Responsible Futures

This weeks Sustain Talks I’m joined by Jonny Sadler, Strategic Decarbonization Manager at Electricity North West. Jonny spent 6 years running Manchester Climate Change Agency and 11 years at Manchester City Council running the Environmental Strategy Team so is well placed to discuss Environmental Climate Change and Sustainability as it now effects every business.   Jonny shares his thoughts around how we all need to work in tandem or you may just miss something quite significant.  Greener Cities, greener businesses and greener communities are happier, more prosperous, healthier and a good place for biodiversity which contributes to economic development, health and social improvement and job creation.   Now Jonny’s focus is helping businesses to decarbonize. Have a listen if you want to hear more on how he thinks you can reduce your carbon emissions, save energy and he also answers a few of my burning questions like is there going to be enough electricity for what we need in the future?

In this week’s Sustain Talks I am talking to Devi Virdi.  Devi is the Group Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Centrica plc. She has over 25 years of experience in the hospitality and tech industry across HR, sales, marketing, operations.    Devi sits on several UK and Global committees supporting and driving diversity, equity & inclusion. She is a mentor with women both in Fast Forward15 2021 program and The Girls Network 2021.    

As a child, Devi felt the pain of not fitting in and suffering the fear of rejection and reality of exclusion but with a strong role model in the shape of her mum! Devi has gone on to achieve amazing things and is now able to support and inspire others.    

In this Sustain Talks Sam and Devi explore what Centrica are doing   

• to make employees feel included  

• to get people to talk about difficult and uncomfortable topics (CEO Chris O’Shea is perfectly happy to talk about menopause!)   

• and how with an engineering population of only 2% women they are looking to inspire the next generation of women engineers!    

Changes must be made right now! The pace is accelerating, it’s a given for the younger generation who insist on inclusion and diversity.    Want to know how you can make a difference? 

There are three things… listen to find out what they are!       

00:52 -  introduction, who is Devi Virdi?  

 03:00 - What does diversity, equity & inclusion mean to you and Centrica.  

07:12 - how do you have an impact in a male-orientated industry? How do you change that?  

10:33 - What is your approach to dealing with discussions about potentially difficult topics, such as race, religion, politics, or sexual orientation?  

15:58 - CEO Chris O’Shea speaks about menopause, such a great leader, what’s it like working with him?   

17:56 - What are your thoughts on equal pay? Do you think that women aren’t being paid as much as men? And if so, why?   

21:36 – Inspiring unrepresented groups that engineering can be an option.  

23:20 - Have you seen much change in the last 2 years in diversity & inclusion? Is it moving quickly enough?  

28:08 – What is Devi’s advice for starting with D&I for businesses?  

31:10 - Who inspires you to do what you do?

In this week’s Sustain Talks I am talking to Ben Clifford Associate Director, Global Health, Safety and Sustainability at Fidelity International who has been working in the Health, Safety and Sustainability field for over 15 years.

In a recent poll, most respondents told us they were unsure how to start their sustainability journey.

This insightful Sustain Talks with Ben explains the journey he has taken with Fidelity International.

There is so much to learn from his approach.

We discuss;

✅ Why it’s easiest to start on what you can easily impact – such as energy usage.

✅ How it’s all about choice, there are often alternatives, potentially ways to consolidate your travel, think about how to do things smarter – such as moving all meetings to one day so you only make one trip rather than a few.

✅ Think about being a responsible client, helping your suppliers to help you – we all need to collaborate to succeed.

Ben shows us that being a sustainable business helps you become a better business!

00:32 – Who is Ben Clifford?

01:27 – What do Fidelity do?

02:30 - What does sustainability mean to you in your role?

06:07 – What is your approach to tracking and metrics?

07:10 – What create the biggest emissions at Fidelity?

08:28 - What do you think are the biggest challenges in being a sustainable business?

12:20 - What are Ben’s recommendations for businesses starting to think about how to start measuring emissions?

14:10 - Do you have strict criteria with suppliers with them being sustainable businesses?

