To our stakeholders:

I am pleased to confirm that AQUA4D reaffirms its support of the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact in the areas of Human Rights, Labour, Environment, and Anti-Corruption.

In this annual Communication on Progress, we describe our actions to continually improve the integration of the Global Compact and its principles into our business strategy, culture, and daily operations. We also commit to sharing this information with our stakeholders using our primary channels of communication.

Sincerely yours,

Eric Valette
CEO
AQUA4D® by ©Planet Horizons Technologies SA, Switzerland

With globalization, companies began to acquire a leading role in international law and for this reason, AQUA4D has an ethical and commercial duty to respect the human rights of its stakeholders. As a sustainable company, and our contribution to 11 of the 17 SDGs, human rights are essential and part of the development we promote.
Since its inception in 2004, AQUA4D and each of its employees have the vocation and assume the total commitment to developing their activities with the highest ethical standards and in accordance with the laws in force in the territories and countries in which it operates, as well such as fulfilling and defending human rights and respect for labor rights, acting with diligence and professionalism, integrity, quality, care for the environment, prevention of occupational risks, fight against corruption and social responsibility.
This commitment is not an option, which is why AQUA4D applies the principle of zero tolerance for bad practices in matters of ethics and integrity and expects its employees and the people who relate to conduct in line with the principles of its ethics and compliance Policy.

We always verify that our projects don't incur any unequal, illegal, and unjust situations, such as child labor or exploitation of any kind.

We have a work protocol and questionnaire where we review the details of the project and how it will be carried out. Our projects also require field monitoring, regular visits, and a long-term relationship with the companies. In this process, we are always attentive to the work environment and how the project is being carried out.

For us, the importance of labor law is to establish a logical, fair, and harmonious order within the professional environment. Thus, each of the employees and people involved knows what their rights and obligations are and what they must do to maintain a suitable environment. At AQUA4D we keep the salary gap very short, with fair agreements for each one, and with a family business culture, where support and trust are prioritized

At AQUA4D we have the labor policies required by the Swiss Confederation as well as by international agreements. We are an SME with an interconnected team, where opinions are always respected as well as group and individual demands.

We have a structure of regular weekly, monthly, and quarterly meetings where we review the processes as well as the demands of each area, which are listened to and evaluated always trying to find a balance between the resources and the needs of the team as well as each person. It is a company with a family culture, where trust and the right to express oneself are part of the core values. This also extends to our partners globally.

AQUA4D connects the dots between sustainable resource use, land restoration, and responsible production. For us, sustainable business means increasing growth and output while decreasing the impact on the environment. We truly believe this is achievable. Water scarcity and the price of resources vary from country to country. With proven results from Chile to Zimbabwe, our technology and service help growers across the world on the way to higher yields (food security) using less natural resources.
DOING MORE WITH LESS has become the mantra of a new sustainability drive in agriculture, and this goes as much for water use as anything else. New innovations are making it increasingly possible to do just this – increased yields (output) while using fewer resources (input), in ways that would have seemed mathematically impossible just a generation ago.
AQUA4D irrigation technology helps alleviate some of the biggest issues we face: water conservation, soil restoration, and food security. It’s all thanks to innovative water treatment which subtly alters irrigation water and the minerals within.
Soil salinity often comes hand in hand with drought conditions, and until now the most common solution has been water-intensive flushing – wasting precious resources where most needed. AQUA4D is the only technology that manages salinity while using less water in the process and without consumables associated with technologies like reverse osmosis.
Since 2004, growers in 45 countries have benefited, increasing their yields and output quality while minimizing resource input and solving long-standing salinity issues.
AQUA4D® irrigation is part of a new regenerative approach to agriculture, ensuring greater output with reduced inputs. With the FAO estimating that soil salinization takes up to 1.5 million ha of farmland per year out of production, upscaled use of our technology would be a sustainable solution to the restoration of agricultural lands and wider food security.
Our supporters include the Swiss Confederation, the Swiss Climate Foundation, and Solar Impulse Foundation among others. We have also received funding as part of the EU's Horizon 2020 program, to expand the technology for pivot irrigation, with the significant land regeneration this would entail.

Minerals present in the water are efficiently dissolved by AQUA4D treatment, leaching salts below the root zone so they no longer crystallize. Soil health is improved and plants can flourish to their full potential. Continued irrigation with saline water is even possible, without requiring energy-intensive desalination or flushing. The same effect on minerals means nutrients can be better absorbed by plants, and up to 20% less fertilizer needs to be applied. Lastly, as the technology reduces the size of water clusters while increasing soil porosity, soils stay moist for longer and irrigation frequency can be reduced by around 30%.
We have developed an innovative and unique water-smart clean technology that optimizes the irrigation process and achieves key benefits for water quality, soil health, and yields. This results in strong competitive and comparative advantages, in both in farm management and in creating shared value in reaching ESG objectives. Generally, soil restoration, as well as irrigation with saline water, is an unsustainable practice that generates water waste, brackish water concentrates that generate a lot of damage and a lot of energy and material consumption. AQUA4D® is a unique technology that allows restoring saline or non-saline soils using less water in the process. In addition, we use 3000 times less energy than other alternatives, and we do not generate any type of waste. Our main markets are arid and semi-arid areas, such as Chile, Peru, California, and Central Asia, among other places.

Over 20 years, this technology has been verified by dozens of scientific studies globally. Landmark research in the Jordan Valley observed continued irrigation of crops with saline water yet 37% higher yields, while a California State University verified this in a lab setting, showing that AQUA4D leached 148% more salt compared with Control. A study at INRAE (France) proved changes in soil micro and macrostructure, explaining both the efficient lixiviation and soil moisture effects observed by many growers. Most recently, research by INACAP (Chile) has proven significant reductions in chlorine and boron, reducing salinity conditions while saving ~30% water use.

All our projects follow a strict monitoring protocol, in which other climate-smart technologies and tools are integrated which help to build a record of the changes in the humidity and electrical conductivity of the soil and water use. These reports are followed and analyzed by our group of engineers who generate regular reports of the changes and adjustments in the field and in the frequency of irrigation and pumping (energy and Co2 emissions) which are shared with the companies (clients) as well as with the internal team and the impact on the sustainability report.

Since its inception in 2004, AQUA4D and each of its employees have the vocation and assume the total commitment to developing their activities with the highest ethical standards and in accordance with the laws in force in the territories and countries in which it operates, as well such as fulfilling and defending human rights and respect for labor rights, acting with diligence and professionalism, integrity, quality, care for the environment, prevention of occupational risks, fight against corruption and social responsibility.
This commitment is not an option, which is why AQUA4D applies the principle of zero tolerance for bad practices in matters of ethics and integrity and expects its employees and the people who relate to conduct in line with the principles of its ethics and compliance Policy.

We have clear policies as well as an interconnected team that has the obligation and the right to report any inappropriate behavior in this matter.

Periodic meetings where we can be aware of any serious situation in this matter that can be addressed and controlled by the board and those responsible for each department. We maintain clear ethical business rules and values with which we carry out projects and business relationships with clients and stakeholders.