Giles Gibbons 
Good Business - Sustainability | Strategy | Impact

With opinions & predictions at this time of year being rather like belly buttons (everyone has one) it’s important to sort the wheat from the err…..fluff. Gile Gibbons is always worth a read, summarising his thoughts in an easily digestible format….

1. The year ahead

For many, 2023 felt like a year where the world drifted further than ever from achieving the kind of progress we spend a lot of time talking about. But in his New Year message, Bill Gates describes why there are reasons to be optimistic about the year ahead, despite the many challenges it will undoubtedly bring. If 2023 was the year when the world woke up to the ways in which AI will change our lives, then 2024 will be the year in which its theoretical capabilities are tried and tested. There are countless ambitious and exciting questions currently being explored around how AI could be used to improve lives, particularly in low and middle-income countries – through drug discovery, combatting antibiotic resistance, assessing risk for HIV and much more. 2024 will also be important in the development of global regulation to ensure proper ethical boundaries for AI whilst not limiting its potential for good.  Gates and The Guardian also give reasons to be optimistic about climate action in the year ahead. With a growing number of climate analysts believing that 2023 may be the year in which annual emissions reached a peak, 2024 could be the beginning of the end for the fossil fuel era, with developments in nuclear energy and a steady rise in wind and solar energy expected to displace the requirements for fossil fuels on a global scale. But this won’t happen without a concerted human endeavour. Experts reiterate that continued and concerted action is needed to ensure that global emissions decline from this point forward. To top that all off, 2024 will be the year in which more people than ever will have the opportunity to vote – which could have enormous implications on democracy across the world. One thing is for sure, 2024 will be a big one, and we hope, for all the right reasons.

2. Breakfast of champions

In December we co-hosted an ESG breakfast briefing  with Echo Research, bringing together business leaders to explore the dynamics of corporate activism. The panel included Good Business CEO Giles Gibbons alongside Dr Aerial M. Ellis, Ed.D., Lewis Iwu, Kate Levine, and Alexander Rhodes.

Fuelled by bacon rolls and great coffee, the discussion began by acknowledging that we find ourselves in a time of unprecedented change, as volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity prompting a technocratic pause. Businesses are hitting the brakes in terms of corporate activism, being mindful about when they use their voice and what exactly to say. And there is also nervousness around being too vocal about their own ESG commitments in a world where scrutiny of these and the regulation of them is increasing. And yet there was a consensus that this is a temporary pause, rather than a wholesale and permanent retreat from the era when businesses had, and wanted to have, a point of view on the world. So the debate focused on what is needed to provide business leaders with the renewed confidence they need to re-engage with the world around them and communicate their points of view, either on the issues within their control or the world around them.

The debate returned repeatedly to authenticity and integrity. How do businesses discern their relationship with current issues and explore the impact of their actions? The consensus was clear — it comes down to purpose. What value is your organization striving to create, and which issues align with this mission? Businesses need a North Star, a guiding light for consistent decision-making, supported by a robust sustainability strategy. This approach helps avoid arbitrary choices and the risk of perceived bias, enabling them to stand firm in their decisions regarding when to speak and when to stay silent. And they need to be sure that their sustainability commitments align with their public positions – a business that doesn’t have a clear and robust DEI strategy is unlikely to be favourably regarded if it wades into a debate about race it has not been invited to take part in.

A recurring theme stressed courage, extending beyond individuals to boardrooms. There is a positive correlation between diverse boards and higher ESG ratings, demonstrating the importance of diversity and having ESG champions in the boardroom. Collaboration with external experts, especially NGOs, was emphasized to facilitate systemic change. The prevailing sentiment was clear—solving complex issues requires collaborative action, strong leadership, humility, and accountability. Fear of failure and reputational risk looms large in ESG strategy, mistakes are inevitable, but openness and transparency will foster respect and trust.

Musician and activist Nina Simone's sentiment, "an artist's duty […] is to reflect the times", rings true for business as well. We closed with a sense of optimism around the future of ESG in the corporate environment, highlighting the importance of internal preparation, embracing the possibility of failure, and fostering inclusivity. It is about building confidence and empowering businesses to speak authentically, informed by their purpose, about the issues relevant to their mission.

3. Rethinking renewables

The Autumn budget statement’s announcement of monetary incentives for residents affected by new electricity infrastructure, where those living near pylons and electricity substations will receive up to £1,000 per year off their electricity bills, has sparked scepticism, and looks to face considerable challenges in achieving its objective of improving public support for much needed investment in new ways of distributing and delivering power to homes and businesses, in particular to support the transition to electric vehicles.

