Responsible Futures

In this week’s Sustain Talks, I had a wonderful chat with Bhavna Raithatha BSc (Hons) MSc MBACP (Accred) about mental health in the workplace.  We spoke about the attrition rates and how employers can do more.  Bhavna is a psychotherapist, coach and clinical supervisor in mental health and well-being support. With her experience, Bhavna educates us on how people can be easily influenced mentally at work.  Workplace mental health concerns must be analysed in order to determine the amount of risk to employees, once a risk has been identified, efforts must be made to eliminate or limit it as much as possible because whether work is causing or exacerbating a health problem, businesses have a legal obligation to assist their employees.  Bhavna also talks passionately and in line with Pride month, about her concerns on the Conversion therapy ban by the UK government and how important it is for governments to be among citizens with real-life experience, so that a clear grasp of what is going on around us may be achieved.

00:07- Introduction. 00:38- Reason for Mental Health Advocacy. 01:10- “Mental health” an essential issue. 01:40- Keen eye on the LGBTQ Community. 02:25- Ban on Conversion Therapy. 03:30- Going into Mental health Pandemic. 06:00- Views of Working from home. 08:25- What Companies needs to do to Value their employees? 11:35- Essence of application feedback from companies to applicants. 13:35- Thoughts on regulations and systems of a company effects to mental health. 16:20- Systems Companies Can put in place to be socially responsible and Value their employees. 18:53- CEO engagement with employees. 20:10- The need for the real Citizen governance. 23:30- Employers doing the bare minimum for their employee. 25:40- Being empathetic as a manager. 26:06- Recommendation for people struggling with mental health. 29:00- Bhavna’s method of therapy. 29:57- Does the incident from the past influence peoples psychologically? 31:50- Human body as a hunter gatherer. 34:18- Seeing your company as an extended family. 36:30- Companies taking advantage of the pride month. 38:45- Transparency in business among employers and employees.

In this episode of Sustain Talks, I am talking to Dominic Offer who started thinking about what was happening in the world at a very young age. He is Director of Engagement & Sustainability at Bristol Global Mobility an international company that helps relocate people.  Dominic tells us that when he realised the company he works for was one of the industry's biggest emitters, he brainstormed ways to make them a more sustainable company in the future, he shared his concerns with his co workers and went on to start the "Move the World initiative," which has been at the forefront of Bristol's sustainability journey. Dominic was so passionate about helping his organisation become more sustainable that he started working on it in his own time.  His company realised the benefits of being more sustainable business and changed his role to recognise his work.   The journey in Sustainability is not an easy one Dominic said, and in this Sustain Talks he walks us through his biggest challenges and life lessons from his journey to become a sustainable business and how making small steps is key to progress.  

00:07- Introduction 

00:39- Journey into Sustainability and the journey so far 

03:20- The creation of a committee with an interest in sustainability 

03:35- Partnerships 04:48- What Bristol Mobility do? 

05:50- How many people do Bristol Mobility move a year?  

06:20- Types of client support provided? 

08:25- Questions to consider while transitioning into a Sustainable business 

11:58- Advice to big corporations interested in sustainability 

13:40- The importance of investing in Sustainability 

15:20- Dominic’s Personal view 

16:55- Biggest Challenges Involved in becoming a sustainable business 

19:39- What has been Dominic’s biggest lesson through sustainability 

23:25- 2030 prediction

In this week’s episode of Sustain Talks, I am talking to Megan Eddings whose husband’s stinky running shirts inspired her entrepreneurship journey by using her biochemistry background to produce sustainable apparel and fabrics. She is the Founder and CEO of Accel Unite and Accel Lifestyle and has a huge enthusiasm for life and business.   The importance of a sustainable environment cannot be overstated; nonetheless, the growing global population and consumerism generate massive amounts of rubbish in the environment. Megan tells us that some healthcare facilities in the United States use 12-15,000 disposable plastic gowns each day, disposed of in landfills.    It’s time for businesses to speed up and become more ecologically friendly.    Megan tells us about her business experience with biodegradable packaging and reusable medical gowns, as well as how she diversified her business during the Covid-19 pandemic and how she learned how to be socially responsible.    

