A creative vision for sustainability

Sari Heikkila and Tara Ahmed share about the ambitious steps Moving Brands is taking to limit the damage caused by climate change.

We are in the last chance saloon when it comes to climate change. Over-consumption in the developed world – born in the Industrial Revolution and accelerating since the 1950s has brought us all to the edge of a precipice, with UN experts warning that we have just over a decade to prevent permanent damage. The culmination of 150 years of human activity is the certainty that we have to reverse its devastating effects.  

We firmly believe it’s possible to make a difference, starting now. You only have to look at the response Sir David Attenborough received at Glastonbury (and the fact that the festival itself went plastic-free) to see that sustainability is now in the spotlight. Governments are setting ambitious targets for emissions reductions, while Norway’s Sovereign Wealth Fund, for example, is moving away from fossil fuels and planning to invest more in renewable energy. 

 

That doesn’t mean handing responsibility over to the biggest and most powerful organisations alone. Starting small, we want to prove that the decisions we all make at a micro-level can ripple through our networks and amount to meaningful change. 

Sustainability is so crucial to our future survival that it has become an integral part of Moving Brands’ core values. Fuel is a concept born out of a fierce determination to effect meaningful change in our studios and through our work with clients and other partners. We believe the decisions we make, both as individuals and as a business, ripple through our networks and beyond. 

 

Fuel is an opportunity for businesses to review their existing practices, whether switching to green energy suppliers and choosing ethical pension options, or reducing paper and single-use plastic consumption on a daily basis. 

For us, this extends to food and drink too – literally the fuel behind our creativity. Imagine the transformation if everyone took a reusable coffee cup to work or if firms used local and ethical suppliers when catering for meetings. As a global business with studios in London, Zurich and the US, and clients around the world, video conferencing and other technologies allow us to travel less, and we encourage people to carpool, cycle to work or use public transport wherever possible.

The steps we have taken are part of our Fuel pledge, which sets out four key aims

  • Become ‘carbon neutral’ in all studios by 2021
  • Develop a global framework to fuel our team for outstanding performance
  • Be known as the most ethical, sustainable and equal player in the management consulting, tech and creative sector
  • Promote and enable good mental and physical health and wellbeing.
     

 

Creating this vision, and the tools we need to implement it, has been a collaborative effort across the whole company, at a board level and within the workshops and working teams we’ve established. It is about making continual improvements, no matter how small, and taking new ideas into account. 

We are proud to work with clients that share our approach to sustainability, but also understand the challenges that come with overhauling existing processes. That’s why we’re striving to exert a positive influence across the wider Moving Brands ecosystem, sparking a chain reaction without being judgemental.

To find out more about Fuel, click here.