To watch this event, you can rent or buy the video here.
15th October 2020 saw The Future Economy Network run an evening online panel discussion on “Sustainability, Diversity and Leadership”. The event was well attended by a range of companies, organisations and individuals all keen to take part in a discussion around diversity.
Katherine Piper, Director of The Future Economy Network, welcomed attendees, highlighting the benefits of joining the Network and also sharing updates about The Future Economy Network’s Carbon Neutral Hub in Bristol, Future Leap. Katherine also briefly ran through the plans for The Festival of Sustainable Business, and you can check out the video here.
First up we welcomed Steve Maslin, Senior Fellow at Network members The Schumacher Institute, who opened up the discussions by looking at “Systems Thinking, Narrative, and the integrating of Inclusive Design”. He spoke about the importance of acknowledging who you have around the table and the impact of pre-conceived stereotypes. He suggested that we all have stereotypes and make judgements, but we need to override these with well-reasoned action. Steve’s specialisms are Inclusive Design and Neurological Needs in the built environment, and he spoke about being “an invisible bridge” for the physically disabled as a man with a hidden disability, such as dyslexia. He also recommended to the audience the book “Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men”. Steve finished his discussion with his call to action – sustainability without inclusion is not sustainable – let’s lead in making sustainability inclusive.
Next up, we welcomed Tasneem Rahman, a first year Geography student at LSE but speaking under the banner of Bright Green Futures, a project run by Network members Centre for Sustainable Energy. Her topic was “Young people will be the most affected by the climate crisis. What role do businesses play in engaging with young people to have a better and sustainable future?". Tasneem discussed the assumption that many people give of young people coming under one monolith, and how businesses should be inspiring young people (as the future) with insight days and training programmes. She stressed that a good leader does not need to have a huge impact on many people; a good leader can change the perception or life of one or two people. She highlighted the sustainability sector as one of the least diverse sectors in the UK, and speaking as a young BAME woman living in London she emphasised the need for role models in diversity and sustainability in business. She spoke about how company culture is often not suited to a young person, leading to them feeling isolated and eventually leaving – support is needed to grow future talent according to everyone’s needs. Tasneem’s call to action was for businesses to focus on empowering young people by what matters to them and how the world we live in now looks – ensuring measures and thoughtful initiatives are in place for inclusivity and diversity.
After a short break, our third discussion point was "Does the environment mean the same thing to different people?", brought to us by Manu Maunganidze, Project Director at Nature Youth Connection, Education CIC and Education Lead at Global Goals Centre and Chair at NYCE and Eastside Community Trust. Manu focused on perspective for his discussion point; how the personal and collective history of any person entirely changes a word as simple as “nature”. What does it mean to be in nature? How does that person treat the environment? Manu spoke of his personal experience with a Zimbabwean and Swiss upbringing, giving examples of how different the cultures are. He suggested the big elephant in the room is extractive economics, and that the smaller elephant is status and greed. He asked the room to check that the language we use in sustainability is understandable and empowers the person – rather than alienates them. If we can find language that brings people together, instead of seen as a status, then we are using it correctly. Manu’s call to action was to be brave enough to ask questions that challenge our assumptions about what the environment, nature and sustainability means.
Finally, we welcomed Network member Rachel Bell, Director at Stride Treglown, who started her discussion by reading a list of trailblazing women. She spoke about goals around gender diversity, and how she works in a 71% male industry (Architecture). Rachel stressed the importance of role models, as gender stereotyping starts as young as 5 years old. She also spoke about the built environment having a stereotype of being “dirty and unskilled”, leading to a skills shortage and lack of builders in today’s environment. She spoke about “The Game Changers”, a fantastic podcase looking at women in sport, before giving her call to action – to go out and talk about your job and what you are inspired by, what you are learning, and be as visible as possible in pushing sustainability.
During all discussions, the audience were invited to ask questions and take part in the conversation throughout. Then, Babbasa and Network members Future Leap, Garrett Creative, Global Goals Centre and Centre for Sustainable Energy gave a 60 second pitch. Everyone was then able to network in different groups using facilitated break out rooms, before the event finished. A huge thank you to the speakers and attendees of this event, without which our events calendar would not be possible.