00:35- Introduction.  

01:20- What inspired Accel Unite?  

03:59- A creation with Humanity and Environment in Mind.  

05:08- What does Accel do differently from others? 

06:28- Going above Supply Chain.  

08:16- The Change of Business direction due to Covid-19.   

11:40- The Impacts of being Socially Responsible due to Covid-19.  

12:18- Realization of Cooperate Social responsibility.  

12:50- Mindfulness in Business.  

14:28- Company's claims and how to make sustainable changes effective.  

15:51- Calling out brainwashing companies.  

16:40- The Journey into reusable anti-bacteria gown production for Health facilities.  

20:40- Reasons for a unique change in gown style.  

23:10- Number of disposable gowns used in health facilities.   

24:20- Megan’s Inspiration.

In this week’s Sustain Talks, I am talking to Gavin Lendon a Sustainability Consultant and one of the panellists on our recent Does ESG Matter webinar.  We covered a lot of ground during the hour webinar, but we left a few questions unanswered. 

In this week’s Sustain Talks we aim to answer those.  

The links mentioned in this video  

Webinar: Does ESG Matter? - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31-DsetJcR4&t 

Sustain Talks: The Solution to Our E-Waste Problem? - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8R3Y5CC50H8 

Sustain Talks: Regenerative Farming - Thomas Gent - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQo9rchRAY0&t=3s 

Frameworks - GRI (https://www.globalreporting.org/), SSAB (https://www.ssab.com/en/company/sustainability/ssab-and-sustainability/sustainability-strategy), 

B Corps (https://bcorporation.uk/), 

CSR-A (https://csr-accreditation.co.uk), 

TCFD (https://www.fsb-tcfd.org/), 

CDP (https://www.cdp.net/en) - 

If you need any help with any of these please contact [email protected]   

01:07 - What is ESG? 

01:49 – What’s the difference between sustainability and ESG? 

04:45 – What’s the legislation and what does it mean?

09:10 – What sort of things are in the legislation reports? 

11:40 – Plans? – what plans? 

12:45 – Getting to net-zero without offsetting. 

14:25 – Off-setting isn’t just planting trees 

14:47 – Regenerative agriculture 

16:20 – Deforestation versus replanting 

17:00 – Frameworks, SDGs how do these fit into ESG? 

18:30 – Other strategies, KPI’s, Metrics… 

20:50 - Where should an SME start? 

22:30 – What about the circular economy? 

26:50 – Should we be scared? 

28:36 – Don’t look up – Is the film our reality?

In this week’s Sustain Talks I am talking to Craig Campion. Craig is the Director of Stone Group Ltd.   

Craig and his team have gone from selling IT hardware to creating a truly circular economy within their business. They take computers from businesses and universities and repurpose them for schools and children’s gaming machines!   

Craig observes that when we buy a new car the old one isn’t just thrown away and sent to a landfill, it’s resold to someone else who will get many good years of service from it and the same should be true of IT equipment – just because it’s a few years old does not mean it is no longer fit for purpose.   

E-Waste (electronic waste) is getting worse year on year and the UK is one of the worst contributors.   

This Sustain Talks is for you - If you are considering buying new pieces of equipment for your business, you have a pile of old junk in the corner, or you are looking to be inspired by a company that has truly jumped on board with the circular economy!  

00:45 – Introduction to Craig and Stone Group 

01:45 – How much e-waste is there every year? 

05:50 – Why don’t we resell computers like we do cars? 

07:10 – People don’t want their old computers going to landfills… 

08:50 – Do you know the Carbon Footprint of the equipment? 

10:20 - Did you make a conscious decision to become a more sustainable company? 

12:00 - What has your sustainability journey been like? 

17:29 – What would your advice be to a company that wants to recycle its IT equipment?

In this week’s Sustain Talks I am talking to Jonathan Bowring. Jonathan is the Director and principal of Riversight Ltd. Jonathan leverages his 25-year career in the technology and language industries to mentor and coach business leaders.  We are all pre-conditioned to follow tribal instincts and gravitate to people just like us. But the things that worked for us as cavemen no longer work in the modern world. Our lives are all richer by becoming open to new people and new ideas, relishing in the diversity of thinking from people with different backgrounds, cultures, and ideas.    In this sustain talks we look at how we can think differently and how we can get the best from our teams.   