17:10 - What are your goals for the next couple of years (2022-2024)?

21:05 - If someone is just starting out in sustainability what is the tip you would share with them?

24:00 - Who in sustainability inspires you?

To hear more from Ben, join us at www.responsiblefuturesconference.com an event that will inspire, guide and help businesses on their sustainable and socially responsible journeys.

I can’t wait for you to listen to this week’s Sustain Talks with Muryel Boulay.  I love my conversations with Muryel she is truly one of the most Inspiring, Practical and Knowledgeable people I know in Sustainability & CSR, and this really comes across in this Sustain Talks.    Muryel’s motivation and inspiration is so powerful – it really amplifies why we must all stop talking and do more.   People and our love for our friends and family has to be the driver for corporate and social change.    Muryel is perfectly placed to educate and inspire organisations to become more sustainable, socially responsible and do good.     Enjoy this week’s Sustain Talks and start making a change!   

Topics 01:20 - What does sustainability mean to you.  

03:44 -  How to make businesses thrive.  

05:42 - Where do you think businesses should focus at the moment?  

08:25 - A lot of companies speak about getting to Net Zero what does that mean and what do you think about that? 

11:00 - Reduce what you're emitting. 

12:12 - What about offsetting?  Do you think there is a problem with that terminology?  

16:50 - As a B Leader what do you think makes a great B Corp?  

20:30 - As a partner to CSR-Accreditation what stands out to you that makes a gold accredited business?  

23:05 - Where do you see the biggest mistakes? Have you seen it go wrong? 

26:08 - What's the Green-Code? 

28:00 - What have been your biggest lessons over the last few years.  

30:08 - Who inspires you to do what you do and continue doing it?  

Listen to Sustain Talks on:  

To hear more from Muryel, join us at www.responsiblefuturesconference.com and event that will inspire, guide and help businesses on their sustainable and socially responsible journeys.   

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RFC2022 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-cande-65920012/

Today I’m talking to Paul Spiers from The New P&L - Principles & Leadership in Business  If you haven't yet heard, there is a new way to lead in business that is taking companies to new heights.    Paul has interviewed hundreds of leaders in his podcast and talks about how business needs ‘The New P&L’: one that is focused as much on ‘Principles and Leadership’ as it is on ‘Profit and Loss’, because if your Principles are right and aligned with your purpose, and your Leadership has clarity of vision and is strong, focused and empathetic, then your business will be in profit and not in loss in so many ways.  

Topics: 

00.30 Tell us more about yourself and your background 

02.27 What do you think are the principles of leadership?  

06.46 What does good leadership look like? 

05.08 Why has it changed so much.  

08.29 How can you become a great virtual leader?  

10.51 Were there any leaders that really stood out for you?   

13.36 What disciplines back a good leader 

14.43 What are the common mistakes leaders make?  

18.07 Why are there not enough female leaders 

19.40 Who inspires you?   

Listen to The New P&L: https://www.principlesandleadership.com/the-new-pl-deep-discussion 

Watch The New P&L : http://b.link/youtube211  

Listen to Sustain Talks on:  

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/sustain-talks/id1599137096 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6BwIJq3Dm7vCShKIj846Yy?si=d929fe12b62a46f5  

Join us for www.responsiblefuturesconference.com and event that will inspire, guide and help businesses on their sustainable and socially responsible journeys.  

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RFC2022  

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-cande-65920012/

Welcome to Sustain Talks where I discuss the world of Sustainability and CSR with an array of interesting people I come across on my journey.     Today I’m talking to Alistair Laing who is the Capital Partnership Fundraiser at St Ann's Hospice.    It’s a sad fact that most of us will need the support provided by a hospice at some time in our lives, whether for ourselves or our loved ones.    In this Sustain Talks, I discuss with Alistair what hospices do, and how the pandemic has made life more challenging for them.    Alistair also shares how much it costs to run a hospice - you will be shocked! and how businesses can best support them, whether that’s climbing a mountain or helping with gardening.    We also discuss the best way to select a charity that your business can support and the benefits of a long-term relationship.    

