Antonin Buys holds the newly created role of environment & sustainability officer at VINCI Energies Belgium, a position that reflects this young graduate’s values and ambition to play an active part in nature conservation.
It was around a camp fire in Finland that Antonin Buys realised he wanted his career to contribute towards environmental protection. “The third year of my Bachelor’s degree in international business included an Erasmus programme in Finland, where people are very nature-oriented and concerned with environmental issues. The experience was a trigger for me. And the internship I completed soon after that in an import-export company selling products with no added value for the community only confirmed my choice.”
For this young man from Liège, who spent his childhood in the countryside and who regularly engages in outdoor pursuits, particularly climbing, finding a job that matched his values was vital when he finished his Master’s in management science with a specialisation in sustainable and social enterprises. Job search website algorithms did the rest.
“I’m happy to be able to contribute to environmental change.”
“I came across a VINCI Energies job ad for the role of environment & sustainability officer, which was in the process of being created. A position entirely dedicated to the environment and sustainability!” he says. Specifically, the role was aimed at implementing practices that would improve VINCI Energies’ environmental impact.
Putting his persuasion skills into practice
Since December 2022 Antonin Buys, 25, has been travelling around the country (in an electric car of course!), raising awareness at the perimeter Infra & Telecom in Belgium where he is working for: Cegelec IMCS, Cegelec MTS, Omexom Belgique, City Electric Luxembourg, TranzCom Energy and Axians Telecom & Networks. “My role is first and foremost to conduct analysis assessments at each site under my responsibility,” he explains. “To do that, I use our in-house software Eve to list all sources of consumption and waste production. I then propose action plans that tally with VINCI Energies and VINCI objectives: reducing emissions across Scopes 1 and 2* by 40% by 2030, making greater use of the circular economy, and conserving natural environments.”
He is supported in these challenging tasks by Steven Van den Bergh, HSEQ manager, and Staële Trividic, environment coordinator for the division VINCI Energies Europe North West. This input is invaluable in a role that requires not just technical capabilities but above all excellent interpersonal skills.
“Of course you sometimes face strong resistance,” admits Antonin. “The measures to be introduced come at a cost. Some people feel they will result in a loss of profitability for their business. My job is to convince them, by showing that the actions we take can also have economic results. The persuasion aspect of the work is very rewarding as you’re raising awareness among people who perhaps previously didn’t see all the implications of a commitment to the environment.”
Antonin particularly appreciates it when colleagues tell him at the end of a meeting that they’ve realised the importance of the issues that he works to defend on a daily basis.
Helping to drive change
This work often includes practical action in the field. Take the recycling station of a VINCI Energies building that Antonin has been working on since the start of 2023. “The site, which houses several VINCI Energies business units, didn’t have a very organised sorting policy. Plastic waste was often deposited in the wrong containers. I had larger and better labelled containers installed. I also put up posters with more specific information.”
Another project he feels strongly about despite not having initiated it himself relates to Elia, Belgium’s electricity system operator, “which decided to list all the areas of energy consumption falling within Scope 3*, the biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions for a company. VINCI Energies, which works with Elia, was involved in the project. This gave me a good idea of how effective this kind of initiative can be. When a business takes the decision to do this, service providers have to align themselves with their client. It’s a powerful lever for transformation.”
There is no doubt in Antonin’s mind that he chose the right path. “I’m happy to be able to make my own contribution to environmental change. In the future I’d like to play a leading role in incorporating sustainability into VINCI Energies strategy.”
In the meanwhile, and in between trekking trips, he is seizing every opportunity to expand his skills, as with the prevention adviser safety course that he has been taking for a few months.
“By encouraging continuous learning, VINCI Energies is showing that it can forge lasting relationships with its employees.”
* Scope 1: direct greenhouse gas emissions (heating, fuel, refrigerant leaks, etc.); Scope 2: indirect emissions from electricity use; Scope 3: indirect emissions from upstream and downstream activities (transportation, distribution and disposal of goods sold by a company).
02/16/2024
