Climate Innovation

I have followed the King of England frequently in the past, watching as I have his visits to large and small businesses around the country in his former role as Prince of Wales and one in which he put sustainability at its core years before it became universally adopted as a concept. So it was with a sense reassurance that I watched from a distance recently as his son followed in his footsteps with a visit to County Hall on the banks of the Thames in London. The hosts, Sustainable Ventures, reputedly the centre of the UK’s climate tech revolution and the largest hub of its type in Europe. But what was equally impressive was the sheer number of business innovators and the breadth of climate solutions they offered.

They included companies making tyres designed to reduce air pollution, packaging made from seaweed, smart ventilation units that improve energy efficiency and carbonfree home energy systems run by algorithm.

It all came on the day that Novuna Business Finance sent me the results of a poll that showed the extent to which 1,000 small business leaders had increased their commitment to sustainability over the past year, something they described as a “surge” in eco- consciousness. Top of the priority list across the board were an insistence on working with an ethical supply chain, increasing community activism, enhancing energy efficiency and improving packaging and waste management. On supply chain issues alone, the results showed priorities had increased from 14-26 per cent in 12 months and among those with netzero strategies in place, it was the top priority at 30 per cent. All businesses know that actively contributing to a more sustainable future will bring a range of benefits. In the short-term they will benefit from enhancing their stakeholder credibility and use it as a way to leverage some cost-saving benefits as well.

Longer-term benefits include enhancing their wider brand and reputation, fostering better employee relations while knowing, and being recognised for, doing the right thing for the future generations. That is the sort of thinking behind KPMG’s Net Zero Influencers report, designed to show leaders that simply listening to young professionals can have an impact on a business’ success and progress towards it's ESG commitments.

The company set up their Leaders’ 2050 initiative with the words: “Young professionals will be at the heart of tackling key issues facing societies today over the course of their careers – from climate change to social inequality. "The ‘voice of young professionals’ is not always heard in the climate and decarbonisation debate.”

The impetus is constant and the reach virtually universal. At the same time I am reading about how the CEO of the world’s largest asset manager is writing to CEOs emphasising the importance of sustainable investing, pollsters are telling me that green issues are more and more becoming a deciding factor for graduates when making career choices.

Norway’s Norges bank Investment Management, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, has made sustainability key to its investment strategy to the extent that It often divests from companies that don’t meet its environmental standards.

There is more to sustainable impetus than mere products. They may represent eco-friendly alternatives; but as a movement they are reshaping the face of entire industries. The greater the innovation, the greater the demand, which means new income sources and fresh opportunities for entrepreneurs.

Not forgetting of course that, in today’s market, customers seek more than mere products; they’re in search of brands they can trust: those whose values mirror their own. It follows a pattern which has seen fresh markets constantly emerging. Innovations in renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, and green technologies introduce new products, attracting not just consumers but investors, creating markets that not only diversify the economy but cater to a growing demand for new and innovative eco-friendly solutions.