It's an interesting insight into how to move public opinion and shape behaviour. Surely everyone wants lower energy bills? But the The Behavioural Insights Team has cautioned that monetary incentives may backfire by creating cognitive dissonance – essentially, offering to pay people for something strongly suggests that it is a bad thing that they need to be compensated for, rather than a positive change – and that it detracts from the community benefits that also come with the scheme . They advocate for a more vocal and inclusive support system, stressing the need for a broader public conversation to explain the complexities of the renewable energy transition, including the key message that upgrading and building new infrastructure is required to deliver net zero.

Amidst these challenges, Octopus Energy's Fan Club emerges as an innovative model that promotes renewables as something people should want, rather than be compensated for tolerating. Launched in 2021, this 'people-led' energy club connects small local renewable projects through a unified tech solution, creating a virtual giant wind farm. By providing real-time, cheaper electricity to residents near active turbines, the Fan Club exemplifies the benefits of bringing renewables closer to consumers and creating excitement about it, reshaping the energy generation market.

Navigating the transition to renewable energy is not just about compensating for inconveniences, it’s about turning the transition into a shared aspiration. The Octopus Fan Club shows the positive impact of a 'people-led' approach; a model that can build a future where renewable energy is embraced by communities and aligns with broader environmental goals.

4. Good Business Book Club: Venomous Lumpsucker by Ned Beauman

“Cli-fi” is an increasingly popular genre: a sub-genre of science fiction that deals with the impacts of climate change and global warming. It doesn’t make for the cheeriest of reading, of course, but its popularity is unsurprising given that stories are how we make sense of the world, and the reality of life on a much warmer planet is no longer a fiction but the stark reality of our near-term future.

But what about “bio-fi”? Yes, we made that up, because it is currently very much a niche subgenre, but in the year that we expect (and hope) biodiversity and nature loss will finally get the attention it deserves, it’s one we expect to hear (and read!) more about.

And what better way to start your bio-fi reading than with one of last year’s stand out novels, the wonderfully named Venomous Lumpsucker by Ned Beauman? It depicts a world where the climate crisis is a fact of life, the last giant panda has been dead for 12 years, and corporations can buy their way out of trouble when their actions result in species extinction through purchasing extinction credits. The smarter the animal, the more credits you need. There is a thriving market in consultants, agents, and various financial wizards making sure that industry can continue unchecked, even as the consequences of mass extinction start to bite. And when Mark Halyard finds himself on the wrong end of a short-selling scam, the race is on to track down the final remaining venomous lumpsuckers (fish that could just be the most intelligent fish on the planet, if they still exist) rather than end up in jail.

The novel covers a lot – cyber(in)security, financial crime, corporate malfeasance, the consequences of certain referendum results for future generations, what happens to high-end food when animals start to become extinct (spoiler: nothing good), the meaning and value of life, and mermaids. It’s bleak as it comes, but it’s also very very funny, and very clever.

If you’ve got a Christmas book token (still the best gift, in our view) and want something both educational and entertaining, we’d highly recommend it. Five stars from the Good Business team!

The Goods: Fighting loneliness? A piece of cake

The post Christmas season leaves many of us feeling like we’ve over-eaten, over-socialised and overdone it. However, that is not the case for many people, facing food insecurity, rising costs of living and loneliness. Enter FoodCycle, a generous initiative to fight hunger, food waste and loneliness by providing free community meals using food supermarkets would otherwise throw away.

In the UK 1 in 7 people are food insecure, whilst every year 9.5 million tonnes of food are wasted. This devastating inefficiency is tackled head on by the wonderful volunteers at FoodCycle. In 2022, FoodCycle’s pop-up café’s serves almost 500,000 meals across the UK, saving nearly 209 tonnes of food from going to waste! This may seem a small percentage, but for those who attend, it is a huge win. Attendees are treated to a three course, vegetable-packed meal with others from their community. And does it work? Well with 87% of attendees saying that coming to a FoodCycle meal makes them feel a part of their community, 82% of guests rating the food received as excellent and 84% making friends, we’d say yes.

Hard not to been moved by such an intelligent, warm initiative. Food Cycle are always looking for volunteers, so if you are keen to cook, chat or manage these community meals reach out and join the initiative to “make food poverty, loneliness and food waste a thing of the past for every community”!

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