Roundtable Discussion on Business Growth Opportunities from the Green Economy
Hospitality, Retail, Arts, Culture & Leisure
Sam Eastwood, Manager of the Bentall Centre, facilitated a lively discussion about positive and negative impacts on climate change and the actions being taken or required by the following industries: tourism and hospitality, alternative business models in the food sector, the fashion industry and the arts and cultural sector.
Isaac Pelham-Chipper, who works for Considerate Group, tries to make savings for their clients in the hospitality sector while at the same time reducing the environmental impact of their operations. Even though they were in the middle of a global pandemic, Considerate was growing and recruiting more people. This shows the demand for its services from the hospitality sector. According to Isaac, there are four key drivers of this change: a collective action by the tourism sector, which wants to reduce their carbon footprint, currently responsible for 8% of global emissions; regulation and risks, e.g. carbon taxation, which will become tighter; financial incentives i.e. opportunities to boost profit margins, savings and efficiencies; and, scrutiny of customers. Isaac highlighted the importance of employee engagement and behaviour change in decarbonisation of the sector and this is why they have developed the App Fluttr, funded by BEIS and which businesses can use for free until September 2021. Maurice Bergin, an expert in the tourism sector, who founded Green Hospitality, highlighted the responsibility that businesses have in reducing their carbon footprint. The savings that businesses make by taking actions to reduce their emissions are much higher than the cost of improvements. The first businesses which take action and get the messages out gain a competitive advantage.
The case of Good Food Coop, a not for profit business aiming to make food accessible for everyone and which was established during the pandemic with support from Kingston Council and in partnership with a number of local organisations and volunteers was presented by Nick Dawson, Voices of Hope. The Coop is the perfect example of a viable business, which makes food accessible for all, by donating one box of vegetables to families who cannot afford to buy food, for every box they sell. The produce is seasonal, comes from local producers, is free from pesticides and part of it is diverted from landfill waste. Again, the importance of partnership working was stressed. The Good Food Coop would not have launched otherwise.
On the other hand, the fashion industry faces an existential crisis, according to Virginia Grose, lecture at University of Westminster. Around £140 million worth of clothing in the UK went to landfill in 2019. With garment production volumes growing by 2.7 % annually and less than 1 percent of products recycled into new garments, action on circularity is an imperative for the fashion industry. Despite efforts by some players, as much as 12 percent of fibres are still discarded on the factory floor, 25 percent of garments remain unsold, and less than 1 percent of products are recycled into new garments. According to a McKinsey (2019) study, the fashion industry accounts for around 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Given these metrics, action is an imperative and an inevitability, said Virginia suggesting the six ‘Rs’ as the way forward: Reducing, Recycling, Refurbishing, Reselling, Renting and Repairing.
The catalytic role of arts and creatives in addressing the issues of climate change was explained by Robert O’Dowd, CEO of Rose Theatre. Culture always responds strongly to environmental issues and is led by six broad principles, which have been identified by Julie’s Bicycles: a) through the actual work and exploration of issues we are facing today and raising awareness and focus; b) business opportunities; c) activism - they are champions and have many followers; d) provision of cultural organisational leadership - be trailblazing; e) creative industries, design and innovation; f) collaboration - artists are good in collaborating with others and they can accelerate learning. Robert concluded that we still have the opportunity to change, if we avoid the greenwash. We have 5 years to make a significant change, which focuses on a circular economy.