As regular readers of this blog will know I’m very interested in the future of work for people across the world.
Closer to home I’ve been following my brother Murray‘s path with interest as he works in a hugely complex, exciting, and rapidly evolving area that’s becoming ever more important to our future: sustainability.
Off the back of him sharing his learnings and insights, I’ve started to scratch below the surface of what sustainability means and why it matters. It’s fascinating, and it’s everywhere; affecting just about every industry in every country.
A few months ago Murray called me to ask me about some of the innovation workshops I’ve been involved in. He felt sustainability and innovation were more closely linked than they appeared, and there could also be better ways to support freelancers, entrepreneurs, employees and companies in demystifying the topic.
Over this Summer we’ve been exploring how we could deliver education experiences in sustainability for people working in modern business, with a focus on content that’s practical, immersive and relatable.
During this journey we’ve seen there’s so much more to sustainability than meets the eye: it can be a lever for huge innovation and value creation no matter your industry or company size, and it’s moving way beyond being considered a compliance box to tick or a nice-to-have CSR initiative.
Here are some of the bigger indicators:
- 1/3 of consumers prefer sustainable brands, £81bn market for ethical products
- 75% of millennials would take a pay cut to work for a responsible company
- United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals present a $12tn market opportunity
- Sustainable companies have 46% better share price performance and 112.5% better return on assets
- IKEA nearing 3x increase in sustainable product sales
- Unilever’s Sustainable Living brands grew 50% faster than the rest of the business, delivering over 60% of growth in 2016
Outside of the innovation and value creation side, it’s not an overstatement to suggest that the future of the planet depends on us understanding and taking action on this topic – the pressures on our world are real, and increasing.
Whilst we can’t single-handedly save the world just yet, I’m excited to share our first offerings under our Sustainable Foundations banner, with more to come over the next few months.
> Sustainable Foundations Courses: In-Person
A series of fast-moving, interactive and practical sustainability workshops for modern business, lasting either 1/2 day, 1 day or 2 days.
We demystify the core concepts of sustainability, with a focus on innovation, growth and value creation.
Sessions are booking now throughout the rest of 2018 and into 2019 for teams of 10 or more.
> Sustainable Foundations Course: Interactive Webinar
Regular interactive 90 minute sessions focused on core concepts and providing you with a toolkit to take into your business.
> Free email course
A free 10-day self-paced email course to help you level up and explore what sustainability means for you, your business and the wider world.
Whilst the goal of Sustainable Foundations is to open up the topic for the uninitiated we’d also love to hear from you if you’re more experienced; we’re constantly seeking to get new insights, viewpoints and ideas so don’t hesitate to contact us if you’d like to see what we’re up to.
And if you’re in New York City on September 28th, join us for a special New York Climate Week edition of the course at the wonderful Betaworks Studios in the Meatpacking District. We have a couple of seats still remaining – you can register here.
Curious? Find out more at www.sustainable-foundations.org or drop me a line directly.