CSR, Diversity, Sustainability: the New Challenges for Security
Sustainability and Smaller Energy Footprints
Security companies are gradually embracing CSR issues and making sustainability central to their strategies. This is the case with Thales, which has set ambitious environmental targets in line with the Paris Agreement: a 50.4% reduction in its operational CO2 emissions by 2030, and carbon neutrality in the long term. In the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Germany, 100% of the electricity used on site comes from renewable sources. All new products incorporate eco-design principles, either partially or completely. Swedish camera manufacturer Axis Communications also promotes this initiative. Since 2012, the Axis Green Design Group has been supporting the company in designing more environmentally-friendly products. Eco-design, sustainability, recycling, cost and material substitution are intrinsic to the approach of this group, which is committed to shaping tomorrow’s world, starting today. Three models already incorporate recycled products, including the M10 camera, made from 70% recycled plastic. Camera recycling is also a major priority for the group. It sends data sheets for 400 products to recycling companies, so that at an item’s end-of-life, the companies can identify all its components and recycle them in the most effective way.
Women are Still Under-Represented
In the world of private security, women remain a minority. In 2023, they accounted for only 20% of the workforce. To make up for this shortage, recruitment policies are being introduced around the world. In the UK, G4S, a security company present in over 120 countries, has set up various incentives, including assistance in joining the company, flexible working arrangements, healthcare coverage and access to a women's support network. The annual publication of the gender pay gap also contributes to transparency and “provides an opportunity to assert our commitment to improving the gender balance within our workforce, and lay out the steps we are taking to achieve this,” says the company.
The gap is even wider in the sphere of cybersecurity. In 2021, ANSSI (the national information systems security agency) found that nearly 90% of cybersecurity professionals were men. Long under-represented, women are still struggling to make their mark in cybersecurity, a sector under pressure. However, integrating a variety of skills is not just a solution for labour shortages: it is a real lever for innovation, agility and performance. By enriching perspectives and stimulating creativity and innovation, it makes organisations more agile and responsive to their customers' needs. This imbalance is something companies are gradually trying to correct. More and more businesses are publishing their workplace gender equality index, which assesses their efforts according to several criteria, including pay and promotion gaps, the percentage of women staff given a pay rise after maternity leave, and the proportion of the under-represented gender among the ten highest salaries. Tehtris scored 84% in 2024, cloud provider Celeste 89% in 2023, and cybersecurity specialist Akerva 87% in 2022.
Security: a Lever for Developing Society
Security in all its dimensions – physical, environmental, social and economic – is a fundamental pillar of sustainable development. It protects vital resources, prevents conflicts and boosts societies' resilience during crises. Supported by highly effective technological innovations, security is now a real lever for shaping a better world. In Gabon, the development of new technologies incorporating AI is helping to combat poaching. "We have developed an intelligent camera system that locates people or animals in huge remote areas in real time. It consists of a game camera we have slightly modified so that it can communicate wirelessly with our mini-computer. This downloads images from the camera and uses artificial intelligence to automatically determine whether an animal, an elephant or a human is present in the photo. We then use the satellite modem to send this information directly to the Rangers' phones in just a few minutes," says Thijs SUIJTEN, an engineer at Hack the Planet. [1] This innovation is particularly useful, given that a third of the country's elephants have been poached over the last 15 years. Other companies are focusing on education, like Saab, a Swedish security and defence company. The aircraft manufacturer has formed international partnerships to promote access to education for children, aimed at keeping them off the streets, out of poverty and away from the risks of crime. In collaboration with local associations, Saab has been active in Brazil since 2019, as well as in India, where students in need receive academic support to prevent them from dropping out of school. In many cases, Saab employees themselves volunteer to teach these classes or organise fundraisers for schools. At a time when crises are intensifying, companies in the sector remain committed to redefining the contours of a safer, more sustainable and inclusive future.
[1] Article Africanews: Gabon : lutter contre le braconnage grâce à l’intelligence artificielle