Veterinary Sustainability Roundtable celebrates a year of collaboration

27 October 2026

Thirty-three veterinary organisations, including the BSAVA, marked the first anniversary of the Veterinary Sustainability Roundtable (VSR) at VetPartners’ central support office in York on 7 October. Members also launched the alliance’s second year of joint action, focusing on decarbonisation, waste and health planning across the veterinary sector.

The Veterinary Sustainability Roundtable

The Veterinary Sustainability Roundtable is a cross-sector pre-competitive membership alliance, working to place sustainability at the heart of the veterinary professions. Facilitated by not-for-profit social enterprise Vet Sustain, the Roundtable’s diverse membership includes regulators, certifiers, membership bodies, businesses, charities, higher education institutions, and government stakeholders. The BSAVA is a founding member of the Roundtable and is pleased to contribute to the alliance, as part of its wider sustainability work.

A range of outputs are in development, including a veterinary roadmap to decarbonisation, educational resources to support waste reduction and reuse, and a health planning framework based around the One Health domains. The Roundtable’s working groups are chaired by Cat Curtis from IVC Evidensia, Hannah James from VetPartners, and Ed Bailey from Vet Sustain.

Year One

First-year highlights included the alliance’s official launch at the RCVS in London last October, a meeting at the BVA and a reception hosted by Lord Sandy Trees at the House of Lords in April, and the addition of several new members.

Cait Finnegan, Network Lead of Vet Sustain and facilitator of the Veterinary Sustainability Roundtable reflected on the alliance’s progress. “Our first year has created a thriving community and firm foundations for a new way of working together on sustainability challenges affecting animals, people and ecosystems. It’s been inspiring to see members embrace complexity, share diverse perspectives, and work together to identify practical opportunities for positive change. We look forward to supporting the Roundtable as it turns this shared ambition into action.”

Veterinary organisations interested in joining the Roundtable are invited to contact Cait Finnegan at cait.finnegan@vetsustain.org.

Sustainability at BSAVA

BSAVA is committed to sustainability and has implemented a range of initiatives to both reduce the environmental impact of its operations and support its members in strengthening their sustainability practices.

These include investing in electric vehicle charging stations and a major solar panel installation at Woodrow House (BSAVA’s Headquarters), measuring resource use and carbon emissions, creating a range of resources for our members to help them embed sustainability into their practice, and collaborating on initiatives to tackle sustainability issues across the veterinary sector, such as the Veterinary Sustainability Roundtable and the Animal Medicines Amnesty.

BSAVA achieved a major milestone earlier this year by achieving Green Accreditation with the national environmental accreditation scheme Investors in the Environment (iiE) – the highest achievable level.

Find out more here.