell of Midcounties, addressing natural resources the business is most reliant on, and developing a plan to reduce this dependence, is a must.