00:40 – Introduction 

02:05 – How does our thought process work? what are ‘thinking patterns’? 

03:47 – Some of these patterns are quite basic and fundamental. What happens when we need to do more complex things?  

06:00 – How do they shape our behaviour in practice? 

07:25 – Can you train your brain to think differently? 

09:36 -  Deliberately learn more and gain new experiences… 

12:00 – What can people/leaders do to change the way they think? 

15:00 – Why you should think about the purpose of your meeting with your teams. 

16:40 – How can a leader make employees feel more valued? 

18:38 – If you could give one piece of advice to leaders what would it be? 

19:55 – How can we help people to be more creative?

Pre warning that this week’s Sustain Talks has references to suicide in our discussion on mental health.   

I am delighted to be joined by Luke Tyburski.  Luke is an ultra-athlete, an endurance adventurer, he is a mindset coach, a mental health advocate, writer, documentary maker and thought leader.    

After the recent suicide of my best friend Jenni, I wanted to make sure I did what I could to keep the conversation going around how we can help others with their mental health.  In this interview we talk about spotting the signs of someone suffering with Mental Health and how you can help them.  We discuss what depression looks like.  It’s a frank and honest discussion with someone who has been in a very dark place but managed to find their way back.   

The advice that Luke gives will help anyone that is struggling with their mental health or help those that may be around people that are struggling.  I feel so lucky to be able to share this discussion I had with Luke, if it can save someone’s life then it’s worth it.   Mental Health is no longer a taboo.  We must speak about this at work as well as with our friends & family.  Sometimes people find it easier to talk to strangers so be aware of those you come into contact with, you never know what they are going through.    

For anyone that is struggling with their mental health please find some links that may help here https://www.meandmymind.nhs.uk/getting-help/mental-health-websites/   

You can find out more about Luke below:   

Speaking Information  https://bit.ly/KeynoteSpeakingPDF    

Book http://bit.ly/ChasingExtremeBook    

The Ultimate Triathlon Documentary http://bit.ly/UltimateTriathlon    

Website www.luketyburski.com

In this week’s Sustain Talks, I talk to Lindsay Healy - Founder Aria Grace Law CIC. I loved this interview. We talk about a new way of doing business. A truly ethical way that anyone can follow.   

Lindsay has proven that whilst driving ethical standards of equality, diversity, flexibility, equal pay and giving all of our profits to charity and good causes together with delivering a zero-carbon footprint you can also be profitable excellent and serve its clients to the highest level.   

Find out more about how Lindsay went from working in one of London's largest Law Firms to creating a business that gives away all its profits to charity.

Will and I talk about why we all need to move away from “business as usual”, why being authentic and selective with the work you do, and how you do it is the way to succeed in today's marketplace - Patagonia is a great example of this.    Will himself changed the way he did business after becoming disillusioned with helping companies that didn’t represent his personal values. He now uses a four-step approach and the social impact brand score to help other businesses.     One of the concerns that many companies share with me is that they worry about how to communicate sustainability and ESG, they’ve seen many companies being accused of greenwashing and don’t want to fall foul of this. Listening to this Sustain Talks will give you an overview of why authenticity and good business values are key to getting your messaging right and avoiding this. For more help with making your business more sustainable and socially responsible please get in touch…    Take a look at Will’s scorecard to see how well you are doing today https://socialimpact.scoreapp.com

In this week’s Sustain Talks, I'm talking to Lee Dinsdale from Logros Ltd and Unity Radio.

Lee gave up his job in Banking for a more worthy career helping Manchester’s young people and communities.

In this Sustain talks, we talk about what caused Lee to completely change his focus and career, something many of us are considering after the last few years.

Lee talks about NLP and how changing our habits and including exercising and meditation in our lives are powerful tools for controlling worry.

Which will you pick the cake or the 10k run? – listen to this Sustain Talks and let me know!