Corporate Social Responsibility

As a company, we believe have a responsibility to leave the world a better place than before. This takes more than words. We can achieve this through on-going social and environmental actions. We acknowledge that the land on which we live and work is the unceded traditional territory of Kwikwetlem, Tsleil-Waututh, Squamish, and Stó:lō Nations. We acknowledge that we are uninvited settlers. This land matters, and the people who tended the land for centuries matter.

Social

Engineered Bodies Strength & Conditioning is committed to encouraging a supportive and inclusive culture within our employees, contractors, and members. Our goal is to ensure all are provided an equal opportunity to work, to join our classes, and to participate in our community. We will work to ensure that our organization is representative of society.
Recent events around the world have prompted us to publicly express our values of diversity and inclusion. We recognize the structural racism that permeates Black, Indigenous and other people of colour’s lives and know that more than words are needed to change the system. We know that the world needs ACTION, and that we are all part of a solution. The end of systemic racism starts with us, as individuals and as a company.

On June 5, 2020, our first step along this journey was to disaffiliate with CrossFit after their silence on the June 2020 protests and Black Lives Matter movement. Our next step was to donate to Hogan’s Ally Society, a Vancouver-based non-profit “that seeks to preserve and promote the historical, cultural, societal and economic contributions made by Black Settlers and their descendants to Vancouver, Greater Vancouver, the Province of British Columbia, the Pacific Northwest and Canada.”

We formalized our Diversity and Inclusion Policy. You can read it here.

But further action is needed to support marginalized groups within Port Moody, Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam. Our first steps towards extending support are:

• Six year long memberships (one per age group) for Black and Indigenous kids (6-13), youth (14-18), and adults who are interested in building strength and improving conditioning. These year long membership opportunities will be available annually. 
  • Status: adult one membership distributed.
• Fund set up through the Coquitlam Foundation to benefit Black and Indigenous individuals pursuing  post-secondary education in the fields of law or social work, with the goal of amplifying Black and Indigenous representation, perspectives, and voices as they pursue social justice and equality in our society. 
  • Status: Fund set-up complete. Initial donation by EB made. Donations ongoing.
  • Donations to the EB Fund can be made here. Donations of $25 or more are eligible for tax receipts. See the fund page for more details.

Additional actions (ongoing):

• We will continue to examine our relationships with suppliers and pledge to no longer do business with those that do not acknowledge systemic racism nor have policies or actions designed to create and inclusive and diverse work place. We are pleased that our regular partners that have made a stand include Strike Movement, truLOCAL, and Blonyx. Other partnerships and working relationships will be examined at time of  affiliation. 
• We will support our staff in understanding systemic racism and prejudice through providing resources such as "The Inconvenient Indian" by Thomas King, “How to be Antiracist” by Ibram X. Kendi,  “Me and  White Supremacy” by Layla F. Saad. Black Lives Matter and Anti-racism booklist from the Port Moody library is a good place to start. We will continue to have discussions with both staff and members, with the goal of creating a safe and respectful space for learning and challenging the status quo. 

Environmental

We are a supporter of the environmental movement - to reduce our impact on the environment and reduce our contribution to climate change. Some actions we have taken to reduce our environmental footprint when possible:

• Use of electronic documents, rather than printing
• Encourage active transportation (bike and walk) and public transit, when possible
• Member of Modo Coop Car Share
• Use of energy efficient heating system (radiant heat instead of forced air)
• Use of compostable, unbleached paper towels
• Environmentally friendly (EcoLogo certified) cleaning products
• Purchase of carbon credits to offset natural gas consumption (in progress)

We will review our actions on a quarterly basis and invite constructive discussions at any time.

Anti-Racist Resources

• Whose Land: This site helps to identify whose land we live on. Acknowledging the Nations whose land on which we live, work and play, is an important part of the reconciliation process. It connects us to the land and water that sustain us, and the Indigenous peoples who have stewarded the land for millennia.
• Reading resources from Indigenous authors at Strong Nations Books 
• Books we've read:
  • 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act by Bob Joseph
  • The Inconvenient Indian by Thomas King
  • How to Be Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi
  • Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad
  • Make Change by Shaun King
• Documentaries/movies we've watched:
  • Indigenous and Canadian Histories 101: what you didn’t learn in high school by Sarah C Robinson, Rainwatch Consulting
  • Just Mercy (on Crave, Amazon, AppleTV)
  • The Greensboro Four
• List of anti-racism resources (note: this document was compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker, Alyssa Klein in May 2020): bit.ly/ANTIRACISMRESOURCES

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