Looking back at a year of Optix Sustainability

At Optix, we believe that sustainably should be at the heart of what we do. Our co-founder, James, says that “businesses have an increasing responsibility to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability for future generations to meet their own. Right now, one area we are focusing on is our environmental impact and trying to think how we contribute to reducing this in an interesting and creative way.”

After a difficult year for everyone in 2020, we had to put some of our sustainability project on hold. However, in the early spring of 2021, we were able to continue with our plans. After such uncertain times, James was apprehensive about how successful this project could be. Looking back at the year now, we are incredibly proud of what we have been able to achieve.

What have we achieved?

We now have our very own beautiful wildflower meadow that has exceeded all of our expectations. We have had the joy of watching it bloom from a dense carpet of green foliage to an explosion of colour throughout the spring and summer months. Tens of thousands of flowers grew, changing colour through the seasons. In the mix were poppies, cornflowers, foxgloves, borrage, clovers and some more unusual varieties. James says, “It was quite spectacular to see the waves of different colours and species of flowers. Being amongst the colour and the sounds of nature during those spring and summer months was breath taking”.

Our honeybee colonies managed to make it through the worst of the weather and provided a very impressive 50-litre crop of honey. We are excited for them to start their cycle again in the new year, but for now, we are continuing to closely monitor them through the winter to ensure that they have enough food until the early spring.

Curious visitors

It was not only us that enjoyed being amongst the colours of the meadow but plenty of curious visitors like our resident deer. In the spring we set up several wildlife cameras to try and peek at what he had been up to. Footage from the wildlife cameras captures him regularly exploring and taking advantage of the wildflower buffet. The meadow attracted plenty of other insects daily and we were amazed by the number of butterflies, wild bees, and spiders. It has been a real eye-opening experience to see how much biodiversity this small ecosystem supports. Head to our YouTube channel if you would like to see the wildlife cameras in action.

Plans for 2022

We have been overjoyed to see the impact that this project has had on the native pollinators and small wildlife species. We want to do all that we can to help them continue to flourish. Therefore, we have decided to go big in 2022 and embark on creating a far larger area for the meadow to expand. Rob, managing director, says “by investing in our Optix sustainability program, we hope that it improves the quality of our lives, protects our local ecosystem, and preserves natural resources for our children’s future. Going green and sustainable is not only beneficial for the company; it also maximises the benefits from an environmental focus in the long-term”. James adds that we hope to motivate and inspire other people and small businesses to do the same”. We can’t wait to see how this project thrives and to do our part in supporting our fragile ecosystem.