Airbus

In the heart of Bristol sits a UK Aerospace jewel with more engineers under one roof than anywhere in Northern Europe. With sustainability positioned firmly at the centre of Airbus’ purpose, this extends further than the way it designs its aircraft. It extends right into protecting the native flora and fauna that enhance the site’s biodiversity.

The Bee Bold selection panel recognised that although Airbus is at the start of its journey to becoming nature-positive, it hopes that the actions taken by the aerospace company will inspire other businesses to take the first steps.

What they did

Following a team visit to Grow Wilder, the Airbus team were inspired to learn more about their local native flora and fauna and start improving the biodiversity at their Filton site. Whilst their site already featured multiple beehives, the team discovered how they could do more to support wild pollinators. A recent biodiversity survey also revealed their site was in reasonably good condition and even common and pyramidal orchids were growing despite the site’s heavy manufacturing history. Energised by this news, volunteers from across the business came together to plant their first micro-forest.

The Micro Forest concept, developed by Japanese botanist Professor Akira Miyawaki, creates organic, self-sustaining, and diverse forests in under 20-30 years by mimicking natural ecosystems. Since Micro Forests can thrive in small spaces, Airbus chose this method for their urban site, planting 17 species of British native trees.

The impact for Airbus and beyond

By sharing their journey and learnings with other Airbus divisions in the UK, the team hope to inspire the wider company and other leading businesses to follow suit. Alongside planting, staff have taken part in several workshops on biodiversity and the value of forests as ecosystems. Educating staff and creating a sustainability-based culture are key aspirations for Airbus in Filton.

Future plans include working more closely with environmental partners, including the Wildlife Trusts, to get the best possible advice on what nature-based solutions will work for them. They also hope to share learnings with their suppliers, taking advantage of Airbus’ sizeable supply chain, and carry out further ecological surveys across other Airbus sites.

The impact for pollinators

The team have been carrying out No Mow May for multiple years and large swathes of native wildflower meadows are now visible across the site. Further wildflower planting is also planned for nearby areas. Their ambition is to create a site overflowing with nature with plans to create a wildlife pond and another micro-forest. These pocket forests grow 10x faster and contain 100x more biodiversity than traditionally planted forests. Their denseness provides large amounts of forage for pollinators, as well as refuge for birds, whilst their thick canopy cover creates a shaded home for insects.

Videos created by Floating Harbour Studios (floatingharbour.co.uk |www.instagram.com/floatingharbour/)