The latest reports and projects from the world of sustainability, diversity and purpose
Our team of strategists, creatives and experts not only have ideas, but they also have data to back them up. See which reports, statistics and projects have inspired us at Given recently and helped us create a long-term and sustainable positive impact with our clients.
NEWS
Lifestyle change is necessary to fix our future – but the government’s reluctance is holding us back
Without changes to people’s behaviour and lifestyles, it will be impossible for the UK to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Among the criticisms levelled at the government were accusations that it places too much faith in unproven technologies to fix the climate, and is reluctant to communicate to the public the scale of social change needed. Measures for promoting sustainable lifestyles would do well to learn from successes in other areas, such as smoking, where policy interventions (including raising taxes on tobacco, laws restricting smoking in public spaces etc.) led to a reduction in smoking. Find out more here.
Coldplay’s most sustainable world tour
Coldplay have been known for their efforts to reduce their environmental impact and inspire if not revolutionise the entertainment industry to do the same. But this time their are taking their commitment to the next level, with their current world tour, Music of the Spheres set to be the most sustainable they have made. Their pledge of making their tour as sustainable as possible is based on three principles: Reduce, Reinvent, Restore. Their concert setup now includes kinetic dance floors and stationary bikes that can channel energy directly from the fans in the crowd into batteries that power different elements of the show. Find out more here.
Do you have a burnout prone personality?
The reasons for burnout may be deeper than an allergy to your job; it could be a result of “emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation, and reduced feelings of personal accomplishment”. The fear that you won’t sustain your performance or distancing yourself from your work can cause anxiety and frustration. The widely-held belief that a break will sort you out is not enough as burnout is systemic. Employers need to foster a deeper cultural change in the workplace. Read the article here.
LONG READS
The Last Stand by Jeff Tollefson on Nature journal
Loggers, drug runners and gold miners are rapidly invading the Peruvian Amazon. In 2019, the team of Nature visited the Peruvian Amazon (supported by the Pulitzer Foundation) to understand the threat to Indigenous communities and the role that science and technology can have to help them protect their lands and the groups deeply isolated in the forest. Could science and technology help Indigenous groups to protect their land, their isolated neighbours in the forest and the climate? Find out more here.
MEDIA
Movie recommendation: A Failure of the Imagination (2019)
The narrator of A Lack of Imagination tells us his story — of how he founded SILO, the first zero-waste restaurant in London. The ethos is about trading food directly with farmers, which means avoiding packaging and the use of a bin. The food that is leftover gets composted and goes back to where it grows. “Nature never gives you the same thing twice”, so consistency is very hard to achieve in such a business. Watch the film here.
Innovation: Cork-made design objects
London-based design studio mind the cork creates beautiful homewares from cork. Working closely with craftspeople and small factories in the UK and Portugal, the company creates small-batch collections that emphasise sustainability. Cork is harvested approximately every 10 years once a tree is 25 years or older. Harvesting entails carefully removing the outer layer of a tree’s bark. The living fibre is not disturbed. And once the outer layer is removed, the tree begins absorbing up to five times the usual amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in order to facilitate regrowth. Cork trees absorb up to five times more carbon dioxide when their outer layer of bark is removed to harvest the useful material. Visit the store here.