To learn more from other inspirational individuals look at www.responsiblefuturesconference.com    

And, if you’d like to see more Sustain Talks please don’t forget to subscribe to my channel.     Thank you.    

Topics:  

00:30 – Who is Alastair Laing? And what is Alastair’s role at St Ann’s Hospice?  

02:00 – Tell us more about the hospice?  

04:36 - How much does it cost to run a charity like this?  

05:45 - How does the charity get money?  

07:30 - What do the charity partnerships with businesses look like?  

09:50 – Why is it hard to ask businesses for support?  

12:10 – What should I consider when thinking about a charity to support?  

13:24 – What support does the hospice need from businesses?  

15:30 - How has the pandemic been for your charity?  

18:05 - If there was one thing as a charity you could ask for what would it be?    

Alastair Laing - https://www.linkedin.com/in/alistair-laing-1013871ba    

St. Ann’s Hospice - https://www.sah.org.uk

Welcome to Sustain Talks where I discuss the world of Sustainability and CSR with an array of interesting people I come across on my journey.     

Today I’m talking to Ben Kellard, Director of Business Strategy at Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL).    

We are talking about what is a sustainable purpose-led business?  How do businesses understand where they're starting from and how they can transform to that in the future.    With research from the likes of Ikea, Unilever, DSM and Interface, Ben talks about how those big brands integrated sustainability and evidence-based goals into their core purpose and strategy.    

Topics 

00.45 Tell us a bit more about you and your experience in Sustainability and about CISL? 

01.37 What does leading with a sustainable purpose mean?  

05.32 Tell us about your latest report transforming business.  

08.11 What are your thoughts on Climate Change?   

10.32 What differences should people be making now?  

14.12 What are the biggest challenges to transforming businesses?  

17.50 What does getting to Net Zero mean?  

20.15 Can you explain what Nature Based Solutions means?  

22.54 What are your thoughts on offsetting?  

27.07 What are the important lessons you learnt over the last year?  

29.59 What are your goals for 2022?

If you want to hear Ben speak and find out more about becoming a sustainable and socially responsible business, join us at our conference www.responsiblefuturesconference.com 

Welcome to Sustain Talks where I discuss the world of Sustainability and CSR with an array of interesting people I come across on my journey.     Today I’m talking to Andrew Adeniyi who is the author of The Circle of Leadership.   

When Andrew found out that two-thirds of people hated their jobs he felt compelled to understand why, this journey led him to write his book the Circle of Leadership.  

In this Sustain Talks Andrew explores with us what good leadership looks like, what to do with staff who don’t align with your company principles and how to better recruit.    

Andrew also explains why he thinks CEO's should be at the bottom of organisation charts.    So, if you are a CEO, or aspire to be a great leader, this Sustain Talks is just for you!     

To learn more from other inspirational individuals look at www.responsiblefuturesconference.com    

And, if you’d like to see more Sustain Talks please don’t forget to subscribe to my channel.        

Topics: 

00:43 Tell us more about you.   

01:55 Tell us a bit more about The Circle of Leadership.   

03:46 What inspired you to write the book?    

05:57 What does good leadership look like?  

07:48 What does good culture look like?   

09:13 What is the no one thing that leaders should be doing to create a good culture?  

11:26 What are the common mistakes you see in businesses when trying to create culture?   

13:16 How do you change bad company culture?  

15:30 How do you influence cultural change?  

16:53 What do companies need to think about with regard to diversity and inclusion?  

19:01 Who inspires you? Have you seen any great examples of how a business has created a great culture?

Today I’m talking to Jo Hand who is the co-founder of Giki an organisation that helps people to live more sustainably by understanding and measuring your carbon footprint.

Today I’m talking to Gihan Hyde who is the CEO and founder of Communique an organisation that helps you communicate your company’s purpose, environmental, social, and business strategies.  Is ESG just CSR on steroids and do we confuse ourselves with Sustainabubble and Sustainababble? Want to find out more then this Sustain Talks is for you!